Pakistan has emerged as the second largest exporter of denim in the world after China, says the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC). The average world trade of denim is 670,000 tons per year. Besides China, which is the largest exporter, and Pakistan, other major countries that export denim are: India, Turkey and the US. In 2011-12, export of cotton denim fabrics from Pakistan was 320 million sq. mt. worth Rs 35 billion, which went up to 333 million sq. mt. worth Rs 48 billion in 2013-14, a rise of 18.5 per cent in terms of value.

Popularity of denim on the rise

By 2020, the global denim jeans market is predicted to reach $ 64.1 billion. The main reason for demand is westernisation and changing lifestyles all over the world. Denim is growing in popularity as business and casual wear. Its always in vogue and available in various colours, styles, cuts, etc. Growth is also influenced by economic, social and demographic trends.

The largest market is Europe. Europe and the US are mature markets and one may expect saturation there, yet they hold major share. Asia-Pacific though, is predicted to be the fastest growing market with a CAGR of 9.4 per cent over the analysis period. Growing disposable incomes, rising number of working women, rapid urbanisation, a western lifestyle along with fashion consciousness, have lead to growth in this region.

Pakistan emerges a key player

As key apparel sectors, denim drives apparel exports. Earlier the US was the prime producer of the fabric. However, now, with countries such as India, Bangladesh, China and Pakistan in the fray, denim no longer remains an American product. Besides, global players in denim are faced with a different market situation today, which doe not allow them to hike consumer prices. Thus, they have to absorb the price increases from denim fabric producers worldwide. In such a scenario, Pakistan has emerged as a major supplier of this highly in-demand fabric, because of the competitive prices and in-house innovations by denim manufacturers in the country.

In less than 10 years, Pakistan has become the denim hub and is considered a leading supplier of quality fabric to the world’s top brands. In Pakistan there are about 40 players in the denim industry. They produce about 50 million sq. mt. of finished denim fabrics monthly. Besides, denim fabric exports are constantly on the rise. India, Colombia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Turkey, Srilanka, and Italy, are major markets for denim fabric exports from Pakistan. India, in particular is becoming a key market. In 2013-14, the quantity was about 7.31 million mt., which may be small, but indicates the potential of the Indian denim market. It looks like it will become more important in the coming years.