The new textile policy, which would help in promoting exports and creating employment opportunities, has not been finalised and is at the draft stage at present, Parliament was Informed on Friday.
In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Textiles Minister Smriti Irani said the policy is being formulated by holding widespread consultations with various associations, industry bodies, states and other stakeholders, representing sub-sectors such as cotton, silk, jute, handloom, handicrafts, and powerloom.
“At present, New Textile Policy has not been finalised and it is at the draft stage,” she said, adding the policy will give thrust on enhancing export performance and creating better employment opportunities.
In a separate reply, she said during the current cotton season 2020-21, (from October 2020 to September 30, 2021), as on February 6,” Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) has procured 90.87 lakh bales under the minimum support price (MSP) operations.
“CCI is procuring around 25,000 to 30,000 bales per day in the cotton growing areas wherever the prevailing kapas prices are ruling below MSP,” she added.
Replying to another question, the minister said certain Indian textile products are listed in the US Trafficking Victims Protection Re-authorisation Act (TVPRA) child labour/ forced-labour List 2020.
She added that steps have been taken through Embassy of India in the US for delisting of such products.
Source: The Financial Express
The Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) has sold around 1.28 crore bales (170 kg each) to millers and traders in the 2020-21 season, top officials at the corporation said. In addition to domestic sales, the CCI has also sold 30,000 bales to Bangladesh last week, Pradeep Agrawal, CMD of the CCI, told FE.
“CCI has sold almost all stocks of the previous season of around 108 lakh bales and some 20 lakh bales from the current season, which means a total of 128 lakh bales or 1.28 crore bales. Last year, the CCI had stocks of 115 lakh bales and only 7 lakh bales remained unsold,” Agrawal said.
According to data available on the CCI website, the Committee on Cotton Production and Consumption (CCPC) — a body represented by growers, traders, textile industry and officials of ministries of textile and agriculture — has estimated the carryover stocks at 120.95 lakh bales for the current season.
The CCPC has estimated that India could still carry over a high 97.5 lakh bales of cotton stocks to the next season, while the Cotton Association of India (CAI) has estimated it at 115 lakh bales.
According to the CAI, the present carryover stock is estimated to be 125 lakh bales.
The situation of high carryover stocks arose due to the lockdown in March last year, which had resulted in the textile industry, particularly spinning and garment units, shutting down. Production began in full swing only after September.
According to Agrawal, the CCI has procured some 92 lakh bales this season.
With kapas (raw unginned cotton) prices crossing Rs 6,200 per quintal, farmers no longer require CCI intervention and minimum support price (MSP) purchase continues only in rural far-flung areas,” he said, adding that only some 8,000 to 10,000 bales are being purchased on a daily basis.
The CAI had estimated cotton production at 360 lakh bales, which is the same as the previous season.
Source: The Financial Express
Changes made in the FDI norms last year, which made it mandatory for firms of a country sharing land border with India to seek government nod for all investments, are fully compliant with New Delhi's commitments under WTO, Parliament was informed on Friday.
In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Union Minister Som Parkash said in the meetings of the Council for Trade in Services under WTO held in October and November last year, China had raised concern on the changes made in India's Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy through Press Note 3 of 2020.
The changes have mandated that an entity of a country, which shares a land border with India or where the beneficial owner of an investment into India is situated in or is a citizen of any such country, can invest only under the government approval route.
"In response, India asserted that FDI from all members of World Trade Organization (WTO), including China, continues to be permitted and the measures are fully compliant with its commitments under WTO," the Minister of State for Commerce and Industry said.
In a separate reply on exports of COVID-19 vaccines, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said vaccines, including COVID-19 vaccines, are covered under a common ITC HS codes - 30022019 (other single vaccine) and 30022029 (other mixed vaccine).
In trade parlance, every product is categorised under a code. It helps in the systematic classification of goods across the globe.
India's export of vaccines, including COVID-19 vaccines, stood at around USD 125.93 million (other single vaccine) and USD 226.74 million (other mixed vaccine) during April-January 2020-21.
Source: The Economic Times
The proposed Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) scheme seems to be stuck in an inter-ministerial tangle. According to reports, the scheme benefits may not be available for certain export sectors and some of these sectors could be petroleum & petro products, gold, precious metals, etc as the government is working on skewed funds.
RODTEP scheme, which seeks to reimburse the input taxes and duties paid by exporters – including embedded taxes, such as local levies, coal cess, mandi tax, electricity duties and the fuel used for transportation – which are not exempted or refunded under any other existing scheme.
The scheme was designed in compliance with WTO permissible rules to extend handholding benefits to exporters and is supposedly kick-started from January 2021, but the rules and the rates of benefits to be extended to exporters are yet to get finalised, which are delaying the scheme to come into action in real terms.
Sources say that since “The scheme was replacing the earlier available MEIS scheme is facing delays as Discussions on these benefits are still on between Commerce and revenue department.”
“Important to note here is that the government is very clear on the fact that the objective of the RODTEP scheme is to handhold export sectors which need government support as limited funds are available and it may not possible to accommodate all rates recommended by the GK Pillai panel on RoDTEP rates,” sources on the condition of anonymity told CNBCTV18.
Currently, North Block is examining and studying the rates of input duty refunds proposed so far by the GK Pillai committee under the new (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products) scheme, which include items of leather, textiles, made-ups, automobile parts and iron & steel.
The Pillai panel is understood to have submitted RODTEP rates on 2000 goods already and by end of the month, it is expected to submit rates of the remaining items as well.
The government had appointed former home and commerce secretary -- GK Pillai led panel last year to calculate duty refund rates that can be extended under the RoDTEP scheme.
On February 1, under the Union Budget, the government has decided to allocate Rs 13,390 crores towards RoDTEP scheme to be extended to exporters in the next fiscal as against the MEIS allocations of over Rs 39,097 crore for FY 2019-20 and Rs 15,555 crore for MEIS benefit during the period April 2020 to December 2020.
Further Finance Ministry issued orders for issuance of MEIS scrips for FY 2020-21 to be restricted to a maximum of Rs 16,000 crore.
The MEIS, popular amongst exporters across sectors, had to be discontinued as a World Trade Organisation panel. The move came after the US had lodged a complaint against the scheme with the WTO.
The WTO panel had ruled against India and had said that the scheme was not in accordance with multilateral trade rules
Exporters and industry are eagerly awaiting the announcement of RoDTEP rates as they complain that it is not possible for them to price their items competitively without knowing the amount of refund they would get.
“It is critical and important that immediate announcement of the RoDTEP rates for all the products be made so as to remove uncertainty and help the trade to factor such rates while negotiating or executing new orders,” said Anita Rastogi, GST and Indirect Tax Partner at PwC.
Ajay Sahai Director-General of Exporters Body - Federation of Indian Export Organisations said, “Exporters want the rates to be announced immediately so that they can finalise their contracts factoring in these rates. Exporters are finding it really tough to close their Spring-Summer orders and unable to book contracts. Exports are losing business.”
Source: CNBC TV News
India Inc on Thursday lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comments in the Parliament on the private sector, saying it boosted the confidence of entrepreneurs. The PM on Wednesday had in the Lok Sabha said abusing wealth creators for votes was no longer acceptable.
"If the public sector is important, so is the participation of private enterprise,” Modi said, exhorting the need for greater private participation in business. "Wealth creators are important for distributing wealth,” Uday Kotak, President, Confederation of Indian Industry, was quoted as saying in a statement by the industry body.
PM's recognition of the role of private sector in Parliament has boosted the morale of every entrepreneur, Kotak said. While this speaks of the vision of the PM in the role played by the industry in nation building, it also puts enormous responsibility on the business community to rise up to keep national interest above everything else, Uday Shankar, President of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry said in a statement.
