The Indian government is not keen on imposing anti-dumping duty (ADD) on imports of polyester spun yarn (PSY) originating in or exported from China, Indonesia, and Vietnam, as recommended by the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR). This was indicated by minister of commerce and industry Piyush Goyal during his meeting with NITMA representatives. Goyal, who is also the minister of textiles, told representatives of the Northern India Textile Mills’ Association (NITMA) this week that the industry should develop itself to face global competition, and not to expect protection from the government in the era of open market. The minister, however, assured the representatives of ensuring level playing field for all the stakeholders in the textile sector. NITMA officials told Goyal that domestic man-made yarn manufacturers are liable to pay import duty of 5.5 per cent on man-made fibre which makes domestic manufacturers uncompetitive against the imported PSY. In response, the minister told industry representatives to not to push for ADD on PSY in the current scenario, a source told Fibre2Fashion on the condition of anonymity. However, he assured them that he will look into the issues which are important to ensure a level playing field. PSY import by India has increased by 943 per cent during the past five years, and imports from Vietnam alone have increased by 88 times. In 2020-21, India imported 60,810 tonnes of PSY, accounting for 23 per cent of the total 264,000 tonnes consumed by the domestic market. Sensing that this trend is increasing at a great speed, NITMA had been advocating levying of ADD on PSY. In August 2021, the DGTR had recommended that ADD be imposed on PSY originating in or exported from China, Indonesia, and Vietnam. However, an official notification announcing the date from which the ADD would come into effect never materialised.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
The government has taken following major initiatives/ measures to help ameliorate the conditions in textile sector to boost exports, production, demand and job opportunities in the sector on pan-India basis:
Further, Government is implementing various policy initiatives and schemes for supporting the development of textile industry viz. the Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (A-TUFS), Schemes for the development of the Powerloom Sector(Power-Tex), Schemes for Technical Textiles, Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks (SITP),Scheme for Additional Grant for Apparel Manufacturing Units under SITP (SAGAM), SAMARTH- The Scheme for Capacity Building in Textile Sector (SCBTS), Jute (ICARE- Improved Cultivation and Advanced Retting Exercise), Incentive Scheme for Acquisition of Plant and Machinery (ISAPM), Export Market development Assistance(EMDA), Retail Outlet of Jute Diversified Products and Bulk Supply Scheme, Integrated Processing Development Scheme (IPDS), Silk Samagra, National Handloom Development Programme, National Handicraft Development Programme, Integrated Wool Development Programme (IWDP), North East Region Textiles Promotion Scheme (NERTPS),National Technical Textile Mission, Scheme for Production and Employment Linked Support for Garmenting Units (SPELSGU) etc.
These schemes and initiatives which promote technology upgradation, creation of infrastructure, skill development and sectoral development in the textile sector, create a conducive environment and provide enabling conditions for textile manufacturing in the country and help in boosting the textile sector. The role of the Government is to ensure conducive policy environment, facilitating in creating enabling conditions for the industry and private entrepreneurs to set up units through its various policy initiatives and schemes. Due to these interventions a number of handloom, powerloom, readymade garments, synthetic yarn and hosiery manufacturing units have been setup across the country. Details of such units may be seen at Annexure A, B, C & D. The details of the amount spent for development of textile industry through various sectoral scheme during the last three years and current year is at Annexure E.This information was given by the Minister of State for Textiles Smt. DarshanaJardosh in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.
