From the Sector

In the first quarter of 2025, orders for textile machinery recorded by ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, showed a sharp decline compared to the same period in 2024, down 29%. The index stood at 41.8 points (base year 2021=100).

The negative result reflects both a significant contraction in the domestic market and a pronounced slowdown abroad. In Italy, orders dropped by 57%, while foreign orders fell by 25%. The index for foreign markets stood at 43.3 points, while the domestic figure dropped to 30.5 points. The order backlog at the end of the quarter ensured 3.6 months of production.

The downturn also continues when compared to the previous quarter (October-December 2024), with overall orders decreasing by 15%.

Marco Salvadè, President of ACIMIT, commented: “The sector started 2025 on an even weaker footing than it ended 2024. On international markets, the deep uncertainty triggered by last year’s geopolitical tensions has been further worsened by the tariff decisions implemented by the Trump administration. In the US, orders remain at a standstill as the market awaits the next steps from the President. Some glimmers of hope come from the estimates of global export data for textile machinery in the first quarter: China, India, and Pakistan—key markets for technology suppliers—show signs of recovery compared to the same period in 2024.”

In Italy, the situation is even more critical, with the orders index at its lowest level, even surpassing the slump of 2020. “We need to look beyond 2025 and call on the Government to implement targeted, structural incentives for investments in capital goods, with simple procedures that allow companies to access them quickly”, Salvadè noted.

The Lenzing Group, a leading supplier of regenerated cellulosic fibers for the textile and nonwovens industries, reports a continued improvement in its business performance in the first quarter of 2025, although the recovery of global textile markets remained very slow and uneven during the reporting period. While the positive trend in volumes sold continued, prices remained constant at a low level. Raw material, energy and logistics costs continued to be high.

Revenue grew by 4.8 percent year-on-year to EUR 690.2 mn in the first quarter of 2025. The operating earnings trend largely reflected the positive effects of the performance program. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose by 118.8 percent year-on-year to EUR 156.1 mn. This also includes positive special effects from the sale of EUR 25.5 mn surplus EU emission certificates and the change in the fair value of biological assets in the amount of EUR 9.2 mn. The EBITDA margin in-creased from 10.8 percent to 22.6 percent. The operating result (EBIT) amounted to EUR 74.3 mn (compared with EUR 1.5 mn in the first quarter of 2024) and the EBIT margin amounted to 10.8 percent (compared with 0.2 percent in the first quarter of 2024). Earnings before tax (EBT) amounted to EUR 35.1 mn (compared with minus EUR 17.8 mn in the first quarter of 2024). The result after tax also improved significantly and was positive again for the first time since the third quarter of 2022 at EUR 31.7 mn (compared with minus EUR 26.9 mn in the first quarter of 2024).

The Lenzing Group’s performance program is designed holistically with the overarching objective of significantly increasing long-term resilience to crises and greater agility in the face of market changes. The program initiatives are primarily aimed at improving EBITDA and at generating free cash flow through enhanced profitability, as well as sustainable cost excellence. Extensive actions are being undertaken to strengthen sales activities, such as the acquisition of new customers for the most important fiber types as well as expansion in previously smaller markets, which are exerting a positive impact in terms of revenue. The Managing Board also anticipates significant cost savings. Savings of over EUR 130 mn were already realized in the 2024 financial year. From the current financial year onwards, Lenzing is aiming for recurring annual cost savings of over EUR 180 mn.

Outlook
The IMF has significantly downgraded its growth forecasts for both this year and next to 2.8 percent and 3.0 percent respectively. The escalation of international trade conflicts and the risk of inflation returning are seen as major threats to global growth.

In times of uncertainty and high living costs, consumers can be expected to remain cautious and thrifty, with negative effects on consumer sentiment and their willingness to spend.

The currency environment is expected to remain volatile in regions relevant to Lenzing.

In the trend-setting market for cotton, analysts expect a slight increase in stocks to around 18.8 mn tonnes in the current 2024/2025 harvest season, according to preliminary estimates.

