U.S. apparel imports got off to a slow start in January, a likely testament to ongoing sluggish demand as COVID-19 spikes persisted.

Overall apparel imports declined 18.34 percent to USD 5.52 billion worth of goods in the month compared to January 2020, according to the Commerce Department’s Office of Textiles & Apparel (OTEXA). All of the Top 10 suppliers posted year-on-year import declines except Pakistan, with the No. 9 producer for the U.S. market shipping 11.99 percent more goods for a value of USD 147 million.

 

Imports from still-top supplier China, which has seen rapid drop-offs the past two years mainly due to tariff risks, fell 19.9 percent to a value of USD 1.3 billion. No. 2 producer Vietnam’s imports to the U.S. decreased 18.62 percent to USD 1.07 billion.

 

Among other Asian suppliers, shipments from Bangladesh were down 16.61 percent to USD 519 million, while imports from Cambodia, which had been posting consistent gains during 2020, fell 17.32 percent to USD 230 million. Imports from India dropped 22.28 year-on-year to USD 288 million and shipments from Indonesia were down 33.17 percent to USD 276 million.

 

Western Hemisphere countries in the Top 10 seemed to slow the rate of decline in the month. Imports from Mexico declined 13.14 percent to a value of USD 178 million, as shipments from Honduras fell 10.09 percent to USD 138 million and imports from El Salvador were off 8.12 percent to USD 108 million.

 

While nearly all manufacturers of apparel for the U.S. market tracked by OTEXA posted declines in imports for the month, notable exceptions were all countries that ship their apparel to the U.S. under free trade agreement. Imports from Guatemala, which operates under the Central America Free Trade Agreement, as do Honduras and El Salvador, ticked up 0.9 percent in the month to USD 115.85 million.

 

Out of Africa, imports from Egypt increased 3.4 percent year-on-year to USD 92.55 million, and shipments from Ethiopia jumped 17.1 percent to USD 21.63 million, despite political unrest that has curtailed its steady rise of late.

 

Source: sourcingjournal.com