In 2026, knitted sports fabrics at China Textile City are experiencing simultaneous growth in domestic and export sales, with functional composite materials like cooling and high-stretch becoming the core hot-selling category. The industry is accelerating its shift away from low-price homogenization, as source factories with full-chain supply and AI digital tools begin to grasp pricing power. This change not only concerns Keqiao but also reflects the upgrade direction of the entire knitting industry.
Market Data and Category Differentiation
At the outdoor functional fabric zone on Dongsheng Road in China Textile City, products such as ice-silk cooling fabric, breathable bird-eye mesh, soft milk silk, warm flannel, coral fleece, and super-soft knitted fabrics are neatly displayed, with differentiated functional textures widely recognized by domestic and overseas buyers. For spring/summer fitness and outdoor cycling, ice-silk, milk silk, and dense bird-eye mesh are promoted for their cooling effect and quick moisture-wicking properties; for autumn/winter loungewear and casual sets, flannel, coral fleece, and super-soft fabrics are favored for their fluffy warmth and skin-friendly feel. Flat polyester-spandex stretch fabric suits yoga wear and base layers, offering high elasticity and resistance to deformation, balancing athletic movement and daily wear.
Fabric applications continue to cross boundaries, expanding from sports T-shirts, fitness pants, and sun-protection wear to home pajamas, sofa throws, and bedding sets, indicating a growing market. This implies that single-function fabrics are no longer sufficient; composite functions and multi-scenario adaptability have become new competitive points. For buyers, choosing suppliers with a full product line can significantly reduce the complexity of multi-vendor sourcing.
Industrial Upgrade Path: From Full-Chain Supply to AI Empowerment
Source factories like Gude Textile are securing their position in the knitted fabric market through a full-chain supply model. The company integrates raw material procurement, greige fabric weaving, eco-friendly dyeing, stock wholesale, and small-batch sample customization. They use only virgin polyester and high-elasticity polyester-spandex raw materials, equipped with a full range of finishing processes including preshrinking, cooling coating, anti-pilling brushing, and reactive eco-friendly dyeing, solving industry pain points such as fabric stiffness, shedding, stuffiness, and elasticity loss.
In the early years, the common knitted fabric industry in Keqiao faced prominent issues: low-price recycled polyester greige fabrics with poor elasticity and pilling, cooling fabrics that failed after repeated washing; single-category products forcing buyers to source from multiple suppliers; and small workshops lacking complete dyeing and finishing capabilities, resulting in color fading and rough textures that failed to meet mid-to-high-end demand. Today, full-chain enterprises leverage their own weaving and dyeing production lines, maintaining a stock of over a thousand tons, offering competitive prices for large quantities and rapid sampling for small batches and multiple colors. During the 2026 Spring/Summer Textile Expo, a dense cooling bird-eye knitted fabric secured a cross-border order of 30,000 meters, confirming the market competitiveness of source-level one-stop supply.
AI digitalization is a key variable in the knitting industry's upgrade. The "AI Fabric" mini-program at China Textile City can identify fabric parameters and generate garment and promotional materials with one click, connecting the entire production and sales chain and reducing digitalization costs for merchants. Gude Textile also provides AI digital sample garment services, allowing buyers to generate sportswear and homewear effect images instantly, facilitating bilateral cooperation between fabric wholesale and apparel brand design. This implies that digital tools are evolving from marketing aids to essential order-acquisition requirements, especially for small and medium buyers, as AI samples significantly shorten development cycles and reduce sampling costs.
Trends and Implications
The knitted sports and home fabric industry is showing four major structural trends: first, functional composite fabrics are becoming mainstream, with surging demand for cooling, sun protection, and thermal quick-dry properties, replacing inferior recycled fabrics with virgin polyester-spandex materials; second, differentiated competition in niche segments is emerging, with quality source factories holding pricing power while low-price commodities see shrinking profits; third, flexible quick response and ample stock are becoming procurement necessities, giving full-chain enterprises an edge in small orders; fourth, green dyeing is spreading, with eco-friendly raw materials and OEKO certification becoming prerequisites for export orders.
For upstream chemical fiber enterprises, rising demand for virgin polyester-spandex means R&D investment in recycled and functional fibers will pay off; for midstream weaving and dyeing mills, environmental processes and digital management are no longer optional but admission tickets to mid-to-high-end supply chains; for downstream buyers, stock availability and flexible quick response directly affect replenishment speed during peak seasons. The simultaneous growth of domestic and export orders is backed by Keqiao's complete knitting industry chain and AI empowerment. The industry will continue to develop functional and recycled fabrics, integrating green production and digital technology to solidify its global supply advantage.