Market evolution: Made-up textile articles (CN 63079098) — 2015–2025

Introduction

This report examines the trade dynamics of EU customs code 63079098, a residual category covering made-up textile articles not elsewhere specified (excluding felt, knitted or crocheted items, surgical drapes, and protective face masks). Over the period 2015–2025, the EU's extra-EU trade in this product category underwent substantial expansion, punctuated by an extraordinary pandemic-driven spike in 2020. Imports grew from €1.23 billion to €2.08 billion (+69.7%), while exports rose from €439 million to €702 million (+59.9%). The resulting trade deficit widened in absolute terms, yet the EU's net import reliance actually declined, signalling structural shifts in production and sourcing. This report identifies three overarching dynamics that shaped this market over the decade.

1. Robust Long-Term Growth Masking a Dramatic Pandemic Spike

Overall trade expanded significantly between 2015 and 2025

Both EU imports and exports of made-up textile articles grew at healthy rates over the decade. Imports increased by 69.7% in value (from €1,227 million to €2,082 million) and 78.3% in volume (from 192,815 tonnes to 343,866 tonnes). Exports rose by 59.9% in value (from €439 million to €702 million) and 56.0% in volume (from 26,947 tonnes to 42,042 tonnes). Import unit prices fell slightly (−4.9%), while export prices edged up (+2.5%), indicating divergent pricing pressures on each side of the market.

A massive COVID-era shock temporarily distorted the market in 2020

Behind these headline growth figures lies an extraordinary anomaly. EU imports spiked to a maximum of €21.9 billion in 2020—roughly 18 times the 2015 baseline—before subsequently normalising to the 2025 level. Import volumes surged to 532,852 tonnes and unit prices soared to €41,115 per tonne, far exceeding the decade's norm of around €5,500–6,400/t. This shock was overwhelmingly driven by China, which accounted for 94.2% of the value share of the shock event, with an abnormality score of 257.5 and a price shift of +847.4%. Viet Nam experienced a parallel but smaller shock (abnormality 74.2, price shift +207.8%, 5.8% value share) in the same year.

The most plausible explanation is the COVID-19 pandemic. In early 2020, global demand for textile-based protective and hygiene products surged, and many items—reusable face masks, covers, barriers, and other emergency textile goods—were likely classified under this residual code 63079098. The unprecedented price spike (unit values rising roughly seven-fold) is consistent with a scramble for supply amid lockdown-disrupted logistics. By 2025, the market had returned to its pre-pandemic trajectory, suggesting that the 2020 event was a temporary demand shock rather than a structural break.

The trade deficit widened in absolute terms despite faster relative growth in exports

The EU's trade balance in this product deteriorated from −€788 million in 2015 to −€1,380 million in 2025 (−75.1%). However, exports grew at nearly the same rate as imports in percentage terms (59.9% vs. 69.7%), and volume growth was actually more balanced (56.0% vs. 78.3%). The widening of the deficit is primarily a function of the much larger import base: even a smaller proportional increase in imports translates into a larger absolute gap. The EU remained a net importer throughout, with the deficit peaking at an extreme −€20.9 billion during the 2020 anomaly.

2. Shifting Geographies: Asian Dominance Meets Nearshoring Momentum

China remained the dominant supplier, but its share fluctuated dramatically

China was by far the EU's largest source of imports, rising from €750 million in 2015 to €1,267 million in 2025 (+68.8%). At its 2020 peak, however, Chinese imports reached approximately €19.9 billion, underscoring China's role as the epicentre of the pandemic-era surge. Outside of that anomaly, China's import share has remained substantial but faces growing competition from emerging suppliers.

Türkiye and other Mediterranean suppliers gained ground rapidly

The most striking import growth came from Türkiye (+220.6%), which grew from €20 million to €66 million, and from Viet Nam (+86.8%), which rose from €102 million to €190 million. Tunisia and India also grew strongly. This pattern is consistent with a broader nearshoring trend in European textile supply chains: EU importers have been diversifying away from distant Asian sources toward geographically closer, often preferentially traded partners in the Mediterranean basin and Eastern Europe. Türkiye's Customs Union with the EU and Tunisia's Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement provide tariff advantages that reinforce this shift.

The United Kingdom's role shrank on both sides of the trade ledger

The UK presents a contrasting trajectory. As an import source, UK shipments to the EU fell by 33.7% (from €59 million to €39 million), and the UK exhibited the highest import volatility of any major partner (coefficient of variation of 0.68). As an export destination, the UK remained the EU's largest market (€90 million in 2025) but with only modest growth (+12.4%) and the highest export volatility of any partner (CV 0.80). These patterns are consistent with the trade friction introduced by Brexit, which disrupted supply chains and introduced new customs formalities for what had previously been seamless intra-EU flows.

