Survey of the European yarn fairs for autumn/winter 2017/18

摘要

The atmosphere at the European yarn fairs for the 2017/18 season was positive. Knitwear continues to be a high fashion item, and has been providing European spinners with a buoyant market for their increasingly complex and sophisticated yarns. Italian yarn production in the first four months of 2016 was 2.6% higher than in the corresponding period of 2015, although yarn exports in the first quarter of the year were down slightly. Attendance at the 79th edition of Pitti Immagine Filati, a fair held in Florence, Italy, which specialises in high end knitwear yarns, was up by 4% compared with a year earlier. Also, there was a 5% increase in the number of visitors from within Italy. The main ingredients in most spinners' collections were wool and luxury fibres—notably cashmere, mohair and especially alpaca. But these fibres were also used in combinations with other fibres, particularly lyocell, poly amide, polyester and viscose. Yarns were more finely spun, and had a smoother and cleaner look compared with those on show at the fairs for the autumn/winter 2016/17 season. On the other hand, there were also more fancy yarns on view which had been produced using clever techniques and constructions in order to create some interesting surface effects.