Zurich - Shipments of new electronic flat knitting machines rose by 44 per cent in 2017 compared to the previous year to reach their highest ever level, with deliveries of circular knitting machines remaining flat for the same period.
The latest statistics from the 40th annual International Textile Machinery Shipment Statistics (ITMSS), just released by the International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF), show that global shipments of large circular knitting machines rose slightly by 0.12 per cent to a level close to 28,000 units in 2017.
Asia remained the world’s leading investor in this category with 84 per cent of all new circular knitting machines shipped to the region in 2017. With 39 per cent of worldwide deliveries, China was the single largest investor. India and Vietnam ranked second and third with 5,100 and 2,000 units, respectively.
In 2017 the segment of electronic flat knitting machines soared by 44 per cent to around 202,000 machines, the highest level ever. Not surprisingly, Asia received the highest share of shipments (96 per cent). China remained by far the world’s largest investor for flat knitting machines in 2017. Chinese investments increased from 101,550 units to 154,850 giving the country a global share of 76 per cent.
Elsewhere, in the finishing machine sector, shipments of mercerising-lines, singeing-lines, and stenters, increased in 2017 by 54 per cent, 11 per cent, and 2 per cent, respectively. Deliveries in the other sub-segments decreased.