Lenzing will continue to consistently implement its performance program and expects to leverage further cost potentials and further improve its revenue and margin generation.

Having weighed the aforementioned factors, the Lenzing Group confirms its guidance for the 2025 financial year of year-on-year higher EBITDA.

However, the current tariff dispute and the high level of uncertainty associated with it are dampening expectations and further limiting the visibility of earnings.

In structural terms, Lenzing continues to expect growth in demand for environmentally responsible fibers for the textile and apparel industry, as well as for the hygiene and medical sectors. As a consequence, Lenzing is very well positioned with its strategy and is driving ahead with not only profitable growth in specialty fibers but also the further expansion of its market leadership in the sustainability area.

adidas announced preliminary results for the first quarter of 2025. The company’s revenues grew nearly € 700 million and reached € 6,153 million in Q1 (2024: € 5,458 million).

In currency-neutral terms, sales increased 13%. Excluding Yeezy sales in the prior year, currency-neutral revenues for the adidas brand increased 17% during the quarter, driven by double-digit growth across all markets and channels.

The company’s gross margin improved 0.9 percentage points to 52.1% (2024: 51.2%). The year-over-year increase of the gross margin for the adidas brand was even stronger at 1.6 percentage points. Operating profit improved strongly to € 610 million in Q1 (2024: € 336 million), reflecting an operating margin of 9.9% (2024: 6.2%).

Having completed the sale of the remaining Yeezy inventory at the end of last year, the company’s results for the first quarter of 2025 do not include any Yeezy contribution.

adidas CEO Bjørn Gulden:
“I am very proud of what our team achieved in Q1. Double-digit growth across all markets and channels in today’s volatile environment shows the strength of our brand and underlines the great job our people are doing. The operating profit of € 610 million and the 9.9% operating margin prove the great potential of our company. A great quarter!”

adidas will publish its final set of financial results for the first quarter on April 29, 2025.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, the index of orders for Italian textile machines, compiled by the Economics Department of ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, showed a 19% decline compared to the same period in 2023. In absolute terms, the index stood at 49.6 points (base 2021=100).

This result is due to a slight increase in order intake from the domestic market, contrasted by a decline in foreign markets. Orders in Italy grew by 6%, while abroad a 22% drop was recorded. The absolute value of the index in foreign markets was 48.3 points, while in Italy, it reached 58.5 points. In the fourth quarter, the order backlog ensured 3.3 months of production.

Overall, in 2024, the index recorded a 16% decrease compared to the 2023 average. Domestically, the index grew by 10%, whereas abroad there was a 19% decline.

Marco Salvadè, president of ACIMIT, commented: “The order index for the October-December 2024 period confirms a still weak order intake. The negative trend in machinery demand continues, especially abroad. According to data updated to October 2024, our exports have declined in all major target markets in the first 10 months of the year. Except for the Chinese market, Turkey, India, the United States, and Germany have all seen a drop compared to the same period in 2023.”

At CHF 725.5 million, order intake was significantly higher than in the same period of the previous year (2023: CHF 541.8 million), representing an increase of 34%. This was the fourth consecutive quarter of year-on-year growth. As expected, the Rieter Group ended financial year 2024 with lower sales than in the previous year. According to preliminary, unaudited figures, total sales amounted to CHF 859.1 million, which is around 39% down on the previous year (2023: CHF 1 418.6 million). For the full year 2024, Rieter expects an EBIT margin in the upper half of the guidance range of 2% to 4% communicated in October 2024 (2023: 7.2%).

Order intake
Order intake in 2024 was 34% higher than in the previous year at CHF 725.5 million (2023: CHF 541.8 million). Rieter thus succeeded in strengthening its competitive position in a challenging market environment. Compared with the previous year, there were signs of an initial market recovery.

Sales by division
The Machines & Systems Division posted sales of CHF 424.9 million, a decrease of 56% compared with the previous year (2023: CHF 965.0 million). In the Components Division, sales declined to CHF 247.6 million, down 7% from the same period of the previous year (2023: CHF 266.2 million). The After Sales Division reported sales of CHF 186.6 million, comparable to the previous year (2023: CHF 187.4 million).

