Nonwoven output surged 9.5% year-on-year, and tire cord fabric output grew 3.8%, giving China's technical textiles industry a 'volume up, profit thin' report card for the first five months of 2026. Revenue of above-scale enterprises turned from decline to growth, up 1.7%, but total profits still fell 3% year-on-year, with an operating profit margin of only 3.6%. These contrasting figures reveal the sector's core contradiction: demand is recovering, but cost and competitive pressures have not eased.
Production Divergence Intensifies
Nonwovens were the standout subsector. Output growth accelerated by 5.6 percentage points compared to the same period last year, with revenue and total profits rising 2.5% and 9.9% respectively. Although the operating profit margin was only 2.7%, it improved by 0.2 percentage points, suggesting that nonwoven enterprises are repairing profits through scale and efficiency. In contrast, the textile belting and tire cord fabric industry saw revenue fall 4.1% and profits drop 2.4%, indicating weak downstream demand from automotive and industrial sectors. The tarpaulin and canvas industry grew revenue by 8.5% but saw profits decline 5.7%, with the operating margin down 0.6 percentage points, reflecting direct erosion from rising raw material costs.
Export Structure Shows New Highlights
Total industry exports reached $18.81 billion, up 5.3%, while imports totaled $2.28 billion, up 3.1%. The largest export category—industrial coated fabrics—recorded $2.19 billion in exports, growing only 1%, signaling a slowdown in traditional strengths. Nonwovens, with $1.93 billion in exports, grew 10.7%, with export volume reaching 770,000 tons, up 13.4%, becoming the core export engine. Absorbent textiles (diapers, sanitary napkins) exported $1.76 billion, up 10.7%; among wiping textiles, wet wipes exported $490 million, surging 14.7%. These figures point to a trend: overseas demand for consumer-oriented technical textiles is rapidly expanding.
By destination, the US remained top at $2.21 billion, but growth was only 3.5%; Vietnam ranked second at $1.48 billion, growing 8.3%; Japan at $940 million, up 0.9%. More critically, exports to Belt and Road countries reached $11.34 billion, up 5.5%, accounting for about 60% of total exports. This share indicates that China's technical textile export focus is shifting from traditional Western markets to emerging economies.
Raw Material Cost Pressures Persist
In June 2026, international oil prices fell sharply amid eased US-Israel-Iran tensions, improved navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, and plans by Iraq and other producers to accelerate output. Polyester and nylon filament prices weakened, polypropylene prices entered a downward channel, while viscose staple fiber fluctuated upward due to cost support. As geopolitical premiums recede, the trading logic of the chemical fiber industry is slowly returning to supply-demand fundamentals. For technical textile companies, raw material price volatility means inventory management and procurement timing must be more agile.