EU exports found fast-growing outlets in North Africa and the United States

On the export side, the most remarkable growth was to Morocco (+1,577.4%, from €5 million to €80 million) and to the United States (+155.7%, from €42 million to €109 million). Tunisia also more than doubled as an export market (+183.4%). Morocco's explosive growth likely reflects the country's role as a textile manufacturing hub where EU-origin intermediate goods are assembled and re-exported, creating bidirectional trade flows. The US surge may reflect broader demand for EU-branded or higher-quality textile products.

EU member states exhibited divergent import and export trajectories

Among EU importers, Poland's imports grew the most dramatically (+309.9%, from €36 million to €148 million), followed by the Netherlands (+130.8%) and Spain (+123.2%). Germany remained the largest single importer (€550 million). Among EU exporters, Czechia (+311.6%), Poland (+199.6%), and France (+106.5%) recorded the strongest growth, while Germany dominated in absolute terms (€249 million). The rise of Central and Eastern European members in both import and export rankings points to the increasing integration of these countries into European textile value chains.

3. Diversification, Domestic Production, and Evolving Resilience

Import concentration remained moderate and essentially unchanged

The Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) for import value was virtually flat at approximately 3,900 throughout the period (3,900 in 2015, 3,905 in 2025). This level indicates moderate concentration—China's dominant share keeps the index elevated, but the growth of alternative suppliers has prevented it from rising further. In volume terms, the HHI edged up slightly (from 5,018 to 5,404), suggesting a modest shift toward volume-heavy, lower-unit-price suppliers. For exports, concentration was much lower (HHI ~788 → 824), reflecting the EU's diversified customer base.

EU domestic production grew, reducing relative import dependency

EU production of made-up textile articles increased from 65,258 tonnes (€946 million) in 2015 to 75,403 tonnes (€1,286 million) in 2025, representing volume growth of 15.5% and value growth of 35.9%. The faster growth in value than volume indicates rising unit values, consistent with EU producers moving toward higher-value-added segments. This domestic production growth contributed to a decline in net import reliance from 68.6% to 60.5%, even as the absolute trade deficit widened.

Central and Eastern European members emerged as specialised producers

Sectoral specialisation analysis for 2025 reveals that Romania (RSCA 0.45), Poland (RSCA 0.34), Lithuania (RSCA 0.33), and Latvia (RSCA 0.25) are the most specialised EU exporters of this product category. These countries combine relatively low labour costs with proximity to Western European demand centres and EU regulatory integration, making them competitive production platforms. By contrast, southern and peripheral economies such as Malta (RSCA −1.00), Cyprus (−0.97), and Greece (−0.87) show negligible specialisation, consistent with their limited involvement in textile manufacturing.

Vulnerability indicators improved, pointing to greater structural resilience

Three key indicators tracked the EU's evolving autonomy in this product:

All three indicators declined, but the interpretation is nuanced. The drop in net import reliance is unambiguously positive from a resilience perspective: the EU now covers a larger share of its consumption through domestic production. The decline in trade intensity means the market has become somewhat less dependent on trade overall, likely reflecting expanded EU production capacity. The significant fall in export propensity (from 96.5% to 69.2%) suggests that a growing share of EU output is now absorbed domestically rather than exported, which could reflect both stronger internal demand and the repatriation of production that was previously offshored. Trade intensity registered the highest salience score (49.2), indicating it is the dominant metric shaping vulnerability assessments for this product.

The 2022 Ukraine conflict introduced a secondary shock in export markets

A price shock in EU exports to Ukraine was detected in 2022, with an abnormality score of 188.0 and a price shift of +201.7% (3.2% value share). This coincides with Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which disrupted logistics, caused humanitarian textile demand, and rerouted supply chains. While much smaller in scale than the 2020 China shock, it illustrates the sensitivity of this product category to geopolitical events and the EU's role as a supplier in crisis contexts.

Conclusion

The EU market for made-up textile articles (CN 63079098) expanded substantially between 2015 and 2025, with trade volumes nearly doubling on both the import and export sides. The decade was dominated by three narratives: the extraordinary but temporary COVID-19 demand spike of 2020, which inflated Chinese imports to nearly €20 billion before normalising; a steady diversification of sourcing toward Mediterranean and Eastern European partners, exemplified by the rapid growth of Türkiye, Morocco, and Viet Nam; and a gradual improvement in the EU's structural resilience, as domestic production grew and net import reliance fell from 68.6% to 60.5%. The EU remains a significant net importer of these goods, and China continues to dominate the supplier landscape, but the combination of nearshoring trends, Central European specialisation, and expanded domestic capacity suggests a market that is slowly rebalancing. Brexit-related trade friction with the United Kingdom and geopolitical shocks in 2022 serve as reminders that this product category remains exposed to policy and conflict-driven disruptions, even as its underlying structural resilience has improved.