Olaf Rintsch, the president of the BIR's textiles division, reported that there were “no exceptional market fluctuations” so far this year, despite the wider economic crisis.
Demand was steady in the first quarter for all grades of wiping cloth but sales continued to be difficult for the recycling grades.
Olaf Rintsch, president of BIR textiles division
And, while he said that the market for recycling grades continued to be difficult, he said that demand for all grades of wiping cloth was steady.
Writing in a quarterly market report, he said: “Although there are major problems in the car industry, no textiles recycling company has had to worry about the survival of its business.”
“Demand was steady in the first quarter for all grades of wiping cloth but sales continued to be difficult for the recycling grades. The bed feathers market remains a catastrophe although, apparently, there are some market participants who are selling these at astronomical prices”, he added.
Mr Rintsch, of German textile recycling firm Textil Recycling K. & A. Wenkhaus GmbH, added that demand had increased for sorted and unsorted shoes and that original collection grades were also benefiting from higher demand while lower grades would be sold “without any problem”.
However, he pointed out that a glut of clothing in the spring could flood the market, commenting: “It should not be forgotten that spring collections are imminent; one can only hope that these will not result in an oversupply and an ensuing price collapse. Sorted clothes are continuing to sell well into Africa and order books are full.”
Commenting on the French textile decree, which sees a levy imposed on new clothing to fund recycling, Mr Rintsch added that, to date, it had not impacted on the market.
He added: “I hope Mehdi Zerroug of Framimex will give us further information on this during our upcoming spring convention in Dubai.”
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