Textile

The first cotton mill of Hong Kong was established in 1947. Nowadays, the textiles industry comprises spinning, weaving, knitting and finishing of fabrics. It had a total of 1,527 establishments employing 17,091 workers in 1999, or 7.0% of the local manufacturing workforce. The exports of textile goods were HK$9,488 million worth in 1999, accounting for 5.6% of total domestic exports.

Hong Kong is the world’s leading textile exporter. Besides its export orientation, the textile industry is a major supplier to the local clothing industry. In recent years, many textile manufacturers have shifted low-end production to China and Southeast Asia, but at the same time invested heavily in capital-intensive and technologically advanced machinery. Modern machinery like open-end spinning machines and shuttleless looms has been widely adopted by manufacturers. Besides, the industry has also begun to apply variously computer technology such as computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM).

　

		Textile mills built in Hong Kong since the war are among the most up-to-date in the world, with machinery from Britain, Germany and Japan.

In Hong Kong industry never stands still.  There have been marked advances in dyeing techniques.

During sizing the warp is coated with a protective covering for weaving.

Girls work under hygienic conditions in Hong Kong's modern cotton mills.

Hong Kong's first cotton mill was built in 1947.