Market evolution: Textile embroidery (CN 5810) — 2015–2025

Introduction

This report examines the EU's external trade in embroidered textile fabrics (Customs code CN 5810) over the period 2015–2025. CN 5810 covers embroidery on a textile fabric ground — in the piece, in strips, or in motifs — across four sub-headings: man-made fibre embroidery (581092), cotton embroidery (581091), embroidery of other materials (581099), and embroidery without visible ground (581010).

Over the decade, the EU has remained a significant net importer of this product category, running a persistent trade deficit. However, the period has been far from static: the COVID-19 shock of 2020 caused a severe contraction in both import and export values, followed by a recovery that reshaped trade geography, unit-price dynamics, and supplier concentration. EU domestic production, meanwhile, has grown moderately from €576 million to €679 million (+17.8%), suggesting that the sector has retained — and even slightly expanded — its industrial base in the face of global competition.

1. A Persistent but Narrowing Trade Deficit Mask Diverging Volume and Price Trends

The EU trade deficit has remained large but has improved modestly

Throughout 2015–2025, the EU consistently ran a trade deficit in CN 5810 products. Imports started at €170.1 million in 2015 and stood at €174.6 million in 2025, while exports grew from €84.1 million to €92.8 million. The deficit thus narrowed slightly from €86.1 million to €81.8 million — an improvement of just 5.0%. The deficit was at its widest in 2022 (€120.8 million), reflecting the post-COVID import rebound, and at its narrowest in 2020 (€36.1 million), when pandemic disruptions compressed trade on both sides.

Export volumes have surged while unit prices have collapsed

The most striking structural shift lies in the divergence between export values and export volumes. EU export quantities more than doubled from 1,102 tonnes to 2,871 tonnes (+160.6%), yet export value grew by only 10.4%. This implies a dramatic decline in average export unit prices, which fell from €76,285/t to €32,288/t (−57.7%). This likely reflects a combination of shifting product mix (towards higher-volume, lower-value categories) and competitive pressure on pricing. On the import side, volumes grew by 21.0% (4,621t to 5,592t) while values rose by only 2.6%, implying a more moderate import price decline of 15.2% (€36,822/t → €31,212/t).

The sharp fall in export unit prices is partly explained by the composition of exports: man-made fibre embroidery (581092), which is the highest-volume but lowest unit-value sub-category, has grown to dominate EU exports. Meanwhile, the premium-priced "other materials" (581099) and "without visible ground" (581010) sub-segments — whose export prices can exceed €50,000–€197,000/t — have remained small in volume terms.

Net import reliance has increased markedly despite a stable headline deficit

While the nominal deficit changed little, the net import reliance metric — which relates the trade balance to domestic production — has risen sharply from 1.4% to 10.8% (+665.9%). This indicates that although EU production has grown in absolute terms (€576M → €679M), it has not kept pace with the growing volume of imports. At the same time, export propensity — the share of domestic output exported outside the EU — has halved from 30.1% to 14.7%, and trade intensity has fallen from 46.8% to 32.8%. Taken together, these indicators suggest that the EU embroidery sector has become somewhat more inward-looking: production is growing, but it serves the internal market rather than external export markets.

2. Geographic Reorientation: Mediterranean and African Destinations Replace Traditional Western Partners

Imports have consolidated around China and India, while European neighbours have lost ground

China and India have remained the two dominant EU suppliers of embroidered textiles throughout the period. China's share grew from €55.1 million to €64.1 million (+16.4%), while India's rose from €55.0 million to €66.6 million (+21.0%). Together, they accounted for roughly three-quarters of EU imports by value in 2025. Meanwhile, several European or developed-country suppliers experienced steep declines:

The collapse in imports from Switzerland (−71.0%), the UK (−63.6%), and South Korea (−94.3%) is notable. For the UK, this is at least partly attributable to Brexit, which reclassified flows from intra-EU to extra-EU and introduced trade friction from 2021 onwards; the UK import figure dropped sharply after 2020. Switzerland's decline may reflect reclassification effects, shifting supply chains, or a genuine reduction in Swiss-origin embroidery shipments. Türkiye's growth (+58.1%) confirms its strengthening role as a near-shore embroidery supplier to the EU, benefiting from geographic proximity and competitive labour costs.

The import concentration HHI (by value) has increased from 2,288 to 2,946 (+28.8%), confirming that supply has become more concentrated among fewer partners — principally China and India.

EU exports have pivoted strongly towards North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa

The most dramatic geographic shift on the export side has been the rise of Morocco and Tunisia as EU export destinations. Morocco went from €3.5 million to €21.9 million (+527%), while Tunisia grew from €6.7 million to €13.3 million (+98.5%). Nigeria has been a consistently large destination, rising from €20.4 million to €22.4 million (+9.9%). Madagascar also emerged as a significant market, growing from negligible levels (€5,114) to €4.2 million — an extraordinary increase likely linked to the development of the textile finishing and garment industry on the island, where EU-origin embroidery may be sent for assembly and re-export.

