Developing nations lead in fibers production

Developing nations, particularly those of Southeast Asia, are tightening their hold on the production of man-made fibers around the world, at the expense of developed countries in Western Europe, the U.S., and Japan. That was the major conclusion of the latest annual survey of man-made fibers production by Dutch fibers and chemicals producer Akzo. This change in who holds sway in fibers production, in turn, has long-term implications. Beyond the Akzo survey, fiber industry observers independently point out that fiber production tends to follow textile manufacturing, obviating transportation costs. Unless a country or region has a strong domestic textile manufacturing industry, there are fewer and fewer reasons for the fibers industry to remain. World production of man-made fibers was up 3% in 1992 over 1991, the largest increase since 1988, according to the Akzo study. Total production was 20.2 million metric tons. The growth came in synthetic fibers, while the steady decline in cellulosics that ...