Says health care sector, which had to function at its best during peak Covid needs support now to ramp up capacities, bring in better technologies and facilities The government is constantly engaging with stakeholders across sectors to ensure economic revival is adequately supported, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday. “Revival of the economy, for various other reasons, requires a certain kind of support,” Sitharaman said at the webinar organised to make the healthcare sector aware about the government’s loan guarantee scheme. She added that the health care sector, which had to function at its best during peak Covid times needs support now to ramp up capacities, bring in better technologies, and have better facilities. It also needs trained manpower. The government is aware that hospitals need additional capacity, better equipment, and it is supporting them through the Loan Guarantee Scheme for Covid Affected Sectors (LGCAS). Under the scheme, banks will provide credit up to Rs 50,000 crore to hospitals, clinics, dispensaries, among others, and the government will give 75 per cent and 50 per cent guarantee on such loans for greenfield and brownfield projects, respectively. In aspirational districts, guarantee cover for both brownfield and greenfield projects is 75 per cent. Maximum loan availed under the scheme is Rs 100 crore per project. “But to ramp up the capacities in hospitals, and for which we want the banking sector to come and stand by, give them the adequate facility with government standing guarantee,” Sitharaman said. There is need for ramping up capacities at tier II, tier III towns, municipalities, and rural areas, which may have the capacity in terms of hospitals. But such hospitals may not have the right equipment, and as a result people in that area tend to crowd the hospitals in the metropolitan towns. So, with the support of Department of Financial Services (DFS), the banks are trying to provide support to all non metropolitan areas, and are making sure those places have adequate healthcare facilities to face any potential third wave situation, Sitharaman said. The DFS will monitor the scheme every week to make sure it is implemented on ground at the earliest, she said. The representatives from the industry made suggestions to the Finance Minister like increasing the guarantee cover from five years to ten years as such investments involve high costs and take time to break-even. Rajiv Nath from the Association of Indian Medical Device Industry (AIMED) sought consistency in import duties on medical devices. He sought an increase in import duties on medical devices from 0-7.5 per cent to 10-15 per cent to promote domestic manufacturing. "To protect consumers, the government can cap the maximum retail price (MRP) over the ex-factory price, and not the price to the distributor," he said.
Source: Business Standard
"It’s a new dawn for investment & business development in J&K" said Shri Amit Shah Union Home & Cooperation Minister, while launching online Portal for registration under the new Central Sector Scheme for Industrial Development of J&K. Shri Amit Shah said that investment of more than Rs 50,000 crore is now expected to take place in J&K" Speaking on the occasion Union Commerce & Industry, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles Minister Shri PiyushGoyal said that the beginning of online Portal & roll out of Central Sector Schemes is historic.Shri Goyal said that this mechanism would further improve ease of doing business and bring all round transparency. Lt. Governor of Jammu & Kashmir, Shri Manoj Sinha, Dr.Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (I/c) of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Minister of State for Home, Shri NityanandRai, Ministers of State for Commerce & Industry, Shri Som Prakash and Smt. Anupriya Patel and senior officials of the Government of India were also present on this occasion. This on-line portal has been designed and developed for effective implementation of the scheme in transparent manner and with the objective of ease of doing business. The entire process under the scheme i.e. applying for registration, submitting claims and their processing within the Department, is through the portal deliberately done to avoid human interface. After the launch, the ever biggest industrial scheme which is expected to bring about radical transformation in the existing industrial ecosystem of J&K to compete with other leading industrially developed States/ UTs of the country stands opened for registration of eligible units under the Scheme. The Scheme aims to give fresh thrust to industry and services led development of J&K with emphasis on job creation, skill development and sustainable development by attracting new investment and nurturing the existing ones. The Scheme also supports employment to about 35,000 persons indirectly already working in existing units through Working Capital Interest subvention component of the scheme. It is expected that the UT of J&K will have an additional investment about Rs.12,000 crore in establishment of about 1200 industrial units. It is anticipated to generate direct employment opportunity for about 78,000 persons along with employment in primary sector including Agriculture, Horticulture, Sericulture, Animal Husbandry & dairy, inland fisheries etc. through backward linkage including gainful engagement of women at household in craft, handicraft and handlooms. After Historic development of reorganization of Jammu & Kashmir with effect from 31stOctober, 2019 into the UT of Jammu and Kashmir under the J&K Reorganization Act, 2019. The Act paved the way for conducive environment for overall development of the UT including industrial development with main emphasis on job creation. To supplement the efforts for development in the UT, Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry Government of India notified a “Central Sector Scheme for Industrial Development of Jammu & Kashmir” on 19thFebruary, 2021. Total financial out lay of the scheme is Rs. 28,400 crore and envisages four types of incentives namely:
i. Capital Investment Incentive;
ii. Capital Interest Subvention;
iii. GST Linked Incentive; and
iv. Working Capital Interest Subvention.
The Scheme is attractive for both MSME (by Capital Incentive component) as well as larger units (by a liberal Capital Interest Subvention component).Further, it is simplified on the lines of ease of doing business by bringing one major incentive by way of GST Linked component that will ensure less compliance burden without compromising on transparency. It provides higher quantum of assistance as compared to the earlier Industrial Development Schemes in the past; as the ‘GST Linked Incentive component’ alone provides for a maximum of 3 times of investment made in P&M in addition to the other components of the Scheme.
