Textile industry advances amid economic slowdown  

曾被喻10亿双袜子换一架飞机 中国纺织业逆市前行

历经全球经济危机、贸易摩擦的冲击以及成本上升等不利因素后，中国纺织业正在从“拼成本、拼价格”走上结构调整、转型升级的道路，单靠低廉的加工来赚取微薄的利润已难以为继。

Beijing (CNS)--Despite the global economic slowdown, China's textile industry maintained growth in the first half of this year with a year-on-year increase of 11 percent in gross output value, an industry expert has said.

China's textile industry achieved enormous growth in the first ten years of this century thanks to a good economic environment at home and abroad, according Wang Tiankai, president of the China National Textile and Apparel Council (CNTAC). However, the industry as a whole in China is now facing multiple challenges from declining global demand and the increasing costs of labor and raw materials.

The industry has moved toward economic structural adjustment and industrial transformation and upgrading, while increasing demand from the domestic market is playing an important role in its growth, Wang said.

In 2011 the textile industry maintained steady growth, with the gross output value of enterprises above designated size reaching nearly 5.48 trillion yuan, Wang added. In the first half of this year, it reached more than 2.66 trillion yuan and grew 11 percent compared to last year.

Wang also said the next ten years will be a crucial period for textiles in China.