“We’re suffering, but not too badly.” Leather sector exports in Beijing have fallen slightly in the first two months of 2017: turnover has increased by 5.6%

Less than a month ago, they announced that the February results, particularly for footwear exports, were to say the least “catastrophic”: a fall of 27.6%, after a partial recovery in January (+2%). Then came APLF Hong Kong, where the CLIA (China Leather Industry Association) announced that their own tanning sector was not doing well either, having ended 2016 with “medium and large tannery sales falling by 3.3%” and with a fall in imports of raw materials in double figures. A few days later, the information put out by CLIA regarding the first two months of 2017 calls all that into question: in fact, the combined turnover for footwear, leather goods and hides actually increased by 5.6%, despite the 1.1% fall in exports, while imports increased by 10%. That means it was the demand of the internal Chinese market that influenced the sector trend. Imports of tanned, semi-finished and raw hides also bounced back. CLIA estimates that turnover in the Chinese sector will continue to grow in 2017 “below 10%”, while despite the challenges still facing the industry, exports should slightly compensate for the decline experienced in 2016.