In fiscal 2001, the interior fabrics industry encountered a severe market, largely unchanged from the previous fiscal year, reflecting a decline in the number of housing starts and weak consumer spending in the face of an uncertain economic outlook. Consequently, the size of the overall interior fabrics products market dropped 5.7% from the previous year (wholesale conversion base).

The market size of the interior fabrics products (wholesale conversion base) in fiscal 2001 was calculated at 246.63 billion yen (a year-on-year decrease of 3.8%) for window treatment products, 267.2 billion yen (increase of 5.9%) for floor covering products and 127.28 billion yen (decrease of 8.8%) for wall covering products.

The market shrank more than 5% in three fields, which was largely attributable to the significant reduction in the market size of wallpapers, which continued its decline from the previous fiscal year (down 12.2%).

The market size of window treatment products in fiscal 2001 was calculated at 147.3 billion yen (a year-on-year decrease of 2.2%) for curtains, 34.17 billion yen (5.3% decrease) for blinds, 33.52 billion yen (2.7% increase) for screens and shades, and 31.64 billion yen (14.5% decrease) for curtain rails. Consequently, the total market size was 246.63 billon yen (3.8% decrease).

Impacted by the number of construction starts that suffered a major decline for two consecutive years since 1997, curtain sales faced the most severe conditions so far, undergoing a double-digit decline for two successive years. In fiscal 1999, the decline was restrained to 2% from the previous fiscal year, which was considered to be the end of the downward trend in average unit prices. However, the performance failed to recover, presenting a 4.6% decrease in fiscal 2000 and another 2.2% decrease in fiscal 2001.

Similarly, blind sales continued to decline (with a year-on-year decrease of 5.3%) in fiscal 2001, influenced by a drop in the number of housing starts and a decline in unit prices. However, the timber blind market steadily expanded.

There was general growth of 2.7% in the sales of screens and shades, marking the third consecutive increase, while curtain and blind sales continued to decline. This result is attributable to the shift in demand for curtains and blinds.

Despite ongoing price reductions, the sale of roll screens was kept to a modest decline, supported by continuing popularity. On the other hand, Roman shade sales continued to grow 5.8%, marking the third consecutive increase, and pleated screen sales enjoyed double-digit gains of 16.0%, continuing the upward trend that started in fiscal 1997.

Under the impact of the declining construction starts and unit prices, sales of curtain rails dropped significantly 14.5%. Sales were particularly depressed in curtain-related products, down 30.6%.

The market size for floor coverings for fiscal 2001 was calculated at 227.9 billion yen (a year-on-year decrease of 6.1%) for carpets, 39.3 billion yen (5.1% decrease) for plastic floor materials, bringing the total to 267.2 billion yen (5.9% decrease). Compared with the previous fiscal year, the number of construction starts slightly decreased while the area of construction starts of non-residential buildings dropped nearly 10%, affecting the market size.

Sales of domestic carpets continued to fall while sales of imported carpets posted a second consecutive year of year-on-year growth. The percentage of the market accounted for by imported carpets rose steadily.

For domestic products, double-digit declines were exhibited in tufted carpets, the core product, hooked rugs and needle-punched carpets, while the drop was kept at 4.5% in tufted tiles and woven carpets.

Sales both of wallpaper made of paper and woven wallpaper decreased by more than 17%.

In contrast with the downturn in paper-made wallpaper including non-wood-based paper products, there was a significant increase again during this fiscal year in the sales of specific wallpaper including non-PVC resin products, such as acryl wallpaper and EVA wallpaper. These results caused the market share of the products to reverse, suggesting that paper-made wallpaper is not preferable because of the difficulty in working with it and its serviceability, which are considered inferior to those of vinyl wallpaper.

Trend in New Housing Starts (By Use)

(Unit: 1,000; figures in parentheses are as percentages of previous yea’s figures)

Source: “Integrated Statistics on Construction Work” Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

Trend of Floor Area of New Homes (By Use)

(Unit: 1,000m², figures in parentheses are percentages of previous year’s figures)

Source: “Integrated Statistics on Construction Work” Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

Trends in Floor Area for Each Use of Non-Residential Buildings

(Unit: 1,000m², figures in parentheses are as percentages of previous yea’s figures)

Source: “Integrated Statistics on Construction Work” Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

The size of the curtain market in fiscal 2001 was calculated at 147.3 billion yen, down 2.3% from the previous fiscal year.

