A slump in demand for cotton denim fabric has not only affected the orders of the local US producers and apparel makers but also has considerably decreased their demand for cotton denim fabric.
Cotton denim industry in the US, exports fabric to Mexico, Guatemala and Colombia. US manufacturers exported 179.52 million square meters of fabric in 2004.
As demand for denim products within the US markets has gone down, the situation has affected demand from US mills for cotton denim fabric imports and demand from mills in Mexico, Guatemala and most of the CAFTA province.
Cotton denim fabric imports in US dropped to 4.18 million square meters, recording a 40.1 percent fall in October.
China was the largest exporter of fabric in October; China supplied 1.06 million square meters. Mexican exports dropped 74.0 percent.
From January to October, imports from Mexico are down 49.5 percent. From January to October, total US cotton denim fabrics dropped 27.4 percent to 61.89 million square meters.
Imports from Mexico, the top supplier, dropped 11.2 percent to 12.86 million square meters.
Cotton consumption in the US and Mexican market has been affected by the weaker demand.