Number of Knitted Ready-Made Garment(RMG)units in the Country
|
Woven RMG Units in the Country |
|
|
STATE |
Unit |
|
ANDHRA PRADESH |
653 |
|
ASSAM |
61 |
|
BIHAR |
8 |
|
CHATTISGARH |
14 |
|
DELHI |
22674 |
|
GUJARAT |
2362 |
|
HARYANA |
387 |
|
JHARKHAND |
3 |
|
JAMMU |
1 |
|
KARNATAKA |
1584 |
|
KERALA |
35 |
|
MADHYA PRADESH |
965 |
|
MAHARASHTRA |
13837 |
|
NOIDA |
1067 |
|
ORISSA |
239 |
|
PUNJAB |
404 |
|
RAJASTHAN |
455 |
|
TAMILNADU |
564 |
|
UTTAR PRADESH |
1103 |
|
UTTARAKHAND |
1 |
|
WEST BENGAL |
6403 |
|
NORTH EAST (Meghalaya & Manipur) |
7 |
|
Total |
52,827 |
Annexure-D
Man-made Filament Yarn Unit details:
|
S.No. |
State |
Number of Unit |
|
|
|
|||
|
1. |
TELANGANA |
01 |
|
|
2. |
GUJARAT |
11 |
|
|
3. |
MAHARASHTRA |
06 |
|
|
4. |
ORISSA |
01 |
|
|
5. |
PUNJAB |
02 |
|
|
6. |
RAJASTHAN |
02 |
|
|
7. |
UTTAR PRADESH |
01 |
|
|
8. |
WEST BENGAL |
01 |
|
|
9. |
DAMAN & DIU |
01 |
|
|
10. |
DADRA NAGAR HAVELI |
06 |
|
Annexure-E
Details of Expenditure(pan-India) under various Textile Sector Schemes
((Rs. in crores)
|
Textile Sector |
2018-19 |
2019-20 |
2020-21 |
2021-22 |
|
Name of the Scheme/ Project/ Programme |
Expenditure |
Expenditure |
Expenditure |
Expenditure (upto 26.11.2021) |
|
Handloom |
334.33 |
373.37 |
317.34 |
184.79 |
|
Handicrafts |
195.26 |
267.73 |
270.18 |
137.45 |
|
Wool |
3.3 |
16.5 |
9.33 |
5.20 |
|
Silk |
601.29 |
787.61 |
650.01 |
635.47 |
|
Powerloom |
92
|
41.51 |
55.03 |
15.35 |
|
Jute |
28.00 |
104.42 |
71.50 |
38.42 |
|
Technology Upgradation Funds Schemes (TUFs) |
615.68 |
317.90 |
556.39 |
280.82 |
|
Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks(SITP) |
20.29 |
41.01 |
79.91 |
34.94 |
|
Research & Capacity Building |
50.27 |
149.36 |
199.02 |
185.91 |
|
North Eastern Textiles Promotion |
65.71 |
115.23 |
79.21 |
13.60 |
|
Total |
2006.13 |
2214.64 |
2287.92
|
1531.95
|
Source: PIB
Prime Minister Narendra Modi could announce India’s Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the UAE during his proposed visit to the Gulf country early January, with negotiations for the pact expected to be concluded by this Friday. The India-UAE CEPA negotiations have entered the final stage. Both sides are expected to finalise the proposals by this Friday and are giving final touches to the document, ET has reliably gathered. Modi is expected to announce the CEPA, India’s first in the Gulf region, during his proposed visit to the UAE. In fact, this would be India’s maiden CEPA with a key economy in recent times. New Delhi expects also to finalise a free-trade agreement with Israel next year and has expedited negotiations with Australia for the trade pact. An early harvest trade deal with the UK could be concluded next spring. The potential benefits from the India-UAE CEPA include an agreement for labourintensive industries and this will also entail numerous complementary spill-over economic benefits, including increased investments, job creation and employment opportunities. Last week, commerce and industries minister Piyush Goyal met representatives of aluminium, copper, chemicals and petrochemicals industries as part of the ongoing multistakeholder consultations related to the negotiations for the India-UAE CEPA. ET has learnt that five groups were constituted to handle different sectors under the proposed CEPA, and that the two sides are tying up the loose ends and working on the language of the text of the agreement. The UAE is aiming to emerge as the top economic and political power in the region with ambitions to play a global role with a modern economy, and not just focussing on hydrocarbon-based revenues. The India-UAE CEPA will also contribute to the emerging India-UAE-Israel-USA grouping, or the West Asian Quad. India is UAE’s second-largest trading partner, accounting for 9% of its total foreign trade and 13% of non-oil exports. It is anticipated that the value of UAE’s non-oil trade with India will rise from the pre-pandemic levels of $40 billion to over $100 billion within five years of the CEPA being signed. The UAE and India have a comprehensive investment partnership built on decades of growing collaboration. Today, the UAE is the ninth largest investor in India with over $18 billion in committed funds, while India’s investment in the UAE stood at around $8 billion in 2019 – representing around 6% of foreign direct investment in that country. In a major development, Reliance Industries Ltd on Tuesday said it will partner with Abu Dhabi Chemical Derivatives Company RSC Ltd (TA'ZIZ) and invest $2 billion in setting up a petrochemical production facility in the UAE. RIL joined the recently formed TA'ZIZ joint venture of Abu Dhabi state energy giant ADNOC and state holding company ADQ for developing the facility at Ruwais in western Abu Dhabi. Two-way investment has flown into strategically important sectors, such as services, sea transport, power, infrastructure, real estate, healthcare and telecommunications. Both sides are keen to commit capital to future industries like agri-tech, artificial intelligence, green infrastructure and renewable energy.
