This is part of the 13 PLI schemes announced by the government in the wake of the Covid19 pandemic last year. The government has extended, for a second time, the deadline for applying for incentives under a Rs 10,683-crore Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for the textiles & garment sector, to give more time to companies to weigh their investment plans. Interested firms can now submit their applications until February 28. Last month, the textiles ministry had extended the deadline for the first time from January 31 to February 14. Since the guidelines were notified in late December 2021 and applications were sought only from January 1, the government thought it prudent to extend the deadline, senior industry executives said. Under the scheme, incentives will be extended for five years. It will remain operational until 2029-30. Manufacturers of select man-made fibre and technical textile products will be granted incentives up to 15%. Investors will have to set up new subsidiaries to get the benefits. The scheme is open to two categories of investors. Those who will invest at least Rs 300 crore will be eligible for a 15% incentive in the first year if they achieve a turnover of Rs 600 crore or more. Similarly, those investing at least Rs 100 crore will get 11% in the first year if their turnover hits Rs 200 crore or more. After the first year, both the categories of investors will have to show a 25% incremental turnover annually. But the benefits will drop by 100 basis points with each passing year in both the cases. Companies will get two years to set up the plants. But if they can establish the facilities earlier than that, they will get incentives early too. This is part of the 13 PLI schemes announced by the government in the wake of the Covid19 pandemic last year, to encourage mainly large corporations to expand manufacturing, bolster supply chains and boost exports. The total incentives under the PLI schemes, covering sectors including telecom, electronics, auto part, pharma and chemical cells, were initially estimated at Rs 1.97 lakh crore over a five-year period. The schemes, put together, are expected to catalyse incremental manufacturing of as much as $520 billion over five years.
Source: Financial Express
Currently, there are 114 Japanese companies across the JITs. The Neemrana and Sri City industrial townships host the majority of the Japanese companies. Companies such as Daikin, Isuzu, Kobelco, Yamaha Music, Hitachi Automotive etc are the marque Japanese investors which have set up manufacturing in these townships. India on Monday showcased investment opportunities in different emerging sectors including ICT, renewable energy, electric vehicles, drones, robotics and textiles for Japanese firms. During a joint meeting between the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)) and Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) various ways to increase investments were discussed. They reviewed progress under Japanese Industrial Townships (JITs) in India. DPIIT and states presented the developed land and infrastructure available for Japanese investors in these townships, a statement by the commerce and industry ministry said. JITs were set up in April 2015. Japan is the only country that has dedicated countryfocused industrial townships across India. "There are ready-to-move-in facilities and fully developed land available for allotment in these townships," it said, adding investments opportunities were showcased in "the Information and Communications Technologies, Renewable Energy, Electric Vehicles, Drones, Robotics and Textiles sectors". Currently, there are 114 Japanese companies across the JITs. The Neemrana and Sri City industrial townships host the majority of the Japanese companies. Companies such as Daikin, Isuzu, Kobelco, Yamaha Music, Hitachi Automotive etc are the marque Japanese investors which have set up manufacturing in these townships. As the fifth-largest investor, Japan has contributed over USD 36.2 billion in cumulative investments since 2000, especially in key sectors such as automobiles, Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM), medical devices, consumer goods, textiles, food processing and chemicals.
