Technical textiles are engineered textile products for specific applications using basic raw materials such as jute, silk and cotton, et cetera. Union commerce and textiles minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said the time has come to target a five times increase in export of technical textiles to $10 billion in three years, an official statement said. Production-link incentives (PLIs) for the textile sector will help the states in offering affordable infrastructure for textile manufacturing such as cheap land and power, he said while speaking to representatives of the Indian Technical Textile Association (ITTA) in Delhi on Friday. The Cabinet in September approved a PLI scheme worth ₹10,683 for domestic technical textiles firms, and manufacturers of fabrics and apparel in the man-made fibre segment provided they make a specific investment in greenfield projects and achieve stipulated turnover. Technical textiles are engineered textile products for specific applications using basic raw materials such as jute, silk and cotton, polymers, carbon, glass, and metals. Technical textiles are the technology of the future. “We should align [our units] with best standards in textile manufacturing. There should be no difference in the quality of textile meant for international and domestic consumers,” the statement quoting Goyal said. The minister suggested the public-private participation (PPP) model in the research and development of technical textiles. The technical textile in India has gained momentum in the last five years and it is currently growing at an 8% per annum rate, the statement said. India’s target is to hasten this growth to a 15-20% range in the next five years. The government’s National Technical Textiles Mission, launched in February 2020, also aims to boost India’s textile sector. “Our aim is to transform India into a major player in innovations, technology development, applications in key areas (agriculture, roads and railways, water resources, hygiene and healthcare, personal protection) with emphasis R Due to policy efforts, the technical textile trade balance that was negative ( ₹2,788 crore in 2018-19 and ₹1,366 crore in 2019-20), turned positive with ₹1,767 crore in 2020-21, he said. During the year 2020-21, India’s major share of exports is in PPE kits, N-95 masks and surgical masks. Talking about the policy efforts to promote technical textiles, the minister informed that 92 items have been made mandatory for use by government organisations covering agriculture, highways, railways, water resources, medical applications. Goyal said the Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) has issued standards for 377 items and another 100 are in the pipeline. Based on their area of applications, technical textiles in India are divided into 12 categories, including packaging textiles (Packtech) with 38% share, geotechnical textiles (Geo-tech) 10%, agricultural textiles (Agrotech) 12%.
Source: Hindustan Times
In a communication to trade and industry associations, the ministry invited suggestions for changes in the duty structure, rates, and broadening of tax base on both direct and indirect taxes giving economic justification for the same. The Finance Ministry has asked for suggestions on taxation from industries and trade bodies for Budget 2022-23, which is going to set the tone for growth of India's economy hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. In a communication to trade and industry associations, the ministry invited suggestions for changes in the duty structure, rates, and broadening of tax base on both direct and indirect taxes giving economic justification for the same. Suggestions may be sent to the ministry by November 15, 2021, it said. "Your suggestions and views may be supplemented and justified by relevant statistical information about production, prices, revenue implication of the changes suggested and any other information to support your proposal," it said. The request for correction of inverted duty structure, if any for a commodity, should necessarily be supported by value addition at each stage of manufacturing of the commodity, it said. It would not be feasible to examine suggestions that are either not clearly explained or which are not supported by adequate justification or statistics, it said. Modi 2.0 government and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The budget for the next year is expected to address critical issues of demand generation, job creation and putting the economy on a sustained 8 per cent plus growth path. “As can be seen that the government policy with reference to direct taxes in the medium term is to phase out tax incentives, deduction and exemptions while simultaneously rationalising the rates of tax,” the letter said. Currently, more than 100 exemptions and deductions of different nature are provided in the Income-Tax Act. The ministry also asked for suggestions on reducing compliances, providing tax certainty, and reducing litigations. However, it has clarified that goods and services (GST) matters are not examined as part of the budget, as they are to be decided by the GST Council. Recommendation related with the Central Excise and Custom Duty could be given, it said.
