Japan's imported apparel share in China falls below 50% for the first time in 31 years

(CNA, Shanghai, July 8) Affected by rising wages in China and escalating geopolitical risks, the Japanese apparel industry is accelerating its efforts to reduce reliance on China. In 2025, the proportion of Chinese products in Japan's imported apparel and textiles will fall below 50%, the first time in 31 years.

According to a Nikkei Chinese report on July 6, due to deteriorating Sino-Japanese relations and increasing global geopolitical risks, Japanese companies are looking to diversify their production networks. The proportion of Chinese products (by value) in Japan's imported apparel and textiles will drop to 49.8% in 2025. This marks the first time it has fallen below 50% in 31 years, since 1994 (49.4%).

Japanese apparel manufacturers began entering China in the 1980s. At its peak in 2009, the import proportion from China reached 80%. Since then, the share has gradually declined, standing at 65.3% in 2015, a decrease of 15.5 percentage points over the past decade.

On the other hand, the proportion from Southeast and South Asia is increasing. Vietnam has risen by 7.7 percentage points to 17.4% in the last 10 years, while Bangladesh has increased by 2 percentage points to 4.3%.

The report points out that as apparel is a labor-intensive industry, a significant portion of production costs is worker wages. With rising wages in China, many Japanese apparel companies are turning their attention to lower-wage ASEAN countries, such as MATSUOKA (a contractor for UNIQLO) and the major Japanese apparel company WORLD.

The report also states that many companies wish to diversify geopolitical risks. Following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's "Taiwan contingency" remarks last November, Sino-Japanese relations have worsened. The Japan Textile Importers Association (JTIA) noted, "Although the reason is unclear, there are multiple reports of textile trading companies facing stricter inspections and customs clearance when importing products from China." (Editor: Lu Jia-rong) 1150708

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