Source: Outlook India
• In September last year, Piyush Goyal and his counterpart had launched negotiations on the India-United Arab Emirates Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) Trade deal: India and the UAE are likely to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) on February 18, news agency PTI reported on Monday. Under the deal, both the countries could give duty-free access to a number of products from different sectors. In September last year, Minister of Commerce Piyush Goyal and his counterpart Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi had formally launched negotiations on the India-United Arab Emirates Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). Under FTA, two trading partners reduce or eliminate customs duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them. Also, they liberalise norms to enhance trade in services and boost investments. "The India-UAE agreement is ready and it would be signed on February 18," the news agency quoted a source as saying. Bilateral trade between India and the UAE stood at $43.3 billion in 2020-21. Exports were $16.7 billion and imports aggregated at $26.7 billion in 2020-21. Speaking on India-UAE trade deal, Piyush Goyal last week had said "we hope to make some announcements very quickly". Recently, he said the UAE is a gateway to all of Africa and many other parts of the world. The UAE also has a huge Indian diaspora, and a large market for products like textiles, gems and jewellery, leather, footwear and food items, which are labour oriented sectors, he had said. The commerce ministry in September last year said the UAE is currently India’s thirdlargest trading partner with bilateral trade in 2019-2020 valued at $59 billion. The UAE is also India’s second-largest export destination after the US, with exports valued at approximately $29 billion in 2019-2020. India was the UAE’s second-largest trading partner in 2019, with bilateral non-oil trade valued at $41 billion. The UAE is the eighth-largest investor in India, having invested $11 billion between April 2000 and March 2021, while investment by Indian companies in the UAE is estimated to be over $85 billion. India's major exports to the UAE include petroleum products, precious metals, stones, gems and jewellery, minerals, food items such as cereals, sugar, fruits and vegetables, tea, meat, and seafood, textiles, engineering and machinery products, and chemicals. India's top imports from the UAE include petroleum and petroleum products, precious metals, stones, gems and jewellery, minerals, chemicals and wood and wood products. India imported $10.9 billion of crude oil from the UAE in 2019-2020.
Source: Outlook India
In January 2020, an inter-ministerial committee had decided to bring in comprehensive product standards to disincentivise the import of a large category of goods but the Bureau of Indian Standards has struggled to establish norms for the same Two years after the government decided to bring in stricter and comprehensive product standards for at least 371 key import items, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has notified final standards for only a few items such as toys. The move had been aimed at reining in runaway imports, which had raised the merchandise trade deficit then, and are again on the rise now. In January 2020, the commerce department had pushed for strict product standards for the import of items such as processed food, textiles, leather, toys, furniture, plastic goods, and articles manufactured mainly by micro, small and medium enterprises. Items like televisions, air-conditioners and refrigerators were also on the list. The 371 items on the list accounted for nearly $127 billion or 26 percent of India’s annual imports back then in 2019-20, a senior official said. ”After considering a mandatory licensing regime for imports, tariff hikes and sectoral restrictions followed by antidumping investigations, the creation of stricter product standards was decided upon as the easiest and least controversial measure,” he said. Standards are commonly used non-tariff measures in many countries to restrict imports when placing outright higher import duties on foreign goods isn’t feasible. It is an indirect way to cause a shift in import patterns. In an ideal scenario, rigorously standardised products cost more to build and will lead to fewer foreign exporters selling them. Some will also have to raise prices to adjust their costs, thereby making the products more expensive for Indian importers, who would ultimately turn to domestic manufacturers. The products identified for prescribing standards were spread across a wide range of India’s import categories and involved a number of ministries. As a result, a specific interministerial joint committee had been created involving officials from the departments of chemicals and petrochemicals, heavy industries, the IT ministry, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, the steel ministry, and the telecom department. However, sources say that despite several meetings held in early 2020, the committee was unable to accelerate the process. Eighteen core group meetings have been held by officials belonging to a cross-section of ministries on the matter. People in the know say that BIS has too much on its plate. “The size of the workload is not at all commensurate with the number of trained officers and academic, research staff needed to establish product standards for so many items within such a time frame,” the official cited above said.
Not toying around Instead, the body has doubled down on seizing non-standardised products for the few imports it has established norms for. This primarily involves toys. The standards prohibit the use of inflammable materials in toys and kids’ products, restrict the quantity of toxic elements like arsenic, barium, cadmium and lead, and mandate ISI certification marks to be imprinted on products across price ranges. With effect from January 1, 2021, a quality control order issued by the department for standardisation now strictly monitors the quality adherence of toys. This followed a directive from the Prime Minister’s Office with regard to making India a global manufacturing hub for the sale and export of toys. BIS has been issuing circulars and notices regularly in newspapers, urging merchants to sell only toys with the ISI mark. Last month, it raided and seized more than 1,000 products without the ISI mark in Kochi and more than 300 products in Hyderabad.
