Trends in US textile and clothing imports, April 2010

79 pages, published in Issue 144, April 2010   Report price: Euro 690.00; US$ 910.00

US imports of textiles and clothing fell for the second year in succession in 2009, by 7.5% to 46.6 bn sme (square metres equivalent), following a 5.2% drop in 2008—which was the first decline since 2001. Within the 2009 total, fabric imports fell by 5.4%, imports of apparel by 6.1%, imports of made-up textiles by 8.5% and yarn imports by 18.4%. Of these four categories, apparel continued to account for the highest share of total imports. Furthermore, at 45.7%, this share was up from 45.1% a year earlier and at its highest level since 2001. The share of fabrics rose for the first time in seven years, to 15.9%. However, this was still the second lowest level on record. By contrast, the share of made-up textiles declined for the second consecutive year but, at 33.3%, it was still the third highest on record. Meanwhile, the share of yarn imports fell for the fifth consecutive year, to just 5.1%.

In terms of fibre type, cotton dominated US apparel imports in 2009 with a share of 59.1%. But man-made fibres dominated textile and apparel imports as a whole with a 56.2% share.

The average price of US textile and clothing imports fell for the first time in three years in 2009, to a new low of US$1.74 per sme. The average prices of imports from China, Vietnam, India and Mexico—the USA’s four largest suppliers, respectively—all fell, as did the average prices of imports from Cambodia, Pakistan and Thailand. By contrast, there were increases in the average prices of imports from Bangladesh, Honduras and Indonesia.

China strengthened its lead as the USA’s biggest supplier in 2009, having increased its share in both value and volume terms. However, imports from the country declined in value terms, by 2.8%, and grew only marginally in terms of volume, by 0.5%. Despite these developments, China’s share of the US import market rose from 35.1% to 39.2% in value terms and from 40.9% to 44.5% in volume. The fastest growing supplier—at least in terms of volume—was Vietnam, as imports from the country increased by 20.8% in terms of sme. In value terms, however, imports from Vietnam declined by 1.7%. Imports from the other leading suppliers fell in value and volume terms. Furthermore, imports from Cambodia, Honduras, Mexico and Thailand all fell at double digit rates and each lost market share. Meanwhile, the declines in imports from Bangladesh, India and Indonesia were confined to single digits and each country gained market share.

Trends in US Textile and Clothing Imports

• Summary
• Introduction
• US Imports of Textiles and Clothing by Main Category: Yarns, Fabrics, Apparel and Made-Up Textiles
• US Imports of Textiles and Clothing by Fibre Type
• Major Suppliers of US Textile and Clothing Imports
• US Textile and Clothing Import Prices
• Supplier Concentration
• Outlook for US Textile and Clothing Imports
• US Imports of Men’s and Boys’ Cotton Coats
• US Imports of Women’s and Girls’ Cotton Coats
• US Imports of Women’s and Girls’ Wool Coats
• US Imports of Cotton Dresses
• US Imports of Men’s and Boys’ Cotton Knitted Shirts
• US Imports of Women’s and Girls’ Cotton Knitted Shirts
• US Imports of Men’s and Boys’ Cotton Non-Knitted (Woven) Shirts
• US Imports of Women’s and Girls’ Cotton Non-Knitted (Woven) Shirts
• US Imports of Cotton Skirts
• US Imports of Man-Made Fibre Skirts
• US Imports of Men’s and Boys’ Cotton Trousers
• US Imports of Women’s and Girls’ Cotton Trousers
• US Imports of Cotton and Man-Made Fibre Baby Garments
• US Imports of Cotton Pile Towels
• US Imports of Other Cotton Apparel

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• Trends in world textile and clothing trade, February 2010, (February 2010)
• World textile and apparel trade and production trends: the USA, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, November 2009, (November 2009)
• Trends in EU textile and clothing imports, September 2009, (September 2009)

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