Investment in polyester DTY machine rebounds, more difficult for independent DTY plants

In 2023, the increase of polyester DTY machine decelerated compared with 2021-2022, with growth rate dropping from nearly 10% to around 4%. It was earlier thought that under the fierce competition among retail investors in DTY machines, the growth in 2024 would still not be very optimistic, however, according to the investigation, the increase of polyester DTY machines in 2024 is expected to pick up compared with 2023, with growth rate expected to rebound to around 6% in 2024.

The growth of polyester DTY machine in 2024 has several remarkable characteristics:

1. More manufacturers emerge

The established DTY machine manufacturers are mainly Barmag, TMT, Jingwei, Rongteng, Jinggong, Yuejian, etc. And in 2024, there emerge other manufacturers with large supply quantity, such as Taitan and Jinyi (Hongyi).

2. The demand for small machines breaks out

From the perspective of orders for machines, some mainstream suppliers receive orders for large machines until the end of the third quarter, while orders for small machines will last until next year. This year's mainstream models of large machines remain the same, but small machines see upgrade from 800 and 868 type to 900 type. It is reported that the 900 type is cheaper and more cost-effective.

3. Regional supporting orders increase

In recent years, the polyester textile industry in Xinjiang has developed rapidly, from raw materials to PFY and PSF and further to weaving, printing and dyeing units. And therefore, the intermediate twisting is essential. The supporting DTY machines see steady increase in Xinjiang. In 2023, Tongkun Yuxin has started its first PFY unit in Xinjiang, but its POY can not be full digested and thus some is occasionally processed in DTY machines in Jiangsu and Zhejiang for selling. But in 2024, DTY machines in Jiangsu and Zhejiang has barely received any POY from Xinjiang.

With the continuous increase of polyester DTY machines and the deepening of integration of polyester factories and weaving mills, the pressure on independent DTY factories solely with DTY business will become greater and greater.

The processing spread of mainstream 75D and 150D varieties in recent years has been greatly reduced since 2022. In 2023, the average annual processing spread of 75D/72F in Taicang, 150D/ 48F in Xiaoshan and Shaoxing, 150D/144F in Changxing and 150D/144F in Taicang are only 1751yuan/mt, 1212yuan/mt, 978yuan/mt and 1073 yuan/mt, respectively. Since 2024, the processing spread for independent DTY plants has not improved significantly. The DTY machine is no longer what we used to think of as a "cash printer", and it is easy to run at a loss based on current POY and DTY prices. If the factory wants to make a profit, the purchasing timing when POY price is low is particularly important.