Source: PIB
In line with the Centre’s policy to check non-essential imports, the Commerce Ministry is strengthening its import monitoring system to identify and act on import surges by coordinating with other Ministries and Departments. “The aim is to take instant note of a surge in imports of specific items and also identify goods that are being imported in large quantities. Possible measures to check imports of the identified items including import substitution could then be discussed with line Ministries and Departments concerned,” a senior official said. While the Commerce Department had created an import monitoring cell in 2019, it kept vigil on imports mostly on its own. Stakeholder Ministries and Departments, like steel or textiles, did put in place import reduction measures but since no information was available with the Department of Commerce on a regular basis, there is no mechanism to assess the impact of such an initiative/action on India’s import, the official added.“The proposed system would provide a better feedback system and information sharing based on specially designed formats that would enable impact evaluation in the Department of Commerce,” according to a background note prepared by the Department. Once import surges are identified, a number of actions could be taken to check imports. One option is to address supply rigidities, the paper noted. “In consultation with line ministries, steps could be taken to address supply rigidities so that domestic supply is increased and dependence on imports goes down. The Production Linked Incentive scheme for 13 sectors is an important step in that direction. More such measures could be taken,” the official said.
Trade remedial action
Another method to check imports is to take timely trade remedial action. “ The Department of Commerce and the line Ministries could quickly act to take remedial action by imposing safeguard duties or anti-dumping duties when an increase in imports is noticed,” the official added. Timely imposition of import restrictions and prohibitions can also help to curb surges. The third way to keep a control on imports is through mandatory imposition of technical standards, especially on items that are sensitive. Strict enforcement of FTA rules of origin, to ensure that imports from third countries (non-FTA partner countries) do not make their way into India at concessional norms, is another important way to check a rise in imports. “Exchange of information and joint evaluation by all Ministries and Departments concerned would indeed help in taking appropriate steps to check imports,” the official said. India’s total imports in 2020-21 were at $394.43 billion as opposed to exports worth $291.8 billion.The government has already been putting in place a number of measures to check imports of non-essentials and low quality items such as increasing customs duties, introducing quality control norms and taking timely action against dumping of goods from other countries. Import monitoring systems for coal and steel items are also in place.
Source: The Hindu Businessline
US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell indicated at the recent Jackson Hole Policy Forum that it may start scaling back the Fed’s $120 billion-per-month bond buying programme, rolled out last year in response to the Covid-19 crisis, this year. Chief economic advisor KV Subramanian has said the country’s macroeconomic fundamentals are strong and the tapering of monetary stimulus by the US Federal Reserve should not be a concern. “When macro fundamentals of a country are not very inspiring, that’s when the impact (of tapering) is felt much more. Fact that economic fundamentals – current account deficit, inflation, forex reserves and all other metrics – are very strong and I absolutely do not see it as that much of a concern,” Subramanian told media persons on Tuesday. He said fundamentals were strong because of the several reform measures undertaken by the government. “We have to understand that international investors look at macroeconomic fundamentals. Data in terms of macroeconomic fundamentals now visà-vis at the time of global financial crisis are strong,” Subramanian said, adding that the country is all set for robust growth on the back of structural reforms, government’s capex push and rapid vaccination. US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell indicated at the recent Jackson Hole Policy Forum that it may start scaling back the Fed’s $120 billion-per-month bond buying programme, rolled out last year in response to the Covid-19 crisis, this year. “Whenever the tapering happens, India should be in a good position to face it,” said the CEA. The CEA said investment-led growth had been enabled through policy push through the several reform measures announced over the past year and a half and capex push.
Source: Economic Times
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) recently again called on Indian high commissioner in Dhaka Vikram K Doraiswami to expedite and facilitate trade through land ports, including Benapole, to reduce time and cost. It body urged easing travel procedures, including visa, and resuming flights, especially for businessmen from the country. BGMEA president Faruque Hassan made the request during a meeting with Doraiswami at the association’s office in Dhaka. Both sides discussed existing issues in export-import, especially in the readymade garments and textile industry, and possible ways to address them, according to a BGMEA statement. They also discussed potential areas of further collaboration between Bangladesh and India to derive mutual trade benefits. BGMEA leaders also sought the cooperation of the Indian high commissioner in exchanging knowledge and expertise in the apparel and textile industry. Earlier this month, Hassan wrote a letter Doraiswami requesting New Delhi to expedite and facilitate export-import through the Bangaon-Benapole land port.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
Rebounding from the massive slump created by the Covid-19 pandemic, India on Tuesday reported its best ever quarterly growth of 20.1 per cent for the first quarter ended June 30. After a historic contraction of 24.4 per cent in same period last year -- when the Centre had imposed a stringent nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the virus -- this was the highest growth recorded since India started publishing quarterly results in 1996. Highest ever GDP growth In value terms, the gross domestic product (GDP) stood at Rs 32.38 lakh crore in April June 2021-22, from Rs 26.95 lakh crore in the same quarter last year. There are the key takeaways:
* Low base effect The jump in quarterly GDP results was helped by a low base effect to a large extent. Low base effect indicates the base year or the month with which the current figure is being compared. For this month's quarterly GDP, we are comparing it with the growth recorded in Q1 of financial year 2020-21. This was the quarter when the economy had witnesses a record slump of 24.4 per cent and the GDP figure stood at Rs 26.95 lakh crore as against Rs 35.7 lakh crore that was recorded in Q1 of 2019-20. Comparing this quarter's GDP figure of Rs 32.38 lakh crore with Rs 26.95 lakh that was reported in same quarter last year, the GDP growth comes out to be 20.1 per cent.
