China has reshaped another market
New textile fibers were supposed to become a Finnish export product, but a drastic shift in the market is forcing a rethink of these plans. All signs point to China, writes lead editorial writer Sanna Pekkonen.
Back to the drawing board
“The air has been sucked out of the investment climate,” says VTT research professor Ali Harlin, summarizing the market situation.
He anticipates fierce competition among Asian producers, which will likely be reflected in the price of textile fibers. Already, increased production in China has pushed prices well below the figures used in Finnish calculations.
On the other hand, according to Harlin, who has followed the industry for a long time, there appears to be demand for the growing supply, and the need to find new alternatives to cotton and viscose has not disappeared.
Finnish textile fibers have not been completely abandoned yet, but the changed market is now forcing companies to completely rethink their plans.