Polyester yarn exports fall again in May

In May 2023, China exported 40kt of polyester yarn, down 22.4% year-on-year and 5.9% month-on-month. Among them, 19kt of single yarn, 12kt of ply yarn, and 10kt of polyester sewing thread sewing thread were exported. Total imports were 193 tons, down 20.4% year-on-year and 29.2% month-on-month. From January to May, the total export of polyester yarn was 192kt, down 13.2% year-on-year, and the cumulative decline expanded from the previous month. In terms of single month data, only April achieved positive year-on-year growth, and the rest of the month fell year-on-year.

Although the export volume of polyester yarn declined, that of polyester staple fiber and polyester filament increased significantly. In May, the export volume of uncombed PSF was 98kt tons, an increase of 8.8%, and the cumulative export volume from January to May was 504kt, an increase of 27%. In May, the export volume of polyester filament was 362kt, a new high for the year, up 21.5% year-on-year. The total export from January to May was 1.721 million tons, an increase of 31.0% compared with the same period last year.

From the year-on-year data, it is clear that exports of upstream products have clearly increased compared to polyester yarn, which makes the situation of the latter more difficult.

Figure. Top 20 export destinations of China's polyester yarn in Jan-Apr, 2023 (unit: ton)

From January to May, among the top 20 major export destinations, there were 7 countries with year-on-year growth, Brazil, Morocco, Russia and Ghana grew by more than 30%, and the remaining 13 countries all declined year-on-year.

The export unit price of polyester yarn fell from April, and the average price in May was around $1.85/KG, down 2.7% from the previous month.

Overall, exports of polyester yarn have plummeted and improvement is unlikely to be seen in the short run. This is related to the decline of overseas economies and weakened consumer power, as well as the shift of export production and sales toward raw materials. Under the double blow of weak exports and sluggish domestic demand, yarn mills are struggling with high inventories and losses, and many had taken 3-7 days off for the Dragon Boat Festival. The situation is hard to reverse and June and July will be difficult months for yarn mills.