Knit World and Tex Mach exhibition began today at Dana Mandi. The exhibition brought knitting and textile industry together. A wide array of knitting, textile, garment and allied machines and accessories were put on display. Machines were displayed not only from different parts of the country but also other countries like Germany, Japan, Hong Kong, Spain, Greece, Turkey, China, Israel and Korea among others. Machines for circular knitting, flat knitting, embroidery, processing, dry cleaning, wrap knitting, loom, high speed carding were displayed.
SOURCE: The Tribune India
The North East Zonal Cultural Centre recently organized a workshop on shitalpatti and handloom products in Guwahati with an aim to empower women and enhance their skills. Handloom is a vast industry in India, particularly in the northeast, which largely contributes in uplifting the social and economic lives of the artisans. A large number of people, especially in rural and tribal areas, are engaged in handloom and handicraft works in the Northeastern states. The government has always given impetus to enhance their skills and provide suitable market for their products. Recently, the North East Zonal Cultural Centre (NEZCC) organized a workshop on handloom and Shitalpatti, literally meaning 'cool mat', at Shilpagram. The main objective was to promote women artisans' skills and upgrade those with new designing techniques, developing diversified products and to grab a larger market. "Nearly 40-50 ladies are there and they are given some skills how to weave and how to prepare from Shitalpatti (MAT) and this will go long way. After learning this, ladies can come forward and work as it will give prestige, confidence and money to them and their children," said P.B. Acharya, Governor of Nagaland and Assam. The governor expressed much interest and eagerness in the Shitalpatti work and shared his experience on the textile industry.He also interacted with the designers and artisans. "This workshop benefits poor and needy persons who are not getting any job. It is also a big problem here that even after education people are not getting jobs. So, if they learn making Shitalpatti or handloom products, they can directly sell it to the market as it does not involve any middle person," said Ranjan Bishwas, Organizer, NEZCC "This is basically a seven-day workshop in which we will train the artisans. Handloom industry is a very vast area and in a week we will train them how to make different decorative and other products with weaving," said Barnali, an expert Government of India launched a massive skill India campaign to tap the huge potential of artisans from nook and corner of the country under its National Skill development mission.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
The Commercial tax department of Bihar has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) for sharing of foreign exchange realization data. Smt. Sujata Chaturvedi, Commissioner cum Principal Secretary, Commercial Taxes Department represented Government of Bihar while Shri D. K. Singh, Additional DGFT represented DGFT. The ceremony was presided over by DGFT Shri Anup Wadhawan. The foreign exchange realization data is an important economic indicator as it quantifies transaction level export earnings. This is also known as eBRC (Electronic Bank Realization Certificate) data. BRC can be used by state government departments for ensuring refund of VAT to eligible exporters. e-BRC project enables banks to upload Foreign Exchange realisation information relating to merchandise goods exports on to the DGFT server under a secured protocol. So far 100 banks operating in India, including foreign banks and cooperative banks have uploaded more than 1.5 Crore e-BRCs on to the DGFT server. The eBRC project created an integrated platform for receipt, processing and subsequent use of all Bank Realization related information by exporters, banks, central and state government departments. Earlier, the banks issued physical copy of BRC to exporters and no data mining or analysis was possible. The process for BRC issuance and subsequent utilization were largely manual and department centric. The exporters suffered most as they had to run to banks and government departments for claiming benefits. So far, Commercial Tax Departments of 13 states have signed MoU with DGFT for receiving e-BRC data for VAT refund purposes. These are: (i) Maharashtra, (ii) Delhi, (iii) Andhra Pradesh,(iv) Odisha, (v) Chhattisgarh, (vi) Haryana, (vii) Tamil Nadu, (viii) Karnataka, (ix) Gujarat, (x) Uttar Pradesh, (xi) Madhya Pradesh, (xii) Kerala, (xiii) Goa. In addition, Ministry of Finance, Enforcement Directorate and Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) have also signed MoU with DGFT for receiving e-BRC data.