Source: Economic Times
At present, the UAE has banned poultry imports from India due to concerns over bird flu while India's textile exports are levied a 5% duty India has sought duty-free market access for its spices, eggs, cheese and textiles in the UAE as part of the free-trade agreement it is negotiating with the grouping. At present, the UAE has banned poultry imports from India due to concerns over bird flu while India's textile exports are levied a 5% duty. "We are keen to sell poultry products to the UAE and are hopeful they will allow imports from India, starting with eggs as eggs are a big market there," said an official, adding that India has assured that it is following the biosafety norms set by the World Organization for Animal Health to prevent infection. As per the official, the UAE is keen to get duty concessions for dates, confectionery and sugar-based products. India is keen to get duty-free access for its fresh and frozen bovine meat, cheese, spices, certain organic chemicals and paper products. It has identified 1,100-odd products including washing machines, ACs, refrigerators, spices, tobacco, cotton fabrics, textiles and leather whose exports it wants to increase through the pact. "Politically, this agreement is important as Pakistan was insisting the UAE to not ink any pact with India but the UAE has ignored it," said a trade expert, adding that India stands to gain in services and could push for long-term business visas with the UAE.
Source: Economic Times
Keeping in view India’s vision of becoming ‘Atmanirbhar’ and to enhance India’s Manufacturing capabilities and Exports, an outlay of INR 1.97 lakh crore (over US$ 26 billion) has been announced in Union Budget 2021-22 for PLI schemes for 13 key sectors of manufacturing starting from fiscal year (FY) 2021-22. The 13 key sectors include already existing 3 sectors namely (i) Mobile Manufacturing and Specified Electronic Components, (ii) Critical Key Starting materials/Drug Intermediaries & Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients, (iii) Manufacturing of Medical Devices and 10 new key sectors which have been approved by the Union Cabinet in November 2020. These 10 key sectors are: (i) Automobiles and Auto Components, (ii) Pharmaceuticals Drugs, (iii) Specialty Steel, (iv) Telecom & Networking Products,(v) Electronic/Technology Products, (vi) White Goods (ACs and LEDs), (vii) Food Products, (viii) Textile Products: MMF segment and technical textiles, (ix) High efficiency solar PV modules, and (x) Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery. PLI Scheme for an additional sector, Drones and Drone Components, has also been approved by the Union Cabinet in September 2021. With the announcement of PLI Schemes, significant creation of production, employment, and economic growth is expected over the next 5 years and more. The schemes have been specifically designed to attract investments in sectors of core competency and cutting edge technology; ensure efficiency and bring economies of size and scale in the manufacturing sector and make Indian manufacturers globally competitive so that they can integrate with global value chains. The PLI schemes are being implemented by the concerned Ministries/ Departments. There are targeted promotion activities being taken up by concerned Ministries/ Departments for identification of potential global and domestic investors by way of organizing investor networking events, investor roundtables, seminars and one-on-one meetings with potential investors. All the approved sectors identified under PLI Schemes follow the broad framework of new and emerging technologies where India can leapfrog, overall economic gain accruing to the economy and export potential of the sectors. These sectors were recommended by NITI Aayog after detailed deliberations with concerned Ministries/ Departments followed by approval of the Union Cabinet. Any new sector for PLI will require fresh approval of the Cabinet. There is no proposal by NITI Aayog to expand scheme to other sectors. This information was given by the Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Shri SomParkash, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.
Source: PIB
As informed by Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT), as part of the ‘Start-up India’ initiatives the Government has provisioned the following financial assistance and incentives for start-ups across the country including in the state of Tamilnadu:
As informed by Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), SIDBI has entered into a collaboration with Google India Private Limited (GIPL) on November 18, 2021, for having a pilot social impact lending programme with a corpus of approx. Rs. 110 crore (equivalent to USD $15 million) targeted at Micro enterprises with a turnover upto Rs.5.00 crore. As informed by SIDBI, the following programmes were launched by SIDBI to help and revive the MSME sector across the country including the State of Tamilnadu:
The Ministry of MSME implements various schemes and programmes for the growth and development of MSME Sector in the country including Tamil Nadu. These schemes and programmes include Prime Minister’s Employment Generation programme (PMEGP), Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI), A Scheme for Promoting Innovation, Rural Industry & Entrepreneurship (ASPIRE), Credit Guarantee Scheme for Micro and Small Enterprises, Micro and Small Enterprises Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP).
