China’s textile and apparel exports totaled US$42.88 billion from January to February, down 4.5% year over year. Three factors explain the decline. First, the high base exports in the same period last year reached nearly US$45 billion. Second, securing export orders took effect. China’s textile and apparel companies sped up exports to alleviate the influence of tariffs after Trump’s inauguration. Exports in January increased by 10%, of which exports to the United States surged by 20.8%. It fell rapidly in February, with a decline of 26.9%, of which exports to the U.S. fell by 20.2%. Third, export expectations dropped. The increased U.S. tariff caused a series of chain reactions; enterprises needed to renegotiate with buyers to determine the pricing. At the same time, buyers’ willingness to purchase and enterprises’ willingness to export have declined, resulting in an overall export slowdown.

The international trade environment is facing significant challenges. The Trump administration’s reciprocal tariff has brought uncertainty to global trade. China’s textile and apparel export enterprises actively respond to the challenges. On the one hand, they actively promote market diversification, tap new market opportunities, and hedge against the increased risk of the U.S. market. On the other hand, they speed up the internationalization of the layout and accelerate the establishment of overseas factories. In addition to Southeast Asian countries, Egypt, Morocco, and Ethiopia have become the new investment hotspots. The flagship textile and apparel enterprises have promoted overseas investment projects rapidly.

The textile and apparel trade volume totaled US$45.86 billion from January to February, down 5% year-on-year. Among them, exports were US$42.88 billion, down by 4.5% year-on-year, and imports were US$2.98 billion, dropping by 11.7%. The cumulative trade surplus reached US$39.9 billion, down by 4% year-on-year.

Figure 1: Foreign Trade of China’s Textiles and Apparel from Sept. 2024 to Feb. 2025

At the beginning of 2025, the performance of global major economies diverged. The U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs hit the EU economy, and the pressure of supply chain adjustment increased; Japan’s economy is stable but with weak growth; emerging markets such as Vietnam are under pressure due to the slowdown in exports. The momentum of global economic recovery is insufficient, and the uncertainty that foreign trade faces further expands. Measures such as the consecutive tariffs imposed by the United States on China’s textile and apparel products and the end of the duty-free exception for all imported goods worth less than $800 have significantly impacted China’s exports.

Due to the high export base in the same period last year, China’s textile and apparel exports in the first two months of this year saw a slight decline. The cumulative textile and garment exports from January to February totaled US$42.88 billion, a year-on-year decline of 4.5%. Textile exports were US$21.22 billion, decreasing 2% year-on-year; apparel exports reached US$21.66 billion, down by 6.9 % year-on-year.

In January-February, China’s exports to the United States maintained year-on-year growth of 4.3%, while those to ASEAN, the European Union, and Japan declined by 9.5%, 2.3%, and 1.5%, respectively. Compared with December last year, the growth rate of China’s exports to the United States slowed down 20 percentage points, and exports to ASEAN and the EU turned negative. The exports to the four traditional markets above totaled US$21.79 billion in the first two months, accounting for 50.8%. Exports to the “Belt and Road” countries amounted to US$23.8 billion, declining by 7.9% year-on-year.

Figure 2: Market Share of China’s Textile and Apparel Exports’ Destinations in January-February, 2025

As for the performance of exporters in China, among the top 7 key regions, the textile and apparel exports of Zhejiang, Shandong, and Shanghai grew by 1.1%, 14.3% and 4.7%, respectively; Jiangsu, Guangdong, Fujian and Xinjiang fell by 1.7%, 14.7%, 26.2% and 34.8%.

Figure 3: Export Performance of Major Plays in Jan.-Feb. 2025 (y-o-y growth，±%)

Source: CHINA TEXTILE LEADER Express