The US, the world’s largest economy, owes India USD 216 billion in loan as the country’s debt grows to a record USD 29 trillion, an American lawmaker has said, cautioning the leadership against galloping foreign debt, the largest of which comes from China and Japan.
In 2020, the US national debt was USD 23.4 trillion, that was USD 72,309 in debt per person.
We are going to grow our debt to USD 29 trillion. That is even more debt owed per citizen. There is a lot of misinformation about where the debt is going. The top two countries we owe the debt to are China and Japan, not actually our friends, Congressman Alex Mooney said.
We are at global competition with China all the time. They are holding a lot of the debt. We owe China over USD 1 trillion and we owe Japan over USD 1 trillion, the Republican Senator from West Virginia said on the floor of the US House of Representatives as he and others opposed the latest stimulus package of USD 2 trillion.
In January, US President Joe Biden announced a USD 1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package to tackle the economic fallout from the pandemic, including direct financial aid to average Americans, support to businesses and to provide a boost to the national vaccination programme.
The people who are loaning us the money we have to pay back are not necessarily people who have our best interest at heart. Brazil, we owe USD 258 billion. India, we owe USD 216 billion. And the list goes on the debt that is owed to foreign countries, Congressman Mooney said.
America’s national debt was USD5.6 trillion in 2000. During the Obama administration, it actually doubled.
Since the eight years Obama was President, we doubled our national debt. And we are adding another projected here a completely out of control debt-to-GDP ratio, he said urging his Congressional colleagues to consider this national debt issue before approving the stimulus package.
So I urge my colleagues to consider the future. Don’t buy into the the government has no money it doesn’t take from you that you are going to have to pay back. We need to be judicious with these dollars, and most of this is not going to coronavirus relief anyway, he said.
Congressmen Mooney said that things have gone completely out of control. The Congressional Budget Office estimates an additional USD 104 trillion will be added by 2050. The Congressional Budget Office forecasted debt would rise 200 per cent.
Today, as I stand here right now, we have USD 27.9 trillion in national debt…That is actually a little more than USD 84,000 of debt to every American citizen right here today, Mooney said.
We have actually borrowed USD 10,000 per person in one year. I mean, that is out of control, he said.
Source: The Financial Express
New curbs on the movement of people or restrictions on businesses are a risk to the nascent recovery, given that gains in the third quarter (Q3/October-December) probably came from the reopening of the economy, per State Bank of India’s economic research report “Ecowrap”.
The report observed that India’s economy exited the recession and grew by 0.4 per cent in Q3/October-December FY21 after contracting 24.4 per cent in Q1 (April-June) and 7.3 per cent in Q2 (July-September).
“India is now one of the few major economies to post growth in the last quarter of calendar year 2020, with improvement in the economy’s performance inversely tied to a drop in Covid-19 infections (even in most of the European economies the GDP contraction became more deep in Q4 2020 as compared to Q3 2020).
“But as India has seen an uptick in cases over the last few weeks, it has raised the risk of a new round of localised lockdowns,” said Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Adviser, SBI.
Fourth quarter (Q4/January-March) FY2021 GDP (gross domestic product) growth, however, is estimated to decline because of a statistical aberration with food subsidy clean up, the report said.
The report estimated GVA (gross value added) for Q4FY21 at 2.7 per cent. It observed that GVA is a better estimate to gauge economic recovery in the current background when tax numbers are notoriously fickle.
For the full fiscal GDP growth is expected to decline by 8 per cent and GVA growth by 6.5 per cent. For FY22, SBI’s economic research team still expects real GDP growth would be around 11 per cent and nominal GDP at 15 per cent.
“Normally the gap between annual GDP and GVA is less than 70 basis points (bps). For the first time in FY21 the gap is whopping 148 bps primarily due to huge decline in net indirect taxes in Q1 (in Q1 the gap was 200 bps),” Ghosh said.
The report estimated the nominal loss of Rs 13.2 lakh crore in H1 (April-September) has turned into gain of Rs 2.7 lakh crore in Q3 and is expected to be around Rs 2.8 lakh crore in Q4.
For the entire fiscal, the nominal loss would be around Rs 7.6 lakh crore, though SBI’s economic research department believez that FY21 loss would be still less than the NSO (National Statistical Organisation) estimate.
As per the report, for FY21, agriculture is expected to increase by 3.0 per cent as against 4.3 per cent growth in FY20.
It also stated that in FY21, industry sector is expected to contract by 8.2 per cent as against 1.2 per cent decline in FY20.
“For FY21, services sector is expected to contract by 8.1 per cent as against 7.2 per cent growth in FY20,” the report mentioned.
Better credit demand
Ghosh observed that the real and nominal gross fixed capital formation growth have turned positive in Q3, which is a good sign and hopefully it will translate into better credit demand.
Investment scenario, which can be better gauged by the actual tenders floated than announcements, reflects improved optimism in the third quarter, with number of tenders published increasing by 23 per cent by numbers and 16 per cent by amount as compared to Q2FY21. Overall, 12240 tenders were published in Q3FY21 with an amount of Rs 2.14 lakh crore, the report said.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Rajiv Bajaj, managing director of Bajaj Auto, on Saturday said India must continue to trade with China. “We must continue to do trade with China because if we conduct our business at the exclusion of such a large country (and) such a large market, we will find ourselves incomplete over time and we will be poorer for the loss of that experience,” Bajaj said.
Bajaj stressed on the importance of maintaining continuity for having reliable supply chains. He drew attention to what happened around June-July last year when the Indian government suddenly came down hard on imports, especially from China. “To my mind, doing something like that is to cut your nose to spite your face because overnight how can one source components that are simply not made in the domestic market that you need to deliver products in the domestic or export customers?” Bajaj said.
When it comes to competitiveness, Bajaj said it was cheaper to make something out of China and sometimes cheaper to procure something from Thailand.
He suggested that companies should always procure stuff from wherever it is most competitively available. Bajaj was speaking at the Asia Economic Dialogue 2021, addressing a panel discussion on ‘Building Reliable Global Supply Chains’, organised by the ministry of external affairs and Pune International Centre.
He pointed out that a global company like Bajaj Auto has to be inclusive and it was important to have dealers, distributors and suppliers from all over the world. When dealing with suppliers, there was also a need for compassion, as Bajaj has 225 suppliers, many of whom are exclusive to the company or depending largely on them, he said. “At the end of the day, we are all interdependent.”
Bajaj Auto is already working through partners to enter the three or four ASEAN markets where the company is not present as these are strongholds for Japanese companies. So Bajaj, along with KTM, is putting together a smart strategy to make their way into Vietnam. They have entered Malaysia through a relationship with a partner there, another partnership for Thailand, and with KTM to the Philippines.
He struck a note of caution about the ease of doing business in India when compared to ASEAN countries. As the company hopes to venture into the Asian market in a significant way, an elaborate comparison on certain metrics of land, labour, electricity, logistics and legal system was carried out. After an exhaustive comparison of India, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia on these five metrics, the company came to the conclusion that the ease of doing business in these ASEAN countries is easier than what they encounter in India.
On the electrical vehicle opportunity for India, Bajaj said electrical vehicles have not moved forward as much or as swiftly as they should have in the country because of the inertia of the incumbents, as they don’t want to replace a profitable petrol and diesel vehicle overnight with a loss-making electric vehicle. His company started its electric vehicle business with the Chetak scooter because they did not have an existing ICE engine-based scooter business, so the company has no vested interest in keeping petrol scooters going, he said.
He is optimistic of two-wheelers and three-wheelers transitioning to electric, as these are light vehicles and the major hurdles to electrification such as size of battery, cost of battery, charging time and range get mitigated to a large extent. The government is keen on electrical vehicles, with Niti Aayog, MORTH (ministry of road transport and highways) and the PM driving this strongly, and Bajaj Auto is excited because it puts them at the starting line with the rest of the world, he said. “On motorcycles, we had to play a huge catch-up of time lost of 50 years. Here, we are almost at the starting point like everyone else,” he said.
