This year, the country’s silk fiber supplies well exceeded demand, and silk price hit a record low, falling from 190,000 yuan (US$22,947) per ton in August 2001 to just 120,000 yuan (US$14,493) per ton at present. Along with the falling prices, silk exports have also declined. Customs statistics revealed that in the first half of this year China’s silk export value stood at US$197.25 million, down by 18.96 percent compared with the same period last year. Among them, filature silk was down by 45.8 percent, raw silk down by 28.4 percent and silk spinning yarn down by 30.4 percent. Yet previously China was able to export 80 percent of its silk products.

China’s silk trade is also being challenged by its foreign counterparts including Thailand and India. Over the last decade some countries and international organizations have made major capital and technological investments to support the silk industries of India, Thailand, Vietnam, Brazil, and Nepal, breaking China’s monopoly over the trade. The fine silk products of Brazil are well received in Europe. The stylish silk fabrics of Thailand and India, and the low-priced raw silk of Vietnam also pose a great threat to China’s silk trade. India has become the largest silk consumer and the second largest producer in the world. In 2000 India’s silk export to the US exceeded those of China for the first time, and in 2001 Indian silk exports to the US were 2.56 times those of China.

The lack of well developed silk brands and poor promotion of Chinese silk products has also hampered the industry’s exports. China-made silk products are generally made from raw domestic silks and packaged as part of Italian brands which are then sold at international prices. This scenario has done little to help raise the profile of China’s silk products.

“To sharpen its competitive edges, China needs to upgrade its silk products and explore the new practices and markets,” urged Director Yang Yongyuan. “In addition to its traditional silk garments, scarf and neckties, China should produce refined products such as bedclothes and aesthetic silk products used for decoration.”

China needs to develop its own symbols for high-grade silk and make use of trademarks and brand names to distinguish high quality first-rate products. The China National Silk Association will help customers better understand the significance of symbols over the next three to five years, with 30 percent of genuine silk fabrics and 80 percent of newly developed products to brandish such marks. In addition China will form an association of designers and managers for the country’s finished products.

(china.org.cn by Guo Xiaohong, September 30, 2002)