The Japan Chemical Fibers Association reported that the nation’s man-made fiber production in April 2017 increased by 2.8% over the same month of last year to 79,590 tons.
Of this, synthetic fiber production decreased by 3.1% to 62,680 tons, while that of cellulosic fibers grew by 33.0% to 16,910 tons.
Among major synthetic fiber items, production decreased for polyester staple fiber (down 17.3% to 7,885 tons), as Japanese producers are undertaking structural reforms. Production increased for nylon filament (up 9.5% to 8,246 tons), acrylic staple fiber (up 1.3% to 11,873 tons) and polyester filament (up 0.5% to 8,246 tons).
MMF production during January-April 2017 decreased by 2.1% year-on-year to 304,547 tons, of which synthetic fibers declined by 5.9% to 238,981 tons, while cellulosic fibers grew by 14.4% to 65,566 tons.