The rules earlier permitted only flags made by "hand-spun and woven wool or cotton or silk khadi bunting" while the import of machine-made flags was banned in 2019. The Union government has allowed manufacture and import of machinemade polyester national flags by amending the 2002 Flag Code of India. The rules earlier permitted only flags made by "hand-spun and woven wool or cotton or silk khadi bunting" while the import of machine-made flags was banned in 2019. A recent revision to the flag code stated, "The National Flag shall be made of hand spun and hand woven or machine made, cotton, polyester, wool, silk khadi bunting.
Source: Economic Times
Exporters pitched for restoring ‘open cover’ for shipments of agriculture, drugs and energy, the sectors exempted from sanctions The commerce ministry is considering subsidizing insurance fees for exports to Russia to address concerns about rising costs after state-run Export Credit Guarantee Corp. of India (ECGC) put all exports to Russia under the ‘restrictive cover’ category last week, two officials aware of the development said. The insurance helps exporters cover the risk of non-payment by a buyer. However, payment risks can rise dramatically during wartime, as is the case in Russia and Ukraine. Responding to the situation, ECGC changed the cover category for shipments to Russia from ‘open’ to ‘restricted’, which has revolving limits (normally valid for a year) and are approved on a case-to-case basis. The government has also asked ECGC to reach out to exporters to clear up misinformation about modification in the insurance cover, the officials said, seeking anonymity. The export credit provider clarified the cover for shipments to Russia has not been withdrawn but only been modified with effect from 25 February. However, in a meeting with the commerce department on Monday, exporters pitched for restoring the ‘open cover’ for shipments of agriculture, drugs and energy, the three sectors exempted from sanctions. However, the government does not want to interfere in the insurance company’s risk assessment as it is purely a business decision. “In a war zone, one can’t say there is no risk involved even if the three products are exempted. The West may also impose product-specific sanctions. So, we leave that to ECGC to decide as it is an independent and autonomous process and a purely commercial decision of the insurance firm," one of the two officials cited above said. Instead, the government may explore options, including offering subsidies to exporters on the lines of interest rate subvention schemes. “ECGC has done an assessment; so, unless it is proven that their assessment is completely wrong, it will not be proper or prudent to ask ECGC to cover these shipments," the official said. The second official said the option of whether the insurance cover could be subsidized was on the table to be explored. “Bank interest rates are subsidized under the interest equalization or interest subvention scheme. It needs to be examined if insurance risks can be covered too," the official said. The government clarified that all those covered for three years would continue to remain covered, and only the risk category has changed. In FY21, India’s exports to Russia stood at $2.6 billion, while imports were $5.5 billion. Among the top exported items, India shipped $469 million worth of pharmaceutical products and $301 million worth of electrical machinery to Russia. Other items of exports include tea and coffee, apparel and textile. The industry has demanded that shipments already cleared by the customs should get the original insurance cover benefit. “There is a view among exporters that shipments in different stages of execution should get insurance cover," said Ajay Sahai, director-general and CEO of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations. Petroleum products made up for half of the imports from Russia. However, the $3.7 billion of petro product imports is minuscule compared with India’s overall $150 billion oil imports. “ECGC has been advised to do exporters’ outreach to alleviate any apprehension," a spokesperson for the commerce ministry said. The spokesperson didn’t respond to a query emailed on Tuesday about the department of commerce exploring the option of subsidizing insurance cover for shipments to Russia. Insurance premiums under the restrictive category may rise when compared with open cover. Sahai said a bigger issue would be the process under the restrictive category as it will be given on a case-to-case basis.