Source: Economic Times
China’s much-touted import expo has opened in Shanghai without the presence of Indian businesses, significantly in a year when the Sino-India trade is poised to touch a record USD 100 billion. The China International Import Expo (CIIE) was formally inaugurated by Chinese President Xi Jinping through a video link on Thursday. Participants at the expo in the eastern metropolis said most of the firms and businesses from abroad were represented by their local agents in view of China’s rigid COVID-19 travel restrictions. This year’s expo, which was started four years ago to address global complaints of China’s business model of export more and import less. Officials say China’s current blanket ban on travel between the two countries citing COVID-19 protocols as the main reason for the lack of presence of Indian business house. Since last year, China has stopped issuing visas for Indians and currently, there are no flights in operation between the two countries due to which over 23,000 Indian students, mostly studying medicine in Chinese colleges as well as hundreds of Indian businessmen and their families, were stranded back home. In the past, Indian trade and businesses had shown interest in the last three expos in Shanghai held talks with the Chinese officials on addressing India’s concerns over the trade deficit. Apart from the bilateral tensions over the continuing military standoff in eastern Ladakh that began in May last year, officials say the Indian businesses were apparently not enthused this year as they found it not lucrative in view of the difficulties in breaking into the Chinese markets. Significantly, the expo was being held without India’s presence at a time when the bilateral trade appears to be on course to touch record USD 100 billion. It crossed the USD 90 billion-mark in the first nine months of this year despite the chill in the bilateral ties in view of the continuing military standoff between the two countries. The bilateral trade totalled to USD 90.37 billion by the end of September, which is an increase of 49.3 per cent year-onyear, according to the nine-month data released by China’s customs on Wednesday. China’s exports to India went up to USD 68.46 billion up 51.7 per cent year on year, apparently aided also by massive imports of urgent supplies like oxygen concentrators when India was hit by a massive second wave of COVID-19 By the end of next month, the bilateral trade is expected to touch USD 100 billion. A report in China’s state-run Global Times on Thursday quoted experts as saying that India's absence at the expo contrasts with robust growth in China-India bilateral trade this year. The number of Indian companies that attend the CIIE has been decreasing progressively in recent years and dropped to zero this year, the report said. In his inaugural address, Xi said that China will firmly share market opportunities with the rest of the world and import more from neighbouring countries. “China has a population of over 1.4 billion and a middle-income group of more than 400 million people. Our annual import in goods and services is valued at around USD 2.5 trillion. All this offers an enormous market,” he said. “Going forward, China will lay more emphasis on expanding imports, and pursue balanced development of trade. China will open more demonstration zones for creative promotion of import trade, optimise the catalogue of retail imports via cross-border e-commerce, encourage the on-site processing of imported goods from trading between border residents, and increase imports from neighbouring countries,” he added.
Source: Economic Times
The India Pavilion, inaugurated by Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, on 1stOctober 2021, has successfully completed its first month at the Expo 2020, Dubai. The India Pavilion has hosted over 2,00,000 visitors as on 3rdNovember with various sector and state specific sessions to discuss India’s growth roadmap. It also secured investment opportunities for the country and celebrated several cultural events to attract visitors. Commenting on the success of India Pavilion, Dr. Aman Puri, Consul General of India in Dubai & Dy. Commissioner General for India at Expo 2020 Dubai said, “The October month was a huge success for the India Pavilion. We saw a strong visitor turnout and expect this momentum to continue in the coming months”. “While the India Pavilion will showcase more business opportunities for collaboration and investment, the popularity of India’s festivals, food, and cultural performances, have been crucial aspects in attracting visitors from across the globe”, he added. The Pavilion started with the Climate & Biodiversity Week from October 3rd-9th. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy conducted various sessions that highlighted India’s renewable energy goals and climate action plan to the world. These weeks were followed by Space and Urban and Rural Development weeks, where discussions around the future of the sectors, the issues and challenges in the sectors, role of the government regulations and incentives were discussed. Besides sector specific weeks, the India Pavilion also hosted specific weeks for Gujarat, Karnataka and UT of Ladakh. The state of Gujarat organized events at the India Pavilion where Mr. Bhupendra Patel, Chief Minister, Gujarat virtually showcased the state’s vibrant Pharma sector along with its plan for sustainable development. Similarly, the Karnataka Week also witnessed the presence of Shri Murugesh Nirani, Minister, Large and Medium Scale Industries, Government of Karnataka along with Dr. C N Ashwath Narayan, Minister for Higher Education; IT & BT, Science & Technology; Skill Development, Entrepreneurship & Livelihood, Government of Karnataka. Additionally, a series of events showcasing opportunities in Ladakh across focus sectors