The focus would be to facilitate development of new business models, technological advancement, development of new markets and products and even imposing extended producer responsibility for a transition towards a circular economy, a senior official said. The strategy comes amid the government's push to MMF and technical textiles for which it has approved a ₹10,683 crore production-linked incentive scheme last year. The Niti Aayog has begun reviewing policies that need to be tweaked in the textile and apparel sector to encourage a move towards a circular economy, as India gears up for a transition towards manmade fiber (MMF) to cater to the rising global demand. The focus would be to facilitate development of new business models, technological advancement, development of new markets and products and even imposing extended producer responsibility for a transition towards a circular economy, a senior official said. A formal roadmap, which is being developed in consultation with the textile ministry, will be firmed up soon," the official added. The strategy comes amid the government's push to MMF and technical textiles for which it has approved a ₹10,683 crore production-linked incentive scheme last year.
Source: Economic Times
India's Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, and Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha, Piyush Goyal said that India's target is $1 trillion goods exports by 2030. "I would want a larger share of the UAE market in the years to come because for me, the target is $1 trillion of export of merchandise from India by 2030," added Goyal. Goyal was addressing the business leaders from India and the UAE at an event yesterday along with the UAE Foreign Trade Minister, H.E. Dr ThBin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi and H.E. Dr Ahmed Albanna, UAE Ambassador to India. "We are in the game for around $100 billion each way in the next six to seven years. We are in the game for at least $250 billion bilateral trade. I would like all our industry people to set the timeline. I think it's possible and I come with renewed enthusiasm after having achieved India's historic high of $400 billion plus exports for the first time ever," said the Minister. Goyal said that despite no tourism, travel, or hospitality services due to Covid, India has achieved a historic high in terms of export of services, close to $250 billion. "I want services and merchandise to reach a trillion dollar by 2030, and the UAE will play a very, very important role in this," added the Minister. Speaking on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and the UAE, Goyal said, "The UAE-India partnership is the strategic partnership of the 21st century. CEPA agreement between the two countries is not about trade alone, it's about trade in goods and services. It has a huge geopolitical and economic significance and also, in some sense, a great human element." Goyal highlighted the importance of the agreement as it gives a brand-new direction to the bilateral relationships, be it energy security, food and nutrition security and overall security of the two nations. "With new opportunities for businesses, job generation, increasing incomes, increasing opportunities for our young boys and girls, our startups, the agreement will set the door for new beginnings and have extraordinary outcomes," added Goyal. Earlier in the day, Goyal also attended, INVESTOPIA Plenary Session at Dubai Expo which saw participation from H.E. Abdula bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy, UAE, Mukhtar Diop, MD, International Finance Corporation and H.E. Hala El-Said, Minister of Economic Development, Egypt. Speaking at INVESTOPIA, Goyal said, "We focus a lot on public investments. Our budget this year was largely about government funded infrastructure projects on the back of which we see the multiplier effect helping us on the demand side and that is leading to more investments to meet the supply constraints." "We have been focusing on improving the lives of the people through public investment on one hand, and on the other hand, ensuring our economic security which includes energy security," added the Minister. Goyal said, "We are in a sweet spot where emerging markets have strengthened themselves over the last few years. They will certainly need to be supported if we have to meet the climate goals. We are yet to see the developed world come up with truly practical funding programs."
Source: Economic Times
Both the sides were aiming for a bilateral trade (both goods and services) of $100 billion in the next five years from about $60 billion in the pre-pandemic year of FY20. India and the UAE can go well beyond the target they have set under the recently-signed free trade agreement (FTA) and look for an annual bilateral trade of $250 billion by 2030, taking advantage of the window of opportunities opened by the pact, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday. Both the sides were aiming for a bilateral trade (both goods and services) of $100 billion in the next five years from about $60 billion in the pre-pandemic year of FY20. The IndiaUAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) will come into force on May 1. Goyal said the top 5 sectors that will benefit the most from the FTA are gems and jewellery, textiles and leather products, pharmaceuticals, steel and petrochemicals. He referred to the melt and pour agreement between India and the UAE and added that it would encourage investors set up steel plants in the UAE. According to the pact, the UAE will allow as many as 99% of Indian goods (in value term) at zero duty in five years from about 90% in the first year. Similarly, India would allow duty-free access to 80% of goods from the UAE now and it would go up to 90% in 10 years. Goyal exhorted the gems and jewellery industry to almost triple their annual exports target to $100 billion soon. Earlier, the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council has said the country’s exports to the UAE will rise substantially to $10 billion soon on the back of the CEPA.
