Operation analysis of China's chemical fiber industry in 2021 and outlook in 2022

(4) Operation quality and efficiency

In 2021, the economic benefits of the chemical fiber industry increased significantly. Data from the National Bureau of Statistics show that the operating income of the chemical fiber industry entered the trillion yuan level for the first time, reaching 1,026.283 billion yuan, an increase of 27.83% year-on-year; The total profit reached 62.89 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 149.19%, and the chemical fiber industry contributed nearly 25% of the profits of the textile industry; The loss of the industry was 17.3%, narrowing by 11.42 percentage points compared with 2020, and the loss of loss-making enterprises was reduced by 8.84% year-on-year (Table 3).

The total profit growth rate of the chemical fiber industry ranked first in the whole textile industry chain, and the average growth rate in two years reached 45.5%, which was significantly higher than the pre-epidemic level. By industry, polyester and spandex industries contributed 40% and 22% of the total profit of chemical fiber, respectively. In addition, after more than ten years of accumulation in the carbon fiber industry, the technical level has been improved, and the production and sales of domestic carbon fiber have exceeded 10,000 tons in 2021, and the whole industry has achieved profit.

In 2021, the operation of the chemical fiber industry will be gradually repaired, and the operation quality indicators will be significantly improved compared with 2020 (Table 4). The profit margin of operating income was 6.13%, an increase of 2.83 percentage points year-on-year, the second highest since the economic crisis in 2008 (Figure 6); The growth rate of operating income increased by 38.24 percentage points year on year. Operating capacity improved compared with the same period in 2020. In addition to the turnover of finished products, which decreased slightly year-on-year, the turnover of accounts receivable, current assets and total assets all increased year-on-year; The proportion of three expenses decreased year-on-year, of which management expenses decreased by 0.31 percentage points year-on-year.

(5) Fixed assets investment

Improved performance of enterprises has led to a gradual recovery of investment confidence. According to the data of the National Bureau of Statistics, the investment in fixed assets of the chemical fiber industry in 2021 increased by 31.8% year-on-year (Figure 7). Industrial enterprises have actively carried out investment activities focusing on upgrading technology and equipment, extending industrial chains and adjusting regional layout. The average growth rate of fixed asset investment in the past two years has been 3.1%, and the investment scale has exceeded the pre-epidemic level.

Ii. Operation outlook of chemical fiber industry in 2022

In 2022, the global economic growth is expected to slow down, the international political and economic pattern is accelerating, the growth of external demand may slow down, the recovery of domestic consumption is still facing many difficulties, and the downward pressure on the economy is increasing, but the fundamentals of China's economy are strong and long-term good will not change.

In the first quarter, the operation of the chemical fiber industry has encountered difficulties. Affected by the novel coronavirus pneumonia epidemic, the local logistics of the chemical fiber industry cluster is blocked, the downstream demand is depressed, the international oil price continues to rise, the cost of chemical fiber is high, and it is difficult to smoothly transfer to the downstream, the operating rate of the chemical fiber industry has declined, and the economic benefits have been greatly reduced. Looking forward to the whole year, the operating pressure and risk of the chemical fiber industry will increase. From the supply side, with the improvement of industrial integration, in order to digest the growth of refining and chemical production capacity, downstream supporting projects continue to expand significantly, so raw materials and chemical fiber are still in the capacity expansion period; From the perspective of the terminal market, China's textile and apparel market is expected to decrease, domestic sales as a whole may maintain low speed and steady growth, and external demand will gradually fall under the influence of factors such as "weak demand, high base, and order outflow". Therefore, the supply and demand pattern of the chemical fiber industry is expected to weaken in 2022, while the energy consumption "double control" may exist for a long time, and the overall operating rate of the industry is expected to be basically maintained or slightly lower. The wide fluctuation of crude oil and the uncertainty of the trend will increase the risk of the chemical fiber market. In addition, the high base in 2021 has a restraining effect on the growth rate of various indicators in the chemical fiber industry in 2022.

2022 is an important year for the implementation of the "14th Five-Year Plan", along with the adjustment of the policy and the transformation of the economic structure, the contribution of scientific and technological innovation to the economy will gradually increase, and the "specialty and special new" will also develop rapidly. Chemical fiber enterprises should grasp this development opportunity, continue to strengthen independent innovation, enhance the core competitiveness of enterprises. At the same time, chemical fiber enterprises should also adhere to the road of green sustainable development, vigorously promote the promotion and application of energy-saving and carbon reduction technologies, actively promote clean production transformation, extensively carry out the construction of green factories, green products, and green supply chain, strengthen the comprehensive utilization of waste resources, and accelerate the mutual promotion and deep integration of low-carbon transformation and industrial development.