BEIJING, Jan 30 (APP): Pakistan’s textile exports to China in 2025 indicate a gradual structural shift away from raw materials toward higher value-added products, according to year-on-year trade data comparing 2024 and 2025.
Cotton yarn, Pakistan’s largest textile export item to China, remained the backbone of bilateral textile trade, though exports edged down from $470.6 million in 2024 to $451.4 million in 2025, data from the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC) show. Industry sources attribute the decline to inventory adjustments and a strategic pivot toward downstream processing, rather than weakened demand.
In contrast, several value-added textile categories recorded notable growth. Exports of home textiles rose from $4.34 million to $5.78 million, marking a year-on-year increase of more than 30 percent, supported by steady demand from China’s household and hospitality sectors. Made-up textile articles, including furnishing and decorative items, more than doubled from $0.29 million to $0.66 million, underscoring Pakistan’s expanding capacity in finished textile products, China Economic Net (CEN) stated.
Garment exports showed mixed but broadly encouraging trends. According to GACC data, women’s garment exports increased from $9.47 million in 2024 to $11.18 million in 2025, while babies’ garments and clothing accessories also posted year-on-year growth. Men’s garments registered a moderate decline, falling to $19.90 million, reflecting market rebalancing. T-shirt exports remained largely stable at around $10.75 million, indicating consistent demand.
Other textile segments—including carpets and rugs, shawls and scarves, knitted and crocheted fabrics, narrow woven fabrics, labels, sewing thread, and technical textile products—maintained steady export levels, contributing to a more diversified export basket.
Ghulam Qadir, Trade and Investment Counsellor at the Pakistan Embassy in Beijing, told China Economic Net that textiles remain central to Pakistan’s export. “More than 60 percent of Pakistan’s textile products are exported, and this sector accounts for around 60 percent of the country’s total exports,” he said.
Trade experts told China Economic Net that the year-on-year data point to a positive qualitative shift in Pakistan’s textile exports to China, in line with Beijing’s growing emphasis on resilient regional supply chains and higher-value imports.