Source: Live Mint
Easing of regulatory barriers, not tariff elimination, likely to help India the most. India’s recently-concluded Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with UAE is a landmark for it has several firsts to its credit. It is the first time since walking away from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in 2019 that India has warmed up to an economic cooperation agreement (ECA). The UAE CEPA is the first ECA that India has endorsed in over a decade, after the CEPA with Japan in 2011, and is also the first with any Gulf country. And finally, it could be the first of at least seven more ECAs that the government intends to wrap up soon. This includes the proposed early harvest deal with Australia to be concluded over the next few weeks. Thus, there seems to be an urgency in the government to hasten the pace of negotiations on the ECAs currently on the table, and to reverse the perception that India is a slowmover in such negotiations. At the same time, by including issues related to the digital economy and government procurement in the UAE CEPA, which it had stoutly refused to include in any of the past agreements, the government is likely signalling that it is willing to be more “flexible” in the negotiations. Whether this “flexibility” would extend to issues like labour and environmental standards that are high on the wish-list of the EU and the UK, two prospective CEPA partners, needs to be seen. The UAE CEPA is important for at least two reasons. The first is that UAE is a gateway not only to the MENA region, but also to other parts of Africa as well. The Centre, too, has recognised the advantages that UAE could offer as a “global logistical centre with technically advanced transport and storage facilities” for distribution of pharma products, a key export item for India. UAE has its sight set on becoming a pharma-distribution hub by 2030, and this, the government believes, would help India find more market access. The second advantage is the possibility of India reversing its declining trade relations with a country that was its largest trading partner until 2012, with total trade at $74.8 billion. UAE was also India’s largest export destination; the value of exports having peaked in 2011 at $38.3 billion. Thereafter, exports have been steadily declined. In 2021, India’s exports to UAE were $25.4 billion—lower (in nominal terms) than the exports in 2010 ($29.3 billion). Surprisingly, the surge in exports that was seen in 2021, largely due to the pent-up demand in the wake of the Covid-pandemic, did not have any impact on India’s exports to UAE. Thus, the CEPA provides an opportunity for carefully assessing the factors that are impeding India’s market access to its once-largest export market. The government is quite upbeat about India’s market access prospects in UAE after CEPA gets implemented on May 1. This is because UAE is offering overall duty elimination on over 97% of its tariff lines, corresponding to 90% of India’s exports in value terms. The expectations are that trade between the two countries would increase to $100 billion in the next five years, up from $68.4 billion in 2021. The sectors that are likely to benefit from UAE’s tariff cuts are gems and jewellery, textiles, leather, footwear, sports goods, plastics, furniture, agricultural and wood products, engineering products, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and automobiles. Currently, almost two-thirds of India’s exports to the UAE comprise of petroleum products, gems and jewellery, apparels, iron and steel, and their products, and telecom equipment. Each has a share in exports of more than 5%. It is therefore interesting to note that the government is expecting a sizeable change in India’s export basket following CEPA. How realistic are these expectations? It may be argued that the realisation of the government’s expectations would be a function of two factors, one the preference margins that Indian products would enjoy in the CEPA regime, and two, how effectively regulatory barriers are dealt with. As regards the preference margin, or the difference between the existing tariffs (the most favoured nation or MFN tariffs) and the preferential tariffs that UAE has offered to India, it may be pointed that this would not be very large. According to the data provided by the WTO on the MFN tariffs maintained by the UAE, 87.2% of its tariff lines attract tariffs of 5% while 11.2% of the tariff lines are tariff-free. The remaining tariff lines either attract 100% tariffs—mainly tobacco products—or are designated as “special goods” (prohibited goods). This implies that for most products, the preference margins would be no more than 5%. Moreover, UAE has already eliminated tariffs on most pharma products on an MFN basis. This, in other words, means that tariff elimination by the UAE is not likely to be a major factor for triggering the increase in India’s exports that the government expects; the key factor could be the regulatory barriers. One positive measure in this regard is the annex on pharma included in the CEPA. The annex is intended to facilitate increased market access for Indian products, through automatic registration and marketing authorisation in 90 days for products approved by the regulators in the US, the UK, the EU, and Japan. Similar efforts are needed in the other key areas in order to provide momentum to India’s exports. Finally, a free trade agreement with a country that is also a re-exporter can have one major problem, namely, circumvention of exports from third countries. This problem can only be overcome by an effective Rules of Origin. The CEPA includes a “contract enforcing Country of Origin”. However, this measure must be consistently monitored to assess its effectiveness.