Long-term push Ever since taking charge of the consumer affairs ministry, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal has directed BIS to go in for massive expansion and modernisation of testing labs so that entrepreneurs don’t have to travel far to get their products tested and for certification of standards. Goyal has also asked BIS to sharply reduce the testing fee. The minister has said this will encourage small businesses to get their products certified and also encourage the ease of doing business. With the trade deficit being a major issue in the first few years of the Narendra Modi government, India has hiked duties on over 3,500 tariff lines since 2014, a senior Indian Institute of Foreign Trade official said. As a result, the commerce department has been hesitant to raise import duties, fearing higher prices will hurt manufacturers and exporters who rely on foreign inputs and are facing a liquidity crisis. Officials have also pointed out that more research is needed to see if domestic capabilities can be quickly ramped up or whether Indian importers can source goods from other nations if imports from China are suddenly restricted.
Source: Money Control
The third quarter was marked by high commodity prices, elevated inflation, delayed kharif (monsoon) crop harvesting due to unseasonal rains and global central banks signalling monetary policy tightening. Festivals failed to bring cheer to Indian companies this time, though expectations had run high in the December quarter. The profit margin of Indian companies continued to shrink as input price inflation ate into it. The third quarter was marked by high commodity prices, elevated inflation, delayed kharif (monsoon) crop harvesting due to unseasonal rains and global central banks signalling monetary policy tightening. A Moneycontrol analysis of the earnings of 262 manufacturing firms in the BSE 500 Index showed that the growth in both net sales and net profit for the December quarter was at a five-quarter low. Net sales grew 10.66 percent year on year while net profit rose by about 10 percent. Worse, operating profit shrank to an over one-quarter low of 5.44 percent. It was a strong 32 percent in the September quarter of FY22. The analysis excludes banks, financial services firms, oil & gas, insurance and service firms as they follow a separate revenue model. Earnings of midcap manufacturing firms were the most hit during the quarter. An analysis of 52 firms out of total BSE midcap shows that sales growth declined 16 percent while net profit growth was just 1 percent in the quarter. Both were the lowest in six quarters. Operating profit fell 6 percent. Meanwhile, BSE small cap companies reported better sales and bottom line growth on a year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter basis compared to large cap and midcap, analysis shows. In the BSE SmallCap index, around 556 firms reported net sales growth at 23 percent while profit growth stood at 13 percent. In both segments, growth was at a two- quarter high. However operating profit growth was 7 percent higher, its slowest growth since six quarters. "The October-December quarter witnessed a hefty increase in both raw material and freight cost which impacted the margins of manufacturing firms despite good to moderate revenue growth. Small cap firms have been able to slightly improve or maintain their existing margins as they have been successful in passing on the increase in input cost to customers. Whereas, both midcap and large cap have faced a lag in doing this. Moreover, small cap firms have been able to increase the sales of their value-added products which enjoy greater margins," said Mohit Nigam, Head - PMS, Hem Securities. According to Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities, smallcap companies are found more in industries such as commodities and cyclical industries such as auto ancillaries, sugar, steel, textiles, cement, and fertilisers. These have done well over the past few quarters after pandemic-related restrictions have been lifted. The mixed show in earnings has prompted analysts to prune their earnings growth for the current year. Brokerage firm Jefferies India has cut its fiscal year 2022 earnings for 55 percent of the firms it covers that have reported results so far. Some silver linings have emerged from the third-quarter performance of companies. Margin pressures have partly been offset by double-digit price hikes across several consumer products. But this has resulted in significant volume impact with staples majors HUL and Marico reporting fall in volume growth. Building material firms Supreme and Finolex saw 15-18 percent decline in volume. Durables major Havells too reported that volumes have slackened after the festive season. Cement, steel and generic drug makers have continued to bear the brunt of rising input costs that eroded margins, analysts at Jefferies pointed out. Meanwhile, IT companies reported strong revenues growth at 4- 8 percent QoQ, and a somewhat positive margin trend. Among automobiles, Maruti and Bajaj reported significant QoQ earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation improvement as they took price hikes and inflationary pressures eased somewhat, the report added. Sustained price increases are expected to help Indian companies improve profit margins in the current quarter. Analysts believe that large and midcap firms may increase prices further and report healthy margin growth.
