South Korea's textile exports will hit a new 10-year high in 2011

A think-tank in South Korea reported that Korean textile exports are expected to hit a new 10-year high in 2011, mainly due to the steady increase in demand for fabrics and apparel in overseas markets.

The Institute of International Trade (IIT) said that exports of textiles, fabrics and apparel to overseas exports this year are expected to surge by 14.5% year-on-year to reach $15.9 billion. In the first half of this year, exports grew by 22.2% year-on-year to reach US$8 billion.

In 2001, it exported 16.1 billion U.S. dollars, creating the highest export volume in the past 10 years. This forecast is based on exports in 2001. South Korea exported a record high in 2000, with a total amount of 18.8 billion U.S. dollars.

IIT senior researcher Park Gi-im said: "The expected growth is mainly due to the recovery of fabric demand, fabrics accounted for the bulk of exports, and the steady recovery of the global economy. The free trade agreement with the EU will take effect this month, which will also Expand orders for raw textiles."

Textiles are expected to be one of the beneficiaries of the EU free trade agreement because many EU countries maintain high tariffs. He said that increasing the demand for non-apparel textiles, especially in the industrial sector, is increasing the demand for value-added products.

She pointed out: "Now textiles are widely used in the automotive, marine, electronics and various metal products industries."

She said that this trend has triggered new investment by foreign companies and prompted the Korean government to increase its support for the overall textile industry.