The downward trend continued after peaking at 204.7 billion yen in fiscal 1996, and the size of the overall market decreased about 28%, compared with the figure then.

A comparison between imports and domestic products shows that the size of the market for domestic products declined from the size during the previous fiscal year for the fifth consecutive year (a year-on-year decrease of 3.7%), while the market for imports significantly increased from the previous fiscal year. However, the figures at the peak have yet to be retrieved.

A breakdown by type and product category shows that order-made curtains fell 2.8% from the previous fiscal year, despite some evidence of good progress, and ready-made products also experienced a severe decline of around 10%.

These figures imply a severe situation around the curtain market.

A loom by product category shows a general decline in the figures.

The total production of curtains during fiscal 2001 was 164 million m², down 3.8% from the previous fiscal year and exhibiting a clear correlation between production and market size.

• The market sizes of both domestic and imported products are based on the average unit price of NIF members and any difference between this price and the actual average price in the market cannot be verified.
• The Chemical Fibers Association has stopped from 2000 issuing the “Survey Report of the Consumed Volume of Fibers in Interior Goods,” and accordingly the standard for determination has been changed.

Table 1. Size of the Curtain Market (wholesale basis)

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are percentages of previous year’s figures)

Table 2. Size of the Domestic Curtains (by type and category, wholesale basis)

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are percentages of previous year’s figures)

Curtain Production Volume by Product Category

(Unit: 1,000m²; figures in parentheses are percentages of previous yea’s figures)

The market for blinds in fiscal 2001 faced the shift from blinds to fabrics and the reduced number of construction starts, together with a further decline in unit prices. The rate of low-priced products increased, leading to a progressive reduction in the size of the market, although the market for wooden blinds steadily expanded.

Table 3. Market Size of Blinds (wholesale basis)

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are percentages of previous year’s figures)

The market size for roll screens slightly declined, with prices further dropping despite the continued demand.

The demand for Roman shades picked up due to improvements in functionality and styles, including the introduction of a double-clothed shade that resembles curtains, and the initiative of allowing customers to select fabric materials. After reaching a size of two billion yen the previous year, the market size for pleat screens grew a further 16%, suggesting a higher awareness of the products in the market.

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are percentages of previous year’s figures)

The size of the curtain rail market in fiscal 2001 was calculated to be 28.42 billion yen (a year-on-year decrease of 11.0%) for curtain rails, 2.21 billion yen (30.6% increase) for related products and 1.01 billion yen (5.1% increase) for others, producing a total of 31.64 billion yen (14.5% decrease)

The overall market size for curtain rails in fiscal 2001 (in yen terms) suffered a serious decline from the previous year, adversely affected by the fall in the number of construction starts (1,170,000 houses/apartments per year, a year-on-year decrease of 3.3%) and other factors.

The sales of functional rails decreased by more than 11%, reflecting the sluggishness in the number of newly built houses, while decorative rails also dropped at least 13%, influenced by the decline in unit prices of wooden rails.

Table 5. Market size of Curtain Rails (wholesale basis)

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are percentages of previous year’s figures)

The market size for carpets in fiscal 2001 was determined to be 227.9 billion yen (a year-on-year increase of 93.9%). A breakdown of the figure shows the market size of domestic products amounted to be 126.3 billion yen (88.8% of that in the previous fiscal year), marking a 10% decline from the previous year. The market size of imported products reached 101.6 billion yen (101.1% of that in the previous year), indicating that the ratio of imports increased steadily despite the significant growth the previous year. Overall domestic production declined by about 10%, and the difference between the decline and the increased market size should reflect the continuing severity of the market prices.

On the other hand, the size of the market for imported carpets posted favorable growth although it was not as high as in the previous fiscal year. The increase in quantity (107.2% of that in the previous year) slightly exceeded that on a yen basis, and the unit prices dropped. Japan received a large volume of imports from China, overwhelming those of other countries, accounting for 152% of the figure the previous year in terms of quantity, and 124% in the previous fiscal year on a yen basis. This volume corresponds to about one third of the entire volume imported. In terms of quantity, China was followed by Belgium, Thailand, then, India, and these top four countries accounted for over 70% of the entire volume imported.

