Fifteen years of battling against a constantly changing business environment has not, so far, succeeded in knocking Hong Kong's textile industry from its position as second in the world in garment output after Italy.
The textile industry contributes 40 per cent of the SAR's domestic exports. It earned $85 billion in foreign exchange last year. But it is an industry in decline.
Since 1995, the garment trade has lost almost 38 per cent of its labour force, down from 93,724 to 58,341. This is not because the market is shrinking - although it is an increasingly competitive business, the orders are still available. The problem results from Hong Kong's transformation into a First World economy. School leavers now set their sights on more challenging and lucrative careers than a lifetime at a factory bench.
Textile bosses are pressing the case for imported labour to help them out of a crisis which could permanently cripple trade.
They argue that by solving the blue-collar shortage, they can revitalise the industry and place an emphasis on hi-tech and value-added work, leading to more jobs for designers, merchandisers and other professions which would attract local talent.
Had companies taken that approach earlier, instead of moving to mainland factories, today's difficulties might have been avoided. Taiwan and Japan weathered a crisis in their textile trade by developing hi-tech fabrics.