* Better-than-expected performance by manufacturing sector The manufacturing sector put up a stellar show with growing at a rate of 49.6 per cent during April-June quarter. The sector has shown a significant recovery after the Covidinduced slump led to contraction of 36 per cent a year ago. Manufacturing activity bounced back to three-month high in July on back of rising new orders, growth in exports, quantity of purchases and input stocks. The headline figure was up from 48.1 in June to 55.3 in July. PMI manufacturing index at three-month high in July The survey also showed that employment in the sector grew for the first time in 16 months, signalling the return of confidence in the sector battered earlier by the impact of the shutdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. However, the sector has not yet reached its pre-pandemic levels. At Rs 5.43 lakh crore, it is lower than Rs 5.67 lakh crore in April-June 2019.
* Jump in exports Exports grew 39 per cent compared to the same quarter last year, contributing 23.7 per cent of the period's GDP. This indicates strong global demand for Indian goods including petroleum products, gems and jewellery. India’s monthly exports hit a high of $35.2 billion in July as higher oil prices and improved demand for gems and jewellery and textiles helped boost shipments from the country. Imports also surged on account of higher gold and crude oil shipments into the country. The value stood at $46.4 billion in July. Overall, exports were 48 per cent higher than July 2020 levels and 34 per cent more than July 2019. * Consistent performance by agriculture sector Agriculture, which was the only sector that showed growth amid the stringent lockdown in April-June last year, posted an impressive 4.5 per cent growth over the previous year. Last year, the sector had expanded by 3.5 per cent. At Rs 4.86 lakh crore, the sector is higher than its pre-Covid level of Rs 4.49 lakh crore. Agriculture exhibited consistent performance * Mild hit to services Service sector growth came at 34.3 per cent during the quarter, indicating a milder than expected hit. India's service sector activity remained in red for third straight month in July as demand remained muted. According to data released by IHS Markit, purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for services was at 45.4 in July compared to 41.2 in June. However, with resumption of business activities and expectation of a quick recovery in demand, the sector is poised to scale back towards ex PMI services index remained in red for three month * Macroeconomic fundamentals resilient than global financial crisis of 2008 Comparing the state of the economy with that of post global financial crisis year of 2008- 09, chief economic advisor Krishnamurthy Subramanian the country is all set for robust growth on the back of structural reforms, the government's capex push and rapid vaccination. "India is poised for stronger growth," he said, citing government reforms and the easing of inflationary pressures while.
Source: Times of India
Clothes made of “muscle” fibres: This is what the future of sustainable clothing looks like
Ever thought of wearing clothes made of "muscle fibres"? Worry not, these "muscles" are created in the lab without harming a single animal. Muscles. They are the tissues in our bodies that help us move our parts. And if the findings of new research, published in the journal Nature Communications, are to go by, the muscle fibres will make your clothing. And before that grosses you out, allow us to tell you that this muscle could be produced without harming a single animal. Researchers at the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in Missouri, have developed a synthetic chemistry approach to polymerize proteins inside of engineered microbes. This enables the microbes to produce the high molecular weight muscle protein, called titin, which is then spun into fibres. Simply put, the muscle fibres (called titin) would be created in the laboratories using microbes. Incidentally, titin is one of the three major protein components of muscle tissue and is the largest known type of protein prevalent in nature. Scientists found that the muscle fibres created this way could endure more energy before breaking. More than cotton, silk, nylon, or even Kevlar. And it is quite sustainable too. Cultivating cotton is water-intensive, and the manufacturing and processing of nylon is energy-intensive causing the emission of greenhouse gases like nitrous oxide, and accelerating global warming. Let us not even get into the making of silk. Not only is it cruel (to the silkworms), according to the Higg Materials Sustainability Index (MSI), silk by far has the worst impact on the environment as compared to any other textile. Winwin, we’d like to say. Now coming to the cost aspect of muscle fibres. Obviously, since it is produced low-scale in a lab, it is bound to be more expensive. However, "its production can be cheap and scalable," says Prof Fuzhong Zhang from the Department of Energy, Environmental & Chemical Engineering, McKelvey School of Engineering, who led the research. Muscle fibres, he explains, have interested scientists for long, who have been trying to design materials with similar properties to muscles. "We wondered, 'Why don't we just directly make synthetic muscles?'" he said. "But we're not going to harvest them from animals, we'll use microbes to do it," he says. Why has it intrigued the researchers? Precisely because of the reasons we spelt above. Durable, sustainable and can be produced cheap. Who wouldn’t be intrigued? Since it is nearly identical to the proteins found in muscle tissue, this synthetic material is presumably biocompatible. Meaning that it is not harmful or toxic to living tissue. This opens a wide range of possibilities for it being a great material for sutures, tissue engineering, and so on. So while we are looking at the possibility in the near future of creating sutures, shoelaces and even belts with the material, the day may not be too far off when we would be donning coats and shirts or protective armour, made of muscle fibres created in the lab.
