Tamil Nadu’s textile mills are worried due to the low demand for yarn. The weaving units were doing well even a few days ago but, the demand fell in the last one-and-a-half months.
Production costs have also gone up which is also adding to the challenges. For the small-scale spinning mills, high power costs, high cotton costs and a dull market have hit operations. Small-scale textile mills owners are of the view that they are unable to trigger demand in the market.
It is also being said that though the spinning mills are running at nearly 90 per cent capacity and cotton prices are stable, the demand for yarn is tepid.
G. Arulmozhi, President, Open end Spinning Mills’ Association says yarn demand has seen slight improvement but prices are a problem. With textile mills slowing down for the last few months, the open-end spinners are unable to get waste cotton and hence, comber noil prices are higher than last year. Production cost has gone up by Rs. 7 a Kg in the last 12 months because of higher labour and power costs and raw material cost is also high. But, yarn prices improved only by Rs.10- Rs. 15 a Kg in one year.
According to K. Selvaraju, secretary general of the Southern India Mills’ Association, indicative data of yarn prices available show that hosiery yarn that was selling at Rs. 381 a Kg in October last year is Rs. 331 a Kg now and price for warp variety that was Rs. 303 a Kg in October is Rs. 270 a Kg at present.