Source: The Financial Express
Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has participated virtually in the First G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting under the Italian Presidency to discuss policy actions for transformative and equitable recovery.
The other issues on the agenda on Friday included global economic outlook, financial sector issues, financial inclusion and sustainable finance.
Sitharaman spoke about India's policy response to the pandemic. She said that India's domestic policies have been based broadly on supporting citizens through measures such as credit guarantees, direct transfers, food guarantees, economic stimulus packages and accelerating structural reform.
She also spoke about India's vaccination programme, which is the world's largest and the most ambitious vaccination drive. She mentioned that India has extended vaccine support to several countries. During this meeting, G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors also discussed the implications of climate change on global growth and financial stability.
Speaking on the Presidency's proposal to undertake systematic policy dialogue on climate risk and environment taxation, Sitharaman suggested that these conversations should remain within the ambit of Paris Agreement and should be based on the principles of common but differentiated responsibility, respective capability, and the voluntary nature of the commitments.
The Finance Minister also stressed upon the importance of transfer of green technologies and scaling up of climate finance.
Source: The Economic Times
The Bombay High Court has dismissed a petition seeking further extension of due date for filing annual GST returns for FY 2019-20. Last date for filing return is February 28.
With this, possibility of further extension of due date has dimmed. Rajat Mohan, Senior Advisor with AMRG advises, “Complete all GSTR 9 & 9C before 28 February, 2021 as there is very less chances of extension.”
GST assesses have to file monthly/quarterly and annual returns. Annual returns have two forms – GSTR 9 and GSTR 9C. While GSTT 9 is for all assesses, GSTR 9C is the reconciliation statement to be submitted by those GST registered taxpayers to whom GST audit applies. GST Audit applies to those taxpayers whose turnover exceeds ₹2 crore. Section 44 of CGST Act prescribes annual returns to be filed. Though law prescribes returns to be filed on or before 31 December following the end of such financial year. This means for FY 2019-20, last date for filing return would have been 31 December, 2020 under normal situation.
Considering difficulties on account of pandemic, a petition was filed in Bombay High Court seeking extension of due date. After arguments from both the side – petitioner and respondents – a division bench of Justices Milind N Jadhav and Ujjal Bhuyan noted that time limit for filing return has already been extended to February 28 from December 31. It mentioned that non-extension of the time limit beyond February 29 would lead to any extinguishment of right.
The bench found that the Government has already made filing of annual return optional for businesses with annual turnover up to ₹2 crore for the financial years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20. Also, businesses with turnover up to ₹5 crore have been exempted from filing annual return for financial years 2018-19 and 2019-20.
“We also take note of the fact that it is the professional body of practitioners who are before use and not any individual taxable person expressing any difficulty in adhering to the extended timeline of 28.02.2021,” the bench said while dismissing the petition.
On Saturday, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Custom (CBIC) reiterated its intention of not extending the date by urging assesses, whose aggregate annual turnover for the FY 2019-20 is more than ₹2 crore to file annual return before February 28. “Late filing of annual return will attract late fee,” the board said.
Late fees of ₹200 per day of delay subject to a maximum cap of an amount at 0.25 per cent of total turnover in respective State/Union Territory
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Pakistan may allow cotton import from India through land route as prospects of gradual restoration of bilateral trade ties have brightened after the new ceasefire agreement along the Line of Control, according to a media report on Sunday.
Citing sources in the Ministry of Commerce, The Express Tribune reported that Adviser to the Prime Minister on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood may take a decision on whether to import cotton and yarn from India next week.
They said that the issue of cotton shortfall has already been brought to the notice of Prime Minister Imran Khan, who also holds the portfolio of the commerce minister. Once a principled decision is taken, a formal order will be presented before the Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet, the sources told the daily.
The sources said that in-house deliberations have already begun but the final decision would be taken only after seeking the approval of the prime minister.
"I cannot say yes or no at this stage and would be in a better position to respond on Monday," Dawood told the daily, responding to a question on whether Pakistan was considering allowing cotton import from India.
The trade ties between both the countries can help minimise cost of production in Pakistan and ensure sustained food supplies, the daily said.
India and Pakistan issued a joint statement on Thursday to strictly observe all agreements on ceasefire along the LoC and other sectors after the hotline discussions by their Director Generals of Military Operations.
The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 2003, but it has hardly been followed in letter and spirit over the past several years.
Relations between the two neighbours have nose-dived after a series of terror attacks in India perpetrated by terror groups based in Pakistan.
Bilateral ties deteriorated further after India revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir in 2019. The move angered Pakistan, which downgraded diplomatic ties and expelled the Indian High Commissioner in Islamabad. Pakistan also snapped all air and land links with India and suspended trade and railway services.
The paper reported that against the annual estimated consumption of minimum 12 million bales, the Ministry of National Food Security and Research expects only 7.7 million bales production this year. However, cotton ginners have given the lowest production estimates of only 5.5 million bales for this year.
There is a minimum shortfall of six million bales and Pakistan has so far imported roughly 688,305 metric tonnes of cotton and yarn, costing USD 1.1 billion, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. There is still a gap of about 3.5 million bales that needs to be filled through imports.
Due to shortage of cotton and yarn, the users were compelled to import them from the United States, Brazil and Uzbekistan.
Imports from India would be far cheaper and would reach Pakistan within three to four days.
Importing yarn from other countries was not only expensive but would also take one to two months to reach Pakistan, the daily reported, quoting businessmen who deal in these commodities.
The delay in yarn import can pose risk to timely deliver the export orders, according to the paper.
However, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) is exerting pressure on the Pakistan government not to allow cotton and yarn import from India.
An industry insider told the daily that few millers have already hoarded the cotton and were now charging higher rates and import would dampen their short-term earnings. In an appeal to Dawood, Aptma said that the import of yarn from India will directly impact cotton prices in Pakistan.
"The cotton sowing season is currently starting in Pakistan and the predicted drop in cotton price owing to import of yarn from India is approximately 10-15 per cent, discouraging farmers not to sow cotton," according to the Aptma.
On Thursday, India said it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan and is committed to resolving all issues bilaterally in a peaceful manner.
Prime Minister Khan on Saturday welcomed the ceasefire agreement with India and said Islamabad remains ready to move forward to resolve "all outstanding issues" through dialogue.
Source: The Economic Times
The government on Sunday extended the deadline for filing GST annual returns for 2019-20 fiscal by a month till March 31.
This is the second extension given by the government. The deadline was earlier extended from December 31, 2020, to February 28.
“In view of the difficulties expressed by the taxpayers in meeting this time limit, Government has decided to further extend the due date for furnishing of GSTR-9 and GSTR-9C for the financial year 2019-20 to March 31, 2021, with the approval of the Election Commission of India,” the Finance Ministry said in a statement.
GSTR 9 is an annual return to be filed yearly by taxpayers registered under the Goods and Services Tax (GST). It consists of details regarding the outward and inward supplies made or received under different tax heads.
GSTR-9C is a statement of reconciliation between GSTR-9 and the audited annual financial statement.
On the extension, AMRG & Associates Senior Partner Rajat Mohan said, “Even though it is a relatively small extension of 31 days but is sufficient for the tax professionals to complete the requisite filings.”
EY Tax Partner Abhishek Jain said most industry players were struggling to meet this statutory deadline and had represented to the government for an extension.
Furnishing of the annual return is mandatory only for taxpayers with aggregate annual turnover above Rs 2 crore while reconciliation statement is to be furnished only by the registered persons having aggregate turnover above Rs 5 crore.
Source: The Financial Express
Md Fazlul Hoque, Managing Director of Plummy Fashions, said yarn prices have increased by more than 40 percent in only two months. The widely consumed 30-carded yarn is now selling for $3.60 to $3.75 per kg whereas it was $2.60 to $2.80 two months ago, according to knitwear manufacturers and suppliers.