Source: Financial Express
Australia is on the brink of finalizing a free-trade agreement with India with an announcement possible in “coming days,” as the government works to strike a deal less than two months before an expected May election. Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan said that he and his Indian counterpart Piyush Goyal were meeting daily and “getting very close” to reaching a deal. Tehan said he was hopeful that there could be an announcement soon. “Both sides are working feverishly to make sure we can get an agreement that’s in both our national interests,” he said in a Bloomberg Television interview. A free trade agreement between India and Australia has been more than 10 years in the making, with negotiations beginning in 2011 before being suspended four years later in 2015. Finally in 2020, amid warming ties between Delhi and Canberra, Prime Ministers Scott Morrison and Narendra Modi agreed to restart negotiations. Two-way trade between India and Australia was worth A$24.3 billion ($18.3 billion) in 2020, up from just $13.6 billion in 2007, according to the Australian government. Experts have said one of the main sticking points is agriculture, with Australia wanting access to the Indian market, but Modi’s government reluctant to put its domestic farmers - a major The push for an agreement comes just weeks out from the beginning of a national election campaign in Australia, with Morrison’s center-right government pushing a narrative of strong economic management as it struggles to make up ground in opinion polls. Tehan is currently on a visit to the U.S. to meet with Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo for the inaugural Strategic Economic Dialogue between the two countries, where they were expected to discuss China’s attempts at trade coercion against Australia and the need to strengthen the supply chains for rare earths. “The traditional rule book is being thrown out the window because we are seeing some countries using their economic weight and their economic power, using economic coercion, using non-market practices, to try and influence global trade,” he said. Speaking on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Tehan said he expected Australia to announce further sanctions against Moscow soon.
Source: Economic Times
The Rajya Sabha returned the two Bills on Tuesday without any changes (except for those proposed by the government), ending the parliamentary process for approval of the Budget. The Lok Sabha had approved it last week. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday exuded confidence that the Budget for FY23 will draw the elusive private investors and ensure a predictable recovery path for the Covid-hit economy in the coming years. Replying to a debate on the appropriation and finance Bills in the Rajya Sabha, Sitharaman conceded emerging risks to the economy from the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has driven up global crude oil prices and caused massive disruptions in supply chains. At the same time, she defended her government’s handling of inflation and added that the wholesale price inflation, which has been in double-digits for 11 months now, will moderate in the coming months. The minister said: “…newer challenges are before us. During the Budget presentation, I had not taken into account the Omicron (outbreak) and now we are also facing the situation of a full-blown war in Ukraine. But it seems to be having an impact on all countries like the way the pandemic had.” The Rajya Sabha returned the two Bills on Tuesday without any changes (except for those proposed by the government), ending the parliamentary process for approval of the Budget. The Lok Sabha had approved it last week. Sitharaman said, after the pandemic spread its tentacles, the government had to step up investments to help the economy. “…we believe that the government and the private sector are partners in assuring development in this economy. There is no ‘us versus them’ when it comes to government and the private sector,” she said as she emphasized on measures like the PLI scheme, and PM Gatishakti, to woo private investments. The minister said the Budget for FY23 was designed, keeping in mind the need to ensure a robust recovery after the unprecedented Covid crisis. But, despite the Omicron onslaught and the spread of the other variants of the coronavirus earlier, the government didn’t resort to any new tax to garner resources to fight the pandemic. In contrast, 32 countries resorted to taxation to revive their economies, according to an OECD report. The minister said the states’ share for devolution in central taxes was pegged at Rs 6.66 trillion as per Budget Estimates of 2021-22, and Rs 7.45 trillion as per Revised Estimates. “(But) What I have actually devolved is Rs 8.35 trillion, Rs 1.69 trillion more than the BE and Rs 90,000 crore over the RE,” she said. She also said, between 2013-14 to 2022-23, the actual utilisation of health and education cess is estimated to be Rs 3.94 trillion, against an estimated collection of `3.77 trillion. These imposts are used to fund centrally sponsored schemes in the states, she said. After a record 6.6% contraction in FY21, real gross domestic product is estimated to grow 8.9% in the current fiscal. The Budget has projected a real growth rate of about 8% for FY23. The central bank has pegged real growth at 7.8% for the next fiscal, which is expected to be revised in the wake of the Ukraine crisis. The Budget has raised the Centre’s capital spending to a record Rs 7.5 trillion for FY23 to capitalise on its multiplier effect; in fact, capex will be doubled from the pre-pandemic (FY20) level. Citing an RBI study, Sitharaman recently said a rupee spent on capex had a multiplier of 2.45 in the first year itself, against that of just 0.45 on revenue spending.
