The ‘Economic Update - First Quarter 2025: EU Textile & Clothing Sector Performance’ published by EURATEX gives a current overview of trends affecting the EU textile & clothing (T&C) industry. It describes how the sector is faring in early 2025, outlining business sentiment, production, trade, employment and the key challenges confronting companies in both textiles and clothing.

Key Findings

• The industry continues to struggle with declines in turnover and production: Textiles saw a ~2.4% drop and clothing ~2.3% drop year-on-year. These declines are especially sharp in woven, knitted & crocheted fabrics and with clothing output, particularly knitwear.  
• Weak demand remains the top constraint, compounded by high labour and energy costs, plus labour skill shortages. Rising input costs are squeezing margins as clothing input costs climb while textile prices remain flat.  
• Employment levels are below pre-COVID baselines; the workforce faces decline both over the recent quarter and the past year. Structural pressures are causing shrinking employment as well as difficulties recruiting skilled labour.  
• On the trade front, imports from third countries have increased sharply, while exports have dropped, resulting in a widening trade deficit for the EU-27 T&C sector.  
• Business confidence shows a split: textile firms are slightly more optimistic about production prospects and inventory, but clothing firms are more pessimistic, especially about future orders, exports, and employment.  

These findings suggest many EU textile & clothing firms will need to adjust operations, possibly by cutting costs, investing in energy efficiency, or rethinking sourcing strategies. Companies may also need to adapt product lines or quality to match weaker consumer demand. Policymakers may need to consider support mechanisms to address labour shortages, high input costs, and to help firms navigate competitive pressures from imports.

For full details and latest figures, view the update on the EURATEX site.