Only between July last year and January this year, international cotton prices went up nearly 28.60 percent. This is due to apparel businesses not yet having fully recovered as international retailers and brands were still waiting to place work orders in full because of fresh lockdowns in the major markets of the EU and US.
The demand-price equation is suffering from an imbalance at many levels of this sector. Hopefully, the prices will stabilize in the coming months due to increased production.
Yarn prices are adjusting itself in the downstream industry, textile millers and garments unit owners are free from anxiety about obtaining stocks at the moment- Commodities Control reported in its first of the three-part cotton special series.
The cotton textiles trade is witnessing a restoration in practically a decade. The sector witnessed significantly dangerous parts previous two years, even before the pandemic struck.
Following these difficulties Moody’s Investors Service Company ICRA has revised the FY2022 outlook for the Indian textile sector to ‘stable’, to find out the risks, the nascence of recovery and the continuing impact of the pandemic.
ICRA added in its report “Indian as well as the global cotton output is expected to decline in CYG’21 (Global Cotton Year ending July 2021). As the demand is likely to rebound on recovery from the pandemic impact, cotton stocks are expected to decline. However, despite moderation, absolute cotton stocks, as well as the cotton stock-to-use ratio, are expected to remain high, owing to sizable carryover stocks brought forward from the previous year.”
A rise in international cotton prices has had a ripple effect on local yarn, affecting garment shipments, especially of knitwear, during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic- Monsoor Ahmed, Secretary to the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA).
Charges for its transport to the mills add to the local importers’ costs, which also has an impact on yarn prices.
Cotton prices have gone up in international markets mainly for increased imports by China, the largest consumer worldwide, because of a recovery trending among businesses. This year, China has targeted to import an additional 5 lakh bales to take the total to 1,000 lakh bales to tame its local market.
Moreover, China and Pakistan, despite themselves being major producers, have increased their import targets because of high prices prevailing in China and lower production in Pakistan. Pakistan aims to import an additional 4 lakh bales, according to data from a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) report.
The report also said Bangladesh may reduce its import by 5 lakh bales in the cotton marketing year (August–July) of 2020-21.
However, prices have rallied and now exceed pre-pandemic levels for factors including a recovery in use by mills, said the USDA report.
Submitted report by ICRA shows that yarn output during corona-led lockdown had dropped by 76%, though the increasing demand of domestic and exports of post-May 2020, yarn production bounced back. Cotton yarn production during September-October 2020 witnessed a rise of 3-4%. Subtotal 35% during the seven months of the current financial year and it has picked up the pace and indicates continued rise hereon.
SIMA Chairman, Ashwin Chandran, expressed that no one should panic in case of procuring cotton yarn at the moment, like rising in yarn output in the next 2-3 months is expected to stabilize the prices as like future will be forward, in the backdrop of sharp spurt in cotton yarn rates.
Resumed operations along with various spinning mills that were closed during lockdown will ensure arbitrary availability of cotton yarn, cooling off the heated price.
Shahid Alam, Vice-Chairman of Shah Fatehullah Textile Mills and Jalal Ahmed Spinning Mills, a major yarn producer and cotton user, said a lot of old stock of yarn for some months due to bad business.
But over the last two months, the old stock has been reducing gradually and the demand for yarn was improving in the local market but had not reached pre-pandemic levels.
Even the handloom sector has been on the receiving finish of the challenges arising from exorbitantly excessive cotton yarn costs. Producers reveal that cotton yarn and artificial yarn costs have surged 50-60% within the final 3-Four months. At present, yarn charges are even 20-30% greater than the charges in the pre-COVID-19 arena.
Yarn realizations and contribution margins are anticipated to stay at comfy ranges in FY2022…, ICRA’s report stated in its key metrics part.
Source: Textile Today
The Congress Saturday alleged the government has brought "non-statutory" guidelines without Parliament's assent to control social media platforms, saying vast powers have been given to bureaucrats which could be misused.
Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi did say social media cannot be left unregulated, but added no attempt should be made to control it through non-statutory rules and executive orders.
He termed the rules "extremely dangerous" for free speech and creativity, "unless extreme restraint is exercised" in implementing them.
He said no act has been passed in this regard, and even the Data Protection Act has not been cleared in three-four years. He said a Parliamentary scrutiny was necessary before bringing rules to regulate social media.
The government on Thursday had said a 'code of ethics' and three-tier grievance redressal mechanism would be applicable for news publishers, over-the-top (OTT) platforms and digital media.
The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 were announced at a joint press conference here by I&B Minister Prakash Javadekar and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad earlier this week.
Singhvi told reporters on Saturday, "Nobody is suggesting that there should be 'Jungle Raj' or unregulated, unknown territory forever in any area. But, equally, there should be no attempt in the guise of non-statutory, delegated legislation rules and executive orders, in getting control of such a vast field."
Singhvi said while the law in this regard is still pending you have brought such far-reaching changes and the czar, the monarch, the master of the universe is a bureaucrat.
"So, I would say that it is extremely dangerous for free speech, for creativity, unless extreme restraint is exercised, and unfortunately, I do not find any restraint in this 'Sarkar' in any sector," he said.
"Humongous, vast powers have been granted without statute, without parliamentary assent, without parliamentary scrutiny, Singhvi alleged, noting the operation of rules depends on the wisdom and restraint of bureaucrats exercising them.
"Such restraint in 20 other sectors is conspicuous by its absence as far as this government is concerned," the Congress leader said.
Singhvi also said the government has come out with guidelines under an IT Act, but there is no act created for OTTs or for other social media, the government has exercised general power under the T act.
He said that under the new rules, a bureaucrat will decide what national security is before arresting anyone, and asked whether every arrest made in the last five years has been on the genuine ground of national security.
He said these guidelines are covered under the IT Act, but this must go through Parliament and asked why the Data Protection Act has not been passed even after four years.
The Information and Broadcasting Ministry on Saturday clarified that the provision in the new digital media guidelines to block internet content in a case of emergency nature has been around as a rule since 2009 and was not recently introduced.
Certain misgivings are being raised regarding Rule 16 under Part III of the guidelines which mention that in a case of emergency nature, interim blocking directions may be issued by the Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, a ministry statement said.
Source: The Business Standard
India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has upgraded its FY21 credit growth estimates to 6.9 per cent from 1.8 per cent, given the improved economic environment in 2H FY21 and the government's focus on higher -- spending especially on infrastructure.
Amid the pandemic, the credit offtake in banking system remained muted, which led to lesser issuances of certificates of deposits (CDs). The CD issuances for January 2021 increased for public sector banks but remained muted for private banks. Concurrently, the CD yield across maturities was confined to a narrow range amid subdued issuances.
The issuances of commercial paper (CP) by corporates fell due to a lesser requirement amid fewer rollovers. The CP yields, however, saw an upward revision due to the Reserve Bank of India's announcement of the restoration of liquidity management operations.
Besides, demand from fund houses for corporate bonds and short-term funds increased by Rs 5,200 crore and Rs 1,000 crore respectively. On the other hand, CP issuances by non-banking financial companies and housing finance companies remained encouraging, both in terms of total amount and volumes.
Ind-Ra said the normalisation of economic activities and a conducive rate environment remain supportive for this segment.
On account of the excess liquidity in the system, a similar trend was observed in CD-overnight index swap negative spread, which is showing green shoots in credit demand.
Net foreign portfolio investments in equity declined in January 2021 while net investments in debt segment totalled negative Rs 2,518 crore. India along with other emerging countries like Taiwan and South Korea saw a large sell-off by foreign portfolio investors during the month.
Investments by mutual funds in non-convertible debentures have improved. On the other hand, said Ind-Ra, investments by mutual funds in CPs and CDs have declined in banks and corporates specifically.