Post Covid-19, the Government has taken a number of initiatives under Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan to support the MSME Sector in the country especially in Covid-19 pandemic. Some of them are:
i) Rs 20,000 crore Subordinate Debt for MSMEs.
ii) Rs. 3 lakh crores Collateral free Automatic Loans for business, including MSMEs. The limit of Rs. 3.00 Lakh Crore has been enhanced to Rs 4.5 lakh crore.
iii) Rs. 50,000 crore equity infusion through MSME Fund of Funds (Self Reliant India Fund).
iv) New revised criteria for classification of MSMEs.
v) New Registration of MSMEs through 'Udyam Registration' for Ease of Doing Business.
vi) No global tenders for procurement up to Rs. 200 crores, this will help MSME.
An online Portal “Champions” has been launched on 01.06.2020 by Prime Minister. This information was given by Union Minister for MSME Shri Narayan Rane in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.
Source: PIB
The National Small Industries Corporation Limited (NSIC), a Public Sector Undertaking under Ministry of MSME, facilitates Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to meet their raw material requirement by making arrangements with bulk manufacturers for procuring the materials and supplying the same to MSMEs. NSIC also provides financial assistance to MSMEs under their Raw Material Assistance (RMA) Scheme against bank guarantee for payment to the suppliers. The details of the assistance provided to MSMEs by NSIC under Raw Material Assistance Scheme in last two years and current year are as under:
|
Financial year |
No. of units supported |
Credit support provided (Rs.in lakh) |
|
2019-20 |
2842 |
524495.62 |
|
2020-21 |
2699 |
439843.75 |
|
2021-22 (upto 26.11.2021 |
2445 |
308303.03 |
The details of assistance provided to MSMEs under Raw Material Assistance Scheme of NSIC in Bihar and Madhya Pradesh during last two years and current year (upto 02.12.2021) are as under:
|
Financial Year |
Bihar |
Madhya Pradesh |
||
|
|
No. of Unit |
Credit support (Rs.in lakh) |
No. of Unit |
Credit support (Rs.in lakh) |
|
2019-20 |
21 |
2058.17 |
82 |
15351.49 |
|
2020-21 |
20 |
2344.72 |
67 |
9791.60 |
|
2021-22 (upto 02.12.2021) |
19 |
1067.90 |
72 |
6099.27 |
The Ministry of MSME implements various schemes and programmes for promotion and development of MSME Sector. These schemes and programmes include Prime Minister’s Employment Generation programme (PMEGP), Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI), A Scheme for Promoting Innovation, Rural Industry & Entrepreneurship (ASPIRE), Interest Subvention Scheme for Incremental Credit to MSMEs, Credit Guarantee Scheme for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE), Micro and Small Enterprises Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP), Special Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme (SCLCSS). Further, till date, subsidy of Rs. 88.24 Cr has been provided to 849 SC-ST entrepreneurs under Special Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme.
This information was given by Union Minister for MSME Shri Narayan Rane in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.
Source: PIB
Promotion and development of enterprises is a State subject. However, the Central Government supplements the efforts of the State/UTs Government through various schemes, programmes and policy initiatives for all round development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the country. Udyam Registration is a pre-requisite for availing the benefits of schemes/programmes of the Ministry of MSME and for availing the benefits under Priority Sector Lending of RBI. Total Udyam Registration till December 3, 2021 (at 1.47 P.M.) is more than 60 Lakh.
The Government has taken a number of recent initiatives under the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan to support the MSME sector in the country. Some of them are:
An Online Portal “Champions” has been launched on 01.06.2020 by Prime Minister. This covers many aspects of e-governance including redressal of grievances and handholding of MSMEs.
This information was given by Union Minister for MSME Shri Narayan Rane in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.
