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Foreign Trade Information: 19.2% Of American Clothing Imports From China

2023/5/23 16:53:00 0

1. Clothing and household retail slowed down

According to the US Department of Commerce, the US retail sales in April this year increased by 0.4% month on month and 1.6% year on year, the lowest year-on-year increase since May 2020. Among them, the retail of clothing and furniture continued to cool down.

In April, the US CPI rose 4.9% year-on-year, falling for the tenth time in a row, a new low since April 2021. Although the year-on-year increase of CPI is narrowing, the prices of core necessities such as transportation, dining out and housing are still relatively strong, with a year-on-year increase of 5.5%.

The senior research analyst of Jones Lang LaSalle's US retail said that the fundamentals of the retail industry have begun to weaken due to the continued inflation and turmoil in the US regional banks. Consumers have had to downgrade their consumption to cope with high prices. Spending has shifted from non essential consumer goods to groceries and other major necessities. Due to the decrease in real disposable income, Consumers prefer discount stores and e-commerce.

Clothing stores: The retail sales in April were 25.5 billion US dollars, down 0.3% from the previous month and 2.3% from the same period last year, both continuing the downward trend, up 14.1% from the same period in 2019.

Furniture and home furnishing stores: retail sales in April reached US $11.4 billion, down 0.7% from the previous month. Compared with the same period of last year, the year-on-year decrease was 6.4%, with an increase of 14.7% compared with the same period of 2019.

General stores (including supermarkets and department stores): The retail sales in April were 73.47 billion US dollars, up 0.9% over the previous month, of which department stores dropped 1.1% month on month. It was 4.3% higher than the same period last year and 23.4% higher than the same period in 2019.

Non physical retailers: In April, the retail sales reached US $112.63 billion, an increase of 1.2% over the previous month and 8% over the same period of last year. The growth slowed down, with a sharp increase of 88.3% over the same period of 2019.

2. Stock sales ratio continues to rise

The inventory data released by the US Department of Commerce showed that the inventory of US enterprises fell 0.1% month on month in March. The inventory/sales ratio of clothing stores was 2.42, an increase of 2.1% over the previous month; The inventory/sales ratio of furniture and electronic stores was 1.68, an increase of 1.2% over the previous month, which has rebounded for two consecutive months.

3. China's share of US clothing imports fell below 20% for the first time

Textile and clothing: From January to March, the United States imported 28.57 billion dollars of textile and clothing, down 21.4% year on year. Imports from China reached 6.29 billion US dollars, down 35.8% year on year; Accounting for 22%, a year-on-year decrease of 4.9 percentage points. Imports from Vietnam, India, Bangladesh and Mexico decreased by 24%, 16.3%, 14.4% and 0.2% respectively year-on-year, accounting for 12.8%, 8.9%, 7.8% and 5.2%, with an increase of - 0.4, 0.5, 0.6 and 1.1 percentage points respectively.

Textiles: From January to March, imports reached 7.68 billion US dollars, down 23.7% year on year. Import from China was 2.58 billion US dollars, down 36.5% year on year; Accounting for 33.6%, a year-on-year decrease of 6.8 percentage points. Imports from India, Mexico, Pakistan and Turkey were - 22.6%, 1.8%, - 14.6% and - 24% year on year respectively, accounting for 16%, 8%, 6.3% and 4.7%, with an increase of 0.3, 2, 0.7 and -0.03 percentage points respectively.

Clothing: From January to March, imports reached US $21.43 billion, down 21% year on year. Imports from China reached 4.12 billion US dollars, down 35.3% year on year; Accounting for 19.2%, a year-on-year decrease of 4.3 percentage points. Imports from Vietnam, Bangladesh, India and Indonesia decreased by 24.4%, 13.7%, 11.3% and 18.9% respectively year on year, accounting for 16.1%, 10%, 6.5% and 5.9%, with an increase of - 0.7, 0.8, 0.7 and 0.2 percentage points respectively.

4. Performance of Retailers

　　● Gildan Activewears

In the three months ended April 2, the sales of Gildan Activewears, the parent company of American Apparel, fell 9.3% year-on-year to $703 million, basically in line with expectations, and the net profit fell 33.7% year-on-year to $97.6 million. For the whole 2023 fiscal year, the Group expects that the revenue growth will remain in a low single digit range and be consistent with the diluted earnings per share adjusted in 2022.

　　● HanesBrands

The parent company of Champion, Hanes Brands, recently released its performance report for the first quarter. During the period, the group's sales fell 12% year-on-year to US $1.39 billion, down 10% at a fixed exchange rate, but still exceeded the analysts' average expectation of US $1.36 billion, and the adjusted gross margin was 32.7%. By business, the group's underwear sales fell 9% year on year, and the sales of Champion's sportswear department fell 19%.

　　● Home Depot

Home Depot reported that sales in the first quarter increased by 32.7% year-on-year to 3.75 billion US dollars, but its net profit decreased by 10% year-on-year to about 4.08 billion US dollars. Because of a series of challenges in the first quarter, including supply chain bottlenecks, high logistics costs and labor shortages, Home Depot lowered its annual sales and profit guidance. The company expects that the annual sales growth rate will be reduced from the previous high single digit to the middle single digit, and the net profit margin will also decline.

　　● Kontoor Brands

In the three months ended April 1, Lee's parent company, Kontoor Brands, saw its revenue fall 2% year-on-year to $667 million, which was lower than analysts' expectations of $670 million. Operating profit fell 12% to $94.95 million, and net profit fell 18% to $66.29 million. During the period, the Group's revenue in the US domestic market increased by 2% to US $518 million, while its international business dropped by 14% to US $149 million.

　　● Under Armour

In the three months ended March 31, Under Armour's sales increased by 7.5% year on year to $1.4 billion, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.36 billion. Its gross profit margin fell to 43.4%, and its net profit recorded $170 million, turning losses into profits over the previous year. In the whole 2023 fiscal year, the Group's sales increased by 3% to US $5.9 billion, and its net profit increased by 73.5% to US $387 million.