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    The textile sector has been a major earner of foreign exchange for Taiwan for more than 30 years, in large part due to the ability of local enterprises to innovate and adapt. For example, according to the chief secretary of the Bureau of Foreign Trade under the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), the value of Taiwan’s textile exports in 2013 was approximately US$11.7 billion, which represented about 77 percent of the total revenue earned by the sector that year. Moreover, around a quarter of the country’s US$33 billion trade surplus for 2013 was generated by the textile industry.

　　Taiwan has been among the world’s top seven producers of fabrics, fibers and yarns for the past decade, according to Taiwan Textile Federation (TTF). Like many traditional industries in Taiwan, the textile sector faced major challenges in the 1980s due to rising production costs. In response to these shifting economic realities, a large number of downstream apparel manufacturers moved their factories overseas, notably to mainland China and Southeast Asia. However, many Taiwanese companies in the midstream and upstream sectors of the market, such as producers of fabrics, fibers and yarns, adopted strategies centered on improving their production processes. They managed to survive by constantly upgrading their automation and manufacturing technologies. In particular, Taiwanese firms have enhanced their global competitiveness by developing innovative and versatile fabrics. For instance, the functional fabrics exhibited by Taiwanese firms at a recent trade show featured some of the most advanced products on the market: an ultra-light fabric that weighs just 25 grams per square meter, light-emitting diode (LED) textiles, an ingenious combination of fabrics and LEDs that is both eye-catching and functional because it promotes safety by increasing the visibility of the wearer at night.

　　According to TTF, Taiwan began to develop functional fabrics in the late 1990s. In 2000, TTF took a major step to upgrade the sector by developing a mechanism for certifying functional textiles. At present, this certification system is capable of evaluating 20 functional attributes of textiles, such as antibacterial, flame-resistant and waterproof properties. Over the years, Taiwan’s high-performance functional fabrics, and the certification label that TTF created to promote them, have increased in recognition worldwide. Today, approximately 70 percent of outdoor sportswear products sold around the globe are manufactured using functional fabrics made in Taiwan, adding that this figure reaches around 80 percent in the US market.