Source: PIB
The finance ministry told Parliament on Wednesday that the unpaid GST compensation to states for the year 2020-21 stood at Rs 37,134 crore, 54% lower than what was reported in September 2021. Aided by the robust goods and service tax (GST) receipts over the last few months, the Centre has recently transferred about Rs 44,000 crore to states towards their pending GST compensation dues for FY21, sources told FE. The finance ministry told Parliament on Wednesday that the unpaid GST compensation to states for the year 2020-21 stood at Rs 37,134 crore, 54% lower than what was reported in September 2021. The ministry had earlier estimated that if monthly GST collections average at Rs 1.15 lakh crore, the deficit in the designated cess kitty to compensate states for the current financial year would be about Rs 1.25 lakh crore against the provision of Rs 1.59 lakh crore backto-back loan mechanism to cover the deficit. The average monthly GST collection in the first eight months of the current financial year has been Rs 1.17 lakh crore. On October 28, the Union government released Rs 44,000 crore to states to bridge their GST revenue shortfall, fully achieving the target to release Rs 1.59 lakh crore under the special back-to-back loan mechanism for the current fiscal. While the amount borrowed under the RBI-enabled mechanism last year was Rs 1.1 lakh crore, the Centre acknowledged in Parliament in September that an amount of Rs 81,179 crore was yet to be released to the states then, towards fully compensating them for their GST revenue shortfall for FY21. GST collections, which have been steady in recent months, came in at Rs 1,31,526 crore in November (October sales) 2021, the second-highest mop-up in the history of the comprehensive indirect tax that was launched in July 2017. The GST cess proceeds fell short of the states’ compensation requirement for the first time in FY21, thanks largely to the pandemic but also because of the series of rate cuts that brought down the weighted average GST rate to around 11%, as against a revenue-neutral rate of around 15% seen before the July 2017 launch of the destination-based consumption tax.
Source: Financial Express
Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman participated virtually from New Delhi in the G20 International Seminar hosted in Bali by the G20 Presidency of Indonesia. Speaking on the G20’s theme for the year, “Recover Together, Recover Stronger”, the Finance Minister stressed on the fact that for a strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive recovery of the global economy, it is imperative to ensure collective progress of all countries. Towards achieving this goal, she said that the critical role of multilateralism and collective action. Smt. Sitharaman also underlined the importance of Inclusion, Investment, Innovation and Institutions to support the path of global recovery. The Finance Minister emphasised on the importance of ensuring affordable and equitable access to vaccines and therapeutics to bridge the divergences being witnessed in the global economic recovery. In this context, Smt. Sitharaman highlighted that so far India has administered over 1.25 billion doses of vaccines and supplied more than 72 million vaccine doses to over 90 countries, including by way of grant thereby reflecting India’s commitment to co-ordinated global action. Finance Minister stressed on the importance of enhanced infrastructure investments for enabling a quick and stable return to the growth path. Smt. Sitharaman also emphasised that green investments will play a key role in the rebuilding efforts of governments and called upon the G20 to deliberate on how climate finance and green technologies can be made available to developing countries so as to incentivize and accelerate their efforts towards green growth.
Source: PIB
State Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and Textiles department is to all set to start district-level synergy from this week. The district-level synergy will start on December 11, 2021 and will continue till February 18, 2022. "Synergy, a symposium featuring government officials and industrialists to set the contours for the industry summit, will be held in all the districts across the state. Officials will go to different districts and sit with the entrepreneurs and enquire about local issues that are arising while doing business," said state MSME and Textile minister Chandranath Sinha, on the sidelines of MSME Conclave 2021, organised by CII at a private hotel in the city on Wednesday. He reiterated that MSME and Textile officials would conduct meeting with entrepreneurs and ask whether they were unable to get fire clearance to start their business or unable to obtain trade licence or other issues. The official will jot down their problems and make a data. The officials will try to solve the problems of the entrepreneurs if not then pass it on to the higher authority. "The officials will conduct a detailed survey of the zillahs and find out which raw material is available at a reasonable rate," pointed out Sinha. Recently, the state Government has won five Skoch Awards 2021 (platinum, gold and three silver awards) in four categories of governance. The MSME and Textile department has won four out of five awards. The department's single-window system called Shilpa Sathi was selected for the highest award category, platinum.
