The sources confirmed to ANI that there is no such proposal from the Council, this news is speculative and there is no truth in it The Central Government has categorically denied the media reports claiming that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council is planning to raise a five per cent tax slab to eight per cent, said the government sources. The sources confirmed to ANI that there is no such proposal from the Council, this news is speculative and there is no truth in it. Currently, GST has a four-tier slab structure of 5, 12, 18, and 28 per cent. Besides, gold and gold jewellery attract a three per cent tax. Last year, GST council formed a Group of Ministers (GoM) on rate rationalisation, headed by Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, which includes West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra, Kerala Finance Minister K N Balagopal, and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tarkishore Prasad. Sources said that GoM has still not prepared its report on rate rationalisation and it is yet to be submitted to the GST council. The date of the next meeting of the GST council is also not confirmed yet as the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who is also the Chairman of the GST Council, is currently in the USA to attend the Spring Meetings organised by the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, G20 meetings besides other associated investment meetings as part of her official visit to the USA beginning April 18, 2022. The last GST council meeting, which was the 46th council meeting was held on December 31, 2021. Essential items are either exempted or taxed at the lowest slab of five per cent, while luxury and demerit items attract the highest tax rate of 28%. On the top of the highest slab, a cess is levied on luxury and demerit goods.
Source: Economic Times
The seven member GoM is led by Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj S. Bommai and has finance ministers from West Bengal, Kerala Goa, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan as members. The group is unlikely to take up a proposal to raise the lowest or threshold slab under GST to 8% from 5% now, government sources said. A group of ministers tasked by the Goods and Services Tax Council to look into rate rationalisation is likely to meet early next month. The seven member GoM is led by Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj S. Bommai and has finance ministers from West Bengal, Kerala Goa, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan as members. The group is unlikely to take up a proposal to raise the lowest or threshold slab under GST to 8% from 5% now, government sources said. The recommendations of the GoM would be placed before the GST Council, likely to meet in May second half, which will take the final call. Policymakers now see rising inflation as a serious concern and any rate change exercise will take this factor into consideration. Any rejig in the rates would now be carried out keeping in view these concerns, though the final decision would rest with the GST Council. The council had set up the GoM on rate rationalisation at its September 2021 meeting in Lucknow. The group was asked to review the exempt goods to expand the tax base, suggest changes to simplify the rate structure, and garner the required resources. The GoM has just met once since its inception to deliberate on the proposed changes to the rate structure. A detailed presentation was made before the Council on changes to the rate structure and its implication for revenues and those suggestions are available with the GoM. These scenarios included raising the threshold slab rate to 8% from 5%, a single 15% levy by merging the 12% and 18% slabs. The GST has a four-tier structure, consisting of 5%, 12%, 18%, and 28% rates. Additionally, there are special rates for some goods such as precious metals, making the regime complex.
Source: Economic Times
The Uttar Pradesh Government will implement its new Textile Policy 2022 in June attracting an investment of Rs 1,000 crore in the next five years. Significant focus has been laid on helping the weavers in consultation with experts. To promote power loom from solar energy, about 500 such power looms will be made operational and 100 handloom weavers will be benefitted by the Handlooms and Textiles department every year. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed the department officials to ensure that benefits of the new policy are extended as part of the promotion of this new scheme to be implemented by the department in the state in June. The state government has pressed on weavers availing the direct benefits of the scheme in the next five years. The government plans to connect weavers with new technology and schemes so that they may easily keep pace with technology while doing their work faster. The process of setting up about 115 export-oriented textile industries with an investment of Rs 3,000 crore would be started by June and the foundation stone of this scheme will be laid in July and the commercial production will start by September 2025.