“At a time that the COVID-hit Indian industry is trying to pick up its rhythm of high growth, Prime Minister’s acknowledgment would be a much-needed shot in the arm for entrepreneurs and the business community,” Shankar was quoted as saying in a statement.
Source: The Economic Times
The National Research Centre for Banana, Tiruchi, has announced the launch of an initiative to develop small machinery for extracting banana fibre and utilise the sap, central stem and other waste for producing a variety of products.
The initiative was launched by the NRCB in partnership with the Indian Institute of Information Technology Design and Manufacturing Kancheepuram (IIITDM Kancheepuram) and Gencrest, an industry partner, brought together at the behest of Mylswamy Annadurai, Vice-President, Tamil Nadu State Council for Science and Technology and Chairman, National Design and Research Forum, a NRCB press release said.
In Tamil Nadu, banana is cultivated in more than one lakh hectares and more than 10 million tonnes of waste is generated after the harvest of bunches.
The initiative was aimed at managing this humongous quantity of bio-waste. An agreement was signed to develop pilot scale machinery for extracting more than three tonnes of banana fiber every day and utilise the sap, central stem and scutcher for producing a variety of products.
On the occasion, Dr. Mylswamy observed that banana cultivation generated approximately 80 million tonnes of pseudostem waste per year, but it was not used well despite its huge industrial potential.
Banana fiber could be used in textiles and scutcher waste generated after extracting the fiber could be used as acoustic and aircraft panels and self-healing composites.
Banana sap can be used as an organic liquid nutrient for enhancing the yield of fruits and vegetables and reducing the carbon footprint, he said and added that the collaborative venture will hugely benefit the banana farmers in multiple ways.
He asked the industry partner Gencrest to adopt the products developed by the NRCB such as central stem-based juices and, biscuits for large scale production in view of their nutraceutical potential.
S. Uma, Director, NRCB, emphasised the need for adopting latest technologies for converting waste into innovative, high value products.
Ravindra Naik, Principal Scientist, Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Coimbatore Regional Centre, demonstrated the high throughput semi-automatic fiber extraction on-farm machine which was developed by the centre in collaboration with NRCB and technical support of a Coimbatore-based industry.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
On February 1, Budget 2021 was presented in a backdrop of a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic that had seriously disrupted the economic and social activity.
This followed a slowdown in the previous year. The total revenue receipts are expected to be down by 28.8% and government expenditure up 16% compared to budget estimates. The Fiscal deficit will reach an unprecedented level of 9.5% as the economy contracted by 7.7%. This situation called for measures that were out of the ordinary.
The theorists were looking at a counter-cyclical response in terms of higher liquidity in the system. However, this budget, very wisely, has chosen to accelerate the reforms agenda, which has been a critical component of the government’s pandemic response.
It has also put a higher focus on capital expenditure away from populist measures like increasing allocation to direct benefit schemes which will help build productive national assets.
In addition, it has also kept the tax regime largely stable; a big signal to the investors, as it removes uncertainties.
The announcement has made a very bold move of privatisation of a couple of Banks and an Insurance company.
This has been on the agenda for the past two decades. Privatisation would bring more capital and management expertise into these organisations and improve credit flow into the economy.
The FDI cap for the Insurance sector has also been raised to 74%. These steps, coupled with efforts to deepen the Bond market, would reduce India’s risk perception.
This will bring longer tenure capital and help lower interest rates. A single code for financial markets would make life easier for market participants, reduce volatility and reduce regulatory burden.
Reform announcements in the Energy sector have gone relatively unnoticed.
Flexibility to a consumer to choose from a supplier other than the discom is again a bold measure.
This has the prospect of effectively separating the distribution infrastructure from the power supply in the economic sense. It should lead to private capital in the power distribution sector.
Similarly, the announcement of a comprehensive system operator for gas transmission should facilitate the smooth flow of natural gas across the country.
With the development of commodity exchange for gas, one can expect that a functioning and economically viable gas system would be in place for the country.
The budget has taken the right step, but energy sector reforms are difficult to implement. It calls for persistence; otherwise, investors may again be disappointed.
The finance minister has increased allocation to capital expenditure by 34.5% to Rs 5.54 lakh crores. Since autonomous organisations, such as NHAI also raise their own finances, total Capex this year is likely to be upwards of Rs. 11 lakh crore.
Platform available in the form of National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) should help to channelise this resolve.
FM has also laid lots of emphasis on REITS and INVITs. With the removal of TDS on dividends, a viable tax structure is in place for them.
Given global uncertainties, it’s unlikely that private investment would flow into greenfield infrastructure projects.
Asset monetisation offers an excellent opportunity to access this capital, as cash flows in these projects are relatively stable. With the framework, in place, it should be easy to monetise completed projects. However, one would like to see greater deal flow.
It is worth noting that certain lessons have been learnt from the pandemic.
With a clear focus on building the health infrastructure, the budget has earmarked Rs. 2.23 lakh crores for health including Rs. 35,000 crores for COVID vaccination.
The Rs. 64,180 crores ‘Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Yojana’ and the move to expand the Integrated Health Information Portal to all States and UTs is a right step towards building both a physical and digital Health ecosystem. This will make India better placed to fight any future pandemic while providing affordable universal healthcare.
Steps like increased spending on infrastructure, buying of buses worth Rs 18000 cr for local bodies, setting up of mega Textile park, vehicle scrappage policy and metro projects should perk up the local industry, especially in the sectors such as Steel, cement, engineering etc.
A welcome beginning in rental housing should help the accretion of housing stock.
We believe, implementation would be key to achieve what the budget aims to accomplish.
Firstly, efficient tax collection and greater buoyancy in taxes would be critical.
Disinvestment is the other key area. We feel that it would be essential to balance the budget at the year-end and give life to the companies on the selling block by quickly carrying out sale procedures. Here, minority sale of shares should also be pursued as vigorously as a strategic sale.
Thirdly, another critical challenge going forward is to accelerate on the ground, infrastructure development to help convert Capital expenditure to hard assets which can fuel growth and bring in desired benefits.
This means an efficient project execution.
This is also the moment to ponder how the baton would be passed to the private sector to drive growth. While the budget has done its part to revive the animal spirits, the efforts undertaken to improve Ease of doing business like the implementation of the single clearance portal should continue. This will help push up private investments, a prerequisite for sustainable growth.
Lastly, experience has shown that the window for reforms is limited. An unprecedented level of political resolve has been brought behind these reforms. Now, all of these must be taken to their logical conclusion rather than letting them meander and then devote reams of paper on missed opportunities.
Source: The Financial Express
India is trying to strike a tough cut price with Sri Lanka and would need a government-to-government settlement for a terminal presence in Colombo port — a regional transhipment hub by which a big portion of India’s export-import cargo containers are transhipped — for strategic and safety causes.
On February 1, the Sri Lankan cupboard scrapped a tripartite memorandum of cooperation (MoC) signed in Could 2019 with Japan and India to collectively develop the East Container Terminal (ECT) at Colombo Port within the wake of robust protests from port unions.
Sri Lanka, as an alternative, is believed to have provided the proposed West Container Terminal (WCT) mission to India and Japan.
However, India is insisting on the sanctity of the settlement on ECT and wish Sri Lanka to “give in writing” its supply to permit India take WCT, a authorities supply briefed on the matter stated.
‘Tender route dangerous’
If there isn’t a government-to-government settlement, the WCT needs to be put to public tender, as per Sri Lankan authorities guidelines and procedures during which many international terminal working giants together with a State-owned Chinese language agency could be eager to take part.
With aggressive bids, they might stroll away with the deal.
This might scuttle India’s efforts to have a presence in Colombo port perpetually as each ECT and WCT would then be not accessible.
“The general public tender route to achieve a presence in Colombo is a extremely dangerous proposition for India,” a port business supply stated.
