China’s explosive export growth likely to slow as other manufacturing markets open up, PPE demand wanes
- Many manufacturing countries, such as Vietnam, have now recovered from Covid-19 Delta variant outbreaks and are restarting production
- To date, Chinese exports have defied expectations that power cuts, Covid-19 outbreaks and shipping congestion would deliver a hammer blow
Strong Chinese export growth will likely slow towards the end of the year as more overseas manufacturing bases open up and demand for goods like personal protective equipment (PPE) slows, Chinese manufacturers say.
During an online cotton forum on Tuesday, Zhang Xi’an, vice-chairman of the China Chamber of Commerce for the Import and Export of Textiles, flagged concerns about the outlook for his industry, saying that exports would decline 13 per cent for the full year while apparel exports could still have a 15 per cent rise.
He also warned that many manufacturing countries, such as Vietnam, had now recovered from Covid-19 Delta variant outbreaks and were restarting production. This would increase competition for Chinese exports and coincide with a fall-off in demand for exports of PPE.
The situation for China trade is complicated and severe, the growth rate of textile and apparel exports in the second half will be significantly lower than that of the first half
“The situation for China trade is complicated and severe, the growth rate of textile and apparel exports in the second half will be significantly lower than that of the first half,” he said in a videotaped speech.