Source: Financial Express
Union minister of state for textiles and railways Darshana Vikram Jardosh visited Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International School of Textiles and Management (SVPISTM) in the city on Tuesday. After a tour of the institute and review of its future expansion plans with director P Alli Rani, the minister addressed the students about the new opportunities in the textile sector. Darshana also emphasised the importance of technical textiles in boosting the economy of the country and internationalising the Indian technical textile industry. She reiterated the need for gaining practical knowledge in the field and encouraged the students to visit various textile clusters, particularly in Surat, a cluster famous for value addition in synthetic fibre, as well as those situated in the northeastern states. The minister highlighted the importance of unique institutes like SVPISTM.
Source: Times of India
"Even today, logistics cost is considered to be 13-14 per cent of India's gross domestic product, which is higher than other countries," Modi said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that PM GatiShakti, the government’s digital portal aimed at breaking departmental silos, has a huge role in improving infrastructure efficiency and reducing the cost of logistics “Infrastructure Planning, Implementation and Monitoring will get a new direction from PM Gati-Shakti. This will also bring down the time and cost overrun of the projects,” the prime minister said in a post-budget webinar, Even today, logistics cost is considered to be 13-14% of India’s Gross Domestic Product, which is higher than other countries, Modi said. The government’s Unified Logistic Interface Platform (ULIP) is integrating 24 government departments and six ministries to create a single-window logistic platform, leading to reduced costs, he added. In October, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal had said that Gati-Shakti and other government initiatives can help bring down the cost of logistics to 8% of the country’s GDP. Modi also called on state governments to make the Gati-Shakti platform the base for their projects and economic zones. Among states, Gujarat is reportedly already on board. Business Standard had previously reported that GatiShakti, or national master plan portal, is currently in a testing phase and a full-fledged launch is likely by March. The prime minister said that the portal will significantly help Indian exports, and make Indian MSMEs competitive in the global market. Under the Gati-Shakti plan, a logistics division in every department has been envisaged, along with the formation of an empowered group of secretaries for logistics efficiency. Calling on the industry to use the portal, Modi said that more than 400 data layers are available on the platform now, with information on existing and proposed infrastructure, along with data on forest land and available industrial estate, which will help private players get various clearances at the Detailed Project Report (DPR) stage. “This will also be helpful in reducing your compliance burden,” he said. In her budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said that GatiShakti will be one of the four priorities of the government in 2022-23. Centre has allocated Rs. 7.5 trillion for capital expenditure in the next financial year, as against Rs. 5.54 trillion in 2021-22. As part of the government’s plan to boost infrastructure, the allocation of ministry of road transport and highways has been increased by 68% to Rs. 1.99 trillion, while that of the railways ministry has been increased by 27.5% to Rs. 1.40 trillion. Launched in October, GatiShakti aims to bring the data and processes of state governments and key infrastructure ministries under a single platform.