like sustainable infrastructure, connectivity, food processing and tourism were discussed during the Ladakh Week at India Pavilion. The Karnataka week saw announcement on partnership between the Government of Karnataka and Gulf Islamic Investments (GII) to strengthen the investment ties between India and UAE. GII’s investment approach in India is sector-agnostic and the firm plans to invest another USD 500m (INR 3,500 crores) in India in the next 3 years and was one of the key achievements for the state of Karnataka. The Climate & Biodiversity week saw virtual participation from dignitaries such as Shri R.K. Singh, Minister of Power, New and Renewable Energy, Govt. of India, Shri Bhagwanth Khuba, Minister of State, New and Renewable Energy, Chemicals and Fertilizers, Government of India & Mr Indu Shekhar Chaturvedi, Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India. The Space sector sessions were addressed by Dr K. Sivan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) & Secretary Department of Space and Dr Pawan Goenka, Chairman, Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (IN-SPACe) and Shri Mr. Umamaheshwaran R, Scientific Secretary, ISRO. The Urban and Rural Development week that started from 31 October was attended by senior officials of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India including, Mr. Kunal Kumar, Joint Secretary and Mission Director (Smart Cities Mission); Mr. Jaideep, OSD (Urban Transport) and Mr Dinesh Kapila, Economic Advisor (Housing). The month of October at the India Pavilion also witnessed an array of cultural activities during Dusshera and Navratri celebrations. These included folk dances, storytelling and music for countless visitors and dignitaries. The ongoing Diwali celebrations at India Pavilion comprise of colourful installations, lighting in the form of Swarangoli or LED rangoli, virtual display of firecrackers and performances by leading artists such as SalimSulaiman, Dhruv and Rooh bands from India and Dubai. The enthusiasm of visitors resulted in India Pavilion being one of the most visited Pavilions at Expo 2020 Dubai. The activities and events during October were witnessed by hundreds of visitors with zeal and enthusiasm.
Source: PIB
Bangladesh’s export income from India is expected to cross the $2 billion mark for the first time this year Bangladesh's exports to India increased by 65% to $700 million year-on-year in the first four months of the current 2021-22 fiscal year. With this, the neighbouring country has entered the list of the top six export destinations of Bangladesh. If the growth continues at the current pace, the country's export income from the largest economy in the South Asia region will exceed $2 billion for the first time this year, according to exporters as well as officials of the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB). In FY21, the country's exports to India crossed the $1 billion mark for the first time and stood at $1.28 billion. Meanwhile, Bangladesh's exports to its largest market, the United States of America (USA) – a destination for one-fifth of the country's total exports – grew by more than 35% in July-October this year. Exports growth to other major destinations in Europe, including Germany and the United Kingdom (UK), also saw marked growth during the period. Riding on this strong growth trajectory, the export receipts surpassed the $3.46 billion target set for the month of October by 36.5% while the year-on-year growth in the month was a whopping 60.37%. The Ministry of Commerce has set an export target of $43.5 billion for the current financial year. Exports in the four months to October stood at $15.7 billion, which is 13.33% more than the four-month target. Exporters are expecting high growth in the export of goods to these countries in the coming days as the economies there are turning around overcoming the shocks induced by the Covid-19 pandemic. EPB Vice Chairman AHM Ahsan told The Business Standard that exports of major products to major markets have increased in recent months, thanks to an improvement in Covid situation across the world coupled with various government initiatives to diversify export products and markets. "Hopefully, this trend will continue in the future," he said. Abul Matlub Ahmad, president of the Bangladesh-India Chamber of Commerce and Industries, told TBS that Bangladesh's exports to India would touch the $2 billion milestone in the current financial year if the current trend of growth continues. Mentioning that India is one of the largest importers in the world, he said Bangladeshi exporters are benefiting from the export of various new products including ready-made garments and food products to the country. Exports of jute and leather and leather products are also increasing this year, he continued. Matlub Ahmad also said Bangladeshi exporters are focusing on India outside the conventional markets, including the United States and the European Union, to take advantage of India's duty-free access facility to all but 25 products. A lower shipping charge is another major reason for the increase in exports to India, he said. "Shipping charges have tripled internationally due to the pandemic. As Bangladesh has a land border with India, Indian importers are being encouraged to import from Bangladesh to reduce this extra cost. Due to this, exports to India are growing at higher rates than to other countries," he added. The former president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI) further said that the main reason for Bangladesh's high export growth to European countries and the United States is the ongoing US-China trade war. "The breaking down of international shipping and logistics chains is also hurting China's exports to Western countries, which is benefiting Bangladesh. This will continue in the future," he said.
