2011 ANNUAL PREVIEW: Pakistan’s Textile Industry Gearing Up for Growth

Pakistan’s textile industry is emerging as a major player after the global economic meltdown in 2008. The financial and economic meltdown has resulted in a permanent closure of many mills not only in the EU and the US but also in textile producing countries like Turkey, Brazil and a few South American countries. As a consequence, this has brought great opportunities for the textile sector in developing countries like Pakistan.

The foundations for the industry in Pakistan have always been very strong. Being major cotton producing country and having a large, modern and efficient spinning and weaving industry as well as the availability of man power are the strong pillars of the industry in Pakistan. The economic meltdown was a wakeup call for the value-added industry that survival was for the fittest; it also opened up new opportunities left by the closures in other parts of the world.

The industry found openings in the higher-end products that were no longer produced in the West. Textile products originating from Pakistan may have been viewed in the past as “cheap” or “low cost” products, but that perception is changing fast.