Source: KNN India
Excluding petroleum products, the growth in this period was 23.64 per cent over the same period of 2021-22 India exported goods worth $18.79 billion during the first two weeks of April, up 37 per cent compared to the same period last year, as external demand continued to remain robust, according to commerce department’s preliminary data. Excluding petroleum products, the growth in this period was 23.64 per cent over the same period of 2021-22. Imports grew at a faster pace, with the value of inbound shipments at $25.84 billion, up by 12.24 per cent over the same period of 2021-22. Trade deficit was at $5 billion. Imports, excluding petroleum products, which comprises the lion’s share in India’s import basket, also increased in this period by 18.24 per cent over the same period of 2021-22. During the previous year, India surpassed the $400-billion target for merchandise exports, ending the year with over $419 billion, growing by nearly a fifth. The department of commerce is yet to set the target for this fiscal year, but meetings with export promotion councils and the external affairs minister is also underway to finalise the target. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal had last week said the final call regarding the target will be taken by the Prime Minister. While there could be some disruption in exports due to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, government officials are confident that the free trade pacts signed with Australia and United Arab Emirates (UAE) will augur well for India and boost exports further. Similarly, India also reached the target of $250 billion in case of service exports, despite the pandemic causing disruption in the tourism and hospitality sector. The target for services exports is now set at $300 billion
Source: Business Standard
City businessmen are getting restless over unconfirmed reports of abolition of the GST slab 5% and making it 8%. According to textile and garment industry, if the proposal goes through, it will lead to disaster for the sector as the rates of end products will increase. Businessmen are also of the view that this is another attempt by the government to increase GST slab applicable on their industry, after the earlier attempt of increasing GST to 12% failed. Narinder Mittal, general secretary of Ludhiana Business Forum, said, “It is really shocking that despite such adverse circumstances being faced by the businesses, authorities are contemplating increasing the rate of GST slab of 5% to 8%. There are reports of roll out of new slab of 3% and sources say only those items would be taxed under this slab that as of now are exempt from GST. It is therefore clear that the items which are currently in 5& GST slab will be moved to 8% as only exempted items will be moved to 3% slab. This will prove to be a disaster for the garment and textile industry where currently 5% GST is applicable on most of the items.” According to Vinod Thapar, chairman of the Knitwear Club, “The GST council few months ago made an attempt to increase the GST on textile and garment from 5% to 12%, but due to our opposition, the attempt failed. It seems that now the authorities are trying to find another excuse to increase tax on us under the garb of abolition the 5% slab. All the associations in the country, specially those related to textile and garment, are keeping a close watch on this proposal and once its announced, nationwide protest against it will be launched.” According to Atul Saggar, general secretary of Apparel Manufacturers Association Ludhiana, said, “If GST council or central government is thinking of doing away with 5% GST slab and instead slap 8% tax on us, it would result in disaster as on one side our cost of production will increase while on the other hand the rate of items for the end users will also increase, so any such move should be avoided.
Source: Times of India
The weavers had already petitioned Chief Minister M K Stalin, Minister for Handloom and Textiles R Gandhi, Chief Secretary V Irai Anbu, and other officials. More than 15,000 powerloom weavers in and around Sankarankovil town have planned to stage a strike from April 18 to 30 condemning the State and Union governments for the price hike of the hank yarn.According to Master Weavers' Association and Textile Weavers' Association, the weavers have planned to stage various forms of protests including fasting demanding the State government take steps to form a tripartite committee including the government representatives, yarn manufacturers, and weavers for the fair price fixation. Secretary of Master Weavers' Association T S A Subramanian said, "Around 30 lakh families across Tamil Nadu are depending on six lakh powerloom units. In Sankarankovil alone, nearly 20,000 families' livelihoods depend on 4,000 powerloom units. Each month, we are paying `1 crore as GST on our production and another `50 lakh GST on purchasing `10 crore-worth hank yarn." He added that the price of a yarn bundle, weighing 4.75 kg, has increased from `1,455 in August 2020, to `2,385 in April 2022. "We have faced 64% of the price hike in a short period. While our business was already affected by GST and Covid-19, we are not in a position to increase the price of the sarees. Even though the Union government reduced the tax by 11% on imported cotton, the price of the yarn keeps increasing. Meanwhile, the hoarders are illegally keeping a huge stock of the yarn which increases its price." Subramanian further said the weavers had already petitioned Chief Minister M K Stalin, Minister for Handloom and Textiles R Gandhi, Chief Secretary V Irai Anbu, and other officials seven times with their demands, including banning the export of hank yarn.
