Japan's textile & clothing imports decline 11% in Oct 2023

Japan experienced a decrease in clothing and accessories imports in October 2023. These imports fell by 11.1 per cent to 347,355 million yen (around $2.32 billion), constituting 3.5 per cent of the nation's total imports, which amounted to 9,809,617 million yen, according to provisional data from Japan's ministry of finance. 

The country also saw a 15.8 per cent year-on-year decline in textile yarn and fabric imports in October 2023, totalling 104,630 million yen, which accounted for 1.1 per cent of the total imports. 

In contrast, Japan's exports of textile yarn and fabric slightly increased by 0.1 per cent compared to the previous year, reaching 72,169 million yen. Exports of textile machinery also rose by 5.8 per cent from October 2022, amounting to 30,457 million yen, contributing 0.3 per cent to the total exports. 

From April to September 2023, the first half (H1) of the current fiscal, Japan's clothing and accessories imports declined by 1.1 per cent to 1,777,706 million yen ($11.885 billion). Textile yarn and fabric imports totalled 577,796 million yen, a 10.8 per cent decrease from the same period last year. Japan's exports of textile yarn and fabric were valued at 393,533 million yen, an increase of 1.0 per cent year-on-year. Similarly, exports of textile machinery surged by 16.1 per cent to 169,302 million yen compared to the corresponding period in 2022. 

For the fiscal 2022-23, running from April to March, Japan's imports of clothing and accessories soared to 3,619,550 million yen (approximately $25.05 billion), a significant 26.1 per cent growth from the previous fiscal. Imports of textile yarn and fabric reached 1,275,608 million yen, marking a 23.2 per cent increase. During FY23, Japan exported textile yarn and fabric valued at 776,999 million yen, and textile machinery exports totalled 306,781 million yen. 

ALCHEMPro News Desk (KUL)