The textile industry has long been known for its "weather-dependent" nature, and climate change is profoundly rewriting the underlying logic of the industry.

During the National Day holiday in 2025, the temperature in Keqiao, a major textile city in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, soared to 40℃. Hangzhou also set a new historical record for the number of high-temperature days in October. This is not an isolated case - data from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) shows that the global average temperature has broken records for three consecutive years from 2023 to 2025. The abnormal temperature rise in 2024-2025 has exceeded the previous climate model estimates, and the transformation of the textile industry is imminent.

The recycling and environmental protection sector is on the rise, with both policy and market efforts taking effect

Climate warming has driven the in-depth penetration of environmental protection concepts into the textile industry chain. From fast fashion malls to the official websites of mid-to-high-end brands, "eco-friendly fabrics", "recycled materials", and "green supply chains" have become high-frequency keywords.

Leading upstream enterprises are all making moves in the recycling sector, and the policy level also provides strong support. China's "Opinions on Accelerating the Recycling and Utilization of Waste Textiles" clearly states that by 2025, the recycling rate of textiles should reach 25%, and the annual output of recycled fibers should exceed 2 million tons. By 2030, the recycling rate should further increase to 30%, presenting a blue ocean opportunity in the field of recycling and environmental protection.

The demand for functional fabrics has exploded, and technological breakthroughs have opened up the high-end market

The frequent occurrence of extreme weather has led to a sharp increase in the demand for functional fabrics. In 2024, China's chemical fiber industry delivered an outstanding performance: the total production capacity reached 74.75 million tons, remaining the world's largest, with a year-on-year growth of 8.8% in output. Among them, the output of Lyocell fiber increased by as much as 27.4%, and the output of polyester filament and spandex increased by approximately 10% year-on-year. From a technical perspective, general fibers have achieved deep integration with technologies such as original liquid coloring, antibacterial properties, and flame retardancy. Breakthroughs have been made in the industrial production technology of differentiated and functional fibers, and a complete industrial chain has been established. What is more worth noting is that the application scenarios of functional fibers are continuously expanding, extending from traditional fields such as clothing and home textiles to high-end fields like national defense and military industry, advanced equipment, and biomedicine. They are accelerating towards intelligence, high added value, and customization.

The traditional inventory preparation rhythm has failed, and the logic of the peak season has changed

The traditional peak season pattern of "golden March and silver April" and "golden September and silver October" was originally a production and inventory guide for the textile industry to meet the demands of spring and summer, autumn and winter. However, the disorderly changes in temperature are disrupting this rhythm. Take sun protection fabrics and down jacket fabrics as examples. Their sales are highly dependent on temperature signals. Only when the temperature meets the standards can it drive the inventory to be reduced. The situation in 2025 where the "golden September and Silver October" did not meet expectations has already reflected the incompatibility of the traditional rhythm. Given the continuous increase in the proportion of spot goods in the current textile market, the weakening of the peak season effect and the adjustment of the inventory preparation cycle may become the norm in the industry in the future.