Secondly, India needs the same fairness association as within the case of Colombo Worldwide Container Terminals Ltd the place China Retailers Port Holdings Firm Ltd holds 85 per cent stake, and different comparable phrases and situations for WCT.
Operational autonomy
This might give operational autonomy and freedom to hold on the terminal enterprise, with out being subjected to authorities audit and public procurement guidelines.
Whereas each ECT and WCT could be comparable capability terminals, WCT has an added benefit by way of deeper depth at 20 metres.
The one level in ECT’s favour is that it may be put to operations sooner by putting in ship-to-shore cranes because the berth is partly constructed.
Source: Odisha Expo News
Germany-based leading Textile Machinery Association VDMA has announced to hold the next technology webtalk on 17 February under the theme – ‘Technologies for fine gauge fabrics in the circular knitting industry’.
The association says that the circular knitted fabrics in fine gauges are used in sportswear, homewear as well as in underwear and lingerie. However, they are just as trendy as they are challenging in terms of production.
Since a high-quality fine-touch product requires an optimal combination of yarns, circular knitting machines, needles and dyeing, the industry needs opinion to get it done in a right way.
One of the speakers in the webtalk will be Wolfgang Mueller from Mayer & Cie, who will talk about the challenges that fine-gauge circular knitting entails. Wolfgang will also present an optimal fine-gauge set-up for circular knitting machines. Yarn selection, yarn feeding, stitch formation and takedown are the four key factors for a premium product in the knitting process.
Another prominent name is Roland Simmendinger, who belongs to Groz-Beckert. Roland will provide an insight into the high precision technology of circular knitting machine elements. The presentation will illustrate the challenges to knit a high-quality fine gauge fabric.
What solutions are needed when it comes to dyeing of fine gauge circular fabrics! Ralf H. Stange from Thies will throw light on these solutions in his session.
Registration is free for all and the link to participate is given below:
https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/1911035184873300492
Source: Apparel Online
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that the Union Budget for FY 2021-22 intends to accelerate the pace for an 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'. She also mentioned that the pandemic did not deter the Government for initiating reform measures for long term reforms.
"I would like to highlight - stimulus plus reforms. The pandemic did not deter us from taking up reforms that would sustain long term growth,” she said in her reply on General Budget in the Lok Sabha.
The Rajya Sabha has already completed this process. This marks the completion of the first part of the budgetary exercise.
Now, the Standing Committees of different departments will present expenditure related proposals and the Finance Bill during the recess between February 16 and March 7.
The Lok Sabha will take up these proposals and Finance Bill during second part of Budget Session scheduled to start from March 8.
“We have taken not just one-off reforms, not just now and then, but reforms rivetted in a policy which will give a neat background, a layout spread before the Parliament for people to know that this is a reform that will lay a path for India to be one of the top economies of the world in the coming decade and further,” she said highlighting key themes of the budget.
In response to criticism in less money for health, she highlighted that the Government has taken a holistic expenditure. “It is addressing preventive health, it is addressing curative health, it is also addressing well-being. Otherwise, you are not going to get holistic health-related governance,” she said.
“I will firmly establish that in spite of bringing water & sanitation, the allocation to the core health has not come down. On the contrary, it has gone up,” she clarified.
She reiterated that the Government’s commitment towards respecting entrepreneurship.
“Respecting Indian entrepreneurial skills, Indian managerial skills, Indian trade skills, Indian business skills, Indian youth, Jana Sangh onwards, BJP has consistently believed in India. We didn't borrow something from somewhere and gave a hybrid,” She said.
She highlighted that the Budget has laid emphasis on increasing capital expenditure, raising allocation for healthcare capacity building and development of agriculture infrastructure, among others, which are expected to have a multiplier effect on the economy.
With regards to increasing allocation for rural job guarantee scheme, the Union Finance Minister said that the Government will allocate more funds for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee (MGNREGA) scheme for 2021-22, if needed, as against Budget estimate of Rs 73,000 crore.
Some members questioned whether allocation for minority affairs, allocation for SC & ST has been reduced.
“No, they have not," the Minister denied while saying that total allocation for minority affairs is Rs 4,811 crore in 2021-22.
This is an 8.6 per cent increase for the Ministry, higher than actual expenditure.
Overall allocation provided for welfare of SCs have shown an increase from Rs 83,257 crore in 2020-21, compared to Rs 1,26,259 crore in 2021-22. Overall allocation provided for welfare of STs have also shown an increase from Rs 53,653 crore from 2020-21 to Rs 79,942 crore in 2021-22.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
With cottonseeds becoming a low-margin business, Kaveri Seeds is shifting gears away from its cotton-centric business model. It is now focussing on high-margin seeds such as rice, maize and vegetables.
With its reduced impetus on the cotton business, the Hyderabad-based seeds major is focussing on increasing its non-cotton business, which includes rice, maize and vegetables.
“The cottonseed business now constitutes only 47 per cent of our revenues as against 53 per cent last year. This will further come down to 43 per cent by the end of the financial year,” C Mithun Chand, Executive Director of Kaveri Seeds, told BusinessLine.
The firm is looking at a 40:60 breakup between cottonseed and non-cottonseed business in the next financial year.
“The hybrid rice seeds business, which never took off for years in the country, is now witnessing a sharp growth. While the country is growing paddy on 40 million hectares, the contribution from hybridisation is only 3.5 million hectares.
“There is a huge opportunity in this space. While the industry (rice seeds business) has grown by 8-10 per cent, we have grown by over 48 per cent during the nine-month period (ended December 2020).
The portfolio has become so important to us that rice is contributing about 25 per cent to our revenues,” he said.
The company, which registered a net profit of ₹7.45 crore in the third quarter ended December 31, 2020, saw increased profitability in the quarter as the share of cottonseed business reduced.
The firm posted net sales of ₹100 crore in the quarter as against ₹98.50 crore in the comparable quarter last year. For the nine-month period, it registered a net profit of ₹319.63 crore on a turnover of ₹932 crore.
“Our strategy to reduce the dependence on cotton business has paid off. The contribution from non-cotton business has grown up by 34.18 per cent. This growth was driven by both volume growth and price appreciation in key products,” he said.
Despite a dull market for maize in the rabi season, maize volumes have gone up by 19.11 per cent and revenues by 13.60 per cent.
Outlook
In its outlook for the year, the company said it had short-listed nine countries with potential for exports. “We are looking at opportunities in countries such as Bangladesh, Nepal, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and a few in Africa,” Chand said. There is export potential for maize, rice and vegetable seeds in these countries, he added.
Exports contributed about ₹20 crore to the company’s annual revenues.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
The Indian finance ministry’s monthly report on growth and inflation outlook for 2021-22 portends more than full recovery. “FY 2021-22 will be the year to rebuild with the IMF [International Monetary Fund] projecting growth of output at 11.5 per cent, Economic Survey at 11 per cent and the RBI’s [Reserve Bank of India] Monetary Policy Committee at 10.5 per cent,” it said.
“With the IMF keeping India’s growth projections elevated at 6.8 per cent in FY 2022-23, India is back as the fastest growing major economy in the world,” the finance ministry’s Monthly Economic Report said.
The country has also become the COVID-19 vaccine hub of the world, it noted.
Indian economy is estimated to contract 7.7 per cent in the current financial year, primarily due to the pandemic.
“The structural reforms and the policy push under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Mission along with the slew of measures announced in the Union Budget 2021-22 towards achieving broad-based inclusive growth will strengthen the fundamentals of the economy and bring it back on to a strong and sustainable growth path in the year ahead,” the report said.
The latest Economic Survey projected growth rate to rebound to 11 per cent during 2012-22 while the budget estimated real gross domestic product (GDP) to be between 10-10.5 per cent.
