One out of every five sweaters globally comes from Dalang, Dongguan. This small town in the Pearl River Delta became the focal point of the global wool industry during the 95th International Wool Textile Conference. Dalang's full-industry-chain annual transaction value has exceeded 72 billion yuan, with clothing output surpassing 900 million pieces annually. Behind these numbers lies a microcosm of the wool industry's transformation from traditional manufacturing to intelligent and green operations.
Event Background: Dalang's Industrial Coordinates
Dalang did not rise overnight. As a woolen town nurtured by China's reform and opening-up, it witnessed the textile industry's leap from scattered workshops to a global supply chain hub. The conference theme, 'Intelligent Weaving for the Future: Wool's Health and Digital Life,' directly addresses the core challenge: how can the traditional wool industry find new growth engines when natural fibers meet digital technology, and health consumption merges with green responsibility?
From a global perspective, the IMF has downgraded the 2026 economic growth forecast to 3.1%, with geopolitical conflicts and energy volatility exerting continuous pressure. However, data from the China National Textile and Apparel Council shows that from January to April 2025, profits of textile enterprises above designated size rose 19.3% year-on-year, with an operating profit margin of 2.9%. The coexistence of profit growth and a slight revenue decline (-0.3%) indicates that the industry is absorbing external pressure through efficiency gains and structural optimization.
Industry Impact: Dual Drivers of Intelligence and Green
The intelligent economy is reshaping the production logic of the wool industry. China's textile sector has achieved a digitalization rate of 63.2% in key processes, surpassing the national manufacturing average. The 'Lighthouse Factory' case of Jiangsu Yueda Textile shows that smart manufacturing can reduce labor per 10,000 spindles by about 70%, increase total labor productivity by more than four times, and lower unit energy consumption by 15%. This means that for wool enterprises, intelligentization is no longer an option but a necessity for cost control and competitiveness.
Simultaneously, green manufacturing has become another main thread. Technologies such as non-aqueous dyeing and digital printing are being rapidly adopted, improving the industry's resource efficiency. Dalang's industrial clustering provides a natural testing ground for scaling green technologies. From dyes to digital printing, from AI design to IP cultural creativity, enterprises are building a full-chain green and digital ecosystem.
However, transformation is not without pain. From January to May 2025, fixed asset investment in the textile industry rose 10.8% year-on-year, but investment in the garment and chemical fiber sectors fell by 10.3% and 14.5%, respectively. This divergence reflects cautious attitudes toward capacity expansion across sub-sectors. Wool enterprises must be wary: blindly deploying smart equipment without proper data governance and talent reserves may turn into an 'expensive ornament.'