In terms of the amount in yen, the leading exporters included China, Belgium, India, the United States and Iran, and these top five countries accounted for 70% or more of the imports into Japan. Characteristically, the volume of sales of Wilton and other woven carpets and imported tufted carpets exhibited a greater rise on a yen basis for the slightly increased quantity.

In the construction market, the number of construction starts of new houses declined slightly for two consecutive years, achieving 1,170,000 houses/apartments (a year-on-year decrease of 3.3%). Construction starts of non-residential buildings declined nearly 10% from the previous year, affecting the market. Despite these circumstances, carpet pieces exhibited a favorable growth in the amount of both money and quantity. The quantity of carpet tiles improved in new construction and renovation while, in yen terms, the sales fell. Sales of roll carpets and needle-punched carpets continued to fall from the previous year.

Table 6. Market Size of Carpets (wholesale basis)

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are percentages of previous year’s figures)

Table 7. Market Size of Domestic Carpets (by product category, wholesale basis)

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are as percentages of previous year's figures)

The market size of plastic floor covering materials in fiscal 2001 was determined for composition tiles, regular vinyl floor sheets and cushioned flooring.

Among composition tiles, semi-hard types were mainly employed to determine the market size. Having long been in use as an inexpensive PVC tile, with its good durability and ease of installation, the composition tile is one of the representative flooring materials in non-residential buildings, such as offices and schools. However, the market has recently gone into gradual decline due to the diversification of flooring material products. In fiscal 2001, the market size underwent a substantial contraction of more than 20% from the previous fiscal year, accompanied by a fall in the number of constructions.

The regular vinyl sheet is called a long PVC sheet. This sheet can be used in a wide range of general-purpose applications without the need to install a foam layer. It is used as a highly durable sheet flooring material in schools, hospitals, factories and offices. The market size in fiscal 2001 reached record lows due to the decline in public construction and the decreasing investments of private businesses.

Cushioned flooring is highly decorative flooring with a foam layer. The product comes in two types, for domestic and commercial purposes. Domestic cushioned flooring is 1.8 to 3.5mm thick, while the commercial cushioned flooring is 2.3mm thick. The use of cushioned floors in commercial premises has gone into decline, influenced by the use of other PVC flooring materials. Despite this, the material was more often used for apartments. The type for domestic use is only used in damp areas such as kitchens, washstands and toilets, and only a small quantity is used in each house or apartment. Nonetheless, the market for these products remained stable. The market size in fiscal 2001 contracted from that of the previous year due to the decline in the number of residential construction starts.

The market size for the three kinds of plastic floor materials in fiscal 2001 was estimated to be 39.3 billion yen (a year-on-year decrease of 5.1%).

* There may be some discrepancies in the totals for each item in each wallpaper tables because of rounding.

Wallpaper sold at outlets such as bulk merchandisers involved in the Do-It-Yourself market is not included in “Wallpaper Production and Shipment Volumes,” produced by the Wall Decoration Material Association (currently, Wall Coverings Association of Japan) and used in determining the size of the market here. Hence, the wallpaper section in the “Volume and Value of Products Sold” by the Household Fusuma and Wallpaper Association has been extracted and included here for reference.

The market size in fiscal 2001 was 2,097,990,000 yen, slightly more than the previous fiscal year (a year-on-year increase of 1.7%). Vinyl wallpaper sales decreased 23% from the previous fiscal year and the paper-made wallpaper rose 71% in fiscal 2000. In fiscal 2001, sales of vinyl wallpaper increased 29% while paper-made wallpaper fell 54%. The results indicate that paper-made wallpaper tended to stagnate, in a similar manner to wallpaper in the construction market.

Table 9. Market Size of Wallpaper (domestic products, imported products, wholesale basis)

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are as percentages of previous year's figures)

Table 10. Market Size of Wallpaper (by product category, wholesale basis)

(Unit: 100 million yen; figures in parentheses are as percentages of previous year's figures)

Wallpaper Production and Shipment

(Unit: 1,000m²; figures in parentheses are as percentages of previous year's figures)

Household Fusuma and Wallpaper Association “Volume and value of products sold”

(Unit: 1,000m, 1,000 yen)

For fiscal 2001, from January to December 2000