SOURCE: PIB
With the rupee falling to 67.38 against the US dollar, the finance ministry on Friday said it, along with the Reserve Bank, is keeping a close watch on the currency movement and asserted that current account deficit will remain well under control. The government, economic affairs secretary Shaktikanta Das said, will stick to the fiscal deficit roadmap for this year as well as the next. "Finance ministry and RBI keeping close watch on currency movements. Current account deficit expected to be in the range of 1-1.3 per cent in current year. Well under control," Das tweeted. Not only rupee, but other comparable currencies too are depreciating against dollar, he said, adding that the "positive for India is that the CAD is well under control". Das said the government will initiate new reform measures in near future and will further open up sectors to attract foreign direct investment. He said the path of fiscal consolidation will be adhered to and it would be government's endeavour to maintain fiscal deficit target not only this year but next year as well. The rupee was trading at 67.38 to a dollar in the late morning trade on Friday. The government proposes to bring down the fiscal deficit in current fiscal to 3.9 per cent of GDP, from 4 per cent in 2014-15. As per the fiscal consolidation roadmap, the deficit is pegged at 3.5 per cent for the next fiscal beginning April.
SOURCE: The Times of India
Jittery importers, who were relying on the rupee's relative stability, rushed to cover their future overseas repayment liability as the local unit on Friday extended its losses against the US dollar on global growth concerns triggered by a further dip in crude oil prices. The rupee slid to a new 28-month low to close at 67.61 per dollar. It weakened about half a percent, or 31 paise, against Thursday's close. During the day, the rupee plunged to 67.71, the intra-day low level not seen since August 30, 2013. "Some importers have started covering their future repayments with short-term forward bets while some are taking buyers' credit to roll over their repayments in the next few months," said KN Dey, executive director at Mecklai Financial. "There were also some speculative moves in the markets, adding to the rupee's loss," he said. Buyer's credit is a short term loan available to an importer (buyer) from overseas lenders. Importers get more time to repay with such credit. Importers are mostly going for forward contracts up to one-month, a move suggesting short term hedging. The one-month rupee-dollar contract is quoting at about 38 paise lower than the spot exchange rate. The oil price dipped below $30 a barrel for the third consecutive day, registering a 6% intra-day fall. This in turn, has raised doubts on global growth prompting investors to seek safety of dollar-backed assets.
The Reserve Bank of India is suspected to have intervened checking the rupee's fall against the greenback at different levels like 66.45 and 66.72. On RBI's behalf, state-owned banks are believed to have sold about $200 million, dealers said. "Fighting against the trend is difficult as RBI would not burn its reserves base at current levels, which are not so worrying," said Abhishek Goenka, founder & CEO, India Forex Advisors. "RBI intervention may not be aggressive, going forward." Moreover, China growth pangs, which result in a weaker yuan, too is putting pressure on all other emerging market currencies, and in the next few weeks, the rupee may trade in the range of 66:80-68:30 levels on spot, dealers said. "Rupee is under pressure from risk-off theme sweeping across emerging markets," said Anindya Banerjee, currency analyst at Kotak Securities. "Global economic slowdown, commodity contagion and Chinese currency devaluation are the themes that are driving forex markets." On Friday, foreign portfolio investors net sold Rs 1,123.79 crore in Indian securities, show provision data from BSE. So far this year, foreign portfolio investors have net sold Rs 245 crore compared with about Rs 33,700, net invested during January last year.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Extending losses for the second straight day against the American currency, the rupee dipped by 30 paise to fresh 28-month low at 67.59 on fresh dollar demand from importers in view of persistent foreign capital outflows amidst sharp fall in equities. Persistent fall in crude oil prices also affected the market sentiment. Oil prices eased in Asia today, with the under-pressure commodity sitting around 12-year lows as dealers prepare for the return of Iranian exports to the market while the US stockpiles increase. The rupee resumed lower at 67.35 per dollar as against yesterday’s closing level of 67.29 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market and dropped further to a low of 67.71 before closing at fresh 28-month low at 67.59, showing a loss of 30 paise or 0.45 per cent. It had last settled at 67.63 on September 3, 2013 and during the intra-day trade at 68.62 on September 4, the same year. The local currency has lost 74 paise or 1.11 per cent in two days. It hovered in a range of 67.71 and 67.24 during the day. However, the dollar index was down 0.12 per cent against a basket of six currencies in late afternoon trade. The dollar fell around 0.8 per cent against the yen today in the late Asian market as a resumed global market sell-off sent investors running for cover in the perceived safety of the Japanese currency.
