Analysis and Studies - Country Analysis
The Textile Industry in the United States
January 19th 2023
In 2020, the United States were the number one economy in the world in terms of GDP. In fact, the country is a leading global trader, which can count on different competitive industries.
The textile industry has an important role in this scenario. This sector includes fabric manufacturers, suppliers in fiber sectors, technological tools, chemical products, and all the customers in the U.S. apparel industry. The textile industry provides jobs, also in rural areas, and it contributes to the national defense of the country, supplying uniforms to the military forces. The benefits of this industry also include high-tech innovation, thanks to its application on medical devices.
The beginning of the textile industry evolution of the U.S.A. can be traced down to the first American textile factory created in 1813, which used the first large-scale cotton gin machine. Invented by Eli Whitney, this tool could separate cotton from its seed, making this process easier and shaping the textile industry into what it is today.
In 2020, the United States were the 8th largest exporter of textiles in the world. The main destinations were Mexico ($4.18B), Canada ($3.38B), China ($2.43B), Vietnam ($1.32B), and Honduras ($1.03B). Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, in 2020 shipments decreased for the first time since 2009.
In the same year, the U.S.A. became the first largest importer of textiles in the world, while textiles were the 5th most imported product in the United States. They imported primarily from China ($48.4B), Vietnam ($15.1B), India ($6.55B), Bangladesh ($5.57B), and Mexico ($5.02B).
The most recent statistics date back to October 2022, when the exports of the country accounted up to $2.2B and imports accounted up to $11.1B, resulting in a negative trade balance of $8.93B. The U.S.A. exported mostly to Mexico ($561M), Canada ($433M), China ($172M), Honduras ($150M), and Dominican Republic ($54.5M), while importing mostly from China ($2.6B), Vietnam ($1.54B), Bangladesh ($887M), India ($805M), and Indonesia ($537M).
Despite the massive amount of waste produced by the textile industry each year, which comes mostly from greenhouse gases and consumers, the U.S. textile industry remains globally competitive due to the continued investment in the domestic industry.
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