The survey pitched for growth through counter cyclical fiscal policy emphasising that growth alone is the answer to sustaining the public debt burden of the country, the report said.
The budget implemented the counter cyclical fiscal policy by raising the target of fiscal deficit to 6.8 per cent of GDP, more than double the fiscal responsibility and budget management target, it said.
With the expanded borrowing programme mostly meant for funding the enhanced capital outlay, the budget has set in place the multiplier impact on growth to support the prescribed fiscal deficit target of 4.5 per cent of GDP in 2026 under the fiscal glide path.
The report noted that various measures taken by the government since March 2020 against the pandemic ensured minimum loss of life.
“Early lockdown, health-infra ramp up, gradual unlocking, blanket testing, social distancing, calibrated fiscal stimulus to minimise supply side disruptions and revive demand and structural reforms pursued diligently by government since March, 2020 have now come to fruition to limit the fatality rate to globally one of the lowest at 1.2 per cent,” it said.
According to the report, with each day ending with positive COVID-19 cases falling to new lows and economic activity levels attaining new peaks, India has worked its way around the pandemic through the will of the brave people and astute policy interventions by the government.
Source: Fibre2Fashion News
The State government is working on making saris and other handloom products of Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation and other handloom organisations and cooperative societies available on e-commerce portals, Minister for Handlooms Textiles and Minority Welfare Shrimant Balasaheb Patil said here on Thursday.
Talking to reporters, Mr. Patil said that handloom weavers were suffering for want of avenue to market their products. “We are working on making all our handloom products available on Amazon.
We hope to have it in another two months,” he said. Mr. Patil said that the government is also refurbishing the five showrooms of KHDC in Bengaluru and providing better display for Ilkal saris and other handloom products that have secured Geographical Indication tag. The five showrooms will be a model for refurbishing other showrooms in the State, he said.
Certificates
The Minority Welfare Department is working on launching a flagship programme for issuing certificates equivalent to SSLC for those studying in Madrasas.
These students will be taught basics of Science, Mathematics and languages in addition to what they learn in Madrasas.
“I am consulting religious leaders from across the State. Once they give consent, a committee of experts will be set up to work out modalities,” he said.
Shortfall in the revenue for the State government, the Minister said, has affected many welfare programmes for minorities, including payment of scholarships. The department has paid a total of ₹ 78 crore to 3.5 lakh minority students in 2020-21 and hoped to get an additional grant for the remaining four lakh applicants.
“We are asking the government not to reduce grants for scholarship in the forthcoming budget,” Mr. Patil said.
The Minister said that the department has planned to open an ITI in each one of the 30 districts and a polytechnic in each one of the four divisional areas and offer skill development courses for minorities and other students.
Earlier, Mr. Patil inaugurated the new building of Murarji Desai Residential School and the Muslim Residential School near Konaje. He also laid the foundation stone for the construction of three Maulana Azad schools and a Pre University College of the Minority Welfare Department in the district.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
India and the US are committed to achieving the ambitious goal of a bilateral trade of USD 500 billion, India’s top envoy here has said, underlining that New Delhi is keen to engage with the new Biden administration, particularly on trade and economic partnership. When President Joe Biden was the vice president, he had set an ambitious goal of taking bilateral trade to USD 500 billion.
We are committed to achieving the ambitious goal of bilateral trade of USD 500 billion. I am optimistic that there is nothing we cannot achieve together, if we sit across the table and discuss, India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, told PTI in a recent interview.
We look forward to engaging with the new administration particularly on the trade and economic partnership. You should not forget that the India-US relationship has had a history of breakthroughs. It is in the inherent nature of this relationship, Sandhu said.
Responding to a question on India-US bilateral trade, he said that it is well known that the bilateral economic partnership has been on an upward trajectory: USD 150 billion in bilateral trade; USD 46 billion US Investments in India; over 2,000 US companies in India, including every major Fortune 500 companies and over 200 Indian companies created about 125,000 jobs in United States across all states.
The private sector and businesses on both sides are excited about the limitless opportunities for expanding our trade and investment ties, Sandhu said. According to Richard M Rossow, Wadhwani Chair in US India Policy Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) think-tank, India-US bilateral trade took a hit this last year, primarily due to COVID-19 pandemic.
Goods trade dropped from USD 92 billion in 2019 to USD78 billion in 2020. Services trade was relatively stable at somewhere around USD50 billion, he said. Beyond the numbers, trade ties are languishing, he noted adding that individual firms are still finding opportunities.
But that is in spite of our governments. Both governments have taken protectionist turns in recent years. I have no doubt that we will hit USD 500 billion in trade someday; our governments can help decide if it takes a decade or a century, Rossow said.
It will take enormous courage and political leadership to repair our trade relationship–especially as our respective economies and job markets reel from COVID effects. But we should start small- securing our “mini trade deal” and remove some of the more onerous frictions, he said in response to a question.
Expand discussions to look at cooperation in strategic-economic sectors like critical minerals, climate change, and emerging technologies. Then see where discussions can go. But at the moment, both sides lack a plan and lack leader-level attention, Rossow said.
In a blog post, CSIS said that the Biden administration is less likely to be driven by populist impulses and may also open new avenues for trade cooperation, such as environmental goods and green technologies.
Expansion and predictability in temporary work visas like H-1B will be a welcome news for the services trade, but the visa reform, the Biden administration promised will likely only benefit skilled workers, said the blog post authored by its research associate Kriti Upadhyaya.
Protectionist tendencies, she said, will endure in the near term, mostly owing to the pressures created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Already, the pandemic has set bilateral trade with India back. India slipped from being the United States’ ninth-largest trading partner to its eleventh largest, she said.
The US remained India’s top trading partner for the second consecutive fiscal in 2019-20, which shows increasing economic ties between the two countries.
According to the data of the commerce ministry in New Delhi, in 2019-20, the bilateral trade between the US and India stood at USD 88.75 billion as against USD 87.96 billion in 2018-19.
The US is one of the few countries with which India has a trade surplus. The trade gap between the countries has increased to USD 17.42 billion in 2019-20 from USD 16.86 billion in 2018-19, the data showed.
Source: The Financial Express
The Union health ministry has issued new 'SOPs to contain spread of Covid-19 in offices' and according to these, if one or two cases are reported, the disinfection procedure will be limited to the areas occupied and visited by the patient in the last 48 hours.
Work can resume after disinfection has been completed as per laid down protocols, the standard operating procedures (SOPs), which were issued on Saturday, stated.
If a larger number of cases are reported at workplace, the whole block or building should be disinfected before work is resumed, the ministry said.
Officers and staff residing in containment zones should inform the same to their supervisory officer and not attend office till the containment zone is denotified. Such staff should be permitted to work from home, the new SOPs stated.
Offices in containment zones shall remain closed except for medical and essential services and only those outside will be allowed to open up, the document said.
The SOPs stated that only asymptomatic staff or visitors shall be allowed entry, individuals must maintain a minimum distance of six feet in common places as far as feasible, and use face covers or masks at all times.
"They must be worn properly to cover the nose and the mouth. Touching the front portion of the mask or face cover to be avoided," the ministry said.
It also underlined practicing frequent handwashing with soap for at least 40 to 60 seconds, even when hands are not visibly dirty, and use of alcohol-based hand sanitiser for at least 20 seconds wherever feasible.
Meetings, as far as possible, should be done through video conferencing and large physical gatherings continue to remain prohibited, the SOPs stated.
"Offices and other workplaces are relatively close settings, with shared spaces like workstations, corridors, elevators and stairs, parking places, cafeteria/canteens, meeting rooms and conference halls etc, Covid-19 infection can spread relatively fast among officials, staffs and visitors," according to the procedures.