Major products have been the key to rising exports to India
According to the EPB, the 64.7% growth in the country's exports to India – with which Bangladesh has an annual trade deficit to the tune of $5 billion – during the July-October period was the highest when compared to growths in export income from other markets in the list of top 20 export destinations. Bangladesh's exports to India against its total exports were 3.31% during the July-October period of last fiscal year. The figure has increased to 4.44% during the corresponding period this year. The EPB has not yet prepared product-wise export data for October. However, an analysis of the export data to India for three months till September shows that the high export growth there was mainly driven by an increase in exports of the major export products – such as woven and knitwear, jute and jute products, cotton and cotton products, plastics, and leather and leather products. Especially, the approval to export wet blue (wet leather tanned with chrome salts) during Eid-ul-Azha and a crisis of jute in both the countries caused significant growths in exports of these two items during the period, according to people concerned.
Growing US market
Bangladesh earned about $800 more in export receipts from the US in July-October this year when compared to the same period a year ago. As a result, Bangladesh's exports to its largest export market exceeded $3 billion in just four months. Bangladesh earned less than 18% of its export income from the US during the first four months of last fiscal, but the figure stood at 19.5% during the corresponding period this year. Bangladesh's exports to the US had taken a heat from the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite a drop in exports in the previous fiscal year, the growth rate in exports to the United States in the last fiscal year was less than 6%. However, since the US economy turned around after the epidemic, exports of caps, home textiles, and crustaceans have been growing at a high rate alongside woven and knitwear.
Consolidating grip on Europe
After the US, Germany, the UK, Spain, and France were the top four export markets for Bangladesh during July-October this year. Exports to all of these four countries saw double-digit growths in the four months and the highest 13.28% growth was to Germany. Among the European countries in the top 20 export markets, the lowest growth was in Italy, at 5.43%. Among European countries, Poland, the Netherlands and Spain have seen the highest growth in imports from Bangladesh in the current financial year. Bangladesh's exports to Poland increased by 31% year-on-year in July-October this year while those to the Netherlands and Spain were 27% and 22.53%, respectively.
Benefit of duty-free access to Chinese market Dhaka has also started reaping the benefits of duty-free export of 97% of its products to China, the largest economy in Asia. Bangladesh's exports to the country grew by 11.94% year-on-year in July-October this year. During the period, exports to Japan also grew by more than 13%. Among Asian countries, Bangladesh's exports to the United Arab Emirates almost doubled to $210 million. Exports to Russia rose by a quarter to $207 million.
New markets show promise
An analysis of EPB data shows growth has been achieved in 19 of the 20 major markets of Bangladesh during July-October. During the period, exports growth was negative only to Turkey where Bangladesh's exports fell by almost 50% to $103 million. EPB officials said the export growth was higher in non-conventional markets than in the conventional ones. Exports to non-conventional markets outside the top 20 export markets increased by 39.42%. Exports to the new market stood at $1.38 billion in July-October last year, which have increased to $1.93 billion this year.
What exporters want
Md Shahidullah Azim, vice-president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said, "Our exports have witnessed a strong growth as many work orders are shifting to us from our competitor countries because of export disruptions in Vietnam and India, owing to Covid-19 and political instability in Myanmar and increased production cost in China." "We still have enough orders coming in," he said, adding, "But, in order to utilise it, it is necessary to increase the single-borrower exposure limit to 20% in the case of providing bank loans to readymade garment exporters." He also emphasised the need for developing port infrastructure. "Imports have gone up due to increase in prices of various raw materials including woven fabrics. It is not possible to import raw materials as per the export orders as the exposure limit has not been increased," he added.