Source: The Economic Times
Bangladeshi spinners are more and more importing man-made fiber (MMF) as well as increasing investment in its business is increasing in Bangladesh because of the higher demand for polyester and viscose-made garment items worldwide.
According to data from the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), in 2020, 99,345 tons of polyester staple fiber (PSF) was imported by the local spinners’, attaining 3.4 percent growth from 96,077 tons a year ago even during the COVID-19 pandemic.
At present, 40 spinning mills import PSF fiber to produce high-end garments, such as sportswear.
In 2020, the import of viscose staple fiber (VSF) rose last year as well as spinners brought in 72,504 tons of VSF, an increase of 36 percent year-on-year.
The import of MMF has been on the rise over the last few years because of the surge in demand for fabrics made from fiber as an alternative to cotton.
Since MMF is used as a substitute for cotton fiber, all of the imported MMF is used by local millers.
The demand for casual wear went through the roof for the longer stay of people indoors worldwide because of Covid-19.
More public are buying MMF-based apparel as they are long-lasting, recyclable and re-useable. Synthetic fiber also meets the conditions for sustainable apparel compared to cotton-based fiber. Furthermore, Gen-Z prefers products that are easy to care for. MMF fits the bill perfectly, spinners say.
Spinning experts say, in the Bangladesh primary textile sector, approximately 30% out of US$8 billion investment took place in the MMF segment, up from 20 percent three years ago.
Md Khorshed Alam, Chairman of Little Star Spinning said, “The investment in MMF sector is rising as consumers are picking the synthetic fabric instead of cotton fiber.” Adding that MMF fabric use augmented because of higher production of value-added garment items.
Since Bangladesh’s entry into readymade garments (RMG), the industry is highly concentrated in cotton-made apparel items. According to a study of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), the concentration in cotton in terms of garment items produced and exported increased from 68.67 percent in fiscal 2008-09 to 74.14 percent in 2018-19.
The cotton-based apparel trade globally stands at around 35 percent. While it down by 0.5 percent annually between 2007 and 2017.
Out of 2,052,000 tons of fiber import of Bangladesh in 2018, the share of cotton was 93.57 percent, which highlighted the country’s reliance on natural fiber.
The MMF-based garments share in the global apparel trade is around 45 percent, and it raised at a 5 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) during the decade.
In 2017, the MMF-based apparel global trade was $150 billion. Where Bangladesh’s share stood at 5 percent in the segment, compared to 10% of Vietnam.
While the industry people expressed that Bangladesh has a clear prospect in the global MMF-based clothing market.
Syed Shafqat Ahmed, Managing Director, Saiham Knit said, “The perspective is very high as Bangladesh are getting a lot of work orders of MMF-based apparels. We need to capture this global market.”
While Monsoor Ahmed, Secretary of the BTMA expressed that presently, more than 120 spinning mills out of a total of 500 have the production facility for polyester staple fiber (PSF) and viscose staple fiber (VSF).
BTMA member factories are increasing the PSF and VSF production facility every year as the demand is growing worldwide, Ahmed opined.
As setting up a single spinning mill dedicated to PSF and VSF yarn production is expensive – costs around Tk 80 crore to Tk 120 crore to set up a medium-sized MMF spinning mill in Bangladesh – most spinners make yarn from MMF in the same mill with separate lines.
BGMEA President Rubana Huq stressed that, “While we can’t ignore the importance of the cotton-based market, the MMF-based clothing market bears strategic significance as far as our product diversification and higher-value-addition-led growth strategy is concerned.”
Due to a lot of diverse challenges, it is quite challenging for the spinners to invest in the MMF sector.
In this regard, BTMA President Mohammad Ali Khokon said the import of MMF needed to be duty-free like cotton as the demand for yarn was increasing.
Khokon added that the burden of 5 percent VAT on the sales of yarn is a disheartening factor for the sector.
The expense of MMF has increased because many mills were shut in China and India during the peak of COVID-19 last year.
3 months ago, PSF was sold between $0.70 and $0.72 per kg and it went up to $1.30 to $1.40.
VSF was priced between $1.15 per kg and $1.18 per kg three months ago. The prices now vary between $2.50 and $2.54.
Source: Textile Today
The government has done the initial plumbing work for the Indian economy to come out of the Covid crisis and it is now time for India Inc to rise to the occasion, said Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman, Aditya Birla Group.
Comparing the current reforms to that of Manmohan Singh’s in 1991, Birla said the earlier reforms were necessitated due to the payment crisis while the present one can take India to sustained growth in years to come.
“I would term this Union Budget 2021 as the new 1991 in terms of reforms. The government has addressed all concerns of the industry including that of labour and agriculture. The Insolvency Code can solve the NPA problems of banks and the national infrastructure pipeline can build physical asset leading to multi-decadal growth,” he said at Asia Economic Dialogue 2021 on Saturday.
Reviving private sector investment is more important than attracting foreign direct investment and the performance-linked incentive scheme is in the right direction to build global giants in specific sectors, said Birla.
Even as India is coming out of Covid crisis, the Birla Group has announced investment of $2.8 billion across cement and metal businesses besides venturing into new paint business.
UltraTech Cement will be adding 15 million tonnes of fresh capacity, taking its overall installed capacity to 140 mt while Hindalco will double its downstream capacity. Novelis has completed an acquisition of over $2 billion during Covid, he said.
Post the tussle between the US and China, he said most corporates have learnt the importance of building business with regional focus than going global. Aditya Birla Group has preferred to build comparatively smaller size businesses across globe than feeding products across borders.
”Our group businesses have always believed in lobalisation than globalisation, though our competitors had a contrary view and they were hit badly during the Covid,” said Birla.
While Adiya Birla Group companies Novelis and Birla Carbon has build global businesses they always had a regional structure, he said.
Stating that Indian companies are not against RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) and FDA (free trade agreement) provided adequate protections are given to prevent below cost dumping by the competing countries. Indian companies are competitive enough to take on global companies but it should happen on equal footing, he said.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
Amid the Budget exercise in Parliament, the Centre has decided to not grant an extension to finance secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey who was also holding additional charge of revenue department in the finance ministry. Meanwhile, it has given additional charge of the post to the current economic affairs secretary Tarun Bajaj.
Pandey, who retires today (February 28), took charge of the revenue secretary in December 2018 and as the finance secretary in March 2020. His exit comes at a time when finance Bill 2021 is to be discussed in Parliament after March 8. Pandey was instrumental in bringing far reaching reforms in income tax, including corporate tax reduction, faceless assessment and faceless appeal and indirect taxes. He worked towards reducing tax litigation and brought schemes like Vivad se Vishwas.
“The competent authority has approved assignment of additional charge of the post of Secretary, Department of Revenue to Tarun Bajaj, upon Pandey's superannuation, till the appointment of a regular incumbent or until further orders, whichever is earlier,” an order issued by the Appointment Committee of the Cabinet. This committee is headed by the Prime Minister.
Bajaj, an old hand at the Finance Ministry, assumed charge as Economic Affairs secretary in last May, at a time when India saw the worst growth contraction in history on account of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Prior to taking over this post, he was Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office.
Bajaj, a 1988-batch Haryana-cadre IAS officer, is not new to the functioning of the finance ministry as this is his third stint in the ministry.
At the helm of DEA, he has maintained cordial relationships with Reserve Bank of India, and backed decisions of the central bank on key issues like loan restructuring, appointment process of monetary policy committee and so on.
Insiders in the government says that Bajaj prefers keeping a low profile and talking straight to the point. He believes in cordial ties with all departments and has a consultative approach dealing with all stakeholders.
The senior bureaucrat worked earlier as joint secretary in ministry’s other crucial-Department of Financial Services overseeing the insurance division between 2006 and 2011.
He then worked as a joint secretary in the DEA between 2014 and 2015 handling multilateral institutions.