Source: Times Now News
Apart from that basic cost of raw material, intermediate goods, wage costs etc push the prices and inflation of manufactured products Global commodity prices are impacting different manufacturing sectors differently, states India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) in an analysis. The report says that on one end there are basic metals that have seen high output and high inflation, while on the other there are sectors such as beverages, apparel, leather, printing and reproduction of recorded media that have witnessed low output and low inflation, as compared to the pre-COVID19 level. Moreover, sectors such as textiles, wood products, paper, other non-metallic minerals, machinery, motor vehicles fall in between with medium output recovery and low inflation. Then there’s food products, other transport equipment and other manufacturing that saw a medium output but high inflation. Ind-Ra says that high fuel inflation has raised the input costs across all sectors. Apart from the basic cost of raw materials, intermediate goods, wage costs etc push the prices and inflation of manufactured products. According to RBI’s latest Industrial Outlook Survey (April-June 2021), manufacturers are passing on the input costs and salary outgo to output prices. They are expected to continue with this till demand normalises. “Ind-Ra believes that the low recovery of output in labour-intensive sectors such as wearing apparel, leather and related products and textiles means a significant setback to employment. Since this is happening against the backdrop of already reduced labour participation and low female labour participation in the workforce, it could pose a serious policy challenge besides impacting the demand for items of mass consumption,” the report said. Manufactured food products are also showing high inflation, despite medium output recovery. While food articles in primary articles showed average inflation of 3.4 per cent in March 2020-June 2021, manufacturing food products showed average inflation of 7.2 per cent. “Prices of a large number of items as diverse as minerals, edible oil, crude oil, coal, fertilisers, plastic, basic metals, electrical/electronic items, auto and auto components etc. are linked to global commodity prices and they collectively account for about 44 per cent weight in the Wholesale Price Index,” the report said. Wholesale inflation increased to 13.1 per cent in May 2021 from 2.5 per cent in January 2021 before easing to 11.2 per cent in July 2021.
Source: Business Today
Manufacturing, construction, electricity and mining grew fast enough in the June quarter to offset the steep declines in the year-ago quarter, while key services sectors could not even completely reverse the decline. Private consumption, the biggest constituent of the economy remained 12% below the pre-pandemic level. India’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew 20.1% in the June quarter from a year before, giving the illusion of a sharp economic recovery, but it was largely driven by a deeplycontracted (-24.4%) base. In absolute term, real GDP still trailed the pre-pandemic (June quarter in FY20) level by 9.2%, as the resurgence of Covid-19 infections hobbled the economy’s gradual return to normalcy, of which there was some evidence in the March quarter. Manufacturing, construction, electricity and mining grew fast enough in the June quarter to offset the steep declines in the year-ago quarter, while key services sectors could not even completely reverse the decline. Private consumption, the biggest constituent of the economy remained 12% below the pre-pandemic level. Fixed investment, on which the government would make bets on, rose by a sharp 55.3% in Q1FY22 to raise its share in GDP by over 7 percentage points to 31.6%. The absolute size of fixed investment was, however, still below the FY20 level. Front-loading of capital expenditure by the Centre, states and CPSEs contributed to the jump in fixed investment, rather than the private investments that have been in the doldrums for quite long. Data gathered by FE of 15 major states showed that their combined capex in April-June was up 135% on year; the Centre’s budgetary capital expenditure also grew by 26.3% on year in the quarter. Private consumption grew just 19.3% in June quarter on a very low base (-26.2%), reflecting the damage caused by income losses in the wake of the second wave and the shattered consumer sentiments. Once the conducive base effect wanes substantially in the current quarter, the resilience of the two principal pillars of the economy – consumption and investment – will be severely tested. Government consumption, the usual saviour in times of crisis, was sluggish during the quarter – it declined by 4.8% on a strong base (12.7%) — as the Centre and many states reined in revenue spending. Commenting on the GDP data, chief economic adviser Krishnamurthy V Subramanian said it “reaffirms the government’s prediction of an imminent V-shaped recovery”. “Industry witnessed a sharp rebound, followed by services, while agriculture exhibited consistent performance. Going forward, the country is poised for stronger growth, thanks to a raft of factors already initiated. These include structural reforms enabling efficiency and productivity, capex push, financial sector clean-up and vaccination drive,” he said. Given the surge in indirect tax mop-up and limited subsidy payout, growth in real GDP remained substantially higher than the 18.8% expansion in gross value added (GVA) in the first quarter. Indirect tax collection jumped 85% on year in the June quarter against the annual target of a mere 3% rise. Supply-chain woes and domestic demand compression in the wake of income losses reverberated through the economy, though economic rebound in advanced economies boosted India’s merchandise exports. The share of exports in GDP, in real term, rose to 23.7% in Q1FY22 from 20.5% a year before. However, with the rise in imports, the damaging impact of net exports was higher in the first quarter than a year earlier. With the ebbing of the second Covid wave, manufacturing activities have gathered pace in the current quarter but the dominant services sector is still in the contraction zone. While the resilience of the agriculture sector is expected to aid rural demand, urban consumption requires sustained growth in manufacturing and at least non-contact intensive services. Also, the release of pent-up demand in the aftermath of the second wave has to acquire a durable character with an accelerated pace of vaccination. Both the IMF and RBI have projected India’s real GDP growth to recover to 9.5% in FY22 (even with this rate of growth, the country’s real GDP at the end of 2021 would exceed the level in 2019 by just 1.5%). While some of the high frequency indicators since July also signal a recovery, another positive is robust tax revenues could ease the fiscal situation, allowing the government to make meaningful interventions as the economy struggles to gather pace. Nominal GDP grew 31.7% in the first quarter from a year before to `51.23 lakh crore and, unlike real GDP, remained 2.4% higher than in the same period in FY20. The farm and allied sector remained largely insulated from the Covid shocks and grew as much as 4.5% in Q1FY22, against 3.5% a year before. Despite patchy rainfall in August, good distribution in key areasa has buoyed the kharif crop prospects. Aditi Nayar, chief economist at Icra, said while the base effect has concealed the impact of the second Covid wave, “the sharp year-on-year expansion in Q1FY22 is analytically misleading, with a sequential slowdown of 16.9% over Q4FY21 and a shortfall of 9.2% relative to the pre-Covid level of Q1FY20”. Upasna Bhardwaj, senior economist at Kotak Mahindra Bank, said: “Economic activity has been reviving since July and has picked up momentum. As vaccination pace picks up we expect the momentum to pickup further, although we remain wary on the evolution of delta variant cases.”
