Significant differences in nylon filament export performance - non-textured filament vs. DTY

China's nylon industry has maintained an overwhelming competitive edge in the international market in recent years, thanks to the rapid development, the resulted improved quality, enhanced production efficiency, and advantages of stable costs and supply. Over the past four years, except for 2023 when the growth rate of nylon filament exports dropped to 9% due to tight domestic supply, the annual growth rate has basically remained between 13% and 17%.

2025 is no exception. In the first three quarters of 2025, nylon filament exports increased by 17% year-on-year, but there were significant differences in the export performance of non-textured filament and DTY.

1. Alternating high and low growth years for non-textured filament and DTY exports

In recent years, the exports of nylon 6 non-textured filament (including POY, FDY, HOY, etc.) and DTY have shown an obvious alternating pattern of high and low growth years.

For example, in 2022 and 2025 when non-textured filament exports grew strongly, DTY export growth was relatively moderate; in 2023 and 2024 when DTY exports grew strongly, non-textured filament export growth slowed down significantly, and even negative growth occurred.

This alternating phenomenon is due to two main reasons.

First, as upstream and downstream products, POY and DTY have overlapping downstream demands, which easily leads to a seesaw effect.

Second, it is related to the volume of overseas fabric equipment investment and changes in demand for substituting other international suppliers. For instance, DTY exports grew strongly from 2023 to 2024, with the most significant growth in exports to Turkey. This was not only due to the large-scale commissioning of circular knitting machines locally and the growing demand for high-end products but also the substitution of other import sources in Turkey.

2. DTY export growth stagnated, with the main gap in Turkey

In the first three quarters, the year-on-year growth rate of DTY exports plummeted from 19% last year to 2% this year, ending the two consecutive years of rapid growth. From the perspective of export destinations, the main reason was the substantial decline in DTY exports to Turkey, which dropped by 44% year-on-year in the first three quarters. Even though exports to Brazil and Vietnam both increased by more than 20%, they only barely offset the gap from Turkey.

The contraction in exports to Turkey has gradually emerged since November last year, mainly due to the weakened local cost advantage in Turkey, sluggish demand in Europe, and the partial transfer of terminal export orders to Southeast Asia, leading to a reduction in import demand for nylon DTY.

3. Non-textured filament exports grew sharply, driven mainly by mother yarn and mono filament

In the first three quarters, the year-on-year growth rate of nylon 6 non-textured filament exports surged from 7% last year to 37% this year, showing rapid growth. From the perspective of export destinations, the growth was mainly driven by the outstanding performance in exports to India. In the first three quarters, exports to India reached 49,000 tons, a year-on-year increase of 134%, and India's share of total exports rose sharply from 27% last year to 47% this year. The growing demand in the Indian market is mainly for mother yarn (FDY) and mono filament, which are mainly used in sheer fabrics for local consumption or in neighboring countries. The export volume of such products has increased significantly since the second half of last year and experienced an explosive growth in demand this year. Based on recent export orders, the growth rate of India's demand for nylon mother yarn or mono filament has gradually slowed down.

In summary, China's nylon industry has obvious advantages in the international market, which is still conducive to exports. On the basis of steady growth in total exports, the exports of nylon 6 non-textured filament and DTY have shown a distinct alternating pattern of high and low growth in recent years, with significant differences. The reasons include structural product impacts and phased changes in demand. In the past two years, there have been many new production capacities for nylon filament, resulting in sufficient supply, and the impact on product structure has been limited. In the next 2-3 years, changes in export growth of non-textured filament and DTY will still be mainly driven by demand.