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Italian textiles in the first half of 2014 posted an overall production growth generally outperforming the textile industry, data released here during the ongoing Italian Textiles Trade Show, Milano Unica, showed.
Textiles, excluding knitted fabrics, registered a 7.6-percent increase on average in the January-June period, while the overall textile industry grew by 4.8 percent, organizers of Europe's top showcase for textiles and accessories, which runs from Tuesday to Thursday in Italy's fashion capital Milan, said.
Exports of Italian textiles performed positively, rising 4.2 percent in the first four months of this year, while imports grew further posting 7.5 percent increase.
In the January-April period, the trade balance of Italian textiles generated revenues of 577 million euros (746 million U.S. dollars), slightly up against the value registered in the same months last year.
Exports of textiles destined to 28 EU member countries in the January-April period grew by 8.2 percent, accounting for 55.3 percent of total exports, while exports to other countries decreased except only for the positive performance of the U.S. market.
Regarding the foreign textiles sourcing market, in the first four months of this year China confirmed its leadership as key supplier for Italian businesses with a 26.3-percent increase on total textile imports, organizers noted.
Positive trends were also expected for the second half of 2014. "There are businesses in our industry which have not just survived, but have grown increasingly successful in the world," President of Milano Unica Silvio Albini said at the fair's opening press conference on Tuesday.
Investments in technology, product, quality, service improvement, delivery time and reliability, as well as a focus on new professional profiles "who, in addition to knowing different languages and managing contacts with buyers, also have the skills to analyze the evolution of business models," were among the necessary ingredients for success, Albini noted.
Milano Unica, which on Oct. 20-23 will also run in China's Shanghai, showcased the fall/winter 2015-2016 textile collections and accessories of 410 exhibitors exclusively Italian and European.
However, the fair's 19th edition also hosted a new initiative, the Japan Observatory, representing the Asian country's manufacturing excellence.
"While insisting on the enhancement of the Italian national intrinsic values, we believe it necessary to create new bridges, new visions, to search for opportunities," Albini said referring to 29 exhibitors selected from the Japan Fashion Week Organization, to which Milano Unica dedicated a special area.
