Trends in global and regional man-made fibre production

摘要

World fibre demand increased by 3.7% in 2014, from 84.0 mn tons to a record high of 87.1 mn tons. The rise represented the sixth in succession, following a sharp decline in 2008 which reflected the global economic crisis. Man-made fibre production in 2014 grew by 4.8% to 61.6 mn tons. As a result, it accounted for 71%> of total fibre demand during the year, which represented a record high. Within the man-made fibre sector, synthetic fibres continued to account for the bulk of production. Furthermore, synthetic fibre production was up by 4.8% to 56.6 mn tons, which represented almost 92% of total man-made fibre production. Polyester was the most important synthetic fibre type, having represented 87% of total production of synthetic fibres, followed by nylon with an 8%share and acrylic with a 3%share. The remainder was made up of other synthetic fibres, including aramid, spandex (elastane), vinyl and vinyon. Polyester staple fibre production rose by a marginal 0.1% to reach 15.3 mn tons, as increases in production in India, Japan, Mexico, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania, South Korea, other Asia, and the USA were largely offset by declines in China, Europe, Taiwan, Turkey and other Americas. In the case of polyester filament yarn, production increased by 7.6% to 33.8 mn tons, due largely to a 9.1% rise in Chinese production. In fact, China accounted for almost the entire increase in global production over the three years to 2014 and, as a result, its share reached 78%. In the case of nylon staple fibre, global production fell by 7.4% and remained small at 151,900 tons. In the case of nylon filament yarn, on the other hand, global production rose by 5.1% to 4.4 mn tons. Of this total, China accounted for almost 51% although developed nations—including the USA, Taiwan and those in Western Europe—continued to account for a large share of the total. In the case of acrylic staple fibre, global production fell by 3.3% to 1.8 mn tons, reflecting declines in production in China, Europe, Japan, Mexico, other Americas and Taiwan.