Source: Money Control
As Chinese demand is set to ease before new crop arrival in April, spinning mills in north India are turning their focus on the domestic market. While cotton yarn prices continue to remain stable as demand from downstream is yet to pick up despite improvement in weather, few spinning mills have reduced their offer price for the domestic market. “Mills began to reduce their offer prices for cotton yarn as they wanted to focus on domestic sale. Mills will have to explore domestic potential as Chinese demand for cotton and cotton yarn will decline before its new crop arrival in April. Therefore, the difference between mills’ rates and market rates will reduced in the weeks to come. Currently, the difference for cotton yarn was noted at ₹10-15 per kg,” a Delhi-based yarn trader SK Shrivastava told Fibre2Fashion. Meanwhile, the cotton yarn market in north India continues to reel under poor demand from the downstream industry. Traders were expecting better demand after improvement in weather, but that did not happen. They now do not have big hope from summer season as the downstream industry has sufficient stocks of grey fabrics, finished fabrics and readymade garments. In Ludhiana, cotton yarn of 20 and 30 counts in combed variety were traded stable at ₹360-370 per kg and ₹390-400 per kg respectively. Carded yarn in 30 counts was quoted at ₹360-370 per kg, according to Fibre2Fashion’s market analysis tool TexPro. In Delhi, cotton yarn of 30 count combed was traded steady as at ₹350-360 per kg, 40 count combed at ₹420-430 per kg, 30 count carded at ₹340-350 per kg and 40 count carded at ₹380-395 per kg, according to TexPro. 10 count weaving (O/E) yarn was quoted at ₹125-130 per kg, while 16 count weaving (O/E) at ₹165-170 per kg. Panipat market also noted similar market on demand front. According to the trade sources, new cotton yarn and recycled cotton yarn were traded at previous prices and were recorded as: 10s recycled yarn (white) at ₹95-100 per kg, 10s recycled yarn (dyed) at ₹90- 100 per kg, 20s recycled yarn (dyed) at ₹100-125 per kg. 10s optical yarn was traded at ₹90-100 per kg in the market. 2/40 combed yarn of new cotton fibre was traded at ₹400- 410 per kg. In north India, cotton prices surged by ₹400-500 per candy of 356 kg for the second consecutive session on Monday amid continued demand from the spinning mills, and steady daily arrivals. In Punjab, cotton was quoted at ₹76,300-78,000 per candy. In Haryana, the prices were noted at ₹75,300-77,100 per candy. Cotton was traded at ₹76,300-78,300 per candy in Upper Rajasthan and ₹72,900-74,900 per candy in In Lower Rajasthan. In the global market, ZCE cotton yarn May 2022 futures traded lower by CNY 10 at CNY 29,135 per ton and September 2022 traded flat at CNY 28500 per MT today. On last Friday, ICE cotton futures declined as it weighed down by a higher US Department of Agriculture ending stocks estimate and a disappointing export sales report. Cotton contract for March 2022 closed at 125.28, down 38 points; May 2022 closed at 122.91, down 29 points; and December 2022 closed at 105.19, down 8 points.