Weakness for the greenback came amid heavy fresh losses for crude oil, which dropped below USD 30 a barrel in morning European trading hours. Further rattling investor nerves, China stocks reached bear-market territory today. The US stock futures hinted of triple-digit losses for the Dow industrials at the open of trade later. The benchmark BSE Sensex fell sharply by 317.93 points or 1.28 per cent to 24,455.04 today. Foreign portfolio investors pumped out USD 171.71 millions from equity market yesterday as per the SEBI’s record. In forward market, premium for dollar firmed up on fresh paying pressure from corporates. The benchmark six-month premium payable in June moved up to 191.75-193.75 paise from 189-191 paise yesterday and forward December 2016 contract also rose to 402-404 from 398-400 paise yesterday. he RBI fixed the reference rate for the dollar at 67.4325 and for the euro at 73.3868. In cross-currency trades, the rupee dropped further against the pound sterling to finish at 96.90 from overnight close of 96.81 and also declined further against the euro to conclude at 73.64 from 73.57. The domestic currency continued to decline against the Japanese yen to settle at 57.58 from 57.24 per 100 yen yesterday.
SOURCE: The Hindu
In 2003, Goldman Sachs came out with its report on the four Brics economies (Brazil, Russia, India and China). It forecast that they would drive global growth for the next half century, indeed that their combined GDP would exceed that of the G6 (the six largest economies of the time, led by the US) in less than 40 years. Key aspects of what Goldman forecast in 2003 have materialized over the first decade since its release. But early into a second decade, the time may have come to bury the Brics classification. The four Brics economies were very different in key respects (like resource endowment and per capita income); but all of them were relatively large (among top 12 in GDP) and populous (top nine) countries with large geographies (top seven). A key forecast had been that Brics taken together would equal half the GDP of the G6 by 2025. That forecast was virtually reached in double-quick time. By 2014 the combined Brics GDP, at $16.6 trillion, was 49.1 per cent of the G6 total of $33.8 trillion. In 2003 the ratio had been just 15 per cent. Further, the forecast for India had been that its GDP would become bigger than Italy’s (the smallest of the G6) in 2015. That too is about to happen. The International Monetary Fund's last forecast for 2015 put India’s GDP at $2.18 trillion, ahead of Italy’s $1.82 trillion. In 2003, Italy had been two-and-a-half times India’s size.
What of China? The Brics report had forecast that Chinese GDP would match that of the US by 2040, helped along by currency appreciation. There was a time when this seemed far too modest an assessment, and that China would draw level with the US very much sooner. But with the yuan losing its strength, the economy slowing down and serious structural issues confronting its economy, China is unlikely to be able to challenge American economic might for a while yet. If China sustains 5 per cent annual growth henceforth, it will take about a decade to get to the current size of the US economy; by then, the US economy would likely have grown a further one-third in size. So it is still feasible that China will match US GDP by 2040, as Goldman had forecast. But given the uncertainties bedeviling China and the rest of the world, such long-term projections come with high risks.
What the 2003 report failed to anticipate was the relative performance of the different Brics economies. China has been unexpectedly stellar in its performance. Brazil and Russia seemed to outdo India till very recently, but have fallen off the map in 2015 because of the commodity cycle swinging sharply down. Russia’s GDP (according to IMF) will have shrunk to $1.24 trillion in 2015, down sharply from $2.08 trillion in 2013, while Brazil’s GDP will have shrunk to $1.8 trillion from $2.39 trillion in 2013. With the unique circumstances that caused the commodities boom unlikely to be replicated, neither country can hope to climb the heights again very quickly. India in contrast has stayed on course and is better placed for the future. The critical point—and the reason why the Brics grouping has lost its meaning—is that two of the four Brics members are not likely to be among the largest contributors to world growth in the foreseeable future. The other two, China and India, are now the largest and third largest contributors to global economic growth. So the Brics line-up has yielded to a shaky China-India story, with new question marks over China even as India remains a “B+” performer. Which other countries might join these two on their wobbly way up the charts? There are no obvious answers.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
Heavy taxes and surcharges are marring the textile industry and rendering it uncompetitive compared to regional economies, said a research study. The study, prepared by the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma), said the export sector is subject to five percent duties, taxes and surcharges, while competitors in India enjoy tax-free regime on exports of textile products. It said levies on exports in Bangladesh and China are around one percent. The report, citing the World Trade Organization, said this tax structure resulted in only 18 percent growth in Pakistan’s textile and clothing exports during 2006-2014, while Bangladesh posted 175 percent growth, China 107 percent and India 96 percent during the same period.
