Textile And Garment Exports Fell 17.7% In The First Quarter, And Enterprises Actively Sought Countermeasures.

In April 14th, the General Administration of Customs announced the import and export data for the first quarter of March 2020.

From the first quarter, the total value of imports and exports was 6 trillion and 570 billion yuan, down 6.4% from the same period last year. Among them, exports were 3 trillion and 330 billion yuan, down 11.4%; imports 3 trillion and 240 billion yuan, down 0.7%; trade surplus 98 billion 330 million yuan, 80.6% reduction. Affected by the outbreak of the new crown pneumonia, foreign trade declined in the first quarter. However, due to the timely and effective control of the domestic epidemic in March, the manufacturing industry resumed production and resumed production rapidly, and the volume of foreign trade increased significantly compared with February. In terms of RMB, imports and exports fell by only 0.8% in March, of which exports declined by 3.5% and imports increased by 2.4%.

Textile and clothing 7 categories of labor-intensive products exported 596 billion 980 million yuan, down 15.3%, accounting for 17.9% of the total value of exports, textile and clothing exports fell more than the overall export trade.

In Renminbi:

In the first quarter of 2020, textile and apparel exports totaled 316 billion 260 million yuan, down 15.9%, of which 158 billion 530 million yuan for textile exports, 12.7% for clothing, 157 billion 730 million yuan for clothing exports, and 18.9% for exports.

In March, the export of textiles and clothing was 107 billion 780 million yuan, down 12.2%, of which 62 billion 310 million yuan for textile exports, 3.1% for clothing, 45 billion 470 million yuan for clothing exports, and 22.2% for exports.

In US dollars:

In the first quarter of 2020, textile and apparel exports totaled 45 billion 260 million US dollars, down 17.7% (13.3% of the total export volume of goods trade in China), of which textile exports were US $22 billion 690 million, down 14.6%, and clothing exports 22 billion 570 million US dollars, down 20.6%.

In March, exports of textiles and garments were US $15 billion 430 million, a decrease of 15.1%, of which 8 billion 920 million US dollars in textile exports decreased by 6.3%, and clothing exports 6 billion 510 million US dollars, down 24.8%.

For the trend of foreign trade throughout the year, Li Kuiwen, director general of the General Administration of customs and director of the statistical analysis Division, said that the current global new crown pneumonia epidemic is spreading rapidly, which has caused a serious impact on the world economic development. The shrinking demand in the international market will inevitably impact on China's foreign trade export, and the reduction of new orders in foreign trade will gradually appear. The difficulties facing China's foreign trade development should not be underestimated. But at the same time, we must also see that China's foreign trade is strong and competitive, and our enterprises have strong ability of innovation and market development. All localities and departments have adopted a series of measures to stabilize the development of foreign trade to help enterprises overcome difficulties and gradually open up international transport corridors and stabilize the supply chain industry chain. Our country has the institutional advantage of concentrating on major events, and has strong domestic market. We are confident that we will stabilize the basic foreign trade market and minimize the impact of the epidemic on China's imports and exports.

From the recent textile and garment enterprises' survey conducted by China Textile Industry Enterprise Management Association, we know that in the first quarter of this year, the textile and garment enterprises have suffered major difficulties in reopening and selling, and the economic benefits are generally lower than the same period in previous years. Some enterprises have increased the number of anti epidemic materials, such as production and sales masks, isolating clothes and protective clothing, compared with the same period last year. Some enterprises have been quick to respond and adjust production to turn the corner. However, due to the obvious export-oriented characteristics of China's textile and garment industry, most enterprises are facing new situations such as the export orders being halted or cancelled, the delivery of goods postponed and so on after the outbreak of the international epidemic. The cost of personnel and international freight increased by three or four times were in urgent need of cash flow. According to reports, at present, Zhejiang, Shaoxing, Shengzhou and other places have already been shut down by enterprises. Research enterprises predict, with the gradual control of the international epidemic situation, if the market trend is gradually clear in May, the industry can gradually improve. If the market situation is not improving in June, most enterprises will face a big test this year.

In the face of difficulties, textile enterprises are also actively looking for countermeasures. They are: actively communicating with merchants, minimizing losses; actively communicating with employees, making every effort to protect their employees' lives while maintaining the operation of enterprises; enhancing endogenous motivation, upgrading product grades, preparing for the improvement of the situation, and integrating resources in the industry through mergers and acquisitions. To tide over difficulties, develop new channels for online sales, meet diversified needs of consumers, and do well in cash flow risk control.

Enterprises also hope that the state will stabilize the exchange rate, export tax rebates in a timely manner, and help enterprises to remove the forward exchange rate lock.