Source: Fibre 2 Fashion
Commerce minister Piyush Goyal has said that the interim agreement set to be announced in about 30 days will cover “most areas of interest for both countries” including goods, services, rules of origin, sanitary and phytosanitary measures and customs procedures. India and Australia have announced that they are set to conclude an interim trade agreement in March and a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) 12- 18 months thereafter. What is the early harvest agreement likely to cover? An interim or early harvest trade agreement is used to liberalise tariffs on the trade of certain goods between two countries or trading blocs before a comprehensive FTA (Free Trade Agreement) is concluded. Commerce minister Piyush Goyal has said that the interim agreement set to be announced in about 30 days will cover “most areas of interest for both countries” including goods, services, rules of origin, sanitary and phytosanitary measures and customs procedures. Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at about $12.5 billion in FY21 and has already surpassed $17.7 billion in the first 10 months of FY22. India has imported merchandise worth about $12.1 billion from Australia in the first 10 months of the fiscal and has exported merchandise worth $5.6 billion in the same period. Key imports from Australia include coal, gold and LNG while key exports to the country from India include diesel, petrol and gems and jewellery. Both Goyal and Australia’s trade minister Dan Tehan noted that two sides had “respected each other’s sensitivities” during trade negotiations. Tehan said that Australia understood that dairy, beef and wheat were sensitive sectors for India indicating that Australia would likely not seek market access for products in these categories. Goyal said that the agreement with Australia was set to bring opportunities across sectors including mining, pharmaceuticals, health, education, renewables, railways, gems and jewellery, tourism, defence and textiles. India is also likely to seek easier visa access for both students and professionals visiting Australia. Australia is likely to seek market access for wines and agricultural products which are not produced on a large scale in India. Tehan also noted that both countries are also looking at mutual recognition of educational qualifications to boost the number of Indian students seeking education in Australia and vice versa and boost tourism in both countries. India and Australia have also signed an MoU to boost tourism between the two countries.
Source: Indian Express
Maharashtra comprises a significant chapter in the remarkable growth story of India as a textiles powerhouse. In turn, the textiles sector plays a crucial role in the state’s economy, being the second-largest employment enabler in Maharashtra, after agriculture. The textiles sector is one of the oldest and most prominent industries in the Indian subcontinent. It is the second-largest employer in India, offering direct and indirect employment to approximately 45 million people across the country. The textile industry was responsible for around 7% of the industrial output in 2018-19, in addition to contributing 2% to the country’s GDP and 12% to its export earnings during the same period. Showing remarkable resilience, India’s home textile exports clocked a robust growth rate of 9% in FY21 during – and despite – the pandemic. The country exported textiles worth INR 1.77 lakh crore between January and July 2021, surpassing even pre-pandemic levels by 13.7%. On the other hand, India’s technical textiles industry is projected to swell to USD 23.3 billion by 2027.
Source: Outlook India
The India Pavilion at EXPO2020 Dubai has surpassed the one million footfalls landmark. The number of visitors to the Pavilion stood at 10,07,514 as on February 13. Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, who had inaugurated the India Pavilion on October 1 last year said in a tweet message, “A million hearts beating out for our billion dreams! It’s a proud moment as the India Pavilion @EXPO2020Dubai marks a new milestone in footfalls. The New India journey has captivated the world #MillionAtIndiaPavilion.” Speaking about the achievement, Sunjay Sudhir, Ambassador of India to the UAE, said, “It’s a matter of great pride and honour as we achieve this key milestone. The India Pavilion has been one of the key attractions at the EXPO2020 Dubai and received great interest from visitors from all over the world. The Expo has given us a great opportunity to showcase India’s prowess in key growth sectors and its vibrant cultural diversity. The India Pavilion is a legacy pavilion, which showcases the synergies, shared vision and complementary strengths of India and the UAE. I am confident that the Expo will not only contribute to the progress of the two countries but also to the larger region and the world.” With participation from central ministries, state governments, corporates, cultural organizations, and startups, EXPO2020 Dubai is helping the nation explore new areas of collaboration for Indian entities and position itself as a global economic hub. So far, the India Pavilion has witnessed over 800 B2B, G2B and G2G meetings with investors and various international collaborators. Presently, the India Pavilion is hosting ‘Andhra Pradesh Week’, which was inaugurated on 11th February by Mekapati Goutham Reddy, Minister of Commerce and Information Technology, Government of Andhra Pradesh, along with Dr Thani Bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, Dr Ahmed Albanna, UAE Ambassador to India and Sunjay Sudhir, India Ambassador to the UAE. Andhra Pradesh is projecting its strong governance, strategic locational advantages, robust infrastructure, thriving industrial and business ecosystem, skilled manpower, and immense potential for growth across key sectors. The state week will also be hosting a plethora of crucial government engagements with industry leaders, business organizations, and one-to-one meetings with an intent to bring more investment to the state in key growth sectors. The India Pavilion has also hosted many states like Kerala, Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and UTs of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, who have successfully showcased their lucrative business attractiveness along with rich cultural heritage and have garnered investment opportunities from leading global investors during their participation. Key sectors such as Health & Wellness, Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), New & Renewable Energy, Space, Urban and Rural Development, Oil & Gas, Textile, Knowledge and Learning, and Tourism have held respective weeks to highlight the growth and investment opportunities in these areas. India Innovation Hub and Elevate pitching sessions for startups, at the India Pavilion is also helping in building on India’s strength as the third-largest incubator of unicorns and has displayed innovations of over 300 Indian startups so far. The platform has captured the attention of Indian as well as global investors assisting the startup ecosystem bloom. Since its inauguration, the Pavilion has welcomed high-profile visitors including Shri Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister of Kerala, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas and Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs, Dr. S Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, Shri V Muraleedharan, Minister of State for External Affairs and Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Chemicals and Fertilizers, Shri Bhupendra Patel, Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology and Minister of State for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Shri B.S. Yediyurappa, Former Chief Minister of Karnataka, and India’s Foreign Secretary, Shri. Harsh V Shringla, Dr. K. Sivan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) & Secretary, Department of Space among others. Narayan Rane, Minister of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), R.K. Singh, Union Minister of Power, New & Renewable Energy, Darshana V Jardosh, Union Minister of State for Textile & Railways, Shri Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma, Minister of State for MSME and Satish Mahana, Minister for Industrial Development, Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP), along with various other dignitaries joined virtually. The India Pavilion has also hosted renowned Bollywood celebrities including Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Janhvi Kapoor, Jaaved Jaaferi; singers such as SalimSulaiman, Hariharan, Neha Kakkar, Benny Dayal, Jonita Gandhi; Indian tennis star, Sania Mirza and the famous fashion designer, entrepreneur and filmmaker, Manish Malhotra to name a few. Additionally, the Pavilion has showcased the cultural diversity of the various participating states by displaying their products and cultural performances. Key Indian festivals such as Navratri, Dusshera, Diwali, Christmas, Republic Day and Basant Panchami were celebrated with great fervour by both Indian and global visitors. India’s participation at EXPO2020 Dubai is strengthening the existing bilateral trade relations with the UAE and is bound to unlock new economic opportunities across various sectors for the businesses of the two nations. In the coming weeks, the India Pavilion will witness participation from states such as Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and West Bengal. Key sectors such as Agriculture, Food and Livelihood, Information and Broadcasting, Energy Conservation, Environment & Sustainability, Tribal Affairs will also exhibit their potential and endless collaboration opportunities to the world, at the India Pavilion.
Source: The Print
An international team of scientists have produced a 46-inch woven smart textile display, embedded with smart sensors, and integrated with energy harvesting and storing capabilities. The active electronics, sensors, energy and photonic functions are embedded directly in the fibres and yarns, which can be produced using existing textile-based industrial processes. The applications range from curtains that can double up as televisions, carpets that harvest energy, or interactive, self-powered clothing and fabrics. This is the first time that a fibre-based manufacturing approach has been used to integrate scalable, large-area complex systems into textiles. The functionality, dimensions and shapes of current smart textiles are limited by the manufacturing processes. Conventional weaving or knitting processes can be used to integrate the newly developed fibres into textiles, which allows them to be integrated into a number of everyday objects. So far the manufacturing of such fibres have been limited by size, or the technology has not been compatible with the textiles and the weaving processes. The researchers coated each fibre component with materials that can withstand the stress of stretching caused by mechancial textile manufacturing equipment. The team also improved the reliability and durability of some of the components by braiding the fibres. Multiple fibre components were conencted using conducting adhesives and laser welding. The woven fabric produced by combining and integrating all these processes allows for incorporating multiple functionalities into fabrics that can be produced using standard, scalable textile manufacturing processes. The fabrics can operate as a display, monitor various inputs, or act as power banks. The fabrics can also detect radio signals, touch, light and temperature. The fabric can also be rolled up, and allows for large rolls to be manufactured. The researchers envision a range of next generation e-textile applications including energy efficient buildings that can produce and store their own energy, internet of things, solar panels, supercapacitors, batteries, distributed sensor networks and interactive displays that are flexible and wearable. Professor Jong min Kim from the University of Cambridge, was formerly the senior vice president of the R&D Centre at Samsung Electronics and co-led the research. Kim says, "Our approach is built on the convergence of micro and nanotechnology, advanced displays, sensors, energy and technical textile manufacturing. This is a step towards the full exploitation of sustainable, convenient e-fibres and e-textiles in daily applications. And it's only the beginning." Dr Luigi Occhipinti from the University of Cambridge, also a co-led the research and says, "By integrating fibre-based electronics, photonic, sensing and energy functionalities, we can achieve a whole new class of smart devices and systems. By unleashing the full potential of textile manufacturing, we could soon see smart and energy-autonomous Internet of Things devices that are seamlessly integrated into everyday objects and many other sector applications." The researchers are working with European collaborators to bring the technology to the market.