Source : Business Standard
The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine may impact certain high-frequency indicators like financial markets, exchange rate and crude prices in the short-term, a report by State Bank of India (SBI) economists showed. However, it noted that this moment will not have any lasting impact on the Indian economy. A few days ago, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had flagged concerns over the after effects of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and said that never has global peace faced challenges of this significance since World War-II. "India's development is going to be challenged by the newer challenges emanating in the world. Peace is being threatened and after the Second World War, (a) war of this significance, this impact, on the globe probably is not felt," Sitharaman had said. The finance minister had assured that the government is closely monitoring the situation in Ukraine. In a recent development, India's top lender SBI will not process any transactions involving Russian entities subject to international sanctions imposed on Russia. Besides, Indian Oil Corp (IOC) said it would no longer accept cargoes of Russian crude and Kazakh CPC Blend cargoes on a free on board (FOB) basis due to insurance risk. Amidst all of these, crude oil prices soared past $100 per barrel, tracking uncertainty in global supply disruptions. India could be one of the majorly impacted countries since it imports 80 per cent of its crude oil from other countries. Here's an overview of different sectors: * Trade India runs trade deficit with Russia, with exports declining while imports are increasing. Oil forms a major part of our import basket from Russia. The report said 2.8 per cent of our total imports have been imported from Russia in FY22 so far. Electrical machinery and equipment is our major export to Russia. However, the total trade is not that much (Russia’s share is 1.3 per cent of total trade) and it is our top 25th trade partner. The impact through trade channel would be limited and the economy through higher commodity prices impacting our inflation and CAD. Every $10/bbl increase in oil price is likely to increase inflation by 25 bps and widen CAD as percentage of GDP by 35 bps. * Banking Banking sector has remained resilient to the Russia-Ukraine conflict so far. Profitability, asset quality and capital adequacy has risen to a new peak with profitability of banks in Dec’21 quarter, as well as YTD FY22 seen touching new highs. Apart from strong banking scenario, the SBI report showed there's adequate liquidity of Rs 7 lakh crore and appropriate cash balance of Rs 2.8 lakh crore. This should adequately insulate the banking sector to navigate through the crisis. * Corporate Economists at SBI showed Indian corporates have undertaken many steps to utilize the opportunity in the pandemic to say relevant and keep the balance sheet in shape. Corporates have raised an all-time high amount of Rs 1.89 lakh crore through public equity markets. Improvement in credit ratio (upgrades to downgrades) across sectors were also witnessed. New investment announcements which were around Rs 10 lakh crore in last two years improved to Rs 12.78 lakh crore in first nine months of FY22 (April–December). It can report a 50 per cent growth in FY22 as compared to previous year, the report said. With limitations on trade, banking and corporate sector, SBI report expects negligible impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on Indian economy. "The economy seems poised to enter a high growth (9.2 per cent in FY22 over -6.6 per cent in FY21), low inflation (4.5 per cent in FY23 vs. 5.3 per cent inFY22) phase," it added.
Source: Economic Times
RBI released the data on the performance of the private corporate sector during the third quarter of 2021-22 drawn from abridged quarterly financial results of 2,744 listed NonGovernment Non-Financial (NGNF) companies. Aggregate sales of 1,701 listed manufacturing companies recorded a growth of 27.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2021-22 on an annual basis, aided by high sales growth in petroleum, non-ferrous metals, iron and steel, chemicals and textiles industries, according to RBI data released on Monday. RBI released the data on the performance of the private corporate sector during the third quarter of 2021-22 drawn from abridged quarterly financial results of 2,744 listed Non-Government Non-Financial (NGNF) companies. "Sales of listed private non-financial companies increased (y-o-y) by 25.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2021-22 as compared with 31.8 per cent in the previous quarter and 4 per cent in the corresponding quarter a year ago. In value terms, the sales of manufacturing companies stood at Rs 8,87,137 crore in the third quarter as against Rs 6,79,462 crore (1,685 companies). Their net profits stood at Rs 88,167 crore during October-December period of 2021-22 as against Rs 73,789 crore in the year ago quarter. Maintaining their growth momentum, information technology companies recorded 20.7 per cent increase (y-o-y) in sales during the third quarter of 2021-22. Further, sales of non-IT services companies expanded (y-o-y) by 22 per cent in the October-December period of 2021-22. RBI said telecommunication companies, which account for nearly a fourth of this broad category, witnessed a marginal decline in sales but non-telecom companies recorded good growth. On expenditure, the central bank said that in tandem with increase in sales, manufacturing companies' expenditure on raw material increased year-on-year by 37.1 per cent. Expenses on raw material accounted for 63.3 per cent of their total expenditure. "With rising expenditures, operating profit growth decelerated across sectors in the third quarter of 2021-22," RBI said. Also, pricing power in terms of operating profit and net profit margins remained stable for manufacturing and IT companies.