"There is a need to prevent spread of infection and to respond in a timely and effective manner in case suspect case of Covid-19 is detected in these settings, so as to limit the spread of infection," the SOPs said.
Entrances of offices should have mandatory provisions for hand hygiene like sanitiser dispensers, thermal screening. These should be proper cleaning and frequent sanitisation, at least twice a day, of the workplace, particularly of the frequently touched surfaces, according to the document.
The number of people in elevators shall be restricted, duly maintaining physical distancing norms for which proper markings should be made on the floor of the elevators, the SOPs stated.
For air-conditioning and ventilation, the guidelines of Central Public Works Department must be followed and these mention that the temperature setting of all air conditioning devices should be in the range of 24-30 degrees Celsius, relative humidity should be in the range of 40-70 per cent, intake of fresh air should be as much as possible and cross ventilation should be adequate, they said.
Cleaning and regular disinfection using one per cent sodium hypochlorite of frequently touched surfaces such as doorknobs, elevator buttons, handrails, benches, washroom fixtures, must be done in office premises and in common areas at least twice a day, the new SOPs stated.
The document said that any shop, stall, cafeteria or canteen outside and within the office premises must ensure physical distancing norms are being followed at all times.
Staff should take their temperature regularly and check for respiratory symptoms and must see a doctor if they feel unwell or show flu-like symptoms.
Besides, staff and waiters should wear mask and hand gloves and take other required precautionary measures. The seating arrangement has to be done to ensure a distance of at least six feet, the SOPs stated.
Source: The Business Standard
The time has come for changing policy in giving relaxation to industries, said minister for Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Omprakash Saklecha.
Industries should not be given concessions on the ground of amount of investment they make, but on their capacity to generate employment, he said. In a discussion with Free Press, Saklecha has said industrialists invest according to their wishes, but it is necessary to see whether the invested money is used for state’s welfare. The most important objective should be to provide employment to youths across the country, he said.
Therefore, it is necessary to give concession to those industrial houses that can generate job opportunities, he added. According to Saklecha, the government should make its industrial policy on the basis of an industry’s capacity to generate jobs.
Saklecha said he had already discussed the issue with Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Saklecha said a new MSME policy would soon be brought and his suggestion would be included in it.
There will be clusters of industries at ten places in the state, Saklecha said. The industries dealing in toys, medicines, textiles, food processing, automobile and plastic items will be promoted, he said.
He said that such clusters would be set up in most of the areas in the state, including Indore, Gwalior, Chhatarpur and Bhopal that industries might prosper.
Land has been identified for setting up such clusters and work will soon begin, he said. The industrial houses of these clusters will be informed about the new MSME policy and the concessions to be given to them on the ground of their ability to create jobs, Saklecha said.
Investors to do development in IT parks
Omprakash Saklecha, who is also holding the charge of Science and Technology Department, has plans for IT parks.
More lands are being identified for IT parks in Indore; besides work to develop IT parks in Bhopal, Gwalior and Jabalpur is going at a fast pace, Saklecha said.
He said that IT parks would come up on 50 acres in four cities and that investors might be advised to put in their money for development work in IT parks. The minister said that the investors would be requested to do development work in IT parks that they might set up their units.
The government will ink MoUs with those investors, he said, adding that according to the plan, the area set aside for residential and commercial use in the IT parks, will be handed over to the investors.
This will be done so that the investors may earn money for doing development work in IT parks, he said. As a result of the above policy, the government does not have to spend money on its own, and the IT parks will develop, he added.
Source: The Free Press Journal
Undeterred by risks posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, the government has been undertaking reforms to ensure a sustained long-term growth path for the country, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday, indicating that more reforms will be pursued going ahead.
Replying to a debate in the Lok Sabha, the minister said the Budget for FY22, with its enhanced allocation for capex, healthcare and the development of agriculture infrastructure, has set the stage for India to become self-reliant. It focused on sectors with high multiplier effect on the economy. “…reforms are going to lay a path for India to be one of the top economies of the world in the coming decades,” Sitharaman said
The minister indicated the final utilisation of funds earmarked for the national rural employment guarantee scheme (NREGS) may be lower than the revised estimate of Rs 1,11,500 crore for FY21.
Still, the allocation has been kept high to ensure funds won’t be a constraint should there be a fresh surge in demand. While the government has budgeted Rs 73,000 crore for the NREGS for FY22, it will allocate more funds, if required.
Demand for the NREGS soared this fiscal, thanks to the pandemic that forced millions of migrant workers to go back home where many of them tapped the scheme to eke out a living.
The minister said while the Congress-led UPA brought in the NREGS, it didn’t spend even the budgeted amount on the scheme year after year. For instance, even after the global financial crisis, the offtake under the NREGS stood at Rs 33,539 crore in FY09, against the budget estimate (BE) of Rs 39,100 crore.
In contrast, the NDA government’s actual spending on the scheme has topped its budget estimate every year, she asserted.
The government has budgeted capital expenditure at Rs 5.45 lakh crore for FY22, which is 26.2% higher than the RE of FY21 and 34.5% larger than the budget estimate (BE) for this fiscal, as it sought to invest in productive assets to spur growth.
The International Monetary Fund has forecast a 11.5% real GDP expansion for India in FY22 and 6.8% in FY23. With this, India is set to return as the world’s fastest-growing major economy, beating China.
Responding to the Congress-led opposition’s accusation of crony capitalism, Sitharaman listed out a raft of measures — from the supply of free grains and cooking gas to the poor in the wake of the pandemic to the construction of rural houses and guaranteed loans — to suggest the government, in fact, has been working for the poor, the middle class and even small businesses.
At the same time, this government doesn’t hesitate to acknowledge the contribution of wealth creators to nation building. Unless business creates wealth, the government has nothing to distribute to the poor and migrant labourers, Sitharaman said.
Commenting on the PM Kisan scheme, the minister said the decline in the budgetary allocation for FY22 by Rs 10,000 crore (from the BE of this fiscal) was because of ‘rationalisation’ of expenditure, as West Bengal government didn’t share the list of 69 lakh beneficiaries with the Centre.
The minister justified the inclusion of water and sanitation in health expenditure to show more than doubling of spending on that head by citing a World Health Organization (WHO) report that sanitisation was a crucial component of healthcare.
Even the actual allocation for the ministry of health and family welfare has been raised by 9.6% for FY22 and that of the Ayush ministry by a whopping 40%, she said.
Source: The Financial Express
Economy
Digital push: Five-year FTP likely to include guidelines to promote e-comm among exporters
Amiti Sen New Delhi | Updated onFebruary 14, 2021 Published onFebruary 14, 2021.
Centre’s ‘One District One Product’ initiative, sale of GI products could get a boost through online exports.
The five-year Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), to be announced on April 1, 2021, is likely to come up with guidelines on e-commerce for exporters to remove regulatory bottlenecks and encourage exporters to use the online platform for increasing business, an official has said.
“Through e-commerce, not only can existing exporters reach out to more buyers but producers selling in the domestic market too could explore the option of going global.
It can be an efficient platform to support the government’s ‘One District One Product’ initiative and also promote export of GI (Geographical Indications) products,” the official tracking the development told BusinessLine.
Addressing regulatory problems for overseas e-commerce transactions, including those related to third party payments and clearance of consignments, could be considered, the official said.
Payment received through OPGSP (Online Payment Gateway Service Providers) is not an authorised mechanism of receipt of exports payment, and thus, a tie-up with banks becomes necessary, pointed out Ajay Sahai, Director-General, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO).
“If the RBI adds them in the option of ‘manner of receipt of payment’ for exports, this issue can be addressed.
“This will not only reduce transaction cost for exporters but will give a huge fillip to e-commerce retail exports,” he said.
