Exports grew by just 2.29%, but imports surged 26.65%—the first five months of 2026 paint a clear picture of China's wool textile sector: a rare upstream restocking wave is underway, while downstream exports rely on explosive orders for semi-finished products from emerging markets.
According to the latest Customs statistics, total wool textile trade from January to May reached $6.06 billion, up 8.16% year-on-year, indicating a steady recovery in industry sentiment. However, the divergence between domestic and foreign trade is stark: exports totaled $4.35 billion, up only 2.29%, while imports hit $1.71 billion, soaring 26.65%.
Raw material imports: price-driven, volume stable
The core variable on the import side is wool. Imports of raw and semi-processed wool reached $1.1 billion, surging 34.04% year-on-year, yet the total volume of 130,000 tons remained virtually unchanged from the same period last year. This means the increase is almost entirely attributable to higher international wool spot prices, not an expansion in actual demand.
For domestic wool spinning and cashmere processing mills, this restocking is not a passive response to orders but an active inventory build based on expectations of further price increases. Major wool-producing countries—Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa—have seen limited production growth in recent years due to drought and rising farming costs. The supply tightness is unlikely to reverse in the short term. Higher import costs will directly push up costs for downstream fabrics and garments; the pressure for third-quarter price increases is building.
Export structure: emerging markets take over, wool tops lead
While overall export growth is modest, structural changes are significant. Exports of wool and cashmere raw materials, which account for over 50% of wool textile products, grew 5.11% and 6.97% respectively, reflecting rising overseas recognition of high-end natural fiber products.
The real highlight comes from emerging markets. Orders from India and Turkey achieved leapfrog growth, with wool tops as the main driver: exports to India reached 9,086 tons, up 77.22%; exports to Turkey hit 1,165 tons, up 54.69%. The textile industry in South Asia and the Middle East is undergoing capacity expansion—India's textile park initiative and Turkey's spinning capacity upgrades are directly driving demand for semi-processed wool tops.
This opens a stable incremental channel for China's wool primary processing enterprises. Unlike finished garment exports, which are vulnerable to tariffs and geopolitical fluctuations, semi-finished wool tops have higher technical barriers and customer stickiness. Once a supply relationship is established, order stability is stronger. For wool processing clusters in Shandong, Hebei, and Jiangsu, this is a direction worth deepening.
Industry impact: two transmission chains forming
Integrating the import and export data, two transmission chains are emerging:
- Upstream chain: rising international wool prices → higher import costs → increased restocking enthusiasm → longer raw material inventory cycles → stronger price hike expectations for third-quarter finished products.
- Downstream chain: spinning capacity expansion in South Asia/Middle East → wool top demand explosion → increased export volume for Chinese primary processors → higher share of semi-finished exports → substitution effect on finished garment exports.
These two chains acting together mean domestic wool textile enterprises must proactively adjust raw material procurement strategies and export product mix. The traditional model relying solely on finished product exports is facing competitive substitution from emerging market semi-finished orders.