Source: Economic Times
The war between Russia and Ukraine can have an impact on India as well. The war can have a direct impact on the business of several hundred crores in India. Of these, the country's handloom and textile industry hub Panipat will suffer the most. Because the war between Russia and Ukraine has affected imports and exports to European countries. Industrialists say that immediately after the war broke out last week, there has been a sudden drop in the demand for handlooms in India and abroad. The owners of industries in Panipat have claimed that they have orders worth about 4500 crores from many European countries and Russia, if the fight continues for the next few days, it will have a direct impact on their business. Sanjeev Manchanda, president of Panipat's Dyes and Chemical Traders Association, said the impact of the war can already be seen on imports as the prices of raw materials (dye chemicals) imported from Germany and Turkey have already increased by 10 to 35 per cent. has been seen. He further said that the prolonged war will have repercussions and prices may rise further. He has demanded the government to give some relief in shipment duty and import duty. At the same time, President of Panipat Industrial Association, Pritam Singh Sachdeva said, we can see the psychological impact of the war. Since Europe is the largest market for Indian handlooms, there is a good demand for home goods, especially made in Panipat. He said that most European countries are directly or indirectly connected with Russia in this fight. This will definitely affect our industries in Panipat. He said that production was already affected but industrialists will have to wait for a few more days and if this situation continues for a month then production will be stopped. Manish Garg of Dream Collections Panipat said yes, industrial activities have already been affected to some extent. Rise in raw material prices will definitely affect business as it will be difficult for industrialists to place pending orders at the old price. He further said that the biggest impact of this war will be on crude oil and it will affect trade and transport.
Source: Live Hindustan
Reliance's move assumes significance as it follows failed efforts since 2020 to close a $3.4- bn deal to acquire the retail assets of Future. India's top retailer, Reliance, will add 250 more Future Retail stores to its portfolio after the company failed to make lease payments for the outlets to Reliance, two people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Monday. The plans - which sources said will be executed within weeks - come after Reliance took possession of and started rebranding about 200 of Future's Big Bazaar supermarkets over the weekend, and is set to further hollow out Future, which has been at the centre of a pitched battle between Reliance and Amazon.com Inc. The move over the weekend led to suspension in online and offline supermarket operations for Future, the country's second largest brick-and-mortar retailer. Reliance's move assumes significance as it follows failed efforts since 2020 to close a $3.4 billion deal to acquire the retail assets of Future. Future's partner Amazon has blocked the transaction by citing violation of contracts. Future denies any wrongdoing, but a Singapore arbitrator and Indian courts have backed Amazon's stand so far. Amazon is likely to challenge Future's move of store transfers in Indian courts, a third source told Reuters. Future, Amazon and Reliance did not respond to requests for comment. Future told stock exchanges on Saturday the company was "going through an acute financial crisis" and "scaling down its operations" to reduce losses. Over the months, Reliance had transferred leases of some stores of the debt-laden Future to its name and sublet them to Future. It is now taking possession of the stores as Future did not make lease payments, sources have told Reuters. After taking control of 200 of Future's flagship Big Bazaar stores, Reliance now has plans to take over another 250 stores in coming weeks and rebrand them as Reliance outlets, said the sources, who declined to be named as the plan is not public. One of the sources said this could include Future's apparel outlets "Central" and "Brand Factory". With the latest move, Reliance will effectively take over operations of roughly a third of Future's 1,500 outlets in India. Despite the store transfers, Reliance has told Future, it will not change the terms of their 2020 proposed deal, said one of the sources.
Source: Business Standard
Australia has officially assured Bangladesh of continuing duty and quota free treatment for Bangladeshi exports even after graduation from LDC in 2026. The commitment came at a meeting of the first Joint Working Group on trade and investment held recently in Canberra, according to the Bangladesh High Commission in Canberra. Formed under the Trade and Investment Framework Arrangement (TIFA) between Australia and Bangladesh, the JWG meeting had productive discussions on general trade issues, trade in goods and services, trade facilitation, promotion of investment, energy and defence collaboration, among others. Australia agreed to initiate a study on prospects of greater trade and investment flow for adding dynamism in economic ties. The JWG agreed to involve relevant private sectors and encouraged institutional linkages between apex trade bodies of the two countries to further strengthen bilateral trade. The two countries agreed to enhance industry connections between Australian exporters of raw materials like cotton, wool, hides and importers, manufacturers in Bangladesh. They decided to explore options to engage with global value chains as well as third country markets and "buy back" finished goods made from Australian inputs. Australia expressed keenness to explore investment opportunities in infrastructure, energy, mining and ICT sectors in Bangladesh. Australia also agreed to support Bangladesh in capacity-building and human resource development through cooperation on technical and vocation education and in updating the Country Education Profile for enabling greater number of Bangladeshi students to pursue higher studies in Australia. Australia expressed willingness to provide training on the Australian Fumigation Accreditation Scheme to help Bangladeshi producers and exporters meet regulatory standards of the Australian market. The Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan, in a video message for the JWG meeting, said that Australia and Bangladesh are moving to a new level of partnership -- based on shared interests, values, people-to-people links and increasingly marked by the dynamism of the commercial ties. The next JWG meeting would take place in Bangladesh early next year.
