The key takeaway from China's textile and apparel export data for the first half of 2026 is not the total volume—$145.96 billion, up a modest 1.4%—but the significant structural divergence. Upstream textile exports reached $73 billion, up 3.5% year-on-year, nearly five times the growth rate of finished apparel. This divergence reflects a systemic shift in global sourcing logic from 'stocking finished goods' to 'stocking intermediate inputs.'
June data further confirmed this trend. Monthly textile and apparel exports hit $29.27 billion, up 14.3% month-on-month, with textile exports surging 12.2% year-on-year to $13.52 billion, far outpacing apparel's 3.2% growth. The autumn-winter restocking season drove demand, but order composition clearly favored semi-finished products like yarn and fabric.
Upstream order resilience: the industrial chain advantage
Detailed data for the first five months reveals a stark contrast between upstream and downstream performance. Yarn exports grew 6.6% year-on-year, fabric exports dipped only 0.5%, and textile products rose 2.6%; while apparel exports fell 1.6%. Overseas brands have adopted low-inventory strategies, reducing large long-term garment orders in favor of frequent purchases of yarn and fabric to improve supply chain responsiveness.
For Chinese suppliers, this is both a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge lies in the low entry barrier for apparel OEM, leading to capacity diversion and price competition. The opportunity is that China possesses a complete industrial chain from chemical fiber, spinning, dyeing to finished products, with delivery efficiency and product quality difficult for other regions to replace. The sustained growth of upstream textile orders essentially reflects global buyers' vote of confidence in China's comprehensive supply chain capabilities.
US market as top growth driver, EU-Japan-Korea weak
Overseas market performance shows significant regional divergence. The US market became the largest growth driver in the first half, with export growth to the US expanding 15 percentage points year-on-year. The meeting of Chinese and US heads of state stabilized bilateral expectations, and with overseas brands' inventory destocking complete, buyers increased procurement from Chinese supply chains.
In contrast, traditional mature markets like the EU, Japan, and South Korea continued to weaken. The EU struggled with high energy costs and inflation, reducing consumer willingness to purchase apparel. ASEAN, Japan, and South Korea faced dual pressures from regional tensions and rising energy prices, leading to reduced imports from China. The temporary easing of Middle East tensions and falling shipping costs provided short-term boosts to June exports.
RMB perspective: profit pressure
Switching to RMB-denominated statistics, exchange rate fluctuations created notable distortions. First-half cumulative exports totaled 1,012.22 billion yuan, down 2.2%. Textiles reached 506.42 billion yuan, down only 0.1%, showing strong resilience; apparel reached 505.8 billion yuan, down 4.2%, squeezing OEM manufacturers' profits. June data showed recovery in RMB terms, with monthly exports of 200.25 billion yuan, driven by strong fabric performance.
This means that while USD-denominated export volumes remained stable, RMB appreciation combined with rising costs is narrowing actual profit margins. Apparel OEMs face the dual pressure of overseas brand price compression and rising domestic costs.