Source: News 9 Live
VIETNAM is likely to be a key beneficiary of the Regional Economic Comprehensive Partnership (RCEP) among 15 Asia Pacific countries through tariff reductions and foreign direct investment, said DBS in a report on Monday (Feb 14). This comes as the agreement goes into effect for 11 of the 15 countries, with the most recent entrant being South Korea on Feb 1. RCEP took effect for Vietnam on Jan 1, along with 9 other countries including Singapore. While the partnership is considered a big win for North Asia, Vietnam is expected to see significant gains within ASEAN, said DBS economist Chua Han Teng. He noted that Vietnam boasts multiple advantages to attract foreign labour investors, such as competitive labour costs, proximity to China, political stability and its government's plan to grow the manufacturing sector in coming years. This will benefit from RCEP's streamlined and single rule of origins for goods traded across member economies, which in turn has led to increasing foreign direct investment in the region. Chua observed that Vietnam is number 3 among 6 Asean nations that have received rising inflows, which in total rivals that of China. Chua views China's growing importance for the region as beneficial to Vietnam, due to the country shipping a rising share of Chinese imports, which reached a high of 33 per cent of the total in 2021. Vietnamese products made from Chinese inputs are likely to increase trade, particularly in the textile, garment and footwear, and electronics sectors, said Chua. In the area of textile, garment and footwear, Vietnam has become major alternative to China, although it still depends heavily on the larger country for more than 50 per cent of its inputs, said Chua. Vietnam also relies heavily on China for machinery and transport equipment, importing above 40 per cent of total imports, up from 28 per cent a decade ago, while the South-east Asia country's electronics imports from China are also its highest at 35 per cent. Meanwhile, China imports 20 per cent of textile, garment and footwear from Vietnam, up from 3.4 per cent in 2010. It also began to import electronics from Vietnam after it increased its imported electronics dependency considerably to 9 per cent in 2021. As for Vietnam's goods tariffs, Chua believes the country will receive moderate benefit from RCEP due to its high trade openness, despite existing bilateral trade agreements and already very low tariffs for intra-RCEP trade. Should Vietnamese firms gain access to cheaper inputs and adapt to increased competition, Chua sees their participation in RCEP resulting in opportunities to raise their exports and be more active in regional value chains, despite the share of Vietnamese companies exporting products overseas trending lower to 27 per cent.
