Guangzhou’s Clothing Trade Came to a Halt During Global Pandemic | Caixin Media
Liang Yingfei—Caixin Media
Guangzhou used to be one of the busiest trading hubs for clothing in China, but it has seen a decline in domestic and international trade as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. Textile exports from China dropped 15.9 percent in the first quarter of 2020. This affected the industry all the way to the very bottom of the supply chain. Wholesalers can no longer sustain their businesses, garment factories are shutting down, and workers can’t find jobs. To piece together the full picture of how the textile industry has been affected by the pandemic, Caixin photojournalist Liang Yingfei visited empty garment workshops, deserted wholesale markets, and neighborhoods where foreign dealers and garment workers live. Liang then layered portraits of garment workers seeking employment over notices that garment factories posted around the city in efforts to attract new buyers for their goods.
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Guangzhou used to be one of the busiest trading hubs for clothing in China, but it has seen a decline in domestic and international trade as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. Textile exports from China dropped 15.9 percent in the first quarter of 2020. This affected the industry all the way to the very bottom of the supply chain. Wholesalers can no longer sustain their businesses, garment factories are shutting down, and workers can’t find jobs. To piece together the full picture of how the textile industry has been affected by the pandemic, Caixin photojournalist Liang Yingfei visited empty garment workshops, deserted wholesale markets, and neighborhoods where foreign dealers and garment workers live. Liang then layered portraits of garment workers seeking employment over notices that garment factories posted around the city in efforts to attract new buyers for their goods.