The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) said that one percent turnover tax has also pushed up the cost of production and there is, “no concept of such a tax in other three regional countries.” Besides, it said the aggregate corporate tax, including workers participation profit fund of five percent and workers welfare fund of two percent, turns out to be 40 percent. In Bangladesh, it is 27.5 percent and in India and China the same is 25 percent. While six percent interest rate in Pakistan is lower than India, it is still higher when compared with Bangladesh (five percent) and China (5.4 percent). “Other irritants include energy tariff, underutilisation of power generation capacity and energy shortage,” said the report. Pakistan’s textile exports peaked to $13.8 billion in 2010/11, but after falling to $12.4 billion in 2011/12 they regained momentum to touch $13.1 billion and $13.7 billion in 2012/13 and 2013/14, respectively. However, textile exports slipped to $13.5 billion in 2014/15.
The government, in its Economic Survey 2014-15, admitted that global textiles and clothing trade substantially increased since the post-quota regime, but Pakistan’s share in the international textile trade remained stagnant due to preferential trade agreements signed among various countries. Textile ministry, in the industry’s policy 2014-19, expressed its objectives to double value-addition to two billion dollars / million bales and annual exports to $26 billion during the five years. The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association targeted up to $20 billion worth of textile exports by 2018 through creating eight million new jobs in the value chain. To achieve this milestone, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) sought immediate remedial measures, including withdrawal of various surcharges on electricity and gas. It also sought the reduction of corporate tax rate to 25 percent and turnover tax to 0.5 percent. Textile makers also urged the government not to increase minimum wages for textile sector during the next three years.
SOURCE: The News
Turkish textile companies are looking to penetrate into new markets to sustain their export growth since the companies are already facing losses from their traditional export markets due to political and security problems in their neighbourhood. At the world’s biggest trade fair for the home-textile and contract textile industry named Heimtextil show of Frankfurt in Germany, Turkish exhibitors are trying to intensify their links to Malaysia and the ASEAN markets. Turkey is surrounded by a violent neighbourhood: a war-ravaged Syria, an unstable Iraq and a sanction-plagued Russia, said Turkish exhibitors and representatives of various textile and garment associations. The number of Turkish exhibitors at the show has sharply increased from 159 in 2015 to 211 in 2016. Turkish exhibitors occupy the second largest display space - about 16,000sq-m - after Germany, stated M Atilla Bulut, the deputy general coordinator (fairs) of the Turkish Home Textile Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association. “Our advantage over China is our proximity to Europe - we know and understand Europe’s needs and are familiar with the region’s economic and cultural idiosyncrasies. Turkey has a problem on its borders with Syria, Iraq and Russia, even though it has no internal security problem,” he said. Turkish exporters, as a result, are forced to look for markets beyond their borders, to South-East Asia, where the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) was recently formed. Since Malaysia is one of the so-called ‘core countries’ of the community, Turkish exporters see it as an attractive market and some of them plan to visit Malaysia and other ASEAN countries in the near future to promote their exports.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
In Shengze of Jiangsu, offers for 32s polyester yarn prices declined US cents 3 a kg in the last week of December 2015, and those for 45s fell US cents 4 a kg. Spun polyester yarn price inched down in China amid poor sales situation. Offers were weakly stable amid thin transaction in line with PSF values that week. Some sporadic deals were concluded on the back of limited demand. Producers did not run at high rates, and they held low interest to buy raw materials. Most producers just bought goods to meet rigid demand were inclined to buy low-priced goods. In India, spun polyester prices also fell in the meantime. Polyester yarn 30 knitting yarns prices declined INR2 a kg (down US cent 1) in Ludhiana market while they fell INR1 a kg in Indore. In Pakistan, yarn markets remained depressed due to lack of demand from the downstream textile producers. Low level of business activities was reported in the Faisalabad market, where fine count yarns are however attracting a relatively stronger demand. 30s spun polyester prices fell US cents 2 a kg on the month.