Order backlog
At the end of 2024, the company had an order backlog of about CHF 530 million (December 31, 2023: CHF 650 million).

EBIT margin
Rieter successfully implemented the measures of the “Next Level” performance program. Despite significantly lower sales, a solid EBIT margin is expected in the upper half of the 2% to 4% guidance range, as communicated in October 2024.

In the 2024 financial year, the global automotive industry recorded a slight decline in produc-tion of –1.1%* compared to the previous year. In this weakening environment, Autoneum in-creased its consolidated revenue in Swiss francs by CHF 36.4 million to CHF 2 338.7 million. Excluding translational effects from the conversion of local currencies into Swiss francs, revenue rose by CHF 96.1 million or 4.2% to CHF 2 398.5 million, which is in the middle of the guidance of CHF 2.3 billion to CHF 2.5 billion. Based on the preliminary figures, Autoneum expects an EBIT margin of over 5% and free cash flow of just over CHF 100 million for the 2024 financial year, thus fully confirming the guidance.

Business Group Europe achieved revenue of CHF 1 152.4 million in the 2024 financial year, an increase of CHF 78.5 million compared to CHF 1 073.9 million in the previous year. In local curren-cies, revenue grew by 9.8%. The first-time consolidation of four instead of three quarters of Borgers Automotive, which was acquired in 2023, resulted in an inorganic increase of 13.0%. Organically, revenue in local currencies declined by 3.2%, outperforming the market, which recorded a decline of 4.6%*.

Business Group North America outperformed the market in local currencies: while vehicle pro-duction fell by 1.4%* overall, Business Group North America recorded a slight increase of 1.3% in revenue. Borgers Automotive made a positive contribution of 3.0% to inorganic growth, while the organic revenue change was –1.7%. Consolidated revenue in Swiss francs amounted to CHF 884.6 million. (2023: CHF 895.9 million).

Business Group Asia generated revenue of CHF 198.3 million in Swiss francs, which was CHF 44.5 million below the previous year (2023: CHF 242.8 million). In local currencies, revenue shrank by 15.3% overall. The organic decline in revenue amounted to 16.6%, while the additional first quarter of Borgers Automotive, which was acquired in 2023, had a positive impact of 1.3% in the reporting year. The market in Asia remained stable with a growth of 0.1%*. In 2024, local Chinese vehicle manufacturers continued to gain market share in China at the expense of Japanese and European producers, which was clearly reflected in the revenue development of Business Group Asia. This trend underlines the importance of the acquisition of the Chinese Jiangsu Huanyu Group, announced on November 19, 2024, which generates over 90% of its reve-nue with Chinese car manufacturers in China and will significantly strengthen Autoneum's market position.

Business Group SAMEA (South America, Middle East and Africa) achieved revenue growth of 14.4% in local currencies, mainly due to inflation-related price increases. In Swiss francs, revenue amounted to CHF 121.4 million. This corresponds to an increase of CHF 12.4 million or 11.3% compared to the previous year.

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited (IVL), a global sustainable chemical producer, posted a marked improvement in quarterly performance as the chemical industry struggles to recover from a prolonged downturn and the company’s management executes their 3 year IVL 2.0 strategy to enhance competitiveness and drive efficiencies.

Indorama Ventures reported Adjusted EBITDA  of $427 million in 3Q24, a gain of 32% YoY, supported by steady volumes, improving industry spreads, and the company’s unstinting focus on optimizing assets and reducing fixed costs. The quarter marks Indorama Ventures’ first YOY improvement for the year, with all three business segments recording earnings growth, following a prolonged industry downcycle marked by customer destocking and suppressed margins. Volumes remained steady for the Combined PET and Fibers segments, while Indovinya posted a robust performance amid a peak season in the Crop Solutions market.

Fibers reported Adjusted EBITDA of $48 million, a gain of 44% YoY, driven by improved industry spreads in Lifestyle and higher volumes in Mobility and Hygiene. Management is focused on reducing fixed costs and improving profitability across the entire portfolio and taking firm action to restore market share in key verticals.

