In June 2026, China's national textile and apparel professional market sentiment index revealed a delicate balance: market management indicators are recovering, but merchant profit sheets remain tight. According to monitoring data from the China National Textile and Apparel Council's Circulation Branch, the manager sentiment index stood at 49.78, up 0.43 percentage points month-on-month, while the merchant sentiment index reached 50.07, up 0.34 percentage points. One index below the boom-bust line and one above highlight the divergent fortunes along the supply chain.
Market Operations: Foot Traffic and Store Openings Improve, Rents Stabilize
From the management side, sub-indices in June showed positive signals. The logistics shipment volume index and foot traffic index both recorded 49.03, up 0.64 percentage points from the previous month. The store opening rate index was 49.35, up 0.32 percentage points. Although these three positive indicators remain below 50, their upward trend suggests that actual transaction activity in professional markets is recovering. More notably, the rent index stood at 50.65, consistently above the boom-bust line and up 0.33 percentage points month-on-month. This indicates that market managers' pricing power has not been weakened by fluctuating traffic, and the fundamentals of property values remain solid. The total business volume index remained flat at 49.03, suggesting that overall transaction scale has not yet expanded significantly, and the market is still in a 'stable volume, rising price' recovery channel.
Merchant Profit Side: Prices and Profits Under Dual Pressure, Costs Creep Up
In contrast to the moderate improvement on the management side, merchant-level operational pressures remain acute. In June, the average selling price index for merchants was 49.30, down 0.22 percentage points month-on-month; the profit index was 49.86, up 0.89 percentage points from the previous month but still below 50. More notably, the comprehensive cost index was 50.63, down 0.19 percentage points—a decline meaning cost pressures are intensifying. During the same period, 6.99% of merchants reported rising operating costs, an increase of nearly 7 percentage points from the previous month. The inventory index was 50.00, up 0.21 percentage points, indicating a slight easing of inventory pressure, but destocking is not accelerating. The sales volume index rebounded to 50.14, up 1.03 percentage points, making it one of the few bright spots for merchants, but the pattern of 'volume up, price down' has not fundamentally changed.
E-commerce Channels: Steady Growth as a Structural Support
E-commerce sales performance was the most prominent in June. The manager e-commerce sales index was 51.61, up 0.64 percentage points month-on-month; the merchant e-commerce sales index was 50.49, up 0.35 percentage points. Both indices are above the boom-bust line with clear upward trends. In terms of share, 22.58% of professional market managers reported increased e-commerce sales, up 6.45 percentage points from the previous month; 9.79% of merchants reported increased e-commerce sales, up 8.42 percentage points. This indicates that online-offline integration is shifting from rhetoric to a real growth engine. For traditional wholesale markets, e-commerce channels are no longer a 'supplement' but a key variable in stabilizing overall sales scale.
Outlook: Confidence Exceeds Current Conditions, but July Lull Needs Watching
All forecast indices are above 50: the manager next-period sentiment index is 50.32, the next-period business environment index is 50.97; the merchant next-period sentiment index is 50.84, and the next-period business environment index is 50.84. All four indicators show industry participants are optimistic about the July market. However, it should be noted that June itself is a transitional month between low and peak seasons, and July typically faces challenges from high temperatures and the end of summer clothing sales. If merchant profit-side improvements cannot keep pace with management-side recovery, the market may see 'busy but not profitable' conditions.