Source: Financial Express
The value of exports from India to other countries has seen an upward trend, and there is a lot of scope for new sellers in the export industry. India is a South Asian nation with the largest market on the continent. Being a country with a massive population and abundance of resources, it is one of the emerging markets in the export industry. The value of exports from India to other countries has seen an upward trend, and there is a lot of scope for new sellers in the export industry. Unlike earlier, India now exports to so many countries without any barriers. The presence of large eCommerce platforms like Amazon in almost every nation has allowed easy trade. India has also seen improvements in many sectors due to the international selling decisions of various exporters. The Indian businesses have always delineated an impressive record of bringing profits to the country via exports. From textiles to pharmaceuticals and from minerals to fuels, the export from India to other countries has become a significant part of the economy’s growth. Following are the top trade partners of India that you must know if you want to begin exporting.
Relations with the UAE
The Middle East countries and India have shared trade links for many centuries now. After the dominance of traditional items for trade, including dates, pearls, etc., the countries now trade in crude oil. Major exports from India to other countries in the UAE include petroleum products, precious stones, gems, metals, jewelry, food items, textiles, machinery, engineering products, and chemicals. The products involved in the bilateral trade are much diversified, and the deepening bonds of import and export have given India a pool of opportunities. UAE was the third largest export destination for India for the year 2019-20. The investments have also increased year after year, making India a stronger economy than before. Both the foreign direct and portfolio investments have improved job creation and hence helped the youth utilize their energy and skills to make India self-sufficient.
Relations with the USA
The United States of America and India have so much in common. The commitment to democratic principles, freedom, equality, and the rule of law, is very similar in both nations. It makes a tipping point of trade between the two countries. Intending to promote global security, economic prosperity, and stability, India had entered into trade relations with the USA. Since then, there is only an upward movement in investment and connectivity in both nations. The export of products from India to other countries of the USA has boosted the individual businesses and the country-wide growth. India and the USA cooperate much closely on the international front. The bilateral trade between the two economies stood at 88.75 billion dollars in the financial year 2019-20. The USA is a developed nation and has so many opportunities for growth and development for India.
Relations with the EU
The European Union is a transparent, robust, and non-discriminatory business environment for sellers from India. The EU offers Indian exporters to tap the locked potential of bilateral trade between the countries. The trade statistics show that the European Union is the second-largest destination for exports, with 14% of the total outward sale from India. Both goods and services are highly in demand in the countries of Europe. The sale of goods took a 72% hike in the last decade, and the services exchanged between the two borders were 32.7 billion euros. Europe is a free trade market, and India has been a partner since 2007. The people living in Europe are open to new product launches from India and have become loyal buyers. This has given Indian sellers an excellent opportunity to export from India to other countries and flourish in the competition. India has maintained cordial relationships with its fellow countries ever since the inauguration of the LPG policy. The buying and selling of goods and services across borders have given countries an open platform to thrive and move ahead in the competition. And unlike earlier, with the advent of eCommerce platforms like Amazon, trading has become easier and more profitable. It offers a larger magnitude of trade and commerce from one country to another, establishing robust international relations. All big and small enterprises stand at the same front and have equal opportunities to start their exports from India to other countries in the world. The global selling program enables sellers to open an account and freely sell to various countries from the comfort of their homes. Governments have become heavily reliant on imports and exports as a means of development. Each nation has a distinct set of resources and skills scattered across different states. They fulfill their deficit by buying from other countries and distribute their surplus by selling to other countries. This helps the government keep a check on the country’s balance of payments. And international trade is inevitable, so now is always the right time if you want to invest in exports.
Source: DNA India
So long as growth triggered by government borrowing is higher than the interest rate, things are just fine. After having dipped 24.4% in the first quarter of 2020-21, GDP in the first quarter of the current fiscal has grown just 20.1%. As compared to the Q1 GDP of the pre-pandemic 2019-20, the first quarter output this year is 9.4% smaller. This is the handiwork of the second wave of the pandemic that hobbled economic activity in many parts of the country, apart from taking a terrible toll of life. This makes it tougher for GDP growth in the remaining three quarters of the financial year to be sufficiently robust for the economy to have reached its size before the pandemic struck. There is plenty of scope for fiscal action.