Source: The Daily Star
UK has signed a trade deal with New Zealand that will remove trade barriers on a huge range of UK goods and services. Under the new deal, tariffs will be eliminated on all UK exports to New Zealand, including current tariffs of up to 10 per cent on clothing and footwear. The UK-New Zealand trade relationship was worth £2.3 billion in 2020 and is now expected to increase by almost 60 per cent. The deal has been signed by international trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan and New Zealand minister for trade and export growth Damien O’Connor. After reaching agreement in principle last October negotiators have worked intensely to finalise the agreement, the UK government said in a press release. Smaller businesses will now find it easier to break into the New Zealand market as a result of modernised customs procedures, such as digital documents and customs clearance as quick as six hours. Red tape has also been slashed for the 5,900 UK SMEs who export goods to New Zealand and employ 233,000 people. Flexible rules of origin will give British exporters an advantage over international rivals in the New Zealand import market, which is expected to grow by 30 per cent by 2030. This deal is the most advanced agreement New Zealand has signed with any nation bar Australia and is part of UK’s ambitious strategy to deepen trade ties with like-minded partners and create a more predictable, free and fair framework for UK businesses, the release said. It is one of the greenest deals ever, confirming commitments to the Paris agreement and Net Zero. It will liberalise tariffs on the largest list of environmental goods in any FTA to date and encourage trade and investment in low carbon services and technology. UK’s international trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan said: “This deal will slash red tape, remove all tariffs and make it easier for our services companies to set up and prosper in New Zealand. “Our trade with New Zealand will soar, benefiting businesses and consumers throughout the UK and helping level up the whole country. Like all our new trade deals, it is part of a plan to build a network of trade alliances with the most dynamic parts of the world economy, so we set the UK on a path to future prosperity.”
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
The textile industry of China witnessed a strong expansion in 2021 as its revenue and profits recorded a double-digit growth, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). Textile firms with annual operating revenue of 20 million yuan ($3.16 million) and above recorded profits of 267.7 billion yuan in 2021, up 25.4 per cent year on year (YoY). The total operating revenue of the firms increased by 12.3 per cent YoY to reach 5.17 trillion yuan in 2021, as per official data. Additionally, China’s garment exports grew 8.4 per cent YoY to reach a record high of $315.5 billion in 2021.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
The extended producer responsibility system is likely to have an impact on the textile industry in Slovakia. The production, distribution and use of textiles leave an ecological footprint. In this article you will learn how the European Union's initiative will affect the textile industry and how companies will have to adapt in the future. The European Green Deal[1], the New Circular Economy Action Plan[2], as well as the New Industrial Strategy for Europe[3], all identify the textile industry as a key sector in bringing about a carbon-neutral circular economy. Efforts to promote more sustainable textiles are also reflected in the European Commission’s document, the EU Strategy for Sustainable Textiles[4]. In addition, the European Environment Agency is also working intensively on instituting a circular economy in the textile industry[5] . This sector is in the spotlight because it has a significant impact on the environment due to high CO2 emissions, high water, energy and land consumption and, last but not least, chemical pollution. All indications are that the circular economy will take a firm hold of the textile industry. This means that it will have to design and manufacture durable products that can be reused, repaired and recycled. Pressure on companies in the textile industry is expected to increase. The aim is to reduce water consumption, energy consumption and CO2 emissions and to eliminate pollution. This development will require, among other things, technical and commercial innovations which will require time to prepare. According to the EU Waste Directive[6], EU countries are obliged to introduce a separate collection for textile waste by 2025. In this context, the Slovak Ministry of Environment is considering including the textile industry in the extended producer responsibility system. This would entail a number of new, not only administrative, obligations for textile producers, for the purposes of which not only the actual textile producers but also, for example, textile importers and traders are also expected to be considered textile producers. In addition to the new administrative burden, entrepreneurs would also face new costs for the future collection, treatment and recycling of textile waste. In view of the waste management targets set by the European Union, companies must expect that textile waste regulations will be tightened, and that new obligations and costs will soon be imposed on them. We will continuously monitor legislative developments and report on them in due course.