Source: New Indian Express
India is facing the tremors from the shocks emanating from geo-political tensions that have choked supplies and increased commodity prices, especially food and energy, and has stoked inflationary pressures, the monthly State of the Economy of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Monday. “The fallout of the war and retaliatory sanctions is already evident in inflation prints and balance of payments developments,” the report said on the domestic impact of the RussiaUkraine war. “The Indian economy is not immune to these negative externalities. The surge in commodity prices is already posing inflation risks, especially through the conduit of surging imports,” it said. The report observed that rapidly widening trade and current account deficits co-existing with portfolio capital outflows weigh on external sustainability; although the strength of underlying fundamentals and the stock of international reserves provide buffers. Rising food and beverages prices drove retail inflation closer to 7 per cent in March — above the central bank’s upper tolerance zone of 6 per cent. The global tensions, which resulted in international crude oil prices crossing $100/bbl for the first time since 2014, forced the six-member monetary policy committee (MPC) of the RBI to shift its focus to tackling inflation, from supporting growth, in the April review meeting. Though the MPC kept the interest rate and the stance of the policy unchanged, it guided that the focus will be to withdraw the accommodative stance. “India faces these challenges from a position of strength built on broadened vaccine coverage, financial sector resilience, robust export and remittances and fiscal reprioritisation to spur capital spending on infrastructure,” the report said, adding that spurring private investment remains a key thrust area for sustaining growth on a durable basis. The report highlighted that the near-term global outlook appears grim, caught up in a vortex of geo-political risks materialising rapidly, strained supply chains and the quickening pace of monetary policy normalisation. “Emerging market economies are bracing up to contend with swift shifts in risk sentiments and tightening of global financial conditions that could produce real economic consequences which may thwart incipient recoveries,” it said. Another area of concern, according to the report, is the currently raging heat wave. “Temperatures are breaking all-time records in many pockets of the country. The country as a whole saw the hottest March (average maximum temperature) in the last 122 years,” the report said, adding that the increasing frequency of these unseasonal fluctuations reveals the impact of climate change and underscores the urgency of reductions in carbon footprints and integrating the relevant climatic variables in the development strategies.
Source: Business Standard
India’s annual rate of inflation, based on monthly wholesale price index (WPI), rose further to a four-month high of 14.55 per cent (provisional) in March 2022, over March 2021, after increasing to 13.11 per cent in February. The annual rate of inflation was 7.89 per cent in March 2021. The month-on-month change in WPI index for March 2022 stood at 2.69 per cent. “The high rate of inflation in March 2022 is primarily due to rise in prices of crude petroleum and natural gas, mineral oils, basic metals, etc owing to disruption in global supply chain caused by Russia-Ukraine conflict,” the Office of the Economic Adviser, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), under the ministry of commerce and industry, said. The official WPI for all commodities (Base: 2011-12 = 100) for the month of March 2022 increased to 148.8 from previous month’s 144.9. The index for manufactured products (weight 64.23 per cent) for March 2022 increased to 141.6 from 138.4 for the month of February 2022. The index for ‘Manufacture of Textiles’ sub-group increased to 143.5 from previous month’s 142.40, while the index for ‘Manufacture of Wearing Apparel’ remained unchanged from the previous month at 145.20. The index for primary articles (weight 22.62 per cent) also rose to 170.30 in March 2022 from previous month’s 166.80. On the other hand, the index for fuel and power (weight 13.15 per cent) increased to 146.9 from 139.0 in February 2022. Meanwhile, the all-India inflation rate for consumer price index (CPI) on base 2012=100 stood at 6.95 (provisional) in March 2022 compared to 6.07 (final) in February 2022 and 5.52 in March 2021, according to the National Statistics Office, under the ministry of statistics and programme implementation.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
Vietnam’s textile and garment industry has witnessed stable growth despite the pandemic, recording an export turnover of $8.84 billion in the first quarter of 2022 with an increase of 22.5 per cent over the same period last year. Labour shortage in the sector during the pandemic has directly affected apparel manufacturers' production and business. Over the past two years, particularly in the fourth wave of the pandemic, Vietnamese apparel firms have been facing difficulties due to disruption of the global supply chain, leading to a temporary closure of many companies. For example, 8-3 Textile Co. Ltd. struggled with labour shortages worsened by the crush of new COVID cases forcing many into isolation. However, the company was flexible in changing shifts and rotating workers to ensure production and business activities. The country has changed its strategy from a zero COVID policy to safe and flexible adaptation and effective control of the pandemic while recovering and developing the economy. Textile and garment manufacturers under the Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group have received orders until the end of the third quarter and the whole year due to their flexibility. The industry is expected to thrive and earn $43 billion in exports this year, according to a Vietnamese media report.
Source: Fibre 2 Fashion
Stronger Vietnam-South Korea partnership in logistics and measures to encourage bilateral technology transfer will help improve Vietnam's capacity in the field and contribute to turning it into an industrialised nation, director of Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Vietrade) Vu Ba Phu told a dialogue organised by the Vietrade and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) in Hanoi recently. The policy dialogue was part of the 31st Vietnam Expo. Phu said Vietnam currently has 69 logistics centres in different scales, mostly in industrial parks. A number of localities such as An Giang, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Bac Ninh, Cao Bang, Da Nang and Quang Ninh are calling for investment in their logistics sector, he noted. With the Fourth Industrial Revolution, traditional logistics centres have evolved into new-generation ones, he said, adding that an action plan to enhance the competitiveness and development of country’s logistics sector until 2025 has been implemented to cut logistics cost and improve efficiency. Along with developing infrastructure system and improving human resources for logistics sector, administrative procedures have been reformed for the sector, a Vietnamese newspaper reported. According to the ministry of industry and trade (MoIT), the operational capacity of Vietnam's logistics sector in 2021 reached 3.34 points compared to 3.27 points in 2018. Vietnam also entered the list of the top 10 countries with the highest annual logistics sector growth of 14-16 per cent. South Korea is the largest investor in Vietnam now, with more than 9,200 projects— including several in the logistics sector—under way worth $74.7 billion.
