One out of every five sweaters globally is made in Dalang, a wool-knitting town in Guangdong that produces over 900 million garments annually, with a total industrial chain transaction value exceeding 72 billion RMB. At the recently concluded 95th International Wool Textile Conference, these figures were not mere industrial credentials but a concrete manifestation of China's textile sector's role as a 'ballast stone' in the global supply chain. The core signal from the conference is that, amid the new normal of low growth and high-frequency volatility, China's textile industry is offsetting external uncertainties through profit recovery and paradigm shifts.
Profit Recovery and Investment Divergence: A Structural Adjustment Period
The latest data from the China National Textile and Apparel Council reveals a mixed picture. From January to April 2025, revenue of textile enterprises above designated size edged down 0.3% year-on-year, but total profit surged 19.3%, pushing the profit margin to 2.9%. This indicates that the industry is digesting weak demand through cost reduction, efficiency gains, and product mix optimization. However, the investment side tells a different story: fixed asset investment in textiles grew 10.8%, while apparel and chemical fiber sectors fell 10.3% and 14.5%, respectively. This divergence suggests that capital is accelerating towards smart manufacturing and high-value-added segments, while expansion in traditional processing is contracting—a shift from 'laying out more stalls' to 'moving up the ladder'.
The Intelligent Economy: From Concept to Deep Penetration
The conference theme 'Intelligent Weaving Future' is not just rhetoric. China's textile industry has achieved a digitalization rate of 63.2% in key processes, outpacing the national manufacturing average. In 2024, 30 textile enterprises were included in the 5G factory list. Behind these numbers lies a fundamental reshaping of production logic. For instance, Jiangsu Yueda Textile, a 'Lighthouse Factory', reduced labor per 10,000 spindles by about 70%, quadrupled labor productivity, and cut energy consumption by 15%. This explains why, despite overall investment contraction, textile fixed-asset investment maintained double-digit growth—intelligent transformation has become a 'must-have' for survival rather than a 'nice-to-have'.
Experience Economy and Product Restructuring
Consumer-side polarization is forcing the wool and broader textile industry to redefine value. When consumer demands for health, emotional connection, and self-expression outweigh basic warmth, the integration of natural fibers and digital technology becomes a critical breakthrough. Companies like Anoky are building closed-loop ecosystems from dyes to AI design to IP cultural products, signaling that competition is shifting from 'selling fabrics' to 'selling solutions'. The globalization of Chinese-style trends confirms this: brands like Anta and Shein have entered the global top 500, backed by deep embedding of Chinese design into consumer experiences.
'China's Certainty' in the Global Supply Chain
Despite challenges like geopolitical conflicts and shipping disruptions, China's textile industry continues to provide critical stability for global supply chains. With annual fiber processing exceeding 60 million tons, garment output over 70 billion pieces, and exports surpassing $300 billion for six consecutive years, these figures show that China's scale and system advantages remain intact. In the first five months of 2025, textile exports grew 1.7% year-on-year while apparel exports fell 1.6%, indicating that intermediate goods (fabrics, chemical fibers) demonstrate stronger export resilience, reinforcing China's role as a global textile 'intermediate hub'.