Source: TBS News
Industrialists on Friday continued their protest against the central government over rising prices of industrial raw material for the fourth day in a row outside the UCPMA office on Gill Road in Ludhiana Industrialists on Friday continued their protest against the central government over rising prices of industrial raw material for the fourth day in a row outside the UCPMA office on Gill Road. Representatives of industrial associations like UCPMA, Federation of Industrial and Commercial Organisation (FICO), Bahadurke Road Textile and Knitwear Association and Bicycle Research And Development Organisation (BRADO) participated in the hour long protest. They raised slogans against the Centre and demanded the formation of a regulatory body at the national level to control the prices. “We are definitely going to vote for the political party who will solve our issue, which concerns the entire industrial sector in Ludhiana. The district is an industrial hub and generates huge employment opportunities for the youth and thus the government should pay heed to us,” said Manjinder Sachdeva, general secretary of UCPMA. He added that due to inflation, many people are losing their jobs. “With prices of the raw material increasing, we have to increase our cost too, which largely affects our business. At times, when we close the deal quoting a certain rate, we incur losses as the central government increases the price of steel, nickel, paint, fuel and other raw material” stated Sachdeva.
Source: Hindustan Times
A discussion on enhancing bilateral trade between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh was held at the Export Development Board recently under the patronage of Trade Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardena and Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh Tareq Md Ariful Islam. During the meeting, the Minister and the High Commissioner discussed the problems faced by Sri Lankan exporters in exporting to Bangladesh. About 25 companies representing tea, beauty and personal care products, textiles, electrical and electronics, woven fabrics were present at the event. Speaking at the discussion, Trade Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardena said that the Ministry of Trade, the Department of Commerce and other line agencies are currently working on the proposed Bangladesh-Sri Lanka Preferential Trade Agreement (BS-SL PTA) to promote bilateral trade. Export Development Board Chairman Suresh de Mel said the meeting provides a platform for the Sri Lankan business community to share and discuss their views with the High Commissioner and officials at the Bangladesh High Commission in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka’s main products exported to Bangladesh are electrical and electronic products, woven fabrics, petroleum oils, petroleum gases, textiles, plastics products, bolts and metal and paper products. Bangladesh was Sri Lanka’s 21st export destination in 2020 with a value of $ 153.44 million.
Source: Colombo Page
The country's new five year Textile and Apparel Policy is ready to land in Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet with the draft altered in line with the recommendations of an inter-ministerial committee, well informed sources in Ministry of Commerce (MoC) told Business Recorder. One of the major changes in the Policy 2020-25, is to delink duty drawback scheme (DLTL/DDT) with increment in exports. Ministry of Commerce after meaningful consultations with private stakeholders proposed to set an export target of $20 billion for textiles and apparel industry for FY 2021-22 which has also been approved by the Prime Minister. The export target for FY 2021-22 is cascaded till 2024-25 with a projection to double textiles and apparel exports to $ 40 billion. According to the Commerce Ministry, strong resolve and long-term commitments of the Federal Government, robust implementation of policy interventions by relevant Ministries/Divisions/Departments and full support from the Finance Division would necessarily be required to keep intact due support on proposed interventions throughout the policy years to achieve set milestones. The sources said energy (electricity and RLNG) will be provided to the export-oriented units/sectors of textile industry at regionally competitive rates throughout the policy years without any disparity between the provinces. During FY 2021-22, electricity will be provided at US cents 9 per kWh all-inclusive and RLNG at USS 5.5 per MMBTU allinclusive. However, an exercise will be conducted jointly with the Ministry of Energy (Power and Petroleum Divisions) during the pre-budget consultative sessions annually to review energy tariffs. In case of abnormal fluctuations in regional energy prices, the proposed rates may be revised on an average of energy prices for industrial consumers of regional competitors (Vietnam, Bangladesh, etc.) and announced in Federal Budget along with budgetary allocations by Finance Division as actually required by Ministry of Energy so that energy regime would remain fully funded throughout the policy years.