Source: Millennium Post
Focus on validating and securing funding for the disruptive technologies of CuRe Technology, Garbo, gr3n and PerPETual. Amsterdam-based Fashion for Good is launching the Full Circle Textiles Project – Polyester, with the aim of validating and scaling up promising technologies in polyester chemical recycling and encouraging financing and offtake commitments from the fashion industry. The project brings together a consortium of stakeholders including brands, innovators, supply chain partners and catalytic funders – a structure that has already proven successful in driving and scaling disruptive innovation in the industry. Project partners include catalytic funder Laudes Foundation, brand partners adidas, Bestseller, C&A, PVH Corp., Target and Zalando, and affiliate partners Arvind W. L. Gore and Teijin Frontier. Polyester claims 52% of the global fibre market and as the most common fibre in the world also represents a significant portion of the 73% of textiles that are landfilled or incinerated annually. Polyester does not naturally break down in the environment and the production of virgin fibres also perpetuates reliance on fossil fuels. Chemical recycling is a key solution that promises to address the polyester textile waste challenge. Galvanised consortiums “Textile recycling is a key focus for Fashion for Good,” said managing director Katrin Ley. “With the success of the first Full Circle Textiles Project, and proof that a galvanised consortium of stakeholders from across the industry can truly shift the needle, we can now turn our attention to applying these learnings and steps to scale to another critical area – textile-to-textile polyester recycling.” To attain a clear idea of the innovations best positioned to address the challenges of recycling polyester textiles, Fashion for Good has enlisted promising innovators in polyester chemical recycling from around the world to participate in the project. They include CuRe Technology, Garbo, gr3n and PerPETual, who over the course of the 18-month project will be producing chemically recycled polyester for eventual use in fabric and garment production from post-consumer textile waste. The project aims to validate the technologies and the scaling potential prompting further implementation/offtake agreements to drive chemical recycling in the industry and mobilise more funding for the technologies. Cellulosics succss It builds on the framework and lessons learned so far in the Full Circle Textiles Project, launched in September 2020, which focused on investigating economically viable and scalable solutions for cellulosic chemical recycling and producing new man-made cellulosic fibres and fabrics from cotton and cotton-blend textile waste. The four selected innovators, Circ, Evrnu, Infinited Fiber Company and Renewcell, have all been able to validate their disruptive technologies and produce garments for brand partners PVH Corp. and Kering Group to their quality specifications. The next phase of this first project is focused on scaling these solutions and encouraging brands, innovators and supply chain partners to collaborate in creating long-term partnerships, catalyse funding to enable scaling, and leverage industry expertise to further develop and implement these technologies. To further support the development of the infrastructure necessary to scale textile recycling, Fashion for Good has also initiated Sorting for Circularity and Sorting for Circularity India – industry-wide, precompetitive projects aiming m to create a greater link between textile sorters and textile recyclers and stimulate a recycling market for unwanted textiles.
Source: Innovation in Textiles
Vietnam’s textile and garment export value this year is estimated at US$39 billion, up 11.2 per cent year-on-year, according to an official from the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS). VITAS General Secretary Truong Van Cam said the textile and garment industry had overcome many difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in the third quarter, to maintain export growth over the whole year, at a press conference in Hanoi on Tuesday. "This is a great effort of the textile and garment industry in the context of the pandemic heavily affecting the economy both at home and abroad," he said. "Amid difficulties caused by the pandemic, the association has connected domestic enterprises with each other and with foreign-invested enterprises to form supply chains and expand export markets. "It has also connected local businesses with international organisations and textile associations of other countries to support them with experts and funding for training courses on technique, design, sales and branding. “The association has acted as a bridge between textile and garment enterprises and the Government as well as State management agencies to solve problems relating to policies, administrative procedures, specialised inspection, tax, customs, wage labour and insurance.” In addition, he said VITAS had participated in developing policies to support and facilitate businesses in doing business. It had also been a member of a Government delegation to join negotiation rounds in free trade agreements. For next year, Cam said that the pandemic was expected to have a complicated and unpredictable development throughout the world and Vietnam. However, major markets such as the US and the European Union have reopened while Vietnam has brought the pandemic under control and is also recovering economic development. Many textile and garment enterprises have had orders to produce until the second quarter of 2022. Therefore, the association has three development scenarios for 2022, he said. The most positive will see a textile and garment export value of US$42.5-43.5 billion for the whole year, if the pandemic is controlled well in the first quarter of 2022. In the second, the industry estimates an export value at US$40-41 billion, if the COVID19 is controlled by the middle of the year. The worst scenario is that it makes US$38-39 billion in export value, if the disease is complicated until the end of 2022. The association also said that a conference on reviewing production and business in 2021 will be held on December 17, 2021 in online and offline forms in Hanoi, Da Nang and HCM City. The event aims to evaluate the activities of the industry and the association in 2021 and point out the necessary work and solutions that member businesses and associations need to do in textile and garment development strategy in the period 2020- 2025. A seminar on the impact of the fourth outbreak of the COVID-19 on textile enterprises and workers will also be held. The seminar will cover climate change in the fashion industry, sustainable trade, the green transformation of the textile dyeing industry, world textile markets consumption trends and change in production and fashion in the context of the pandemic.
