Japan’s exports of nonwoven fabrics in 2019 remained about the same scale as in 2018 with a 0.3% rise to 60,523 tons.
According to Ministry of Finance customs cleared statistics, 2019 exports of filament nonwoven fabrics decreased by 0.7% from the previous year to 24,134 tons, while those of staple fiber nonwoven fabrics grew by 5.7% to 36,389 tons.
It was the first decrease for filament nonwovens since 2015. Exports were affected by the fact that the polyester filament type, which occupied 55% of the bulk, decreased by 4.6% to 13,345 tons. Particularly noteworthy is that the polyester filament type heavier than 150 grams per 10,000 square meters fell 17.9%. Exports to the major market of China decreased by 7.9%, along with those to the U.S. (second largest market) by 31.3%.
Meanwhile, exports of polyester staple nonwoven fabrics surpassed 20,000 tons with a growth of 13.1% to 21,357 tons. The major class of items weighing between more than 70 grams and 150 grams grew by 18.7% 14,459 tons. Exports grew to Korea, China, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Italy and the U.S.
