1. Import volume
According to latest China Customs, cotton yarn imports amounted to around 142kt in May 2017, down 17% y-o-y and up 0.63% m-o-m. In Jan-May, 2017, cotton yarn imports increased by 1.19% compared with the same period of last year to 813.1kt.
Imports of cotton yarn in May were higher than earlier anticipation, and imports from India slipped apparently on the year to around 11kt.
2. Import origins
| Imports of cotton yarn by nation in May 2017 |
| Unit: kt |
Import volume |
YOY change |
MOM change |
| Total |
141.90 |
-29.06 |
0.89 |
| Vietnam |
59.89 |
7.20 |
4.03 |
| Pakistan |
24.59 |
-5.92 |
-0.23 |
| India |
11.40 |
-28.08 |
-8.96 |
| Uzbekistan |
10.19 |
1.35 |
1.88 |
| Indonesia |
8.84 |
-1.10 |
1.69 |
| Taiwan |
9.19 |
-1.35 |
1.96 |
| China |
7.22 |
-2.33 |
-1.02 |
| Malaysia |
3.31 |
0.95 |
-0.19 |
| US |
2.76 |
0.65 |
0.17 |
| South Korea |
1.51 |
0.12 |
0.43 |
| Tanzania |
0.78 |
-0.37 |
0.78 |
| Thailand |
0.96 |
-0.67 |
-0.08 |
Besides India, imports of cotton yarn from Pakistan also declined a lot compared with the same period of last year, while those from nations with investment of Chinese textile companies like Vietnam, Malaysia, US and Uzbekistan moved up. As for m-o-m change, imports of cotton yarn from India and Pakistan slipped obviously.
Proportion of Pakistani cotton yarn kept decreasing in China, down to current 17.33% from above 40% in 2012. The decrement of Indian cotton yarn in May hit earlier expectation, with the market share down to current 8.04% from peak 34%, hitting the lowest since Jan 2012. Imports of Vietnamese cotton yarn maintained firm momentum, with proportion hitting new high at 42.21% in May.
Except for reduction in market share, the absolute import volume of Indian cotton yarn also hit the lowest since Jan 2012, staying at around 11.4kt. Market players expected imports of Indian cotton yarn to decline in May, but the decrement exceeded expectation. Indian forward cotton yarn price was higher than the spot price in China, lacking price advantage.
3. Cotton yarn imports by count
| Imports of cotton yarn by count in May 2017 |
| Unit: kt |
Import volume |
YOY change |
MOM change |
| Carded 8-25S/1 |
70.5 |
-13 |
1.8 |
| CD30-47S/1 |
20.6 |
-2.8 |
2.7 |
| Combed 30-47S/1 |
10.8 |
-6.9 |
-3.7 |
| Carded cotton yarn below 8S/1 |
8.3 |
-2.9 |
0.1 |
| CM 8-25S/1 |
5.7 |
-3.4 |
-1.3 |
| CM25-30S/1 |
5.1 |
-1.4 |
-0.8 |
| CD25-30S/1 |
3.5 |
0.2 |
0.2 |
| Carded 8-25S multiple plied |
1.4 |
-0.8 |
-0.5 |
Imports of carded 25-30S/1 increased in May on the year and on the month, but the cardinal number was small, which could be ignored. Imports of carded cotton yarn slipped in May compared with the same period of last year but slightly increased on the month, and imports of combed cotton yarn dropped both y-o-y and m-o-m in May, which may be related with recently surging price and regional tightness of combed cotton yarn.
4. Summary
In summary, imports of cotton yarn in May were largely flat with those in Apr, higher than anticipation, and imports of cotton yarn from India dropped obviously to around 11kt, hitting the new low since Jan 2012, with proportion dipping to around 8%. Imports of Pakistani cotton yarn kept reducing, with market share at around 17%, and those of Vietnamese cotton yarn edged up further, with proportion staying above 42%. As for cotton yarn imports by count, most goods declined in May compared with the corresponding period of last year, but imports of carded cotton yarn for weaving moved up on the month, and those of combed cotton yarn for knitting dipped. It is known that price of imported combed cotton yarn for knitting is rising amid regional tightness. Procurement of imported combed cotton yarn for knitting has declined during earlier period, and negotiating room for forward combed cotton yarn for knitting is large, which should be noted.
