That is not really asking the right question. Really, the two should not be compared. That brings up several other questions, though. What is raw silk? What is China silk? Is one a part of the other? Why can they not be compared?
China silk is simply a description of silk that is produced in China or using the Chinese style of production. Unfortunately, manufacturers seem to be unclear and inconsistent in their usage of the description. First though, I want to make sure the confusion is not in the definition of the word "silk" though, because in English, that can mean either the filament, thread, or the cloth.
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Just after writing of my own struggles with Chinese business vocabulary a few days ago, I read today that I am not the only one with these struggles. Evidentally, finding Chinese translators (that is, Chinese nationals, native speakers) who know all these detailed Chinese words is not so easy either.
That sure makes me feel better. And it certainly explains why I often feel Chinese people, sometimes even those working within the industry in question, do not know all the words I thought they would know. This only reaffirms the need for good translators, good sourcing consultants, and a spoon full of preparation for successful business dealings in China.
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It seems that trying to find thrown raw silk in China is not so straight forward a process. It is partially an issue of terminology in Chinese and partially because people think they know what you are talking about.
It took me a while to find out, but Chinese hass a few different ways to say thrown raw silk. Just plain "raw silk" was easy, but when I tried to make it "thrown," confusion abounded.
Every seller I found online seemed to use slightly different Chinese words for the 'thrown' part. When I started calling some local silk producers, the first guy actually said X silk is the same as Y silk, which the next person I called completely contradicted. Does anybody know? Solid research was the only thing that solved my problem.
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What is the difference between Southeast Asian silk and Chinese silk? The textile industry in Southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos seems more oriented toward hand-made silk products. China, as we all have come to see clearly in today's world, is focused on mass production.
Both sides claim "high quality," but I am beginning to believe there are different degrees, or at least different points of view of high quality. Laos is the perfect opposite to China, well-known for silk products, hand weaving, and natural dyes, aiming at a market interested in hand-made products or handicrafts. What of China's silk?
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What quality of silk does Guangxi have? Guangxi Province is one of the leading producers of raw silk in China. Companies are looking for new sources of silk, and the generalized Chinese co-op sites give too little information to be helpful.
The most common silk produced in Guangxi is 20/22d, though 40/44d can be found if needed in other parts of Southwest China. The quality usually ranges from 3A to 5A (AAA - AAAAA). Some producers even claim to have 6A (AAAAAA) quality silk, but when working with a 5A scale, that sounds more like boasting than credible facts.
There. Was that so hard? Why is it so hard to find nice clear information on the products we seek?
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Recently, I was helping a small weaving company locate a new source of thrown raw silk. He was particularly interested in finding a source in Guangxi Province, so I did some searching. Guangxi is stocked full of raw silk factories, but the problem was the quality; it was too high. Is there such a problem?
 His weaving company uses hand weaving methods and needs only the lowest quality of silk. What I came to find out is that China is quite advanced in the area of raw silk production. The factories I visited had very modern machines, a pleasant (though for the sake of the silk, humid) work environment, and produced a product that, though too nice for hand weaving, was of an excellent quality for most companies seeking to buy silk.
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Xinhua News Agency reports that a delegation of Hong Kong farming representatives will visit Korea for seven days in order to learn from Korea’s advanced technology and agrculture management. This is exactly what should be happening all over China, not just for relatively developed areas such as Hong Kong.
Agriculturists from the West, from Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand and Vietnam, and many other countries around the world have expertise that could be shared. How could these foreign professionals with a desire to help develop rural China help? How do they find opportunities?
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From what reports suggest, China’s textile industry operates on a low profit margin, relying heavily on what Chinese factories do best: bulk. As the Chinese Yuan continues to strengthen, these profit margins become even more thin than they already were. Soon, their bulk production could turn to bulk deficit instead of bulk profit.
These problems directly affect factory-laden Guangdong Province and other eastern provinces, but out here in Guangxi Province, how would a textile bust affect the many local raw silk producers?
No doubt this is not good news for the raw silk producers, but as a producer of raw materials, they have the opportunity to shift with the buyers. The world will still need clothes, and whoever is making the silk fabric to sell to the factories producing the silk shirts for the world is still going to need to buy raw silk from somewhere.
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