Source: Financial Express
Synopsis India's economy is poised for sustained high growth in the coming years, the Assocham President said, while flagging another Covid-19 wave and the Russia-Ukraine as possible risks. India needs a strong contract-enforcement agency, a simple GST regime and simplified taxation process along with a stable policy environment to significantly improve ease of doing business, said Sumant Sinha, the newly elected president of Assocham. India’s economy is poised for sustained high economic growth in coming years, he said, while flagging another Covid-19 wave and the Russia-Ukraine as possible risks. Sinha, who is chairman and managing director of ReNew Power, took charge as president of the industry body on Monday. Also, Ajay Singh, chairman and managing director of SpiceJet, took over as the new senior vice-president of Assocham. Recommended by “After Covid impacted economic activities for a year and a half, there has been a very nice bounce back and the expectation for next year’s GDP growth is about 7.5-8%. The number of reform measures that have been undertaken, robust exports and controlled inflation will ensure that the momentum is going to carry through into next year and beyond,” Sinha told ET in an interview. The newly-elected President cautioned about the impact of the external environment on India's growth story. Sinha, however, cautioned about the impact of the external environment on India’s growth story. “Having said that, of course, in all of these situations, there are always some risks to growth as well. One of those, of course, is the external environment, where there is some degree of uncertainty because a conflict is going on,” he said. “The second thing is, of course, Covid itself. Hopefully we have seen the last of Covid but that is something we have to wait and watch,” he said, adding that the economy was in a very robust shape right at present and that he could foresee several years of sustained high growth. Commenting on the delay in contract enforcement under infrastructure projects, Sinha vouched for setting up of a central contract-enforcement authority. “There needs to be a central contract-enforcement authority, to be set up by the central government and staffed by people chosen by a central mechanism. This body should be able to make decisions relatively soon on judgements and issues like this,” he said. Laying the roadmap for India to further improve on the ease of doing business ranking, Sinha said multiple GST rates and cumbersome taxation process were some issues that needed to be resolved to help India be in the 20s or 30s as against its current position. India was 63rd in the last report of the World Bank. “Corporate taxation is a complicated and a cumbersome process. It needs to be simplified a little bit while focus should also be on speeding up the entire bankruptcy process,” he said. On the GST front, India needs a more stable policy, he said. “There should be a flat GST for everything, and there should be no discretion of the GST Council on tweaking numbers up and down so that nobody has any doubt or any issue and there is a very predictable environment,” he added. Talking about India’s dependence on China for solar equipment, Sinha said the government was now focusing on the security of equipment supply so there was no external dependence there. “The government is very focused now on trying to indigenise and localise the supply chain, which is absolutely the right thing to do. It also gives India the opportunity of developing as an alternative manufacturing hub to China,” he said. “Given this whole energy security issue, a lot of countries around the world would be happy to buy from India, rather than from China, because it’s good to have, for them also, some diversification,” he added. Sinha also emphasised on the need for further tweaking the definition of MSMEs, enhanced credit provisioning for them and greater technological support to MSMEs to help them build up scale of operation. “A lot of Indian MSMEs are basic assembly or simply basic product manufacturing. We need much more hi-tech development so that eventually over time it can lead to higher quality products and more R&D in the country as well,” he added.
Source: Economic Times
Representatives from Codissia, Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) have urged the district administration to take steps to set up a ‘multi-modular logistic park’ at Neelambur or Chettipalayam in the district. The district administration will soon release a masterplan for Coimbatore. As per the master plan, there is a suggestion to set up a multi-modular logistic park at Neelambur or Chettipalayam. Industrialists are sending their products like heavy valves for petroleum industries and other industries in the US and Europe. While yarn and textile products are exported to European countries from Coimbatore, pumps are exported to south-east Asian countries. Apparels from Tirupur are exported to the US and European countries. All the products were loaded in container trucks from Coimbatore and sent to the Cochin Port or Cochin international airport for export. “If the excise and customs officials want to check the container, industrialists or representatives of the respective companies from Coimbatore and Tirupur have to travel to Cochin with documents. If they send the products to Tuticorin port, they have to visit Tuticorin port from Coimbatore and Tirupur. If the multi-modular logistic park is set up in Coimbatore district, the industrialists can send their products to the logistic park where excise and customs officials could check the products and give their clearance,” president of Codissia MV Ramesh Babu said. “The district administration should find at least 150 acres at Chettipalayam or Neelambur to set up the logistic park. Once the logistic park is set up in Coimbatore, many freight forwarding agencies will set up their office in Coimbatore and they will take the containers to the logistic park from the respective industries. The railway authority also will lay track to the logistic park, and it would help to transport the containers from the logistic park to Cochin port or international airport,” Ramesh Babu said.