During his five year stint (2015-2020), at PMO, he was supervising and handling finance related matters and that’s the reason he was picked up by the government to take the charge of an important role in finance ministry.
Source: The Business Standard
The Textile Ministry is taking a re-look at the proposed parameters of the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for the sector as some in the industry has complained that the minimum turnover suggested for qualifying for the scheme is too high and would exclude many, sources have said.
“Industry players have approached the Textile Ministry and sought a lowering of the turnover threshold for the scheme as they say that even the smaller players should be eligible for the benefits. The Ministry has noted the concern and is deliberating if some changes could be made in the proposed parameters,” an industry source told BusinessLine.
The PLI scheme was launched for the textiles sector (man-made fibre segment and technical textiles) in November 2020 when the Union Cabinet cleared the proposal for ten sectors which also included pharmaceuticals, automobiles and auto components, telecom and networking products, advanced chemistry cell batteries, food products, solar modules, white goods, and speciality steel.
The textile sector has been allocated ₹10,683 crore under the scheme which, as per proposed plans of the Ministry, will be offered for incremental production in 40 identified man-made fibre items and 10 technical textiles products. The idea behind the PLI scheme is to promote domestic manufacturing, for both sales within the country and exports, by providing financial incentives on incremental turnover for five years.
“While the rates of incentive to be offered to the textiles sector linked to incremental production are set to be one of the highest amongst the existing sectors, some in the industry are of the view that it would be of limited advantage if most units get excluded,” the source said.
Incentive rates
For brownfield companies (companies already in operation) the incentive rates are proposed to be fixed at 9 per cent of turnover in the first year for companies with a turnover of ₹100-500 crore (for 50 per cent incremental turnover) and 7 per cent for those above that. In the subsequent four years it would keep tapering.
For greenfield projects (new set-ups), a minimum investment of ₹500 crore has been proposed with incentives at 11 per cent to start with, the source said.
“But now that there is a demand to make the scheme more inclusive by lowering the turnover threshold for eligibility, some thought in the Ministry is going into that,” the source added.
Recently, the Union Cabinet approved the detailed PLI schemes for the pharmaceuticals sector and IT hardware. To accommodate smaller players in the pharmaceuticals sector, a sub-category for MSME was created in the lowest threshold with a small portion of the total funds to be allocated to it.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
First, demand is rising in merchandise similar to cellphones and TVs, justifying native manufacturing over imports. Second, Covid is pushing international companies to de-risk provide chains and manufacturing which have grow to be overly depending on China up to now few many years. Third, India’s path to a $5 trillion gross domestic product by 2025 has to go by way of factories; all main economies are or have been manufacturing powerhouses. Fourth, the federal government has elevated import tariffs on over 100 parts, forcing that demand to native manufacturing. And, lastly, an aggressive production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme guarantees to pump in Rs 1.97 lakh crore — as promised within the price range — over the following 5 years in to 13 sectors to propel manufacturing.
It is not any secret that India has been late in encouraging manufacturing. Old niggles like time taken to arrange factories and infrastructure bottlenecks have been considerations. Besides, labour points, just like the violence seen on the Wistron plant in Karnataka in 2020, can stymie manufacturing. The authorities had in 2014 launched the Make in India initiative to make the nation a international design and manufacturing hub. Make in India goals to increase the contribution of manufacturing in GDP from 16-17% in 2014 to 25% by 2025, and create 100 million jobs. In that context, the PLI scheme goals to up the sport by giving companies incentives on incremental gross sales from merchandise manufactured in domestic items. It encourages extra funding in factories.
““We don’t need to follow the herd or compete with China,Taiwan. But we must become self-reliant””
— Satya Gupta, Chairman, IESA
“Our manufacturing growth matches GDP growth rate or is below that, but never very high,” says Karthikeyan Natarajan, president & COO of Hyderabad-based Cyient. “So this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. India has to build up its manufacturing base in 10-12 years.” The PLI scheme goals to be a magnet for the forces that might construct factories at scale. The scheme is output oriented and offers out incentives based mostly on efficiency and not guarantees. So, in accordance to analysts, if a producer makes $1 million of incremental gross sales of products below the PLI scheme, he’ll get $50,000 as cashback. Industry consultants like Satya Gupta, chairman, India Electronics and Semiconductor Association, level out that the revenue margin in manufacturing is simply round 10%. Even if producers get a full tax break, the profit can be 1.5%, if the tax bracket is 15%. The PLI, however, offers extra.
““India can do better in ease of doing business, acquiring land and setting up factories. This can happen at a faster pace if we remove the bottlenecks””
— Anil Rai Gupta, CMD, Havells India
The central government scheme additionally partly addresses the “disability gap” that India has in opposition to different manufacturing locations from the place items are imported, say consultants who monitor manufacturing companies. Suvarna Joshi, analysis analyst at Axis Securities, says, “The disability gap is 8-11%. The government is trying to bridge the gap by 4-6% with PLI. The balance is expected to be compensated as manufacturers become competitive with large-scale facilities to serve international markets.” Goldman Sachs says the contribution of manufacturing in GDP might rise from round 17% now to 25% in a few years and create hundreds of thousands of jobs. And, after all, make India atmanirbhar or self-reliant. The authorities is taking initiative on this regard. George Paul, CEO of the Manufacturers Association of Information Technology, says, “Earlier, industry was running after the government for sops. Now, the government sets up meetings with industry bodies and even engages with individual companies to establish or expand factories.”
The outcomes are slowly changing into seen. Companies are ramping up manufacturing and evaluating methods to domestically make the elements they import. Cyient, for instance, makes electro-mechanical merchandise, printed circuit boards and precision measuring gadgets at its manufacturing items in Mysuru, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. Half the parts wanted within the merchandise it makes are imported.
Now, the digital engineering and expertise firm has began getting these made in India. Even foreign producers are eyeing PLI alternatives. On February 26, Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi introduced plans to open two new cell manufacturing vegetation and a TV plant in India. The gadgets can be made by contract producers DBG Technology and BYD India. With this, Xiaomi would have eight unique manufacturing items with Foxconn, Flex, BYD, DBG, Dixon Technologies and Radiant. Even telecom gear suppliers like Nokia are already making a vary of apparatus domestically for the domestic and international markets. A ripple impact of this localisation wave is job creation.
According to India Electronics and Semiconductor Association, 1.1 million direct jobs could be created in 5 years in technologyrelated areas alone. Hiring companies are already seeing elevated demand for manufacturing facility employees and managers. Rituparna Chakraborty, government VP of staffing firm TeamLease Services, says, “Because of the PLI scheme, manufacturing has moved up the pecking order. And companies want skilled staff rather than casual labour.” Since Budget 2021, demand for blue and white-collared employees in factories has gone up a number of notches. Earlier, hiring on this sector was behind data expertise, telecom, banking and monetary companies and others.
While PLI makes it enticing to make in India, China, the world’s manufacturing facility, nonetheless has the benefit of economies of scale. However, this drawback shouldn’t be insurmountable. Anil Rai Gupta, chairman and managing director of Havells India, says a sturdy model and differentiated providing may give a product a premium tag and preserve it a step forward of a comparable Chinese product. “Companies need to have control on both design and manufacturing capabilities. Also, give a differentiated product to the customer and not something that any of the, say, 20 importers are buying from China and elsewhere and selling here.”
The Rs 9,429 crore maker {of electrical} and digital merchandise plans to double capability in every of its product classes in 2-3 years. Mechanical parts are sourced from India however electronics are imported. In air-con, for instance, the business imports compressors, condensers and blower motors which collectively comprise 55% of a machine’s price. Air conditioner penetration, at simply round 6% of households, didn’t make it viable to make these merchandise right here. Gupta says this penetration will balloon to at the very least 40% in lower than a decade — a 7x improve. “When extra consumption occurs, extra manufacturing will.
