LONDON — February 8, 2016 — The research provides an insight into the trend for reshoring in the textile industry. It evaluates the market opportunity for growth, especially within the United States as reshoring is gaining momentum in the textile industry. The research provides an impact mapping of the key growth drivers and restraints. The research also discusses the market dynamics of the textile industry. The base year of the study is 2014, with forecasts provided up to 2018.

Key Findings

• The North American market for textiles is expected to witness a new wave of growth, fostered by a returning market shaped by multiple levels of cost reduction.
• In the total value chain for textiles, it is evident that the negligible cost reduction of outsourcing is balanced by the high quality and easy logistics in the domestic market.
• Cost has played a critical role in outsourcing the industry to the far East. In recent years, as costs of labor in outsourced regions have increased, the US textile industry is showing signs of recovering from a decade long exodus.
• Although the primary reason that spearheaded the outsourcing was the high cost of labor, the US is now cost comparable with other attractive regions primarily due to increased automation in the mill.
• With the established industry already present in the Southern states, the US is attracting several manufacturers to source domestically, thereby offering several advantages such as flexibility of design and shorter lead times to get the product to market.
• The trend is expected to gradually ramp up over the next to years. While some of the largest yarn mills are in China, India, and Mexico, the US continues to regain much ground in enabling growth of the textile industry.

Posted February 8, 2016

Source: PRNewswire

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — February 6, 2016 — National Cotton Council (NCC) economists say 2016 will be another challenging year for the U.S. cotton industry — with low cotton prices, ample global stocks and uncertainties regarding global mill cotton use.

Dr. Jody Campiche, the NCC’s vice president, Economics & Policy Analysis, told delegates at the NCC’s 78th Annual Meeting in Dallas, Texas, today that, “While world mill use is expected to exceed world production in 2016, global cotton stocks remain at high levels.”

Regarding domestic cotton mill use, USDA estimates U.S. mill use at 3.6 million bales, up 25,000 bales from 2014 and marking the fourth consecutive year of increased consumption. The Economic Adjustment Assistance Program (EAAP) continues to be an important source of stability allowing mills to invest in new facilities and equipment, but the strength of the U.S. dollar is creating challenges for yarn exports.

She said export markets continue to be the primary outlet for U.S. raw fiber. In recent years, U.S. export customers have changed. China is importing less raw cotton fiber, leading to a reduction in world trade. Although U.S. exports to China have been declining since 2012, drastic reductions have occurred in the 2015 marketing year. As a result, the NCC estimates 2015 U.S. exports at 9.5 million bales, down 15.5 percent from 2014 and below the most recent USDA estimate. The current estimate may prove to be a bit optimistic as the weekly pace will need to increase throughout the remainder of the marketing year to reach 9.5 million bales.

Campiche said that considering the massive stockpiles of cotton and expectations for limited quota, China’s imports are expected to fall further in 2016 to 4.75 million bales, down from 5.5 million in 2015.

China’s mill use is projected to decline in 2016, Campiche noted. She said that although China’s internal cotton price has declined in the past year, it is still almost twice the level of polyester prices as those prices also have weakened – a relationship that is not allowing cotton mill use in China to recover.

India is projected to continue as the world’s largest cotton producer and the second largest exporter in 2016. Indian cotton producers continue to receive support through fertilizer subsidies and the Minimum Support Price (MSP) program. In addition, India will begin a pilot program in 2016 that could eventually replace the current MSP with a direct farmer subsidy program.

Campiche projects U.S. offtake of 13.8 million bales in 2016, leading to an increase in ending stocks of 193,000 bales. Although world cotton stocks are projected to decline by 6.3 million bales in 2016, the reduction is not large enough to significantly reduce global inventories that begin the year at 103 million bales.  While projections of global consumption exceeding production normally would be supportive of prices, the implications for the coming year may not be as clear cut. The majority of the decline in global stocks is due to reduced inventories in China. An aggressive approach by China to reduce stocks would have bearish implications for world prices, particularly if the increased availability of reserve cotton reduced China’s demand for imported cotton yarn.

In her analysis of the NCC Annual Planting Intentions survey results, Campiche said the NCC projects 2016 U.S. cotton acreage to be 9.1 million acres, about 6.2 percent more than 2015. With abandonment set at 11 percent for the United States, Cotton Belt harvested area totals 8.1 million acres. Using an average U.S. yield per harvested acre of 831 pounds generates a cotton crop of 14.0 million bales, with 13.4 million upland bales and 595,000 extra-long staple bales.

However, it is important to note that although the survey results suggest a slight increase in acreage, the modest increase in cotton acreage is largely the result of weaker prices of competing crops and improved expectations for water and favorable planting-time weather. Comments from respondents underscored the very difficult financial conditions facing cotton producers. For the past two years, U.S. cotton producers have struggled with low cotton prices and high production costs – and with current futures markets indicating steady prices, producers’ economic situation is not likely to improve in 2016. Some producers, in fact, will find it very difficult to obtain production financing for the current year.

Posted February 8, 2016

Source: NCC

CARY, NC. — February 3, 2016 — Technology scouts attending INDA’s Research, Innovation & Science for Engineered Fabrics (RISE®) left inspired by the valuable connections, solutions and new ideas they discovered at the recently concluded conference.

The January 25-28 event at the Le Meridien Hotel in New Orleans drew 100-plus technical professionals to network and learn from industry experts, scientists and R&D specialists on leading-edge topics with the potential to change the future of nonwovens and engineered fabrics.

“RISE is unlike any other event in our industry with its focus on ‘what’s next,’” said INDA President Dave Rousse. “In that way it is an eye-opener and gets people to think about applications and possibilities for the future they perhaps never imagined had they not attended.”

Jim Robinson, Technical Services Manager of BASF Hygiene Products said he came to RISE expecting a more traditional conference with a list of people he wanted to meet and valuable sessions to attend.

“What I didn’t expect was the fact that, over the two-and-a-half days of the conference, I would find solutions that I could apply to at least four current projects, each with different technical and market needs, and that the unplanned contacts would turn out to be so valuable to making progress on these projects in a timely fashion,” Robinson said.

Tony Wu, Senior Scientist at Owens Corning Science & Technology Center praised RISE as “a good platform for nonwoven technical exchange and learning on industrial trends.”

Topics that got attendees thinking differently included such concepts as rebuilding fibers and fabrics using revolutionary self-healing bio-formation structures; making lighter weight, economic and sustainable nonwovens from eucalyptus and milkweed materials; and recycling carbon fibers in the auto industry, among others.

RISE Durable Product Award Presented

The prestigious RISE® Durable Product Award was presented to Suominen for FibrellaTM Lite, a nonwoven product for absorbent hygiene products. RISE attendees selected Fibrella Lite over finalists Groz-Beckert’s Gebecon Needle and ITW Dynatec’s Ultra SCS.
“Suominen is honored to receive the prestigious RISE Award for Fibrella® Lite, a lightweight nonwoven spunlaced product which offers softness, strength and high elongation made with 100 percent thermoplastic fibers,” said Lynda A. Kelly, Senior Vice President, Care Business. “We thank INDA, the RISE committee and attendees of RISE for this recognition.”

INDA also announced the next RISE conference — the seventh edition — will be held January 23-26, 2017, at the Sugar Land Marriott Town Square in Sugar Land, Texas, near Houston.

Posted February 3, 2016

Source: INDA