Source: Lexology
For the past 20 years, designers had the chance of sourcing great luxury fabrics in one luxury venue in London – and the upcoming Textile Forum will continue the tradition. As sustainability is top of mind for many designers, there will be plenty of choice at the two-day international event to be held from March 16, 2022 at One Marylebone in London. At the fair, there will be fabric that is inherently sustainable as it is made from a natural resource and ranges that are produced from products that might otherwise find its way to landfill. Additionally, more and more fabric suppliers are looking to find ways to be more sustainable within their own business, using more natural products and reducing wastage, the organiser said in a press release. Apart from the fabric suppliers, who offer silks, cottons, leathers and wools for womenswear, menswear, bridalwear, lingerie and interiors, those exhibiting accessories such as buttons, linings and labels, will participate in the Textile Forum. Most items are also available from stock, from well-established, predominantly UK companies that have been working with leading fashion houses across the world – and all exhibitors offer low minimum quantities – often from 1m. In November 2021, UKFT took over the ownership of this successful event and it has become part of its wide range of activities that are undertaken to support the UK fashion and textile industry and promote these sectors in the domestic market and throughout the world.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
UK real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 1 per cent quarter on quarter (QoQ) in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2021 compared with an identical rise in the previous quarter. Despite the end of most COVID-19 restrictions from late January 2022, IHS Markit expects real GDP growth to slow in the first half of this year due to escalating cost of living and rise in consumer price index (CPI). In annual terms, the economy rose by 6.5 per cent year on year during Q4 2021, which implied that the economy grew by 7.5 per cent in 2021, the largest gain since the World War-II. However, this was after a 9.4 per cent contraction in 2020, with the United Kingdom enduring a larger-than-average hit from COVID-19 and public health restrictions. The UK outlook for 2022 is uniformly less upbeat, flagged by sliding growth projections, London-based IHS Markit’s economics director for Europe Raj Badiani said in a note. CPI in the 12 months to January increased to 5.5 per cent in January, the highest rate since the series began in January 1997, and since March 1992 (7.1 per cent) when using the historical-modelled data. More inflation pain lies ahead. Elevated energy futures prices forced the UK energy regulator Ofgem, which sets the tariff caps twice a year in April and October, to announce significant hikes. The tariff cap in April this year will increase by 54 per cent, the largest increase since the government introduced the cap in 2019. This will imply notably higher household utility prices for 22 million households from April 1. The eye-watering rise in utility prices will ratchet up the anticipated peak in the 12-month rate in the CPI to over 7 per cent in April 2022, he wrote. Worryingly, Ofgem is expected to announce a further sharp increase in October, pointing to a higher-than-previously-anticipated inflation rate at the end of 2022. Meanwhile, households face more challenging fiscal and monetary policy conditions. Overall, IHS Markit expects an intensifying squeeze on household confidence and real incomes. Early indicators are not encouraging, with real wages in retreat from late-2021. Furthermore, it now expects household disposable income adjusted for inflation to shrink in 2022, which would be the third time that it has fallen since 1990. Intensifying pressure on household budgets will weigh down on consumer spending developments and act as a handbrake on the pace of GDP growth in the next few quarters.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