Looking ahead, the global economic outlook remains uncertain amid continued inflation, geopolitical tension, and supply chain disruptions. However, throughout the downcycle, Indorama Ventures’ experienced management team has worked hard to optimize and deleverage the business under their IVL 2.0 evolved strategy to emerge stronger and drive enhanced earnings quality in a new era of sustainable profit growth. In 3Q24, this unrelenting focus delivered fixed-cost savings of $19 million, which will sequentially increase into next year as the benefits are fully realized. Operating rates for the group increased to 82% in the quarter—from 69% previously—as the company completed its planned optimization program for CPET and Indovinya, with Fibers under implementation.

The company’s digital transformation program is accelerating according to schedule following the implementation of the SAP S/4HANA ERP platform as a digital core. North America is already benefiting from an AI-based procurement solution, while the Connected Worker Platform is driving manufacturing excellence. The first sales and supply chain solutions are expected to go-live early next year.

In September, Ontex reached a binding agreement to sell its Brazilian business activities to Softys SA for an enterprise value of approximately €110 million, enabling improved focus on retail brands and healthcare in Europe and North America. Net proceeds of approximately €82 million are due at closing, which is expected during the first half of 2025, subject to customary conditions.

In October, the social negotiations regarding the transformation of the operating footprint in Belgium were successfully concluded. This transformation fits in Ontex’s footprint optimization, allowing to further strengthen Ontex’s competitive position. The total one-time cost is estimated at €(66) million, of which €(37) million was already recorded in the second quarter.

Q3 2024 results

• Revenue was €468 million, up 1.7% like for like. Volumes, including mix effects, were up 4.4%, driven by contract gains and supportive demand in adult care, and by growth in baby care with new retail customers in North America. Sales prices were 2.6% lower, as expected, reflecting raw material index decreases and investments in increased competitiveness. Forex fluctuations were supportive, adding 0.7%, bringing total growth at 2.4%.
• Adjusted EBITDA was €56 million, up 29% year on year, thanks to volume and mix growth and the cost transformation program delivery, contributing €8 million and €14 million respectively. The operational efficiency improved further by 3.7%, driving stronger profitability and competitiveness. Index-driven lower raw material costs more than compensated for lower sales prices, leading to a €4 million positive net impact. The increase of other operating and SG&A costs had a €(12) million effect, mostly due to continued inflation. Forex fluctuations had an adverse effect of €(2) million. The adjusted EBITDA margin thereby rose to 12.0%, up 2.4pp year on year.
• Operating profit was €8 million, compared to €29 million in 2023. The decrease relates to the transformation of the Belgian operating footprint and reflects the additional one-time provisions taken following the recent successful conclusion of the social plan negotiations.
• Discontinued operations generated a €14 million operating profit, compared to €12 million in 2023. While revenue was 3.0% lower like for like and the adjusted EBITDA margin dropped to 7.6%, reflecting more challenging market conditions, this was compensated by a net gain on disposal, that was triggered by the agreement to divest the Brazilian business.
• Net financial debt for the Total Group dropped €9 million to €579 million over the quarter. Combined with the adjusted EBITDA improvement, the leverage ratio thereby fell from 2.5x at the end of June to 2.4x at the end of September.

2024 outlook

Ontex’s management confirms its guidance for adjusted EBITDA margin, free cash flow and leverage for the full year. While new customers are on-boarded in North America, the ramp-up is phased more gradually over the third quarter and the coming months, leading management to review its revenue growth guidance, now expecting:

• Revenue [1] to grow between 2% and 3% like for like;
• Adjusted EBITDA margin [1] of 12%;
• Free cash flow higher than €20 million;
• Leverage ratio below 2.5x at year end.