CBEC Zones
Suggestions made by exporters on the proposed setting up of Cross-border e-Commerce (CBEC) Zones comprising e-commerce market players, third-party payment agencies, logistics providers and other support services like credit insurance and banks, are also being looked at.
“All proposals are under discussion as the government is weighing all options to see what all could be incorporated in the policy. Inputs are being extensively taken from exporters. It may take at least 10 days more to give a final shape to the FTP and the guidelines on e-commerce for exporters,” the official said.
‘One District One Product’
E-commerce is being viewed as a good way of promoting the initiative of ‘One District One Product’ under which each district of the country is to be converted into an export hub by identifying products with export potential from that region and addressing bottlenecks, helping producers to scale up and enabling them to find potential buyers outside India.
Under the initial phase of the programme, 106 products have been identified from 103 districts across 27 States.
GI products
Facilitating producers of GI products (a tag used on items that originate from a specific geographic location and have special attributes) to use e-commerce to export their wares is also under consideration of the government, the official said.
GI products include items such as Darjeeling tea, Kashmiri Pashmina, Kangra paintings, Santiniketan leather goods, Bhagalpur silk and Blue Pottery of Jaipur.
As per UNCTAD estimates for 2018, the world market for e-commerce was $25.6 trillion. About 75,000 exporters from India sent out $1.2 billion worth of goods via the e-commerce channel during 2018-19, according to industry numbers.
The view that there is a huge scope for growth, for Indian e-commerce exports, is also supported by the fact that online exports are just a minuscule part of India’s total annual goods export of around $300 billion.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Precision Textiles, a supplier of coated fabrics, nonwovens and laminations for the bedding, automotive and healthcare industries, is keeping ahead of a growing trend by states to tighten fire-retardant (FR) chemical regulations in consumer products.
By constantly upgrading its portfolio of chemical-free FR solutions for quilted mattress panels and borders, FR filler cloth, FR sock, cap and laminated FR solutions, the company is helping its customers before they encounter situations that could impede their production.
The first state to regulate these materials was California, whose legislature passed Assembly Bill 2998 in 2018 prohibiting the sale of mattresses, upholstered furniture and juvenile products containing FR chemicals.
The Massachusetts government enacted a similar law, Amendment S.2988, in December 2020. The International Sleep Products Association is also tracking two new proposed bills in Georgia and Delaware which are expected to recommend similar guidelines.
Precision Textiles’ products that meet these regulations include the EcoFlex, IQFit, IQFit Natural and FireFlex mattress barriers; the Celluloft barrier for panels and borders; EcoLoft FR quilting fiber; the Endure FR filler cloth; and PureLoft, an organic FR barrier made with materials that are certified by the Global Organic Textile Standard, the Wool Integrity Program and the PGG Wrightson Wool Integrity Program.
“We’ve always been ahead of the curve regarding FR chemical regulations.
We expect that other states will follow these states’ lead, so we encourage our customers to get ahead of this trend before it becomes an issue,” said Keith Martin, vice president of Precision Textiles.
“We have been manufacturing products without harmful chemicals long before states began regulating their use, and as more and more states begin to implement new legislative regulations, our team is constantly monitoring the policies that may affect our customers.
We pride ourselves in forecasting solutions before they become concerns, giving bedding manufacturers the reassurance that by partnering with Precision Textiles, their products will always be in compliance.”
Source: Textile World
Kornit Digital, a leader in digital textile printing technology, has announced its partnership with Matset in Turkey, as it continues to broaden its market presence and expand digital textile production-on-demand capabilities. With over 45 years of experience, Matset has a long-standing reputation as being a pioneer of innovation in the printing industry.
After the first meeting, Kornit and Matset were quick to recognise how their partnership would effectively accelerate the development of the Kornit brand and solutions in the Turkish market. The deal will see Matset sell and deliver after-sales support for all Kornit textile solutions, including both direct-to-garment and direct-to-fabric product lines, particularly for t-shirts, activewear, denim, fashion, beachwear, home textiles, and fabrics, according to Kornit.
“With Kornit’s production systems, we have made an important addition to our product portfolio. We were able to quickly build a roadmap and are sure the market share will increase very rapidly in the near future. With Kornit’s reliable and creative solutions and our well-known and engaged distribution network, we will provide customers with a strong sales and support service,” Dogu Pabuççuoglu, general manager at Matset said in a Kornit press release.
“In the changing world we are living in, sectors are being transformed. Printing operations are adding different lines of business. At Matset, we offer the best choice of technology not only for the textile arena but also for the entire printing chain.
Customers are looking for different solutions to help them develop their own businesses. Kornit offers the largest digital textile portfolio available on the market today, combined with outstanding quality and the widest colour gamut.
This is exactly what we do too, and we believe we can use our experience to grow Kornit’s market share in Turkey.
Our goal is to increase the installed base and have satisfied customers.
We aim to achieve that with our market knowledge, experienced service team and responsive supply chain capabilities,” Pabuççuoglu added.
“We are pleased to welcome another partner to our growing network.
Matset joins our network of expert digital production operations that have developed a reputation for distributing high-quality solutions supported by a knowledgeable team and responsive service.
We are delighted to continue growing our reach in enabling manufacturers to make their businesses more agile, more responsive to the market, more sustainable, and ultimately more prosperous,” Omer Kulka, CMO at Kornit said in a media statement.
Source: Fibre2Fashion News
Global finance chiefs meet on Friday for the first time since Joe Biden replaced Donald Trump as U.S. president, vowing to rebuild bridges with allies to steer the world economy out of its deepest slump since the Great Depression.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, a familiar face to global policymakers from her days in charge of the Federal Reserve, will join her counterparts from the Group of Seven (G7) rich nations for the online discussions.
Britain's finance minister, Rishi Sunak, who will co-chair the talks, wants the meeting to send a fresh signal that trillions of dollars of stimulus from G7 members will not be scaled back while COVID-19 vaccinations are still ramping up.
Biden has proposed a further $1.9 trillion in spending and tax cuts on top of Trump's $4 trillion. Sunak is expected to say next month that he will extend his economic rescue programmes and fixing public finances will have to wait.
The meeting will try to revive attempts for a global approach to taxing giant digital firms, many of them American such as Amazon and Google, a test case for Washington's return to engagement with the rest of the world.
The G7 was also likely to help low-income countries raise funds to fight the pandemic by backing a new allocation of the International Monetary Fund's own currency.
The United States, the IMF's dominant shareholder, is open to new issuance of $500 billion in what would be another shift from the Trump administration's stance, sources said.
As well as the United States and Britain, the G7 includes Japan, France, Germany, Italy and Canada whose finance ministers and central bank governors will be joined by the head of the European Central Bank and the IMF.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is due to host the first in-person summit of G7 leaders in nearly two years in June in a seaside village in Cornwall, southwestern England, which will focus on rebuilding from the pandemic and climate change.
Trump threw the G7 into chaos in 2018 when he said he was backing out of a joint communique after a leaders' summit because of a trade dispute with Canada. Britain wants to make climate change and biodiversity loss a top priority of it G7 presidency ahead of the COP26 conference it is due to host in November. (Writing by William Schomberg Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
Source: Devdiscourse News
The commerce and industry ministry is trying to prepare a road map and a scoping paper to quickly start review of free trade agreements (FTAs) with Japan and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), according to minister handling the portfolio Piyush Goyal, who recently said a review of an FTA with South Korea is also under way.
On the proposed mini trade deal with the United States, Goyal said India is waiting for the new US trade representative (USTR) to come in and New Delhi also has to hear from the new US administration about the deal.
"We also have certain thoughts about it. It's only after we engaged with the new US administration that we can comment on that," he told reporters.
"Once the new USTR is in office, we will start a dialogue with them to look at how we can expand our business and international engagement with them both on market access, and tariffs...," he said.
