The international competitiveness of China's textile industry declined due to rising labor costs and administrative controls on cotton prices, Gao Yong, secretary-general of the China National Textile and Apparel Council (­CNTAC), was quoted by Xinhua as saying Tuesday.

The export volume of China's textile products accounted for 37.51 percent of the total imports of European countries in the first quarter, 1.04 percentage points lower than a year ago, according to the CNTAC.