Source: Times of India
The 14-day ‘State Handloom Expo 2021-2022’, a joint effort of state industries department, ministry of textiles and state directorate of handloom and silk, has been organised at the Sandy’s Compound ground in Bhagalpur. State industries minister Shahnawaz Hussain has been instrumental in organising this event. The expo aims at promoting handloom products among cross sections of the society through sales promotion and bringing socio-economic changes in lives of weaving community members and their families. Assistant director of handloom and silk and general manager— Industries, at Bhagalpur, Sanjay Verma said the handloom expo was inaugurated jointly by Bhagalpur DM Subrat Kumar Sen and industries department officials on Monday and it will end on April 10. "Our aim is not only to promote handloom products among locals but also to increase the income of family members of handloom weaving community. The community people eke out their livings through handloom weaving and ancillary works and hence need government support," Verma said.The DM said the weaving community has faced several challenges in the recent years, including from the machine made handloom products and tough times during the Covid-19 pandemic times. "The handloom expo will provide a large platform to the weaving community, exporters and other persons engaged in various handloom merchandise manufacturing works," Sen said. He added: "There will be a widespread acceptance of skills of the handloom weavers through marketing of their unique products under one roof and the expo will also bring interactive opportunities between the purchasers and the actual weavers." At the expo, three best handloom weavers, whose products found to be best vis-à-vis quality, finishing, demands and sale volumes besides return on investments (ROI), will be recommended for award by the directorate of handloom and silk.
Source: Times of India
Bangladesh’s Export Policy 2021-24 became effective from March 23, with the highest priority attached to 14 sectors to boost much-needed foreign-currency earnings. It has polices to navigating potential challenges following the graduation from the least developed country (LDC) status in 2026, the fourth industrial revolution, research and development activities and coping with the COVID-induced blow to exporting sectors. The ministry of commerce issued a gazette notification to that effect. The government aims annualised export earnings of $80 billion during the 2021-2024 term, according to Bangladeshi media reports. The priority sectors having untapped export potential include apparel having highest value addition, denim, man-made fibre, garment accessories, pharmaceuticals, plastic products, shoes (both leather and synthetic), jute and agro-products, light engineering, shipbuilding and ocean-going trawler building, furniture, home textiles and home decor, luggage, active pharmaceutical ingredients and reagent. "Exporters would be able to deposit a certain amount of their export earnings into their foreign-currency account under retention quota. Bangladesh Bank would determine the amount time to time," said the policy statement. Exporters can now borrow up to 90 per cent of the amount stated in the irrecoverable letter of credit or confirmed contract. "The commercial banks would deal with the issue with due priority as per instructions of the Bangladesh Bank," it said. For new industry, value addition should be at least 30 per cent for getting export incentives. The National Board of Revenue (NBR) would consider offering bonded-warehouse facility to the partial exporting sector on fast-track basis under the Customs Act 1969. For research and development, the government can offer policy support allowing a certain part as expenditure of annual turnover of the exporting company. Leather-sector exporters would get financial support from export-readiness fund. The export policy lays emphasis on building capacity of trade regime of Bangladesh through establishing connectivity and partnership with other countries.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
The International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) has published the International Textile Industry Statistics (ITIS) on productive capacity and raw material consumption in the short-staple organized (spinning mill-) sector in virtually all textileproducing countries in the world. The global number of installed short-staple spindles remained stable in 2020 at 221 million units (See Figure 1). The number of installed open-end rotors slightly decreased from 7.4 million in 2019 to 7.2 million in 2020 (See Figure 2). The decreasing trends observed in both segments in previous years (mainly due to scrapping of outdated machinery in China) seem to have come to an end. The tendencies observed in other regions are stable. The number of installed air-jet spindles increased in 2020 in all regions except in Europe, East and Europe, West. The substitution between shuttle and shuttleless looms continued in 2020 but the number of installed shuttleless looms has shrunk for the first time from 1.68 million in 2019 to 1.64 in 2020 (See Figure 3). Total raw material consumption in the short-staple organized sector has sharply decreased from 46 million tons in 2019 to 41 million tons in 2020 (See Figure 4). Consumption of raw cotton, synthetic, and cellulosic short-staple fibers decreased by -12%, -14%, and -9%, respectively. This effect mainly reflects the reduced levels of production during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: Textile World
