ZURICH, SWITZERLAND — April 5, 2016 — The International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) released its annual International Textile Machinery Shipment Statistics (ITMSS) today, revealing that Asia remained the world’s dominant investment region for circular knitting machines in 2015, receiving 88% of all newly shipped units worldwide. China alone accounted for 53% of global deliveries, making it by far the largest single market for circular knitting equipment.
According to the detailed statistics, approximately 30,000 large circular knitting machines were shipped globally in 2015. China received roughly 15,800 units, cementing its position as the engine of the circular knitting machine market. India ranked second with about 6,500 units delivered, followed by Bangladesh with approximately 3,100 machines. The combined share of these three Asian nations — China, India, and Bangladesh — accounted for nearly 85% of global circular knitting machine shipments, underscoring the extent to which the industry’s center of gravity has shifted decisively toward Asia.
“Asia is not just a major market — it is the market,” said an ITMF spokesperson during the press briefing. “When 88 out of every 100 circular knitting machines sold worldwide ends up in an Asian factory, it fundamentally shapes how machine manufacturers design, price, and support their products.” The statistics cover large circular knitting machines in both single jersey and double jersey configurations, shipped across all major manufacturing regions including Europe, East Asia, South Asia, and the Americas.
The report also highlighted a striking result in the flat knitting segment. Global shipments of electronic flat knitting machines surged by 52% in 2015 compared with the previous year, driven by demand from Chinese and Southeast Asian apparel producers investing in flexible, small-batch knitting capacity. The flat knitting boom contrasted with more moderate growth in circular knitting, where demand was driven primarily by capacity expansion in mass-production knitted fabric rather than by technology replacement.
Industry analysts noted that the concentration of circular knitting machine investment in Asia reflected the broader geography of apparel manufacturing. As global clothing brands continued to shift production toward lower-cost Asian destinations, local fabric mills expanded their knitting capacity to supply those garment factories. Bangladesh’s strong showing — nearly 3,100 units — was particularly notable given the country’s heavy reliance on knitwear exports, which account for the majority of its garment shipments.
The ITMF data also hinted at emerging trends. While China remained the dominant market, its share of circular knitting machine imports was gradually stabilizing, while India and Bangladesh continued to grow as independent markets. For European and American machinery exporters, the statistics confirmed what many already suspected: the future of the circular knitting business was increasingly written in Asian numbers, and success required a deep understanding of regional mill dynamics, price sensitivities, and service expectations across vastly different national markets.