To analyze COVID-19’s effect on the global value chain for textiles, ITMF recently conducted its fourth Corona Survey among 600 members around the world. The study suggested that orders in the textile sector would rebound in Q4 2020.
TEXTILE ORDERS DROPPED BY 40%
The survey showed that from 1 March 2020, when the pandemic began to 8 June 2020, textile orders around the world plummeted by more than 40 per cent. Order declines are common in all industries. Orders for fiber producers fell by 42 per cent while their turnover fell by 33 per cent.
Similarly, spinner orders have declined by 44 per cent while their turnover has declined by 33 per cent. Yet weaver yet knitter orders dropped 46 per cent, while sales fell 33 per cent. Garment manufacturers reported a 37% drop in orders while their turnover dropped 31%.
In the future too, textile companies expect orders to fall by 32 per cent. Out of this, 22 per cent companies in South East Asia expect orders to drop while 36 per cent in Asia expect the same.
SECTOR TO REVIVE BY Q4 2020
There is nevertheless a silver lining among stakeholders and a sense of optimism. When asked when they expect companies to return to pre-crisis levels, around 23 % of respondents said they expect orders to revive by the first quarter of 2021, while 21% expect a revival by the second quarter of 2021. A third group, comprising 14% of respondents, expects revival to occur by the third quarter of the year, while 20% expect revival to occur as early as the fourth quarter of 2020.
