Trade

Global Footwear Exports Increase in 2024 and China Continues to Lose Share

Aug 19, 2025 World Footwear Yearbook

This is one of the main conclusions of the data published in the World Footwear Yearbook 2025, recently released by APICCAPS, the Portuguese Footwear Association

In 2024, global footwear exports increased by 4.6% in volume compared to the previous year, signalling a steady recovery in international trade. Asia remained the dominant player, accounting for 85.1% of total exports — slightly above the 84.5% share recorded a decade earlier.

Between 2015 and 2024, global footwear exports grew modestly in volume - up by 1.2% - but surged by 31.4% in value, rising from $129.2 billion to nearly $170 billion.

Asian countries consolidated their dominance in the global footwear trade, with their collective share increasing from 84.6% in 2023 to 85.1% in 2024. Conversely, Europe’s share declined slightly to 12.6%.

China remains the leading exporter, accounting for 62.2% of total exports, although its share continues to decline (down from 63.8% in 2023). Vietnam ranks a distant second with 10.7%, followed by Indonesia at 4.1%. Together, these three countries account for more than three-quarters of global footwear exports.