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Heimtextil in Frankfurt am Main, a leading international trade fair for home and contract textiles, will finish today with a clear increase in the number of exhibitors and visitors. Over 69,000 trade visitors (2015: 67,861) and 2,866 exhibitors (2015: 2,723) from across the world travelled to Frankfurt from 12-15 January to start the economically promising 2016 business and trade fair year together. Detlef Braun, CEO of Messe Frankfurt, was visibly satisified with the outcome: ‘The world world of textile interior design came to Frankfurt and the increase in exhibitors and visitors alike speaks for itself. The positive economic indicators also boosted discussions between suppliers and purchasers. Heimtextil has thus impressively consolidated its position as the top global meeting place for the industry’. This statement was confirmed by Cristobal Montero Álvarez, purchaser at Europe’s biggest department store chain El Corte Inglés: ‘For us, Heimtextil has been the most important trade fair when it comes to the purchase of home and house textiles for a number of years. No other trade fair offers such an international range of exhibitors. The quality and price of suppliers at Heimtextil appeals to us. This year, we were particularly impressed by the new technical solutions in the sun protection segment’.
More international exhibitors than ever before
Heimtextil in Frankfurt is by far the most international event of its kind. ‘From northern Europe to South Africa, from America to Asia: visitors to Heimtextil come from across the world and all of them want to see the latest trends in the textile market’, summarises Paola Ribera of the décor and furniture supplier Texathenea from Spain. As was the case last year, 68 per cent of trade visitors came from abroad. There was an increased number of visitors from Italy, Spain, Sweden, Russia, Japan and South Korea in particular at Heimtextil 2016. However, it is not just the visitors, but also the exhibitors that form a microcosm of a global industry. 89 per cent of exhibitors (2015: 88 per cent) come from abroad. This year’s Heimtextil saw a growth in exhibitors from Europe, in particular Turkey, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as global exhibitors from many countries including Brazil and the USA.
Growing product segments
In terms of products, Heimtextil was able to considerably expand its portfolio in various segments. For the fast-growing segment of décor and upholstery materials, hall 4.0 was even equipped with a new, additional hall level, where primarily high-quality exhibitors from Italy showcased their wares. Textile digital printing with all the market leaders such as Epson, Hewlett Packard, Kornit, Mimaki and Zimmer was also considerably expanded in comparison to last year. The product group “bed” with bed linen, bedding, covers, decorative pillows and mattresses was also added to. The increase in mattress manufacturers in particular, such as Rössle & Wanner and f.a.n. Frankenstolz, who were both exhibiting at Heimtextil again after several years’ absence, was warmly received by trade visitors.
The glamour factor was once again a major element in 2016. Actress and hotel owner Jessica Schwarz was an honorary guest at the opening press conference on Tuesday, informing the public that she intends to expand her hotel in the Odenwald town of Michelstadt. On Thursday she took the opportunity to go on a purchasing tour through the halls for this very purpose. Also present on Tuesday was musician and artist Nena, who presented her new wallpaper collection at the Marburger Tapetenfabrik stand and rocked the house in the evening in front of an audience of invited guests. Ullrich Eitel, CEO of Marburger Tapetenfabrik, was inspired: ‘The collection by Nena was the main focus of our trade fair presence. And Nena herself was of course the absolute highlight. Heimtextil offered the perfect platform for this. We could experience Nena because the affinity to wallpaper was there. We’ve put Nena’s signature on the wallpaper. The Nena collection was very well received by our customers and we had the perfect start to 2016. The fringe event with Nena, i.e. the presentation at our stand, the interview and, last but not least, the concert in the evening, provided the perfect way to round off our presence. Nena garnered the full support of and inspired enthusiasm in our guests’. On Wednesday, it was star designer Guido Maria Kretschmer’s turn to be honoured in the Frankfurt trade fair halls. At the P+S International stand, he presented his wallpaper collection “Fashion for Walls” and was pleased about being there: ‘For me, Heimtextil is an excellent trade fair because it’s all about interiors and materials. It’s great to see the world coming together here and people bringing new looks and how everything is organised’. The celebrity guests’ visits were completed on Thursday by regular trade fair visitor Barbara Becker at Kleine Wolke.