Source: Economic Times
This acquisition, which is the third by the group in the last three years, will help Donear in scaling up the Mayur brand exponentially by focusing on the group's inherent strength of manufacturing and distribution of premium quality branded fabrics, said a release. Donear Group on Tuesday announced the acquisition of Mayur Fabrics and PV Suiting Global distribution network from RSWM, in a move to solidify its comprehensive product basket and global augmented geographical footprint. The textile firm, however, did not disclose the terms of the transaction. This acquisition, which is the third by the group in the last three years, will help Donear in scaling up the Mayur brand exponentially by focusing on the group's inherent strength of manufacturing and distribution of premium quality branded fabrics, said a release. Besides, the brand's strong presence in the institutional and uniform supplies will complement Donear Group's agile manufacturing facilities and robust distribution network, the release said. Moreover, PV Suiting distribution network from RSWM's presence in overseas markets will help expand the proportionate market share of Donear as a group, it said. PV Suiting distribution network from RSWM has achieved long strides in the UK and Middle East which will serve as catalysts for the group to have a strong foothold in these regions, it added. We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Mayur Fabrics and PV Suiting distribution network from RSWM. It is… inspirational for us to focus on our own businesses — yarn and fabrics, respectively, said Rahul Rajendra Agarwal, Director, Donear Group. We find ourselves committed to construct further on Mayur brand and make it an integral brand of Donear Group and strive to take it to the next level of success, he said. Agarwal said that the group aims to grow from strength to strength with Mayur and PV Suiting Distribution Network on its side, adding, this highly scalable and sustainable infusion will serve as our next giant growth engine to further enrich our portfolio and expand the market share of branded fabrics offering. Apart from being a wide presence in India, Donear has a strong presence in over 30 countries as well. With a comprehensive product basket, the company supplies fabrics to largest domestic brands such Louis Phillipe, Van Heusen, Peter England, Blackberry, Arvind, Wills Lifestyle, Future Group, among others. In the retail market, it has a strong network of over 265 stores, marketing textiles under the D'Cot & Donear NXG brands with positive cash flow. We have given ourselves a vision of sustained growth and we are working towards it as a team and as a family said Rajendra Agarwal, Promoter and Managing Director, Donear Group. The group has a great share in the market having other brands like GRADO & OCM working under it, said Ajay Agarwal, Executive Director, adding that having Mayur Fabrics and PV Suiting distribution network, will project us as a textile and apparel titan, empowering our clientele as well as retailers' network. The addition of Mayur and PV Suiting Distribution Network is driven by our desire to expand our business both pan India as well as in global markets. After Mayur's infusion in our group, we are expecting enhancements in the existing distribution chain and market value of our conglomerate, he said. Mayur Brand is now a part of Donear Group. We could not have found a better organisation than Donear to pass on our legacy to. I am very happy with this transition, said Riju Jhunjhunwala, Managing Director and CEO, RSWM. Mayur Brand is now a part of Donear Group. The group said it continues to scout for larger addressable markets with additional product categories.
Source: Money Control
Macao's total merchandise import soared by 111.7 percent year on year to 15.39 billion patacas (about 1.92 billion U.S. dollars) in July 2021, while total merchandise export went up 5.2 percent to 1.12 billion patacas, the special administrative region's statistical service said on Tuesday. The latest report from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) showed that the imports of mobile phones, gold jewelry, watches and handbags and wallets swelled by 653.8 percent, 536.6 percent, 311.0 percent and 247.9 percent respectively, whereas that of other textile made-up articles and articles for casino declined by 48.2 percent and 34.8 percent respectively. The value of re-exports rose by 3.7 percent to 943 million patacas in July, with that of machines, apparatus and parts and watches rising by 67.4 percent and 20.7 percent respectively. Meanwhile, the value of domestic exports grew by 13.6 percent to 176 million patacas, the DSEC report added. The merchandise trade deficit in July totaled 14.27 billion patacas. From January to July this year, the total value of merchandise import expanded by 143.6 percent year on year to 89.22 billion patacas, whereas the total value of merchandise export increased by 29.5 percent year on year to 7.83 billion patacas. The merchandise trade deficit totaled 81.39 billion patacas for the first seven months of 2021, up by 50.80 billion patacas from a year earlier. Analyzed by place of origin, merchandise import from the mainland and the European Union (EU) in the first seven months surged by 127.3 percent and 188.7 percent to 29.65 billion patacas and 27.82 billion patacas respectively year on year. Analyzed by destination, merchandise export to the mainland rose by 23.1 percent year on year to 1.17 billion patacas from January to July 2021. Exports to the Hong Kong SAR and the United States grew by 33.6 percent and 33.4 percent respectively year on year, whereas exports to the EU dropped by 4.6 percent. External merchandise trade totaled 97.04 billion patacas from January to July 2021, up by 127.4 percent from a year earlier. (1 pataca equals 0.1248 U.S. dollar)
Source: Xinhua
E-commerce platforms will be restricted from online business operations or even have their licenses revoked if they fail to deal with serious violations of IP rights by vendors on their platforms China plans to tighten oversight of e-commerce companies like Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Pinduoduo Inc., including by holding them accountable for intellectual property violations. E-commerce platforms will be restricted from online business operations or even have their licenses revoked if they fail to deal with serious violations of IP rights by vendors on their platforms, according to a draft revision of the country’s e-commerce law posted by the State Administration for Market Regulation. The market watchdog is seeking opinions on the draft revision until Oct. 14. Chinese companies have long struggled with allegations that they allowed pirated or counterfeit goods to be trafficked through their websites. In 2019, the U.S. government added PDD to its Notorious Markets list for hosting pirated good, joining Alibaba and other Chinese firms under that label. PDD and Alibaba’s Taobao were also on the 2020 list, released in January. Merchants “found Pinduoduo’s takedown system to be sometimes unresponsive and slow to remove the identified goods,” the U.S. Trade Representative’s office said in its report. PDD has also faced IP issues in China. Shanghai court documents show hundreds of legal challenges against the company over copyright infringement or trademark registrations. Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma once that it was difficult to root out fake goods on the company’s platforms because they were so high quality. “The problem is that the fake products today, they make better quality, better prices than the real products, the real names,” he said at the time.
Source: Bloomberg
If the consumer attitude towards clothes purchasing changes sufficiently, it could encourage a huge shift in the fashion industry, says Molly Foster, Waste and Resource Consultant, Wardell Armstrong. The vast majority of consumer fashion is stuck in a linear model with most used clothes perceived as having no value and being disposed of at an ever-increasing frequency. If the consumer attitude towards clothes purchasing changes sufficiently, it could encourage a huge shift in the fashion industry which would flow back through the supply chain and drive a step change towards putting the circular economy at the heart of the fashion industry’s approach. Consumers using their purchasing power to demand progressive change and circular models that look to increase quality, reusability, recyclability, and recycled content, can drive greater awareness, understanding and transparency. Building trust and collaboration throughout the supply chain will be necessary to meet the tough challenges presented by this complex sector and progress towards a more socioeconomic and environmentally conscious fashion industry. Globally, around 150 billion garments are produced each year, and the average cost continues to fall. This also drives a reduction in the quality and the value attributed to that item, resulting in consumers wearing items less often before deciding to dispose of it. Between 2000 and 2014, clothing production doubled, and between 2012 and 2016 the number of times a garment was worn decreased around 40%. According to Oxfam, there are approximately 11 million items of clothing sent to landfill per week in the UK, and only 12% of material used for garments is from recycled sources, largely due to the complex combination of material, fibres, threads, fixtures, and accessories. This trend is exacerbated by the limited number and accessibility of outlets for textile recycling for consumers, resulting in a challenging circuit to break.