Source: Brecorder
China has officially applied to join the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) to strengthen global cooperation in digital economy, according to the ministry of commerce. Commerce minister Wang Wentao submitted the written application to Damien O'Connor, minister for trade and export growth of New Zealand, the DEPA depositary, the ministry said. The pact was virtually signed by Singapore, New Zealand and Chile on June 12, 2020. "The DEPA is a first of its kind agreement that establishes new approaches and collaborations in digital trade issues, promotes interoperability between different regimes and addresses the new issues brought about by digitalization," according to the Singapore's ministry of trade and industry. Applying to join DEPA is in line with China's efforts of "further deepening domestic reforms and expanding high-level opening-up," the Chinese ministry was quoted as saying by an official news agency.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
Pakistan and Iran are all set to reach a barter trade deal by using the forums of Quetta Chamber of Commerce and Industry (QCCI) and Zahidan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ZCCI), as State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has refused to engage in formal trade with Iran due to US sanctions on the Islamic republic, well-informed sources told Business Recorder. The pact is likely to be signed during the visit of Prime Minister's Advisor on Commerce and Investment, Abdul Razak Dawood who has reached Tehran on a two-day official visit to attend 9th Pakistan Iran Joint Trade Committee meeting scheduled for November 6-7, 2021. Iranian Minister for Industry Reza Fatemi-Amin and Abdul Razak Dawood will jointly preside over the meeting during which issues related to trade cooperation will come under discussion, in addition to discussion on progress in decisions taken at the 8th meeting of JTC. Both sides will discuss possibilities of FTA, cooperation in transportation sector, construction of border markets. Dawood will also hold meetings with Iranian Ministers to discuss issue of bilateral interest. The sources said it had been decided that a barter trade mechanism would be established between QCCI and ZCCI. Pakistan has shared a list of 33 items including rice, sesamum seeds, fresh or dried guavas, mangoes and mangosteens, meeting of bovine animals, fresh or chilled, surgical goods, line animals (Mammals), bananas, woven fabrics or jute, plastic and articles (polymers or styrene), textile fabrics, dried leguminous vegetables, (peas, beans etc) vessels for the transport of goods, can molasses etc. Iran has shared a list of 33 items of its interest: (i) gaseous hydrocarbons, liquefied (excluding natural gas); (ii) propane liquefied; (iii) crude petroleum oils: (iv) petroleum bitumen; (v) sacks and bags; (vi) fresh and dried dates; (vii) ceramic flags and paving & finishing ceramics; (viii) dried leguminous vegetables (chickpeas garbanzos); (ix) fresh and dried pistachios (both in hell and shelled); (x) bars and rods of iron or non-alloy steel, hot wafers; (xi) sweets biscuits and bread, cakes and pastry and waffles and wafers; (xii) chocolate and other food preparations containing coca; (xiii) fruit juices (grapes and vegetable fruits; (xiv) milk and cream, containing added sugar or other sweetening matter and; (xv) apples, pears and quinces, fresh; (xvi) grapes fresh or dried; (xvii) dries apricots, prunes, apples, peaches and peers etc. The Barter Trade Mechanism (BTM) will work in following ways: (i) Pak exports to Iran will precede Iran exports to Pakistan; (ii) barter trade shall be restricted to land route via Taftan Border only; (iii) barter trade will be restricted to items agreed as per the Border Trade Agreement between Pakistan and Iran; (iv) there will be no monetary transaction under the barter trade arrangement. Pakistan's importers will make payment to Pakistan exporters in lieu of goods exported by them in Pak Rupee and vice versa; (v) the value of goods exported under barter trade should not exceed a specific amount to be finalized during the meeting; (vi) on imports/exports of goods on either side, the party should submit documentary evidence such as Bill of Entry to the focal person in QCCI where the value exceeds the agreed amount in PKR; (vii) Customs authorities at Pak-lran Border will report import/export transactions of the value not exceeding agreed amount to the State Bank of Pakistan on monthly basis; (viii) export of goods from Iran to Pakistan against import of goods from Pakistan to Iran should be completed within a period of six months from the date of import; (ix) a copy of the contract for import and export with Iranian parties should also be submitted to QCCI and ZCCI; (x) QCCI will forward a monthly statement within 15 days from the close of the month; (xi) Periodic Review of the agreement will be carried out after mutual consultations; and (xii) each Party may terminate/rescind this agreement through a written communication addressed to the other Party, with a minimum notice of three months.