Conversely, traditional Western markets have declined: UK-bound exports fell by 49.9% and US-bound exports by 43.1%. This shift towards African and Mediterranean destinations is consistent with the broader offshoring pattern in European textiles, where semi-finished embroidery products are sent to low-cost neighbouring countries for final garment assembly.

EU Member State roles have evolved: Spain emerges as a major exporter

Among EU Member States, Italy has remained the largest importer (€70.3M in 2025, essentially flat), followed by France (€30.4M, +19.5%) and Spain (€29.7M, +47.6%). On the export side, Austria has remained the leading EU exporter (€32.2M), but the standout growth story is Spain, whose extra-EU embroidery exports surged from €3.5 million to €20.1 million (+474%). Spain's geographic position and strong textile industry in regions such as Catalonia and Valencia — combined with close commercial ties to Morocco and other North African markets — likely explain this rapid growth. Italy and Germany, by contrast, have seen their export positions erode (−9.6% and −29.5% respectively).

3. Product Composition, Specialisation, and Supply Concentration

Man-made fibre embroidery dominates both imports and exports by volume

The product segment breakdown reveals that man-made fibre embroidery (581092) is by far the largest sub-category in both trade flows. On the import side, it accounted for 3,414 tonnes and €86.2 million in 2025 — roughly 61% of total import volume and 49% of import value. Cotton embroidery (581091) was the second-largest category at 1,342 tonnes / €31.3 million, followed by "other materials" (581099) and "without visible ground" (581010).

On the export side, the volume growth in man-made fibre embroidery has been even more dramatic — from 556 tonnes to 1,895 tonnes (+241%) — though value barely changed (€38.8M → €39.7M), indicating a steep fall in per-unit prices for this segment. Cotton embroidery exports also grew meaningfully in volume (383t → 627t) and value (€27.1M → €32.8M).

The EU holds a strong revealed comparative advantage in embroidery, led by Italy and France

The specialisation analysis for 2025 shows that several EU Member States exhibit a strong revealed comparative advantage (RCA) in CN 5810. Greece leads with an RCA of 4.41, followed closely by Italy (4.28) and Romania (3.54). France (2.71) and Cyprus (2.13) also show significant specialisation. Italy alone accounts for 34.3% of EU production in this category and 21.2% of total EU textile output, making it the undisputed hub of European embroidery manufacturing. These southern and eastern European economies benefit from established textile traditions, skilled labour, and proximity to downstream fashion and apparel industries.

Import supply has become more concentrated and volatile

The rising import HHI (from 2,288 to 2,946) and the increase in the volume-based HHI (from 3,942 to 5,712, +44.9%) show that the EU's import base has narrowed. China and India together now command a dominant share, while formerly important suppliers like Switzerland, the UK, and South Korea have faded. This increased concentration raises potential vulnerability to supply disruptions from the two main Asian sources.

On the export side, volatility (measured by the coefficient of variation) is particularly high for shipments to Morocco (CV = 1.02), reflecting the rapid but uneven growth of this corridor. Imports from Pakistan (CV = 1.64), the UK (CV = 1.04), and Indonesia (CV = 1.01) also show high volatility, indicating unstable or episodic supply relationships.

Conclusion

Over 2015–2025, the EU embroidery market (CN 5810) has undergone significant structural transformation while maintaining its fundamental character as a net-importing sector. The headline trade deficit remained broadly stable in nominal terms (around €82 million in 2025), but deeper indicators reveal a sector under transition: net import reliance has risen to nearly 11%, export propensity has halved, and trade intensity has declined. EU domestic production has grown to €679 million, yet has not kept pace with import volume growth.

Geographically, the most consequential shifts have been the consolidation of imports around China and India — alongside a growing role for Türkiye as a near-shore supplier — and the dramatic reorientation of EU exports towards Morocco, Tunisia, Nigeria, and Madagascar. This points to a deepening of the "intra-industry" textile trade pattern in which EU producers export semi-finished embroidered fabrics to North African and West African countries for garment assembly, often for re-export. Spain has emerged as a major actor in this trade corridor, while traditional exporters such as Germany and Belgium have seen their positions erode.

The product structure is dominated by man-made fibre embroidery (581092), which accounts for the majority of trade volume. However, the collapse in export unit prices — down 57.7% over the period — signals intense competitive pressure and a possible shift in the EU's export profile towards lower-value segments. Going forward, the increasing concentration of import supply and the EU's growing net import reliance warrant attention from a trade policy and supply-chain resilience perspective.