The value of textile and apparel exports from China in January 2015 fell sharply. There was a decline of 10.6 per cent year-on-year. Of this, textile exports fell 7.6 per cent while apparel exports dropped 12.4 per cent. The previous year, China’s total textiles and garment exports had increase by 4.06 per cent year-on-year, which was lower than the 4.9 per cent growth recorded for all Chinese exports.

For 2015 China’s textile exports fell 3.9 per cent. However, clothing exports grew 11.8 per cent. There has been a continued depreciation of the yuan against the dollar, driven by the dual factors of lower year-on-year base and a return to growth of the export of Chinese textile clothing in December 2015.

For the Chinese textile and garment industry, manufacturing costs have risen in recent years. At the same time, China's textile and apparel products continue to enjoy export competitiveness in the international market, helping to increase sales orders.

The textile industry is planning to increase textile and clothing annually by about seven per cent and boost the export value of fiber products to $400 billion by 2020. Exports of Chinese textiles and garments over the years have not shown a significant improvement, but the trend is changing.