““Our manufacturing growth matches that of the GDP or is below that, but never very high. So it is a once-in a-lifetime opportunity.India has to build up its manufacturing base in 10-12 years””
— Karthikeyan Natarajan, President & COO, Cyient
There is a chance for India to grow to be a hub for air conditioner manufacturing,” he provides. But the native market has to justify the investments. Havells, for instance, stopping import of water heaters and beginning to making them right here when the product generated Rs 150 crore annual gross sales. Such an atmosphere exists in cellphones. With round 150 million items being bought a 12 months in India — a $25 billion market — it has grow to be a lovely phase. In latest months, the Ministry of Electronics and IT authorised functions of Pegatron, Foxconn/Hon Hai, Rising Star and Wistron to make cellphones. Domestic makers similar to Lava, Micromax and Optiemus Electronics have additionally joined the PLI scheme. The scheme has compelled companies like Panasonic to have a look at India as a larger manufacturing hub. The Japanese client electronics heavyweight does Rs 10,000 crore of enterprise in India however its “manufacturing here is essentially assembly,” says Manish Sharma, president & CEO, Panasonic India & SA.
““The biggest issue is stability of demand expansion and predictability of policy””
— Manish Sharma, President& CEO, Panasonic India & SA
The firm seems at obligation constructions, authorities insurance policies, economies of scale earlier than deciding to arrange a manufacturing facility. Sharma says earlier than PLI was introduced, authorities measures primarily addressed the provision facet — like rising import duties. Now, “at least companies will start to invest in factories,” he provides. Sharma factors to compressors for example. The present capability for compressors in India is 1.5 million items, whereas demand is 8 million, rising at 16-18% a 12 months.
By the tip of this 12 months, he says, compressor capability will double to 3 million items and India can quickly grow to be self-reliant on this phase. Consultancy PwC sees at the very least Rs 30 lakh crore price of further manufacturing in India within the subsequent 5 to seven years due to PLI. There might be some massive alternatives now as international majors are shifting a part of their enterprise from China to de-risk within the post-Covid enterprise atmosphere. Almost 35% of this has gone to Vietnam and simply 10% to India. Now, the inducement scheme might sweeten the deal for giant gamers to come right here. “You can’t beat China by just optimising costs,” says Natarajan of Cyient, declaring that China does round $3 trillion price of manufacturing in contrast with India’s $300 billion. “But if we take the costs and risks together, India has a role to play.” It will assist a lot in the long term if the nation may get “smart”, says Nikhil Rajpal, CEO, Hero Electronix, which makes good gadgets below the model Qubo. “Every product is getting smarter, {hardware} is pushed by software program. We are within the linked electronics period.
Along with manufacturing, we should strengthen our capabilities in software program additionally.” Products are being re-imagined — for instance, family home equipment sync with person behaviour. So constructing native software program and cloud is as essential as manufacturing if India is to be really self-reliant, Rajpal insists. “Intelligence layers must be built in India.” Besides, sectors like electronics are very dynamic and see reinvention constantly, in contrast to metal or plastics. Manufacturers should have the potential to swap meeting traces rapidly to cater to altering buyer preferences — like cell handset makers who launch merchandise each few months with new options. “Shorter technology lifecycles is a big challenge,” says Anku Jain, MD, MediaTek India.
“This can be addressed by adopting measures that accelerate product development and reduce time-to-market.” Even as altering expertise retains producers on the toes, some issues don’t change that quick, sadly. Gupta of Havells says, “India can do better in ease of doing business, acquiring land, setting up factories.” Thailand and even Hungary give approvals to arrange companies in 30 days or much less, whereas it might take 3-6 six months in India, he factors out. Sharma of Panasonic says, “A biggest issue to watch is stability of demand expansion and predictability of policy.” Companies don’t have management on both nevertheless it hasn’t stopped them from pondering massive. Like AgniKul Cosmos, the IIT-Madras incubated startup that makes launch autos for satellites. The firm is aspiring to construct rockets in India as a customisable answer for international purchasers. Such ambitions can raise Indian manufacturing to a increased orbit.
Hunger for Chips
India should concentrate on making semiconductors, key in good gadgets, for strategic pursuits
Over the previous 20 years, India has tried unsuccessfully to entice semiconductor fabs or chip makers. The significance of those chips can hardly be overstated — they make the whole lot good and go into all types of home equipment, good audio system, telephones, telecom gear and automobiles, to identify a few. The chips are the guts of a good, linked life. According to MAIT, 40-60% of the product price is due to varied chips.
Semiconductors are costly to make. Cutting-edge chip-making factories can price at the very least $2.5 billion. While Apple, AMD, Nvidia, Qualcomm and others design chips in India and elsewhere, they are largely made in China and different Asian nations, however not in India. This is a hole that ought to be stuffed. But India doesn’t want such an costly fab, says Satya Gupta, chairman of India Electronics and Semiconductor Association. A greater technique can be to go for utility particular fabs — say, energy electronics or TV panels. The former is utilized in all types of gadgets, together with electrical autos. The factories to make these are extra inexpensive, $300-500 million in opposition to logic fabs that may price $2.5 billion. According to sources, a dozen companies have proven curiosity in organising the ability digital fabs in India however solely three companies for logic fabs. “India could import the wafer, which is super-expensive to make, and customise it to specific needs,” says Vivek Tyagi, founding father of ProVT Consulting.
Such items are check & meeting amenities and price round $200 million. “We don’t need to follow the herd or compete with China, Taiwan. So we may not want to make the most advanced chip in the world. But we must become self-reliant,” says Gupta.
Source: The Economic Times
economic growth: Kumar Mangalam Birla
As the Indian economy entered into positive territory, Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla on Saturday said the government has taken bold steps that will drive investment boom and help the country achieve GDP growth of 7-8 per cent.
"I'd say in fact that the plumbing has already been done. Economic reforms are needed to push us on to a higher growth train...steps like consolidation of labour laws into modern labour code, agricultural reforms to unshackle the farm sector that has an important role to play in our economy, a clear cut framework of announcement on privatisation, show palpable boldness and conviction from the government, which really is quite unprecedented," Birla said when asked what kind of reforms are required for India to reach an annual 7-8 per cent growth.
He said the new framework of asset reconstruction for example, the entire insolvency regime, will go a long way in solving the NPA problem both of banks and as corporates, which in any case, is looking much better.
"I'm very enthused by the ambitious national infrastructure pipeline, and the impact it will have to build crucial assets and physical capital. And I think on the back of that, there will be a virtuous cycle of an investment boom. And I see us, in fact, looking as a country at multi decadal growth," he said at a fireside chat on the second day of the three-day virtual Asia Economic Dialogue 2021, jointly convened by the Ministry of External Affairs and the Pune International Centre.
According to the National Statistical Office (NSO) data released on Friday, the Indian economy, after contracting for two quarters in a row, has entered the positive territory with a growth of 0.4 per cent in the October-December quarter, mainly due to good performance by farm, services and construction sectors.
Birla further stated that with the right demographics, the talent pool and the kind of reforms in the country recently, India is much closer to becoming a global hub for manufacturing.
"We have a mission, as you know, as a nation to take manufacturing to 25 per cent of GDP,....the impact that manufacturing has on creating employment is very significant. And I think that this increase in interest in investment in the manufacturing sector is a very positive development for us as an economy," he added.
Source: The Business Standard
The traditional dress may be defined as the ensemble of garments, jewelry, and accessories rooted in the past that is worn by an identifiable group of people. The phrase traditional dress or costume is often used interchangeably with the terms ethnic, regional, and folk dress.
Five different provinces and cultural differences
The shalwar kameez is the national dress of Pakistan and is worn by men and women in all Five provinces Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit Baltistan in the country and Azad Kashmir. Shalwar refers to loose trousers and kameez refers to shirts.