Fast fashion
In recent times modern culture has driven continued increases in oversupply and planned obsolescence. Fast fashion is a linear business model that focuses on a rapid supply chain, working to design, produce and distribute new items of clothing at an accelerated rate. This model works due to the low cost of labour, ever changing fashion trends and most importantly the increase in consumer demand / purchasing power. There is the long standing and underlying thread that people are judged by the brands / styles they wear, and much cash is therefore invested in selling the latest, constantly changing styles. However, more recently, there is a growing move towards wanting to consume more responsibly, which will hopefully ultimately become ‘cooler’ than wearing the latest fast fashion trends, as seen in shops such as PrettyLittleThing or BooHoo. There are companies taking significant steps towards a more circular business model, and this is being supported by Defra’s Waste Prevention Programme. For example, Arket advertises ‘think long-term when buying’, ‘reusing garments only makes sense if they retain a certain quality over time’, and ‘borrow from others to reduce waste’. There are companies taking significant steps towards a more circular business model, and this is being supported by Defra’s Waste Prevention Programme Lucy and Yak is another example of a company that works towards sustainability, by using fabric off cuts to produce accessories, and the app ‘Depop’ to sell any items of clothing with slight faults to reduce waste. Furthermore, the Jeans Redesign demonstrates that garments can be created through a more circular approach. Commonly applied solutions include the use of recycled fabrics and substitution of rivets with bar tracks, reinforced stitching, or embroidery techniques to make recycling easier. Clothing rental companies, such as MUD jeans, have recently come into the scene too. To maintain this momentum and ensure that it becomes the norm, rather than the exception, there needs to be greater transparency of supply chains, clearer labelling of material composition, and increased awareness of the environmental impacts of our throwaway culture. Avery Dennison’s Digital Care Label is an example of how clearer labelling can build a bridge to a more circular economy, by using a QR code for the consumer to understand the material composition and sustainability of their item. It requires brands to be transparent with their consumers and allows resellers to identify the material later in the garment life cycle.
Reuse
Charity shops play a key role, and about 32% of textiles are being reused this way in the UK. Netflix series ‘Tidying up with Marie Kondo’ spiked a surge in people clearing out clothes that no longer ‘spark joy’. The charity shops will have benefited; however, people often replace these purged items with new ones once the trend passes, feeding the consumer demand issue that sparked my article in the first place. It shouldn’t go without saying though, that there has been a recent increase in demand for used clothing as consumers become more aware of environmental issues associated with the fast fashion industry. Driven by this consumer conscience, there is a growing market for environmentally conscious clothing. Some brands, such as the Girlfriend Collective are proud to promote that their clothing is made from recycled material which has originated from plastic bottles, when in fact it would be more efficient to recycle these bottles into other plastic bottles. …There is a growing market for environmentally conscious clothing These changes are often not being considered holistically and can result in detrimental impacts or minimal overall environmental benefit. Greenwashing presents a real threat to the fashion industry turning itself around, and so clarity, transparency and collaboration needs to be prioritised. If we can encourage companies to produce better quality clothes that last longer, and on balance, cost less to the consumer, there is also the ability to address the negative socioeconomic impact on workers. I think there needs to be a mechanism by which consumers can clearly see the value embedded within an item and make more informed choices. Balance that with more effective use of charity shops and expanding clothes rental services, and we might be getting closer to a circular economy.
Source: Circular Online
Isn't it a crying shame that an industry responsible for producing so many beautiful products, simultaneously has such an incredible impact on both people and the planet? Anyone who decides to take a somewhat more detailed look into the ‘ugly’ side of the fashion industry will not be able to help but lose sleep over this, according to Jasmien Wynants. She has spent the last seven years conducting research into sustainable entrepreneurship and the circular economy at Flanders DC (the umbrella organisation for creative individuals in Flanders), with one single goal in mind: to improve the fashion industry. It was starting to become abundantly clear to her that changes in both the industry and consumer choices simply wouldn’t be enough. “Legislation and policies are essential for removing a number of barriers and accelerating the transition to a circular economy”, Wynants states. She recently completed her Master’s in Environmental Science at the University of Antwerp and wrote her master thesis on textiles and European policy. FashionUnited spoke to her about this research and about the recommendations which resulted from this.
How did your interest in sustainable fashion first come about? I was given the opportunity to inform and guide Flemish fashion companies towards a better way of working during my time at Flanders DC, via the Close The Loop programme. I spoke to numerous inspiring entrepreneurs and innovative start-ups and came to the conclusion that we were dealing with a sustainability revolution. Only a few players were involved with this in the past, now virtually everyone is losing sleep over this subject. An increasing number of companies, from small to large, are now looking for ways to change their business model and work with respect for both people and the environment. However, I’ve also noticed that companies are all faced with the exact same hurdles. There is a growing interest in sustainable fashion among consumers too, but many people find making the right choices anything but easy. And that’s simply because the system behind it isn’t right. Do explain… The fast fashion model, which once stood for positive development, i.e. the democratisation of fashion, has been completely derailed over the last 15 years. An item of clothing's life cycle has become shorter and shorter. The fashion industry is largely based on rapidly changing trends with overconsumption at the root of the issue. This has major consequences for both people and the planet. Enormous volumes of non-renewable resources are used to produce clothing that is only worn for a very short period of time, only to then be dumped or incinerated. A huge amount of water is used during this process and a fair amount of pollution is involved too. The complex production chains are well known for their exploitation in the producing countries.