Heimtextil goes City
For the twelfth time, the promotion “Heimtextil goes City” will bring trends from Heimtextil to the city centre. On Saturday 16 January at 10 a.m., the needs of all those who want to see the latest trends and products in interior design before they officially go on sale will be met. In cooperation with the Decorator’s and Upholsterer’s Guild, a total of 19 specialist shops, galleries and public institutions will present new materials, on-trend colours and designs to end consumers. The next Heimtextil, international trade fair for home and contract textiles, will take place from 10-13 January 2017 in Frankfurt am Main.
SOURCE: The Textile World
In recent weeks, a number of issues have been raised regarding the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA). One of the issues that received much media attention was that the TPPA would only achieve modest results and might lead to job losses. The Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers would like to reiterate that based on the nation’s development experience and the experience of manufacturers, Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) have generated business and increased trade, investment and employment. We have benefited from the FTAs signed thus far and there is ample evidence that liberalising economies like Chile, China, and South Korea have consistently performed better than more inward-looking ones at comparable stages of development. We, therefore, call for the ratification of TPPA because we believe that the nation’s future is inextricably tied to our ability to expand our markets to consumers who live beyond our borders.
Malaysia has been and remains an open economy. Trade and investment is our lifeline and plays an important role in economic growth and transformation and our aspirations to move into the ranks of a medium-income nation. This is evident in the fact that Malaysia is the fourth most trade-dependent nation after Hong Kong, Singapore and Vietnam with total trade accounting for 1.5 times of the Gross Domestic Product. The private sector, in particular manufacturers, service providers, investors, etc, who run businesses, employ workers and sell products and services strongly advocates for FTAs, including the TPPA. They enhance market access, accelerate export growth, generate employment and ultimately raise profits and incomes. We recognise the limits of the domestic market. We know that we can only generate new and additional sources of growth and investment by expanding our boundaries to the rest of the world – a promise that the TPP and other FTAs hold. FTAs not only generate business but also offers a degree of transparency and predictability in investment and trade.
As at Dec 1, 2015, WTO reported that 619 FTAs had been signed worldwide and 413 have come into force. As more and more markets and trading blocs are carved out and concessionary trade and investment terms are accorded to participating nations, Malaysian business believes that it is strategic to be part of such important agreements – not just TPPA but other new FTAs in the pipeline particularly with the European Union and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that all require high levels of commitment. Although Malaysia has enforced seven bilateral FTAs (Japan, Pakistan, New Zealand, India, Chile, Australia and Turkey) and five regional FTAs through Asean (Asean and China, Korea, Japan, India and Australia-New Zealand) businesses call for the continued opening of markets. We need to be part of the TPPA as it provides access to a huge duty-free market of 800 million people with a combined GDP of US$27.5 trillion.
Under the TPPA, tariffs will be eliminated on 85% of Malaysia’s trade with its new FTA partners – Canada, Mexico, Peru and the United States which will save US$1.2bil in tariffs for Malaysian industry. Products that will benefit from duty-free access to the TPPA countries include automotive products, machinery and equipment, electrical and electronics, textile and apparel and rubber products among others. Malaysia will eliminate import duties for several sensitive E&E products and petroleum & chemical products that will open up more opportunities for Malaysian manufacturers to procure better quality raw materials to produce high value-added products. We are confident that having a first mover advantage in the TPPA would yield positive results. Given the uncertainties in the global trading environment, especially in traditional export markets, can Malaysia afford not to sign important FTAs like the TPPA and later, other FTAs in the pipeline like the EU Malaysia FTA or RCEP? If we fail to conclude the TPPA, our Asean neighbours, Vietnam, Singapore and Brunei will move ahead strongly and we will be relegated to the sidelines. Relocation of our exporting industries to Vietnam cannot be ruled out. Our experience tells us that we will surely be better off with the TPPA. We also note that the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, South Korea and Taiwan have more recently expressed interest in the TPPA. In making such an important decision, we call on all parties, especially the Government, to take the important step in becoming part of the TPPA. Being an open and competitive trading economy has served us well in the past and our development experience tells us that we should not be held back by the unfounded fears of a few. Economic models are based on assumptions and are as good as the assumptions made. We, who run businesses, rely much on our experience and believe that past trends and experiences should hold sway over such models.
