WASHINGTON — Apparel and textile imports to the U.S. increased in October, but at a slower pace than in previous months.
Shipments of textiles and apparel to the U.S. rose 17.8 percent compared with a year earlier to 5.1 billion square meter equivalents in October, the Commerce Department’s Office of Textiles & Apparel said Friday. Apparel shipments were up 17.9 percent to 2.4 billion SME. Textile shipments advanced 17.7 percent to 2.7 billion SME.
The overall trade deficit narrowed to $38.7 billion in October from $44.6 billion in September. Rising exports helped drive the deficit down, said Gregory Daco, U.S. senior economist for IHS Global Insight.
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“The sharp decline in the October trade deficit bodes well for the U.S. economy,” Daco said. Shipments of consumer goods were “still strong” in October, which was a surprise, he said. “We expect restocked inventories to limit the pull for imports towards year-end.”
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Combined imports of textile and apparel from China rose 18.9 percent in October to 2.5 billion SME. The increase was driven primarily by nonapparel items, OTEXA said. Apparel shipments advanced 16.7 percent to 1.1 billion SME, while textile imports increased 20.8 percent to 1.4 billion SME.
Shipments from Vietnam rose 35.1 percent to 278 million SME. Apparel imports rose 14.6 percent to 185 million SME, while textile shipments advanced 109.9 percent to 93 million SME.
Imports from India rose 34.4 percent to 300 million SME. Apparel shipments increased 39.7 percent to 84 million SME and textile shipments advanced 32.4 percent to 216 million SME.
Most of the top 10 countries saw increases in October. Bangladesh’s apparel and textile imports advanced 29.2 percent to 163 million SME. Shipments from Honduras increased 24.2 percent to 113 million SME.
Apparel shipments from Cambodia and El Salvador also posted double- digit increases. Shipments of apparel from Cambodia advanced 27.6 percent to 99 million SME. Shipments from El Salvador rose 34.4 percent to 80 million SME.
Only two top 10 suppliers, South Korea and Pakistan, saw combined textile and apparel imports decline. South Korea’s shipments fell 22.4 percent to 91 million SME. Pakistan’s imports declined 1.8 percent to 221 million SME.
According to OTEXA, the top apparel suppliers were China, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Honduras and Indonesia. China is also the top textile supplier, followed by India, Pakistan, Mexico and South Korea.