Source: Nat Law Review
Cambodia exported more than $3 billion worth of garments, footwear, travel goods and other textile-related products in the first quarter of 2022, an increase of nearly a quarter compared to the same period last year, according to data from the General Department of Customs and Excise of Cambodia (GDCE). GDCE figures show that in January-March, these exports amounted to $3.155 billion, up by $627.8 million or 24.8 per cent year-on-year. The products were not broken down by category. “Travel goods” is a designation that includes suitcases, backpacks, handbags, wallets and similar items. While unable to provide concrete figures, Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) deputy secretary-general Kaing Monika affirmed that garment exports increased in the first quarter from last year. He chalked up the jump in garment exports to the stability of production and favourable external factors such as a continuing shift of influential orders away from China and Myanmar to other countries including Cambodia. He labelled the current trend as a “positive sign” that growth would likely extend until end-2022, but cautioned that the increase in sales does not necessarily guarantee that profits have been improving. “As we’re all aware, during the Covid-19 crisis, there were more costs than usual, so despite the increase in sales, there was little profit. “At the end of the day, we’ve had loads of issues, including those concerning salaries and Covid-related expenses, as well as the suspension of production when workers were absent due to Covid-19. Therefore, exports do not mean that profits will increase,” Monika said. Cambodia Footwear Association president Ly Kunthai admitted that his association did not have clear figures on footwear exports, but shared that members were receiving “a lot” of orders as countries reopen and roll back Covid-19 restrictions, allowing commodity traffic to gradually edge towards pre-pandemic levels. “Still, we understand the state of trade between individual countries is better than it had been two years ago,” he said. GMAC data reveal that exports of textile-related products amounted to $11.3896 billion in 2021, a $1.505 billion or 15.2 per cent jump from 2020. Broken down by category, garments accounted for $8.017 billion, footwear made up $1.390 billion, travel goods were to the tune of $1.490 billion, and other categories clocked in at over $0.49 billion.
Source: Phnom Penh Post
At the end of March, the European Commission (Commission) presented the Sustainable Products Initiative (SPI) as part of a ‘Circular Economy Package I’, together with a Sustainable Textiles Strategy, and proposals for a new directive empowering consumers for the green transition (please see Sustainability Outlook March 2022), and a new Construction Products Regulation. In its new Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP 2.0) of March 2020, the Commission had foreseen adopting the SPI in 2021. The Commission aims at “making sustainable products the norm” and reducing negative life cycle environmental impacts of products, while benefitting from efficient digital solutions, by setting a framework for Ecodesign requirements, creating an EU digital product passport and tackling the destruction of unsold consumer products. In particular, the SPI includes the proposal for an Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), which would repeal the current Ecodesign Directive 2009/125. It establishes a horizontal framework and broadens the scope of the Ecodesign Directive beyond energy-related products, i.e. beyond any product that has an impact on energy consumption during use. The new Regulation would apply to all physical goods, including components and intermediate products, except food, feed, medicinal and veterinary products, living plants and animals, and products of human origin. According to the Commission’s explanatory memorandum, the ESPR is meant to address products that are not covered by existing legislation or where that legislation does not sufficiently address sustainability, and Ecodesign requirements in the delegated acts that it will adopt cannot supersede requirements set in legislative acts (of the Council and European Parliament). The proposed regulation provides a framework for the Commission to adopt delegated acts with specific requirements for a product or group of products, following the approach of the current Ecodesign Directive. It would task the Commission with adopting a Working Plan with a list of products for which it plans to adopt such delegated acts, covering at least three years, thus providing some predictability. The Commission would have to prioritise products based on their potential contribution to the EU climate, environmental and energy objectives, and for improving the product aspects without disproportionate costs to the public and economic operators. The Commission stated that it has preliminarily identified textiles, furniture, mattresses, tyres, detergents, paints, lubricants and intermediate products like iron, steel or aluminium as suitable candidates for the first ESPR Working Plan. It expects to prepare and adopt up to 18 new delegated acts between 2024 and 2027 and 12 new delegated acts between 2028 and 2030. In its proposal, the Commission foresees budget implications, as it would need significantly more staff to implement the Ecodesign framework. It estimates that it will have to increase its dedicated staff from currently 14 to 44 in 2023 and up to 54 in 2027. In principle, each delegated act will provide: • Performance requirements that products must comply with. These are in particular Ecodesign requirements