Chinese raw silk prices soar as India's charkha variety faces decline

Chinese raw silk (3A 20/22 high grade) experienced a steep rise over the last year, with its price reaching $69.17 per kg in the Chinese domestic market. In contrast, India's charkha raw silk prices showed a bearish tone after a sharp fall in the first quarter of last year, settling at $36.66 per kg in the Indian domestic market. 

Chinese high-grade raw silk was traded at $64.42 per kg in the first week of 2023. It dropped 3.69 per cent to $62.04 per kg in April 2023, but the prices gained 5.85 per cent to $65.67 per kg in the first week of the third quarter. The price of Chinese raw silk further surged 4.90 per cent to $68.89 per kg in October 2023 and settled at $69.17 per kg in the first week of January 2024, with a further gain of 0.41 per cent. Therefore, the prices of Chinese high-grade raw silk increased by 7.37 per cent over the last year, according to Fibre2Fashion's market insight tool TexPro. 

However, Indian charkha raw silk nosedived by 27 per cent to $36.66 per kg in the first week of this month. Although there is no direct comparison between the raw silk of both countries due to quality differences, the trend in price movement is crucial for the consumer industry. 

Indian charkha raw silk was priced at $50.22 per kg in the first week of January 2023. The prices crashed 18.94 per cent to $40.71 per kg in the following quarter and further reduced by 4.69 per cent to $38.80 per kg in the first week of July 2023. However, the prices recovered 5.59 per cent to $40.97 per kg in October 2023, but again slipped by 10.52 per cent to $36.66 per kg in January 2024, as per TexPro. 

The FOB price of Chinese raw silk also noted an upward trend last year. The prices were recorded at $66.58 per kg in January 2023, eased by 2.40 per cent to $65.08 per kg in the following quarter, but then gained 5.61 per cent to $68.73 per kg in the third quarter. Finally, it reached $71.62 per kg with a further rise of 4.20 per cent in the last quarter of 2023, marking a surge of 7.40 per cent over the last year. 

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)