SOURCE: The Star
The government intends to voice its concerns and negotiate a few issues with the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) signatories before officially joining the US-led multilateral trade cooperation. The Trade Ministry’s director general for international trade and cooperation, Bachrul Chairi, said on Wednesday that it would take another year for TPP ratification to be completed and during that time the government would thoroughly discuss its concerns surrounding the TPP. “Indonesia will probably be ready to join the TPP in two years, but there’s still a legal gap concerning the matter of state-owned enterprises. We want to negotiate that,” he said. Under the “state-owned enterprises” clause, the TPP treaty requires member countries to ensure equal treatment for state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and private businesses, especially when SOEs receive government backing to engage in commercial activity. Bachrul said the government would negotiate the matter, especially given the fact that the Constitution mandated that the state was to control natural resources for the people’s welfare.
Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) head Franky Sibarani said there were also a number of concerns regarding investment. “Under our Investment Law, before [investors] go to international arbitration, there must be a discussion with the Indonesian government. This is what will be a lot of work for us,” he said. Under the “investor-state dispute settlement” (ISDS) clause in the TPP treaty, investors may directly proceed to international arbitration should local governments’ regulations harm their businesses in the investment-recipient countries. Bachrul said that while Indonesia was not a TPP signatory, the partnership was probably open to negotiation in order to expand its membership. The partnership will likely come in force in a year, with South Korea becoming a non-current TPP signatory member ready to join.
Negotiations on the TPP were concluded in October last year by 12 signatory countries, namely Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the US. The TPP draft was both welcomed and challenged by Indonesian business players and analysts. Mahmud Syaltout, an international trade law and policy expert at the University of Indonesia, said previously that joining the TPP could harm Indonesia’s agriculture sector. ASEAN Solidarity Economic Community (ASEC) Indonesia has also summarized discussions by a number of experts and members of the public, saying that the country’s state enterprises played a major role in economic development and there was a number of infant businesses that had to be protected. The association also mentioned that emerging markets Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa that were also members of the G-20 did not join the TPP-bandwagon. Textile business associations, meanwhile, highlighted benefits for Indonesia’s textile and footwear industry if the country joined the TPP as the products would be subject to 0 percent tax, making Indonesia competitive with regional counterpart Vietnam, which had joined the TPP. Bachrul said that to further review benefits and negative impacts of joining the TPP, the government agreed on Wednesday to officially form teams to review future trade agreements and partnerships. The agreement was reached after a meeting attended by Franky, Trade Minister Thomas Lembong, Industry Minister Saleh Husin, Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro and Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution, among others.
SOURCE: The Jakarta Post
Pakistan and Sri Lanka are striving to boost the bilateral trade to $1 billion from the current $325 million. This was stated by the Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir while inaugurating the three-day single-country exhibition in Colombo, along with his counterpart Sri Lankan Minister for Industry Rishad Bathiuddin on Friday. An official statement of the ministry said that the exhibition would showcase Pakistani brands in engineering, auto parts, agro food, textile and clothing, designer wear, handicrafts and traditional textiles, cosmetics and herbal products, pharmaceuticals, gems and jewellery, carpets and marble. The soft launch of the fair, organised by the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan and the High Commission of Pakistan, was performed by the prime minister in Sri Lanka earlier this month. The exhibition is a key step to materialise the target of increasing the bilateral trade to $1bn.
Negotiations have already started to expand the existing Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to trade in services and investment. Technical level meetings have detailed out the basic framework for inclusion of new subjects in the FTA. Pakistan has also sought to enhance the export quota of rice to Sri Lanka from the current 6,000 to 10,000 metric tonnes, response on which is still awaited. Speaking at the ceremony, Dastgir said that the fair would carve out new business partnerships, strengthen the old ones and enhance trade and commerce between the two countries.