Source: Business Times
Vietnamese factories making everything from shoes to smartphones are expected to continue production despite record COVID-19 infections, reversing a policy of sweeping lockdowns last year that hobbled global supply chains for Western retailers. One of the world's biggest garment makers, Vietnam reported more than 26,000 new infections on Sunday, or about double the peak last year, when factories supplying brands such as Nike , Zara, Apple (AAPL.O) and Samsung (005930.KS) were shut for months. But unlike nine months ago, when the Delta variant was spreading through a mostly unvaccinated population, now millions of factory workers have been fully vaccinated and the Omicron variant is proving less severe, the government said. "The risk of widespread lockdowns is very low this year as Vietnam has successfully carried out its COVID-19 vaccination campaign," Dang Duc Anh, director of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, told Reuters. Vietnam has been relaxing curbs in recent months, with schools re-opening last week and the government saying on Sunday it would lift restrictions on arriving international passenger flights. read more More than 76% of the population has received at least two vaccine doses, up from 3.3% early in September last year, the health ministry says. The American Chamber of Commerce in Hanoi, which represents U.S. businesses and last year urged the government to ease its curbs, is anticipating a better 2022, said Adam Sitkoff, its executive director. "I do not expect to see additional countrywide lockdowns as serious cases in most parts of the country are at a manageable level and the authorities have learned that economycrippling restrictions are not sustainable," Sitkoff told Reuters. The government is targeting economic growth of 6% to 6.5% this year, up from 2.5% in 2021. Smooth factory operations in Vietnam, the second biggest exporter of clothes and footwear to the United States after China, will also help free up supply chain bottlenecks that are pushing up inflation around the world. "If Vietnam can maintain a strong production capability and factory output, this will really support the global supply chain, in particular for sectors like agriculture, textiles and electronics consumers," said Duc Minh Nguyen, a partner at accounting firm EY. SHIFTING SUPPLY CHAINS Over the last decade Vietnam has emerged as one of the most attractive alternative production hubs for companies looking to reduce their exposure to China. That trend is expected to continue, if Vietnam can emerge relatively unscathed from the current Omicron wave and Beijing keeps up its tough lockdowns to suppress infection. "Vietnam will be a key beneficiary of shifting supply chains, particularly in regards to low value-add manufacturing relocating out of China and electronics," said Raphael Mok, head of Asia country risk for Fitch Solutions. Vietnam won praise early in the pandemic for curbing infections with its tight controls, but a flare-up last summer caused by the Delta variant kept millions of workers at home amid lockdowns in Ho Chi Minh City and neighbouring industrial provinces. In September, at the height of the lockdowns, businesses began considering moving production elsewhere. Lululemon, a Canadian clothing retailer, shifted production out of Vietnam in September. Nike, which sources half its footwear from the southeast Asian nation, cut its 2022 sales forecast due to factory closures there. Now, 90% to 95% of garment and textile workers have returned to work after the Lunar New Year holiday, said Truong Van Cam, deputy chairman and general secretary of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association. Vietnam's factory workers, who earn on average $330 per month, are hoping to make up for earnings lost last year. "Things are pretty smooth now ... there are many orders that need delivering so we can work overtime to earn more," said Nguyen Van Hoang, 28, who works at a leather factory in Ho Chi Minh City. "I don't think factory lockdowns will become a thing in the future." Ninh Thi Ty, chairwoman of Ho Guom Group, which makes garments for firms such as CK, Mango, Zara and H&M, said she expected the government would soon designate COVID-19 an endemic illness. "More lockdowns would hurt businesses like ours, as we wouldn’t be able to deliver products to customers," said Ty, whose garment factories employ 6,000 workers in Vietnam.
Source: Reuters
Combining the textile expertise of Fulgar, the world’s leading yarn manufacturer, and the technology offered by BASF, the world’s largest chemical company, the new ecosustainable Q-Cycle yarn has been developed to promote an increasingly sustainable and circular Europe-wide textile value chain through the application of cutting-edge technologies. The new eco-sustainable Q-Cycle yarn is the result of the interaction between BASF’s ChemCycling recycling project and Fulgar’s textile skills and experience. ChemCycling makes it possible to re-use fossil raw materials at the end of their lifecycle in their initial component forms, displaying the same properties as the virgin project without using nonrenewable sources like oil. This unique process is carried out and assessed on the basis of a Mass Balance approach, Fulgar said in a press release. Q-Cycle is an innovative postconsumption recycled polyamide 6,6 offering the same functional and aesthetic benefits of lightness, strength and resistance but in a greener form. It can be used to produce high quality fabrics and is the ideal solution for all textile applications – it can be processed with ease like a normal polyamide, so it combines with all fibres. The technology can be applied to all plastic waste that cannot be mechanically recycled, like tires at end of life. Fulgar has decided to use this new material, as it is widely present and is usually incinerated, resulting in significant CO2 emissions, the release added.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