About a proposal submitted by India and South Africa for relaxing certain provisions in intellectual property (IP) agreement of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, the minister said about 100 countries have already supported the proposal and there is some resistance from the developed world.
"We are working along with other countries to try and come to a common position," he was quoted as saying by a news agency.
India and South Africa have submitted a proposal suggesting a waiver for all WTO members on the implementation, application and enforcement of certain provisions of the TRIPS Agreement in relation to the prevention, containment or treatment of COVID-19.
The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights or TRIPS Agreement came into effect in January 1995. It is a multilateral agreement on intellectual property rights such as copyright, industrial designs, patents and protection of undisclosed information or trade secrets.
The minister also hoped that the WTO would quickly put in place the appellate body of the dispute settlement system and the benefits of special and differential treatment (S&DT) will continue for perpetuity or for a longer period of time.
The S&DT allows developing countries to enjoy certain benefits including taking longer time periods for implementing agreements and binding commitments, and measures to increase trading opportunities for them.
He hoped that various negotiations, such as those on e-commerce, which are continuing on a plurilateral basis move to multilateral negotiations.
He added that the ministry is planning to roll out the next foreign trade policy on April 1.
Source: Fibre2Fashion News
Japan’s economy expanded more than expected in the fourth quarter, extending its recovery from its worst postwar recession as a rebound in overseas demand boosted exports and capital expenditure.
But the recovery slowed from the third quarter’s blistering pace, underscoring the challenge policymakers face in preventing the spread of the coronavirus without choking off a fragile recovery.
The world’s third-largest economy grew an annualised 12.7% in October-December, government data showed on Monday, marking the second straight quarter of increase and exceeding a median market forecast for a 9.5% gain.
It was a slowdown from a revised 22.7% surge in the previous quarter, when the economy got a lift from pent-up demand after a previous state of emergency was lifted in May.
“The fourth-quarter recovery turned out stronger than expected,” said Masaki Kuwahara, senior economist at Nomura Securities.
“It’s true the economy contracted for the year 2020. But it has been steadily picking up since summer, driven by domestic and external demand.”
Private consumption, which makes up more than half of the economy, rose 2.2%, slowing from the 5.1% increase in the previous quarter but exceeding market forecasts for a 1.8% gain.
A global rebound in manufacturing activity also gave exports and capital expenditure a much-needed boost, the data showed.
External demand, or exports minus imports, added 1.0% point to fourth-quarter GDP growth. Capital expenditure grew 4.5%, marking the first increase in three quarters, the data showed.
For the full coronavirus-stricken year, Japan’s economy contracted 4.8%, marking the first annual fall since 2009.
Japan’s economy has gradually emerged from last year’s initial state of emergency curbs thanks to a rebound in exports.
But the government’s decision to roll out new restrictions from January has heightened the chance of another recession, clouding the outlook for a fragile recovery.
Takumi Tsunoda, senior economist at Shinkin Central Bank Research, expects a complete recovery from the pandemic slump to be difficult as Japan lags western economies in vaccine distribution.
“The conditions are such that Japan will not be able to avoid negative growth in the first quarter,” he said.
“There is a high possibility that there will be a repeating cycle of coronavirus infections spreading and being contained this year, which means that consumption is not likely to recover at the expected pace.”
Source: Reuters
A recently created rebate for certain imported yarns and textiles used in local manufacturing has been described as overly complex and its intentions as “ambitious”.
The rebate, created on the back of a policy directive from Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Ebrahim Patel, is supposed to “support localisation of manufacturing”.
The International Trade Administration Commission (Itac) published the rebate and its strict guidelines, rules and conditions to minimise rebate abuse or misuse earlier this month.
FC Dubbelman, owner of FC Dubbelman & Associates, says although these rules and conditions will impact especially smaller players it is important to prevent abuse given the number of “creative importers” and “stakeholder parties” in SA.
The rebate and its intentions are ambitious, and although it could benefit the clothing industry it will depend on effective administration and policing, he adds.
Donald MacKay, director of XA International Trade Advisors, writes in his regular trade insights that complexity is the enemy of investment and “the bedfellow of skulduggery”.
“Between the twin evils of bargaining councils and terrible trade policies, I think we have already killed the industry.”
SA has a Retail, Clothing, Textile, Footwear and Leather (R-CTFL) Masterplan where retailers have committed to increase the level of locally produced goods sold in stores from 44% to 65% over the next 10 years. The plan was signed in November 2019 and envisages the creation of 120 000 jobs in the CTFL value chain.
The rebate
Several large players in the clothing and textile industry, including the SA Clothing and Textile Workers Union, supported the creation of the rebate on certain imports. The imported yarns and textiles covered by the rebate carry tariffs ranging from zero to 30%.
The country’s textile and clothing industry was highly competitive until 1994 when it joined the World Trade Organisation. It lost ground when tariff protection decreased, causing a flood of low-priced imports and a decrease in local production with subsequent factory closures, says Dubbelman, a member of the recently established customs tax work group of the South African Institute of Tax Professionals (Sait).
The rules
Clothing manufacturers with compliance certificates from the National Bargaining Council for the Clothing Manufacturing Industry can supply retailers who are signatories to the masterplan with clothing made from the fabrics imported under the rebate.
The same applies to textile mills that add value and supply clothing manufacturers that have the necessary compliance certificates, and which in turn supply retailers who are signatories to the masterplan.
Dubbelman says the idea is that the rebated item that is allowed by Itac in SA should benefit SA and the benefit should not be “transferred” to other countries in the region.
MacKay has expressed concerns about the impact the complexity will have on compliance.
“I have no idea how this will be enforced,” he says.
“I suspect the smaller producers and the producers who do not ‘play ball’ will feel the brunt of this. This would suit the big companies perfectly, of course.”
To get the rebate will take some doing
In order to qualify for the rebate, the manufacturers must pre-sell their products, they must ensure that their offtake agreements with local textile mills guarantee the same uptake as the previous year’s volume and value, and the products that are produced with rebated yarns and textiles are only sold in the country where the rebate was issued.
MacKay says the rebate will only benefit companies that can pre-sell their orders and are able to then purchase raw materials in quantities that will match the orders that are being placed.
“Larger, established South African producers would love the rebate, as it would lock out smaller competitors, who do not have a history with a retailer [to secure orders] … I see no way this latest trade policy benefits anyone other than those who figure out how to game the system,” says MacKay.
Sait CEO Keith Engel says he is pleased to note that government is aware of the need for businesses to be competitive. However, he questions whether government is not merely acting emotively without understanding the industry.
“Legal requirements for access need to be utilised with care [without prejudicing certain players] or the proposal will not work as intended,” he adds.
Benefits
Dubbelman does see it as a step in the right direction to incentivise the industry to increase its significance in the economy and jobs market.
He explains that the import of woven staple fibres for the manufacturing of “Articles of Apparel and Clothing Accessories, Knitted or Crocheted” [Chapter 61 of the SA Customs Tariff Schedule] and “Articles of Apparel and Clothing Accessories, not Knitted or Crocheted” [Chapter 62] will be 22% cheaper because of the rebate – reducing costs by 22%.
The rebate savings should lead to lower prices, higher sales and increased turnover which should pave the way for increased job creation and investments.
“The textile and clothing industry will have to consider investment in production processes, training of employees and an increase in productivity to address costs amidst increased imports and the trend of international clothing retailers not to buy local.”
At the same time government would have to ensure that illegal imports and manufacturing activities are addressed, says Dubbelman.
Source: Moneyweb News
Dow, a leading materials science company, has introduced Dowsil IE-8749 Emulsion, a new generation of durable water-repellent finishes (DWR) for fabrics based on silicone chemistry.
“As the global textile industry quickly adopts new production practices and materials with reduced environmental impacts, it’s important to examine the water-repellent treatments being used as many conventional options come with a number of disadvantages,” said Shawn Mealey, technical service and development scientist at Dow.