Europe is to crack down on fast fashion through proposals to make the clothing made and worn there more durable, reusable, repairable and recyclable. The sustainable textiles strategy, due to be unveiled on Wednesday, will target clothes at every stage of use, including design, repair and recycling. The initiative aims to boost the market for sustainably made garments. Manufacturers will have to ensure their clothes are eco-friendly and hard-wearing. And consumers will be given more information on how to reuse, repair and recycle their clothes. Iona Popescu of environmental NGO, the Environmental Coalition on Standards, said the rules to be announced by the European Commission are designed to bring in longerlasting products that can be used multiple times rather than worn a few times then thrown away. "The Commission seeks to put a halt on fast fashion by introducing rules on textiles to be used in the European market," she said. Similar rules will apply to the likes of electronics, such as smartphones, and furniture under an initiative known as the Sustainable Products Initiative (SPI), she added. It's estimated that less than 1% of all clothing worldwide is recycled. According to the European Environment Agency, clothes use in Europe has on average the fourth highest impact on the environment and climate, exceeded only by food, housing and transport. For every person in the EU, textile consumption requires 9 cubic metres of water, 400 square metres of land, 391kg of raw materials, and causes a carbon footprint of about 270 kg. In the UK, politicians have called on the government to change the law to require fashion retailers to comply with environmental standards. The government rejected most of the Environmental Audit Committee's recommendations in 2019, including making clothes producers pay for better clothing collection and recycling, but has made textile waste a priority. Tamara Cincik of the think tank for the fashion industry, Fashion Roundtable, said the textiles strategy could set the tone for future legislation outside of the EU. "If expectations of brands in the UK compared to the EU diverge, this will hopefully encourage stronger expectations of future UK legislation," she said. "This is why it is so important for both UK brands and the government to be alert to this strategy, as the EU remains our largest, and indeed, closest trading partner for the textiles and fashion industry."
Source: BBC
Queensland’s ARM Hub is leading a partnership focused on developing a plan to assist the sorting of waste textiles using artificial intelligent systems and robotic equipment. Textile waste is a major cause of landfill in Australia with up to 679,000 tons of waste released each year . With accumulating waste, and a keen focus on meeting national priorities, ARM Hub is working with key stakeholders across the textile supply chain to identify innovative solutions to divert large volumes of unsaleable textile donations away from landfill. Through partnership with The Salvation Army, Kmart and QUT, ARM Hub developed and delivered a series of half day workshops where representatives from each organisation, along with industry experts across the garment supply chain, came together to conceptualise potential solutions. The workshop’s objective was to engage with industry, research organisations and government bodies to find an economically viable way to sort and disaggregate clothing – one of the major barriers to reducing the amount of textile waste in landfill. Automating parts of the sorting and reprocessing stage, will allow for charitable recyclers to minimise the time and energy needed during the recycling process. With people and robots working collaboratively, a solution can be found that contributes to a circular economy. Kmart Australia’s John Gualtieri said: “Through our research it is clear that the volumes of textile donations to charities like The Salvation Army have risen and the time consuming and labour-intensive process of hand-sorting donations cannot keep pace. “This is unsustainable and we need to find smarter ways of working that also allow textile waste to be further value-added and kept out of landfill. “Like the team at QUT, The Salvation Army and ARM Hub, we believe one solution to this might be technology that can efficiently sort and process clothing waste.” The first workshop took place in the ARM Hub Learning Factory in Northgate, Brisbane. Attendees worked together pulling apart a standard one cubic metre bale of donated textiles to understand what makes up a typical bale to identify current challenges and opportunities that can be addressed in sorting. Waste is produced at each stage of the supply chain – raw materials come in and are spun, woven or knitted into cloth, stitched into garments, and then sold by retailers to consumers. According to ARM Hub, to offset the volume of waste, industry leaders need to take a proactive approach through being drivers of change, such as product stewardship agenda and retailers’ targets around circularity. The workshops helped identify a stakeholder informed plan to develop a demonstrator for automated sorting and disaggregation. If the project is undertaken, the demonstrator will leverage existing technology and develop novel technology applications to address the identified needs. The ARM Hub is a technology centre in robotics, artificial intelligence and design-led manufacturing. We accelerate industry’s digital transformation
Source: AU Manufacturing