• Organic sales up 1% driven by volume growth; revenue down 3%
• Operating income €259 million (2023: €354 million)
• Adjusted EBITDA €394 million (2023: €414 million); Adjusted EBITDA margin 14.8% (2023: 15.1%)
• Net cash from operating activities positive €294 million (2023: positive €297 million)

Based on current market conditions and constant currencies, AkzoNobel expects to deliver 2024
adjusted EBITDA of around €1.5 billion. The company aims to lower its leverage to around 2.7 times net debt/EBITDA by the end of 2024 and around 2 times in the mid-term, while remaining committed to retaining a strong investment grade credit rating.

AkzoNobel CEO Greg Poux-Guillaume commented:
“We continued to demonstrate our ability to grow in flat markets, achieving a fourth consecutive quarter of volume growth. Although operating costs were higher year on year, they’re down sequentially, while gross margin expansion continues. We’ve launched further cost and portfolio initiatives to ensure delivery of our mid-term ambitions. For 2024, we expect to achieve around €1.5 billion adjusted EBITDA.”

Jeanologia celebrates the 25^th anniversary of its pioneering laser technology at Kingpins Amsterdam, with a unique capsule collection that blends the nostalgia of traditional denim with technological advances that have revolutionized the industry. This joint celebration with Kingpins – commemorating their 10th anniversary in Amsterdam and 20th globally – highlights the global impact of laser technology through a visual installation that traces a quarter century of innovation, with a focus on the future.

The launch of Jeanologia’s first laser in 1999 marked the beginning of a new era for the textile industry, improving sustainability, quality, and efficiency. By eliminating hazardous practices like sandblasting, this disruptive technology enhanced processes and redefined the concepts of innovation and sustainability in an industry rooted in craftsmanship. Today, this technology is used in 50% of global jean production, solidifying its position as an essential tool for top manufacturers and fashion brands.

Jeanologia has successfully integrated laser technology into the DNA of denim without losing sight of its classic heritage. This balance between tradition and modernity has cemented its significant impact on the industry. “Laser has enabled more sustainable production and opened up creative possibilities that were once unimaginable,” says Fernando Cardona, Head of Jeanologia's Brainbox.

25 LASER YEARS capsule collection of ‘old new designs’
To commemorate this milestone at Kingpins Amsterdam, Jeanologia will offer an interactive visual journey through the history of their laser technology and present a specially designed capsule collection to celebrate this anniversary.

This installation will showcase a special collection that captures the magic of laser by merging the classic with the modern. Patches, embroidery, and natural wear effects evoke the nostalgia of traditional denim, while the technology plays the silent protagonist behind each finish. The garments illustrate how laser allows iconic vintage effects such as stone washing, worn-out looks, washing marks, rips, and marbling effects using tools like the “Light Ripper” or “Light Scrapper.” The collection also explores the numerous creative possibilities these tools enable, including hyper realistic laser details, denim elements and bleach-like stains. This nostalgic approach invites the reinterpretation of the past through updated historical models that encapsulate the idea of continuous evolution and improvement in laser design.

This "old new designs" capsule collection symbolizes the connection between Jeanologia's legacy and its vision of a greener, more responsible textile industry, celebrating its history while inviting both the industry and consumers to be part of a more sustainable future in denim.

As part of the 25th-anniversary celebration, Jeanologia will offer a digital version of this capsule collection, with 25 digital designs that pay homage to the evolution of laser technology and its transformative impact. Visitors can also experience the unique digital design process with eDesigner software, taking home their digital garment to produce it sustainably anywhere in the world.

Jeanologia invites brands, designers, and consumers to be part of a new era of denim, where tradition and technology merge to create a greener, more innovative, and sustainable future.

A tribute to the ‘Denim Tribe’
Jeanologia does not commemorate this anniversary alone. The collections and the accompanying narrative are a shared tribute to the global community of brands, designers, and manufacturers who have embraced laser technology and contributed to its progress. “More than a celebration for Jeanologia, this is recognition of the entire industry, the ‘denim tribe’ that has courageously and responsibly adopted this technology, advancing towards a more sustainable future in fashion. Without their collaboration, we wouldn’t have achieved this impact,” emphasizes the Head of Technological Development at Jeanologia.