What is needed to change this system? This is almost impossible for a company. Policies and legislation are needed for this. If a change to a system is required, a government can take on a guiding role in order to accelerate this process. This can be done both by imposing obligations and by providing positive incentives, for example, by rewarding companies with tax benefits if they introduce sustainable measures.
Are you more in favour of negative or positive incentives? I tend to choose the latter from a consumer perspective. You can compare it to the food industry. You’re not going to make anyone happy by telling them they can’t eat meat anymore. People will feel attacked and this can lead to defensive behaviour. You would be much better off trying to convince people with inspiring vegetarian recipes. So a positive incentive will certainly prove useful if you're trying to convince companies to opt for sustainable materials. You can make it economically interesting for them to make responsible choices by making sure they can maintain their margins and that their product remains profitable. Whilst at the same time, it’s certainly also a good idea to impose a number of obligations on the industry. This could include, for example, a ban on harmful chemicals or a minimum quality for textiles. It will therefore always be about a combination of those two methods. The art and the difficulty is in finding the right mix in policymaking. You have certainly timed your master thesis very well: the research perfectly fits within the European Commission’s Green Deal context. That’s right, the European Commission launched a new action plan for the circular economy in March 2020. It will become one of the most important building blocks of the new European Green Deal, the plan with which the EU wants to make the economy sustainable, with the main objective being to realise a climate-neutral union by 2050. Extra attention will be devoted to certain sectors as a result of their impact on the environment or the circular opportunities and one of these sectors is… textiles!
What is going to be addressed in this action plan? It contains measures aimed at the entire life cycle of products. Specific actions are being worked out for textiles and a comprehensive European strategy with measures will be drawn up. The focus will be on creating a framework for sustainable products, but also on improving the business and regulatory climate for sustainable textiles. Even though your master thesis is based on a Flemish perspective, your recommendations definitely look at things from within a broader Belgian and European context.
Why is that important? Demarcation is crucial, you’ve got to start somewhere. Eventually, everything is connected. For example, we are currently looking into how a reduction in VAT on certain products or services could play a role in convincing and stimulating consumers and companies to buy sustainably. A measure that is anchored in national legislation, but for which the European VAT Directive will first need to be revised. Flanders, therefore, formed the starting point for my research, but you can naturally repeat this exercise for other countries or parts of other countries too.
What was the biggest challenge you came across during your research? The complexity of policies and legislation. As I said, it’s a huge tangle of connected little radars in a big hole. Laws, regulations, guidelines… it’s so important for these matters to be effectively established and written up, with input provided by the sector. But not every company is going to have time to provide input, let alone actually get immersed in the complexity of the material. You managed to bring those two worlds of policy and industry together through round table discussions. Yes and I'm very pleased with the excellent industry stakeholders’ attendance during these round table discussions. Once again proof that the sector itself wants to move forward. One of the aspects which came to the surface during the discussions with policymakers is that it’s quite exceptional for a sector to ask for more legislation.
What are the most important recommendations in your master thesis? Firstly, there’s a need for clarity and demarcations. One of the things which emerged from the round table discussions is that there is no clear definition for circular textiles. And this is absolutely crucial to be able to prepare an effective policy. It starts with all of us measuring with the exact same measurements. After all, everyone uses different criteria where sustainability is concerned and there’s a proliferation of quality marks and certificates. Another recommendation is the importance of quality. There are always plenty of discussions about animal welfare, lower CO² emissions and less water consumption, but the products’ lifespan is definitely essential too. We must encourage companies to produce products that will last a long time and are recyclable, in order to do something about the growing mountain of waste, full of non-recyclable textiles. And to avoid low-grade qualities. Uniformity is once again important here, in order for us to realise a minimum quality standard: you can’t draw up a policy and subsequently enforce it too until everyone is speaking the exact same language. And finally, you state that subsidies are important, providing there’s a sales market for them too. It’s obviously fantastic that governments are investing in innovation, but in practice there often isn’t enough insight into where that money goes. Four comparable projects were recently approved instead of centralising these and stimulating collaborations. More coherence, that’s what it should start with. Not just turning on the money tap, but instead streamlining and coordinating the subsidies more effectively. And then specifically focusing on creating a sales market for the innovations which will arise from this. The course awarded your master thesis with a mark of ‘great distinction’.
Does this encourage you to continue with academic research? There’s certainly plenty of potential for further research. Even though I have now actually headed off in a different direction. I now work as a Sustainability Coordinator at Xandres two days a week, a Belgian fashion house with a long history and where quality has always been a central focus point. The company was looking for someone who could turn the sustainability objectives, a long-term strategy, into concrete short-term actions. And I work at Flanders DC three days a week too. A fantastic combination, as any issues we’re faced with at Xandres, and undoubtedly other fashion companies too, can subsequently be tackled at Flanders DC. This can definitely work the other way round too, as I certainly come across organisations at Flanders DC which could potentially be of interest to Xandres. I truly believe working together is the only way for us to realise real progress. This article was previously published in Dutch.
Source: Fashion United