“At the same time, fashion designers are being tasked with finding fabric solutions that meet consumer and societal expectations for style, ease of care and durability. With Dowsil IE-8749Emulsion, we can help meet those needs and provide designers with a water-repellent treatment that aligns with the industry’s overall push for greater sustainability.”
Studies conducted on a variety of textiles substrates based on Dowsil IE-8749 Emulsion treatment demonstrate improved fabric retention compared to standard silicone finishes – thereby providing continued water repellency after multiple washes, Dow explains.
Unlike many conventional finishes, Dowsil IE-8749Emulsion finish does not need to be regularly heat treated to restore the water repellency performance, which is a key advantage for the durability of the final product.
By incorporating a Dowsil IE-8749 Emulsion treatment into their finishing processes, textile finishers receive greater control over the hand feel of the fabric - an important parameter driving consumer choices today, the company adds.
Depending on specific need, this can range, from a very soft hand feel that is characteristic of silicone when used alone, to a firmer hand with the addition of cross linkers, Dow says.
Mealey will present the specifics of this new durable water-repellent solution for textile finishing during a dedicated webinar on March 2nd at 8 a.m. Eastern Time. Participants are invited to register online.
The technology powering Dowsil IE-8749 Emulsion was developed through a collaboration between Dow and Nicca Chemical and was recently recognized by a 2020 R&D 100 Award. It does not contain fluoroalkyl or fluorocarbon, Dow emphasises.
This product comes in addition to several recently announced technologies by Dow in the textile space, focused on combining high performance, cost-effectiveness, and improved sustainability profiles.
For further information about Dow’s broad chemistry panel for textile formulation, please visit www.dow.com/textiles.
Source: Innovation in Textiles News
The Joe Biden-led new US government is continuing with the Section 301 tariffs on finished apparel and textile imports from China. Tariffs were first imposed by the US in May 2019 to address intellectual property theft and other predatory trade practices by China. Since then, a number of tariffs and counter tariffs were imposed on import of goods.
However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the US government gave exclusions on some Chinese products, including textiles and apparel, which have now been extended till March 31, 2021.
Meanwhile, the Chinese government has reduced sliding tariffs on cotton cargoes imported under additional quotas. It has increased the number of products with lower than MFN tariffs and imported under temporary import tariffs from 859 earlier to 883 from January 1, 2021.
The lower sliding tariffs would reduce the cost of importing cotton fibre into China, according to Fibre2Fashion's market analysis tool TexPro.
On the other hand, the US residents and businesses have received more than $72 billion in additional tariffs on products after the China 301 tariffs were put into place. It affected the money in the pockets of US residents, less speed of US manufacturing, and decreased competitiveness for American businesses.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
Global demand for clothing plummeted amid the COVID pandemic and big fashion brands remain reluctant to place big orders, posing a major problem for Bangladesh's vital textile industry.
In 2020, textile exports from the South Asian nation dropped by nearly 17%. Shipments to Europe, which is the destination for 60% of Bangladesh's garment exports, recorded a significant decline of just under 19%.
There hasn't been any uptick in demand and exports so far this year, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) said.
"Apparel exports declined by 5.83% year-over-year in January," Rubana Huq, president of the association, told DW.
"Based on current scenarios and the global trade or economic outlook, retail sales trends in the West, and the slowdown in order situation by our customers, it appears that exports may continue suffering till the third quarter of this year."
Bangladesh is hugely dependent on the export of textiles for its national income as the industry accounts for more than 80% of overall exports.
About 4 million workers are employed by the garment industry, most of them female seamstresses who often support several family members and live from paycheck to paycheck.
Clothing surplus piles up
Many clothing retailers have seen their stocks pile up over the past year.
According to the US-based business consultancy McKinsey, the value of unsold clothing in stores and warehouses worldwide ranges from $168-192 billion (€140-160 billion), which is more than double the level seen before the pandemic.
Also, global fashion brands continue to cancel orders from local suppliers. Britain's Marks & Spencer and Germany's Hugo Boss, for instance, said they had placed smaller orders than usual for this year’s spring collection.
Swedish firm H&M said a drop in demand worldwide will "inevitably" have an impact on their purchases.
"Our purchasing strategy is long-term but considering the uncertainties with how the pandemic will develop, we are of course closely evaluating the situation," H&M told DW in an emailed reply.
"A drop in customer demand and temporarily closed stores inevitably have an impact on our purchases."
The retailer also said that it is keen to work closely with suppliers to find solutions to support garment workers.
"That's why we have joined the ILO global call to action where we are working together with the ILO and trade unions to establish social protection systems, which the pandemic has highlighted the need for in many countries around the world," the company said.
Delayed recovery
"Until mid-January, 24% of our existing orders were postponed," Arshad Jamal Dipu, a vice-president of BGMEA, told DW. "We will get the whole picture in April-May. We fear a 30% order loss."
The European Union is Bangladesh's biggest garment export market, while the US is the largest single-country market.
In 2020, Bangladesh's textile exports to the EU dropped by nearly 19%, whereas to the US they fell by 16% and to Canada by as much as 25%.
With the increasing spread of new variants of the virus, BGMEA fears the economic recovery will be delayed further as countries tighten restrictions on business and public movement to combat their spread.
"We are observing a 'go slow' approach by buyers since the end of last year, which appears to be taking a further drastic turn," BGMEA president Rubana Huq told DW. "We are not getting pleasant signals from the local liaison offices of the buyers."
Source: Dw.com News
In collaboration with Infinited Fiber, Weekday, an H&M brand, has introduced a limited-edition version of their popular Rowe Jeans, using 100 per cent post-consumer waste to make a completely recyclable, breathable cotton like fabric. Weekday, a part of H&M since 2008, is a Swedish denim and fashion brand influenced by youth culture and street style.
The material used to make the exclusive jeans consists of 50 per cent organic cotton and 50 per cent Infinna, which comes from 100 per cent reborn textile waste.
The Infinna-Rowe jeans are now available in Weekday’s online store and the price is the same as for the conventional model, further establishing the need to democratise more sustainable fashion choices, according to H&M.
Infinna can be recycled again in the same process together with other textile waste. What makes Infinited Fiber’s technology unique is that it can turn textile, cardboard and agricultural waste to a cotton-like material.
The ground-breaking process makes it possible to recycle garments again and again without compromising on the quality, thereby creating a true circular fashion economy.
The Weekday Infinna release is a continuation of years of collaboration between Infinited Fiber and H&M, H&M said.
In 2019, Weekday teamed up with actor and environmental activist Maisie Williams to co-design the first showcase denim outfit fully created from regenerated textile waste.
The initiative fronted by actor Maisie Williams was originally a test project by the circular innovation lab team at H&M.
Locating and testing out new innovative concepts that have the potential to be scaled up, are an important part of H&M’s work towards becoming fully circular and climate positive.
Investing in innovations enables the group and its brands to explore solutions that have the potential to replace the production of virgin fibres and, therefore, play a vital part in helping meet its sustainability goals.
The collaboration’s first commercial product has finally been unveiled and is available to customers in Weekday’s online shop from February 4, 2021, according to a media statement by H&M.
”Weekday is taking steps towards fully implementing circular design practices. We’ve previously teamed up with actor Maisie Williams and co-designed a custom two-piece outfit made from Infinna, Infinited Fiber’s revolutionary textile fibre that transforms textile waste into a high quality and sustainable circular alternative to cotton.
This time around, we wanted to scale up this concept and give a wider audience the chance to choose circular design and created a limited edition of our most popular women’s jeans fit Rowe, using a 50/50 blend of Infinna and organic cotton in a denim weave,” Anna Norling, Weekday head of design said in a H&M press release.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