Since 1982, all officials working in the secretariat are required to wear the national dress. The culture of Pakistan includes five different racial groups: the Punjabis, Sindhis, Baloch, Pashtuns, and Kashmiri. Dress in each regional culture reflects weather conditions, way of living, and distinctive lifestyle which gives them a unique identity among all cultures.
Pakistani fabrics and costumes express the culture of Pakistan. Significantly, this colorful and vivid culture, lifestyle, and trend in clothing and fashion are visible as soon as you step into this region such as Sindh.
History
During the medieval period and before the Mughal rule, the costumes worn by the people of Sindh resembled the dresses worn in Iraq and adjoining countries. The dresses included short velum and Iraqi-style long robes.
If any drawers were used, they were of the Iraqi style, such as the pantaloons which were also adopted in neighboring Multan and also in the coastal areas of Gujarat.
However, the use of such Iraqi clothes in Sindh was limited to Mansura, the Arab capital city, established in 712 C.E. and was not universally adopted throughout the territory. Arab rule in Sindh ended in 1050 C.E. Along with these dresses, Sindhis also endue other traditional raiments.
Unique Sindh colorful and hand embroidery design(the breathtakingly sizzling designs)
The Sindhi culture has been evolved from the ancient Indus valley civilization. Sindh is blessed with many natural resources that grab the attention of people and attract foreigners particularly pleasantly.
The captivating culture of Sindh is under the great influence of Sufi policies and canon. The most appealing factor about these Sindhi dresses is that they tremendously enhance the export area of Pakistan. People living abroad approach these traditional Sindhi dresses by getting them imported from Pakistan.
There are popularly engrossing items that are incredibly adored by people from different countries. Admirably, the best quality of different handmade clothing items produced in Sindh is that they are designed by the women residing in villages who glorify their endearing art through embroidery.
Over and above, highlighting the traditional part of Sindhi hand embroidery, the designs were mostly made on brightly dashing colors such as maroon and black Khaddar fabric along with extremely attractive color threads of red, yellow, orange, blue, and green.
Hyderabad is the second largest city of Sindh province; and the people in Sindh, share a rich tapestry of culture and heritage that shapes who they are and where they live.
Various sorts of thread twisted silk or silken smooth floss or cotton yarn can be preferably used for embroidery which will make the quality satisfying to the people.
Sindh cultural dresses for man
Most of the time males opt for a black kurta shalwar due to the message it sends, it’s simple yet subtle. The normal usage items include; clothes made of Soosi and Khaadi, among the most popular items in fashion.
Symbolizing the true Sindhi culture, the people wear a version of the shalwar called a suthan with a kameez called ‘cholo’, the Sindhi Ajrak and topi (cap) are the most popular and widely used traditional clothing items. Men also traditionally wear dhoti and long angerkho.
Ajrak and topi are considered as a symbol of honor, pride, and respect. These traditional beautiful designs are made locally. For its Various beautiful traditional designs, mostly used to honor a guest on occasions in educational institutions as well as given as a souvenir and also worn in wedding ceremonies and cultural events.
Sindh traditional women clothing
Sindh, being the province of Pakistan is well renowned for the especially fantastic hand embroidery of the wonderful mirror quality enclosed with thread. On special occasions, the majority of women prefer wearing heavily designed hand embroidery clothes that give an extraordinarily beautiful look making them the attention of attraction, also known as “Sindhi Bhart.”
“Hurmoocho” being the original and specific Sindhi Bhart. Unmarried girls wear the opening to the back and married women, to the front. There are colorful dupattas, known as “Chunri”, which incorporate beautiful colors and designs.
Sindhi women wear the lehenga and choli known as the ‘Gaji’, which is a pullover shirt worn in the mountain areas of Sindh. The Gaji is composed of small, square panels, embroidered on silk and sequins.
The neckline of the Gaji is cut high, and round on one side, with a slit opening extending the other. Other clothing items include; “Ralhi” (quilt), which incorporates the applique work, is used as a bedsheet cover, decorating walls, etc.
Thriving fascinating embroidered Sindhi bags
Sindhi people present their incredibly prodigious handmade bags for the ladies. Sindhi women are singularly attracted towards these brightly colored bags and just with one laudable look, they buy them. These beautifully designed bags with double ten folds fit perfectly with the ladies’ embellishment.
These traditional bags are made by highly skilled and creative designers. One will be amazed to realize the fact that these designers are none other but those who belong to poor families and are rural people in general.
Generally, one bag demands frame attentiveness, focus, and also eye-catching bright colors. The raw materials being Sindh itself actuate unbreakable attention. They collect their raw materials for this incredible product from the local market.
The satisfying cloth used to make Ajrak and also the lovely classy mirrors are already embedded in it giving additional profit to these pleasantly enchanting bags.
Conclusion
The fact states that Sindhi embroidery can easily compete with another design. It remarkably has a huge scope of co-temporization. This colorful and beautifully designed apparel is the outstanding creation of the commendably brilliant people of Sindh province.
By exporting their unique design fabric they can earn foreign exchange.
By exporting traditional items, people from all around the world will be able to know about the culture and traditions of Pakistan and rural women can earn their livelihood by doing hand-knitted yarn embroidery.
Source: Textile Today
This is a tale of two markets. India’s merchandise exports to China, its second-largest market, seems to be losing steam after an impressive 33% year-on-year jump in the April-June period in the face of Covid-19 pandemic. Growth in shipments to the neighbour slowed down considerably to 20% in September quarter and to just over 2% in December quarter.
In contrast, India’s exports to its biggest market — the US — reversed a 39% slide in the three months through June to inch up by 3% in the September quarter and 5.5% in the December quarter, according to the official data. Of course, at $36 billion, exports to the US until December were still way above those to China ($15 billion).
While the US remains the worst victim of Covid-19, China, despite being the epicentre of the pandemic, seems to have weathered the crisis better than most.
So, exports to Beijing didn’t falter in the first quarter, despite the Covid-induced disruptions in India, while those to Washingtonplunged.
As FE had first reported on September 8, trade with China didn’t suffer immediately even after the deadly border clash in mid-June (outbound shipments to the neighbour jumped almost 24% in July, compared with a near 10% contraction in overall goods exports).
However, in the following months, export growth moderated, partly because China mostly sources raw materials or low value-added products (iron ore, certain steel and iron products, cotton, etc) from India where the scope for growth remains limited.
In fact, after an almost ten-fold rise until July, India’s steel and iron exports to China started to slow, as Beijing’s appetite for the commodities to push infrastructure projects began to moderate. By the end of the third quarter, the rise in such exports was only to the tune of 27% on year to $2.4 billion.
The US, however, buys a much wider portfolio of items from India, which boosts the potential for bilateral trade.
India was forced to put in place a stringent lockdown (from March 25 until it was gradually relaxed from June) that choked its supply chain, albeit temporarily, while both external and internal demand was battered by the pandemic, causing exports to crash. Once the lockdown was lifted and supply disruptions eased considerably, exports made a fragile recovery (on a quarterly basis), especially to the US. Of course, monthly export growth still showed wide fluctuations.
Meanwhile, the country’s exports to Hong Kong, considered a close proxy for Beijing, have faltered at a faster pace than overall goods exports. While exports to Hong Kong dropped 16% in the April-December period to $7 billion, overall exports declined by 15.5%.
Source: The Financial Express
Pakistan is mulling to import cotton from India with better prospects of gradual restoration in trade ties following last week’s bilateral arrangement to maintain peace along the Line of Control.
The Imran Khan government may allow cotton import from India via land route and the decision could be taken as early as this week, ET has learnt. Trade ties were snapped unilaterally by Pakistan in 2019 following India’s decision to abrogate Article 370 of the Constitution.
The proposed move viewed as a ‘confidence building measure’ surprisingly contradicts the position of Abdul Razak Dawood, adviser to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on commerce, who a few weeks back had ruled out the possibility of importing cotton from India to bridge the domestic shortfall.