Source: Brecorder
The trade between the countries of Cambodia and Thailand has seen an increase in the nine months of this year. According to a statement released from the Cambodian Embassy in Thailand to local news on November 5, bilateral trade between the two countries have increase by 18 percent in the first nine months of this year compared to the previous year. Trade between both countries is currently valued at nearly $6 billion dollars. As of the third quarter (January to September) of 2021, the bilateral trade between Cambodia and Thailand reached a total of $5.97 billion, an increase of 18 percent, compared to the same period of 2020, which was worth $ 5.08 billion, the statement said. In the first nine months, exports from Cambodia to Thailand were worth $687 million, a decrease of 28 percent from the $958 million worth during 2020. While exports dropped, imports from Thailand to Cambodia was valued at $5.28 billion, an increase of 14 percent compared to last year’s $4.61 billion. The Cambodian Embassy in Thailand said that the increase in trade between both countries continued despite the restrictions on travel. This is due to the restriction not extending to cross-border trade, which continues every day. Cambodia’s main exports to Thailand include textiles, agricultural products, gems, raw materials and semi-finished products. Imports from Thailand include fish, meat, vegetables, automobiles, organic fertilizers, foodstuffs, and construction materials.
Source: Khmer Times
ONE-OFF investment in wet processors for simple, practical improvements could lower environmental impact and operating costs for textiles production, potentially saving the industry US$6.1bn/y, according to a new report. Wet processing involves treating textile substrate with colourants and/or chemicals, and is used to add maximum value by improving aesthetics, comfort, and functional properties. Wet processors have the largest environmental impact on the textiles, apparel, and clothing supply chain due to high energy, chemical, and water use. Easy (Un)pickings outlines the benefits seen after an average investment of US$455,000 per facility was made in 67 facilities in China and Taiwan, to lower their environmental footprint. The report was produced by thinktank Planet Tracker in collaboration with the Apparel Impact Institute (Aii), a collaborative of fashion brands, manufacturers, and industry associations taking action towards sustainability. The report identifies ten key best practices to realise benefits, including reusing cooling-, process- and wastewater, recovering heat from hot water, improving boiler efficiency, improving insulation, and recovering heat from exhaust gas and heating oil. It highlights additional improvements that could be made in energy efficiency and water and chemistry, such as: implementing energy saving equipment such as tank covers or hoods, and automatic valves; temperature control; and investing in education of management around process changes and water and chemicals policy. Investing in these changes across the 67 facilities led to average annual water savings of 11.5% and 10.8% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, as well as average annual cost savings of US$369,500. The report says industry could save US$6.1bn/y, and the presentday value of these savings could be more than US$25bn. According to the report, beneficial changes are slow to be implemented due to a lack of knowledge and expertise, funding, and pressure from regulators and customers. The report also highlights a lack of understanding about potential savings. It calls for actions from investors including actively investing in the supply chain of textile producers, continuing to apply pressure to brands to achieve transparency and push for supply chain improvements, and seeking partners such as Aii to help aid external investment opportunities. Addressing companies and brands, it calls for funding to transition and improve wet processing companies, cultivating relationships with suppliers to allow them to secure financing, and pushing for active and consistent environmental transparency from their own operations as well as those of their suppliers.
Source: The Chemical Engineer
Egypt’s exports to the EU increased by 38 percent in the first eight months of 2021, reaching nearly $4.74 billion, Egypt’s Minister of Trade and Industry Nevine Gamea said on Saturday. Gamea said the increase was the result of high demand of Egyptian products from 23 European countries including Italy, Spain, Germany, and the Netherlands. Fruits, electrical equipment, textiles and clothing, glass products, cotton, and ceramics were also in high demand in the EU countries, she said. Egypt exported iron and steel exports worth $608.19 million, aluminum ($308.08 million) and organic chemicals worth $139.66 million, according to data released by the ministry. The head of the Egyptian Commercial Services, Ahmed Maghawry, said that Egypt's exports of plastic products, fertilizers, aluminum, iron and steel, and organic chemicals recorded a remarkable increase. Egypt is keen on boosting trade cooperation with the EU, being “Egypt’s biggest trading partner,” the minister said.
Source: Arab news