Source: Vietnam Net
A leading Sri Lankan apparel manufacturer called for greater investment in textile and fabric production in order to strengthen domestic value addition and improve lead times, local media reported here Wednesday. Aroon Hirdaramani, Group Director of Hirdaramani which is one of Sri Lanka's largest apparel manufacturing companies, was quoted in The Morning saying that investment in fabric production would reduce foreign currency outflows as Sri Lanka currently depends on imported inputs for apparel manufacturing. "There has been a proposal to set up a textile zone in Eravur, which will be an environmentally friendly textile zone, with recycling of water and use of sustainable energy. We are working very hard to attract some key fabric players to invest in the zone and to also invest in other fabric mills," Hirdaramani said. Speaking at the Sri Lanka Economic Summit 2021 organized by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, Hirdaramani said that there should be policy consistency and continued incentives to attract foreign investment from raw materials producers around the world. Sri Lanka's textile and garments exports were worth 4.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2020 while imports of textiles amounted to 2.3 billion U.S. dollars, according to data from the Ministry of Finance.
Source: Xinhua/ china.org
The US House of Representatives passed a bill banning imports from China's Xinjiang made with forced labour The US House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill by a vote of 428 to 1 banning imports from China's Xinjiang made with forced labour and threatening sanctions against Chinese officials responsible for persecuting the minority community. The bill come days after the US announced a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics over rights abuses in Xinjiang. The bill, passed on Wednesday, intends to ensure that "goods made with forced labour in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China do not enter the US market." The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act requires corporations to prove with "clear and convincing evidence" that imports from Xinjiang are not made with forced labour, American news website Axios reported. The bill must now pass the Senate and be signed by US President for it to take effect. The legislation targets "goods, wares, articles, and merchandise imported directly from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or made by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Tibetans, or members of other persecuted groups in China." The bill requires the American president to impose sanctions on officials responsible for persecuting minorities and facilitating the use of involuntary labour. The legislative text highlights the poor conditions of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and members of other Muslim minority groups in a system of extrajudicial mass internment camps. The prisoners are forced to produce "textiles, electronics, food products, shoes, tea, and handicrafts" at a network of government-subsidized factories in Xinjiang and elsewhere in China, according to legislation. Back in July, the Senate passed its version of the bill with a unanimous vote. Earlier this year, US President Joe Biden had warned businesses who are involved in Xinjiang to run a "high risk" that they are in conflict with US laws on forced labour.
Source: Business Standard
The bilateral trade volume is now less than $2 billion President M Abdul Hamid on Tuesday called for strengthening bilateral ties with Brazil as the newly appointed Bangladesh Ambassador to Brazil Sadia Faizunnesa paid a courtesy call with him at Bangabhaban. During the meeting, the president said that there was ample scope to develop bilateral relations with Brazil, as well as increase trade and investment, Md Joynal Abedin, press secretary to the president, told reporters after the meeting. The head of the state advised the new ambassador to avail this opportunity through developing more relations with Brazil. The bilateral trade volume is now less than $2 billion and Hamid hoped that trade between the two countries would increase in the days to come. He assured her of providing necessary support as the ambassador sought guidance and necessary cooperation from him in doing the assignment in Brazil. Bangladesh imports sugar, wheat, and cotton from Brazil and exports apparel products, pharmaceuticals, plastics, tableware, vegetable textile fibre, jute goods, and man made filaments He said that Bangladesh and Brazil can make a stronger alliance considering Bangladesh a big economic power. "It has nothing to do with the size of the country, but the size of the economy and market is huge." Brazil is South America's most influential country, a rising economic power, and it has made major strides over the past few years in its efforts to raise millions out of poverty, although the gap between the rich and the poor remains wide. President's Office Secretary Sampad Barua, Military Secretary Major General SM Salah Uddin Islam and Secretary (attachment) Md Wahidul Islam Khan were also present at the meeting.
Source: Dhaka Tribune