The Economic Coordination Committee of the Khan cabinet will take a final decision on the matter, according to a report in Pakistani daily The Express Tribune. Khan also holds the commerce portfolio.
Against the annual estimated consumption of minimum 12 million bales, Pakistan’s ministry of national food security and research expects only 7.7 million bales production this year. However, cotton ginners have given the lowest production estimates of only 5.5 million bales for this year.
There is a minimum shortfall of six million bales and the country has so far imported roughly 688,305 metric tonnes of cotton and yarn, costing $1.1 billion, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. There is still a gap of about 3.5 million bales that needs to be secured through imports.
India is the second largest cotton producer after the US. Imports from India would be cheaper and reach Pakistan in three to four days, while imports from other countries would take one to two months, according to sources.
Pakistan's economy is facing an acute crisis. The Khan government took $6.7 billion of foreign loans between July 2020 and January 2021, as against $380 million of foreign loans in the same period of the previous fiscal, The Express Tribune said, quoting Pakistan’s ministry of economic affairs. These loans included a new commercial loan of $500 million from China last month.
China's continued financial assistance to Pakistan has helped in keeping the gross official foreign exchange reserves at around $13 billion despite the suspension of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme, negative growth in exports and major debt repayments to Saudi Arabia and other creditors. State-owned enterprises such as PIA and Pakistan Steel Mills have become bankrupt.
Pakistan's foreign debt and liabilities have mounted by $3 billion or 2.6% during the six months period ended in December last year.
Source: The Economic Times
PPE imports of USA reached US $ 20.37 billion during 2020 with a staggering surge of 320 per cent on Y-o-Y basis, as per OTEXA.
Nonwoven disposable apparels contributed US $ 4.37 billion under HS Code 6210105000 and grew 448.70 per cent as compared to 2019 figures. This was the highest standalone value amongst total 23 HS Codes under which USA imported PPE products in 2020.
The import of face masks, clubbing 5 HS Codes 6307909845, 6307909850, 6307909870, 6307909875, 6307909891, valued US $ 8.56 billion in 2020. There was no historical data available for face masks to compare with!
Another huge import was done by the USA for plastic/rubber gloves (a combination of 7 HS Codes – 3926201010, 3926201020, 4015110110, 4015110150, 4015190510, 4015190550, 4015191010), which valued US $ 6.48 billion in 2020, marking 103.77 per cent yearly growth.
The massive rise in PPE imports is because of prevailing COVID-19 conditions in the USA as it’s one of the worst impacted countries by pandemic.
Source: Apparel Online
Japanese chain stores have kicked off 2021 on a negative note as the sales from apparel category have fallen 20.10 per cent in January on Y-o-Y basis.
The data of 10,997 stores of 56 companies associated with Japan Chain Stores Association (JCSA) showed the revenues clocked were 59,288.98 million yen in January ’21, which valued 74,204 million yen in January ’20.
Menswear clocked 11,002.90 million yen revenues during January ’21, which is a significant fall of 26.40 per cent on Y-o-Y basis! The revenues were down on M-o-M basis too as there was a 20.70 per cent decline noted in January as compared to December ’20.
Womenswear revenues valued 14,559.98 million yen in January with a drastic fall of 29.40 per cent on Y-o-Y basis. However, M-o-M decline was not huge as the sales of women clothing in Japanese chain stores dropped by 14.80 per cent as compared to December ’20.
All other types of clothing, including kidswear, saw better results on Y-o-Y basis to clock 33,726.23 million yen, yet declined by 12.60 per cent; however the drop was discouraging for the retailers as compared to December ’20 as a huge 31.80 per cent drop was recorded on monthly note.
Source: Apparel Online
There exists no adverse relation between Spain and Bangladesh instead it is seen rare international and bilateral relation of these two countries and found scopes for engaging international trade for both of the countries. Thus, export-import trade relationship of both countries can be economically benefited.
Economy of Spain
Spanish economy is the 14th largest by nominal GDP and 16th largest by purchasing power parity in the world and the 5th largest in the European Union, 4th largest in the Eurozone, based on nominal GDP statistics.
Spain is a member of World Trade Organization (WTO) and Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) that facilitates its international trade. From 2008 to the date Spain has been going through financial crises known as the Great Recession or the Great Spanish depression when the world also started facing financial crisis during 2007 to 2008.
The main cause of Spain’s crisis was the collapse of an enormous housing bubble and the accompanying unsustainably high GDP growth rate. In these early times Spain had a huge trade deficit, a loss of competitiveness against its main trading partners, an above average inflation rate, house price increases, and a growing family indebtedness.
Economy of Bangladesh:
The economy of Bangladesh is a developing market economy. It’s one of the most growing economy in the world in nominal terms, and 30th largest by purchasing power parity; it is classified among the Next Eleven emerging market a economies and a frontier market.
In the first quarter of 2019, Bangladesh’s was the world’s seventh fastest growing economy with a rate of 7.3% real GDP annual growth. Dhaka and Chittagong are the principal financial centers of the country, being home to the Dhaka Stock Exchange and the Chittagong Stock Exchange.
The financial sector of Bangladesh is the second largest in the Indian subcontinent. Bangladesh is one of the world’s fastest growing economies. Bangladesh presently has Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of US$ 302.6 billion averaged a GDP growth rate of 8.523% which is very impressive to the market.
Scopes of Spain and Bangladesh in international market
Spain is a country capable of producing for a lot of electronic products. In Bangladesh, there are growing demand for some of the top listed goods like vehicles, machineries and more. If the surplus of these goods is exported, a huge foreign currency may be achieved and the country may be financially benefited to cope with the existing market recession.
On the other hand, there are some top listed exporting goods of Bangladesh including clothing, labor, leather, and more. Spain can get economic advantage to some extent from international trade with Bangladesh.
Spain can get solution for reducing existing recession to some extent and Bangladesh can find a feasible solution to achieve the vision 2021 of digital Bangladesh and 2041 of being a developed country in the world.
Present scenario of Spain Bangladesh trade relation and growth
Bangladesh government offered a special economic zone (SEZ) to Spanish investors on TICFA meeting held in Washington in 2015 as Bangladesh’s trade with the European nations rising.
Bangladesh aimed to take annual exports to Spain to $2 billion by the year-end from $1.76 billion then, according to the minister, “We are offering an economic zone to Spanish investors, and they can choose any of the 30 zones that are being developed in parts of the country now.”
Recently Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data says that Bangladesh has gained $2.37 billion of profit with Spain bilateral trade. Garment business leader says that Spain is getting more interest day by day in Bangladesh because of the quality of the products.
Spain found Bangladesh for importing more profitable than china for value added and basic products. So, the Demand in Spain market of Bangladeshi products is increasing. 90% exported products of Bangladesh is manufactured garments. Last Economic year, Bangladesh exported $2.40 billion of garments.
Though the profit Bangladesh gained is not that much like others competitor countries’ Profit as Spain has a vast market demand. The Business Leader admitted that Bangladesh could not reach profit like others competitor because they get trouble in product diversifications and weakness in branding and proper promotion.
How to reach pick in Spain market?
Spain is 16th largest importer in the world and 3rd largest in European Union (EU). So, the market demand of Spain is very high. Experts suggest that to become one of the top providers of the market demand, Bangladeshi Exporter garment Industries have to provide diversified and value-added products with greater quality.
Experts say that Bangladesh needs more promotional and branding activities and prove their products as a reliable source of market.
Bangladesh is a very important market for Spanish companies. Many of the companies made joint-venture with Bangladeshi companies and started business.
Angela Lalatta, Head of Business Unit Presso, AMEC (Asociación de las Empresas Industriales Internacionalizadas) see the Bangladesh market as huge with high volume, which makes it very important. You need to set up cooperation with a Bangladeshi company to make a joint venture. Not only a Spanish venture alone but they have to find the right partner. The companies who are looking to implement new innovation and technology this could be the right partner.
Source: Textile Today
