HISTORY

The Textile industry in Pakistan is the largest manufacturing industry in Pakistan. Pakistan is the 8th largest exporter of textile commodities in Asia. Textile sector contributes 8.5% to the GDP of Pakistan. In addition, the sector employs about 45% of the total labor force in the country (and 38% of the manufacturing workers). Pakistan is the 4th largest producer of cotton with the third largest spinning capacity in Asia after China and India and contributes 5% to the global spinning capacity.At present, there are 1,221 ginning units, 442 spinning units, 124 large spinning units and 425 small units which produce textile.

Textile Sector of Pakistan is the heart and soul of this nation since Independence. It is the largest Manufacturing Industry in Pakistan (Considered as Back Bone of the country). Export of $3.5 billion (6.5% of total exported cotton in world) in 2017-2018. Pakistan is the 8th largest exporter of textile commodities in Asia. Contribution in economy is equal to approx. 8.5%of total GDP. Textile Sector employs about 45% of the total Labor force in the country. In the year 2017-18 Exports of textile sector grew by $4.4 billion. Pakistan is also 3rd largest consumer of Cotton in the World. 

Total Textile mills are 464 in Pakistan out of which 5% are on the PSX .Textile has a total processing capacity of 5.2 billion square meters. International brands working in Pakistan with local textile mills are namely; H&M, Levis, Nike, Adidas, Puma, Target etc. Textile businesses are concentrated in Karachi with a share of 38% and 18% in Faisalabad .Out of 464, 316 textile units in Punjab, and 116 in Sindh. Major Players in this industry are Chenab Ltd, Al-Karam Textile Pvt Ltd, Fateh Textile Mills, Gul Ahmad Textile Mills Ltd, Hussein Industries Ltd, Kohinoor Textile Mills Ltd, and Nishat Linen Group. Pakistan’s exports are under threat mainly from regional competitors because the governments of these countries support their textile industry a lot as compared to Pakistan’s government. Rs.185 million has been approved in Pakistan for the Export Development Fund for the development of the textile sector. The textile industry provides 40% of the bank credit in Pakistan.

Production

There are six primary sectors of the textile production in Pakistan:

• Spinning
• Weaving
• Processing
• Printing
• Garment manufacturing
• Filament yarn manufacturing

Cotton is the largest segment of textile production. Other fibers produced include synthetic fiber, filament yarn, art silk, wool, and jute.

• Cotton: Cotton spinning is perhaps the most important segment in the Pakistan textile industry with 521 units installed and operational.
• Synthetic fibers: Within synthetic fibers, nylon, polyester, acrylic, and polyolefin dominate the market. There are currently five major producers of synthetic fibers in Pakistan, with a total capacity of 636,000 tons per annum.
• Filament yarn: Three types of filament yarn are produced in Pakistan. These are acetate rayon yarn, polyester filament yarn, and nylon filament yarn. There are currently about 6 units in the country.
• Artificial Silk: This fiber resembles silk but costs less to produce. There are about 90,000 looms in the country located mainly in Karachi, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, and Jalapur Jattan, as well as some in FATA.
• Wool: The main products manufactured from wool include woolen yarn, acrylic yarn, fabrics, shawls, blankets, and carpets.
• Jute: Jute sakes and hessian cloth are primarily used for packing agricultural products such as grain and rice. The production of jute products was approximately 100,000 tons in 2009-10.

Barriers to growth

In recent years, Pakistan has faced competition from regional players including Bangladesh, India and Vietnam. In the past decade, Pakistan's share in global textile market decreased to 1.7 percent from 2.2 percent, Bangladesh saw an increase from 1.9 to 3.3 percent and India from 3.4 to 4.7 percent. Barriers to growth include:

• Cost of production: The rising cost of production in the country has stalled investment as well as export competitiveness.A vertical shift in monetary policy and KIBOR rates have contributed to an increase in the cost of doing business and reduced lending abilities of local manufacturers.
• Energy Crisis: Pakistan is currently facing a large-scale energy crisis. Due to energy demand exceeding supply by about 5000 MW. The government manages the deficit through daily power cuts (or blackouts). These power cuts have significantly impacted manufacturing industries in Pakistan. Several textile mills have closed their units due to inability to sustain operations. In addition, the mills have reportedly turned away export orders due to the inability to fill these orders when power cuts per day can last upwards of 12 hours.

Labor rights

The textile industry is the second largest employment sector in Pakistan.Labor costs are estimated to be about five to eight percent of total cost while import income of the sector is estimated to be about $12.5 billion in 2010-11. Textile mill owners have often complained that labor costs are "too high" while workers continue to be underpaid and over utilized. Factories often do not issue letters of employments to workers and therefore can easily fire them without legal consequences.Furthermore, safety and security remains a significant issue at textile, where there are limited checks on exhaust systems, light systems, and waste water disposal.This dire state of affairs of labor rights comes in sharp contrast to the growing Pakistan fashion industry, which primary serves the country's elites.