The textile industry, which used to bring great honor and an enormous fortune to Wuxi, Jiangsu province, is facing a critical time in its transformation.

"I have been working in the textile business for half a century, and witnessed the industry tough out so many bad times, including the Asian financial turmoil. But I should say we are facing an unprecedented difficult situation now," said Chen Zhengming, deputy secretary-general of the Wuxi Textile Association.

Textile profits slumped 6.19 percent year-on-year in 2012, Chen said. However, based on technological innovation and better allocation of resources, textile companies in Wuxi managed to maintain a 4.83 percent year-on-year growth for export value in 2012, higher than the national average growth rate of 3.09 percent.