SOURCE: The Dawn
A 20-member Chinese delegation on Friday held business-to-business (B2B) meetings with their Pakistani counterparts at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LLCI) and showed keen interest to start joint ventures in the sectors of clothing, food, casting production, machinery and power tools. The meeting between the Chinese and Pakistani entrepreneurs were part of the efforts to take mutual trade and economic relations between the two countries to the new heights, said LCCI Senior Vice President Almas Hyder while addressing the Chinese delegation. He said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has fair enough potential to change the economic fate of Pakistan, adding that the expected economic benefits of this project are hard to imagine as only time will eventually unfold how much Pakistan is going to gain from it. Almas Hyder said that repeated visits of the Chinese trade delegations are not only a proof of cordial relations between the two countries but also show the keenness of Chinese businessmen in strengthening working relations with their Pakistani counterparts. He said that LCCI believes in promotion of regional trade and no other country could be better than China for Pakistani businessmen in this regard. The LCCI SVP said that China is one of the largest trading partners of Pakistan and it is expected that bilateral trade between the two countries will touch the figure of $15 billion within the next few years. Although Pakistan's exports to China have been gradually increasing, the trade has always been in favour of China, he added.
Hyder said due to excellent economic policies of China and the hard work of Chinese leadership, China has become a big economic force in the world. He invited the Chinese businessmen to invest in Pakistan in priority sectors including oil and gas, mining, infrastructure, power (coal, hydel, gas based), IT and telecom, chemicals (fertiliser, glass, PV, polymers), value added textile manufactures, engineering goods, textile machinery, electronics, automotives, agricultural and agro based industry, pesticides, cool chains, food and fruit processing, live stock and dairy farming. LCCI Vice President Nasir Saeed on the occasion said Pakistan, because of its strategic location, could be a more suitable destination for Chinese investments. "Pakistan is offering liberal investment policies allowing 100% foreign equity and equal treatment to local and foreign investors. Pakistan has a network of Export Processing Zones and industrial estates ready to accommodate Chinese investors especially in Punjab," he added. Saeed said that globalisation had provided Chinese investors a golden opportunity to relocate their large-scale industry to Pakistan to reap the benefits of its most conducive business policies as compared to other regional countries. Earlier, members of Chinese delegation said that Chinese businessmen are ready to join hands with Pakistani counterparts in all sectors of economy. They said that the Chinese business community values Pakistan highly and therefore, they were always ready to put their money in new ventures in Pakistan.
SOURCE: The Daily Times
Japan Sewing Machinery Manufacturers Association (JASMA) organizing the eleventh edition of Japan International Apparel Machinery & Textile Industry Trade Show ‘JIAM2016 Osaka’ aiming to contribute to the development of apparel and sewing industries, attracting advanced high-quality exhibits, spanning the period 1984 to 2012, responsive to changing technology and circumstances. JIAM will encompass both apparel industry and textile industry as a whole, including non-apparel sectors and segments such as automotive, upholstery, outdoor & lifestyle goods and up-coming industrial textile goods. It will be showing the latest technologies and innovative new products related to the whole of the sewing industry, apparel manufacturing, and textile processing. The show which will be welcoming more than 209 exhibitors, of which 30 are existing exhibitor of which again 25 are domestic and 5 are from overseas are increasing their booth space. The number of first time exhibitors is 62 of which 35 are domestic and 27 from overseas, while total exhibition size has grown by 24.3 percent, said the organizer, JASMA. Together with first-time exhibitors from Bangladesh, many companies from China, Czech Republic, Germany, India, Italy, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and US would be joining the show.
With a large-scale comeback of the German Pavilion anchored by VDMA Garment and Leather Technology who will be showcasing their latest high-tech products. There will also be a new “Print & Fashion” zone featuring printing, design software, embroidery printer and fashion in Hall 2, in which over 30 companies are participating. According to JASMA, this zone will contribute to offering multiple solutions through good synergy with the latest sewing technology and by responding to the needs for customization. JIAM to be held under the show theme – Innovative Solutions and Advanced Processing Technology will offer wider business solution. During the show, there will be various events such as seminars and special exhibitions in the theme zones and will be introducing the latest textile processing technologies and trends. JIAM show will be held from 6 to 9 April 2016 at Intex Osaka, Japan
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