regarding durability; reliability; reusability; upgradability; reparability; possibility of maintenance and refurbishment; presence of substances of concern; energy use or energy efficiency; resource use or resource efficiency; recycled content; possibility of remanufacturing and recycling; possibility of recovery of materials; environmental impacts, including carbon and environmental footprint; and expected generation of waste materials. • Information requirements for all these sustainability aspects. Delegated acts must include requirements that will enable the tracking of all substances of concern throughout the life cycle of products, unless such tracking is already enabled by another delegated act under the ESPR. The delegated acts will also determine the modalities for making the required information available: on the product, its packaging, labels, in a user manual, on a website or in the digital product passport (DPP). They must indicate the type of data carrier to be used and how long the DPP must be available (unless a product category is exempted from using the DPP). According to the proposal, the DPP should not replace but complement non-digital forms of transmitting information. The Commission may exempt products from the requirement to have a DPP, in particular where other EU law includes a system for providing information in digital form. The Commission proposes to define substances of concern as substances that (a) meet the criteria for and have been identified as substances of very high concern (SVHC); (b) whose classification is harmonised under the CLP Regulation 1272/2008 regarding specific hazard classes; or (c) negatively affect the reuse and recycling of materials in the product. – In particular, the last alternative could lead to a lot of discussion. The proposal allows the Commission to formally recognise industry-designed selfregulation as an alternative to delegated acts (under certain conditions and following a certain procedure). Furthermore, economic operators discarding unsold consumer products would have to disclose the number of such products per year, the reasons for discarding them and information on the amount of (such) products that they have delivered to preparation for re-use, remanufacturing, recycling, energy recovery and disposal. The proposal itself would not ban this practice outright. Rather, it would empower the Commission to prohibit the destruction of certain unsold products through delegated acts. Small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) would be exempted from the transparency obligation as well as such prohibitions, unless the Commission provides otherwise, in particular to prevent circumvention by larger companies. Companies should neither expect immediately comprehensive and clear requirements from this proposal, nor dismiss it as an ‘empty shell’. Rather, they should understand it as a framework in which the future requirements for their goods may be set, and follow and get involved in the processes foreseen depending on the priority that the Commission will give to their products. Whether the proposal could make a big difference for a given business will largely depend on the combination of two aspects: • Is the company already used to the Ecodesign framework, as its products are energy-related? – Many products have an impact on energy consumption during their use. However, for some of the product categories that the Commission wants to prioritise, as well as intermediate products, the Ecodesign framework is new. • How quickly will the Commission develop and adopt the delegated acts with concrete requirements for the companies’ products? – So far, the Commission has needed many years to develop Ecodesign requirements for 31 energy-using product groups. Furthermore, even before the adoption of the proposal, they should watch out for the EU Member States in the Council and in particular the European Parliament filling what they might perceive as an empty shell with concrete requirements, even before the Commission gets to implement the process that it has proposed. For example, in a first exchange of views between the responsible committee and the Commission, multiple parliamentarians questioned why the proposal does not ban the destruction of unsold consumer products outright. The Commission has invited feedback on the proposal until 3 June. It has submitted it to the Council and European Parliament for amendment and adoption, following the ordinary legislative procedure. The Commission plans to launch a public consultation on the categories of products for the first ESPR Working Plan by the end of 2022.
Source: Nat Law Review
Textile millers lodge complaint with the central bank seeking timely payment from apparel exporters for raw materials Israq Textile Mills Limited is supposed to get payment for yarn it supplied to local exporting apparel-makers within three months, but the pay takes as long as six months, according to the miller. Managing Director of the mill Md Fazlul Hoque said 98% of his sales to local apparel exporters does not meet with timely payment. Their current payment overdue is $15 million. "We need more working capital and loans thanks to the late payments," Fazlul Hoque, also the vice-president of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), told The Business Standard. This case is not an isolated one since all the textile mills that supply apparel raw materials to local readymade garment exporters under the back-to-back letter of credit (LC) arrangement face the same problem, according to sector people. The BTMA on Sunday approached the central bank seeking a solution to the issue. In a letter sent to the Bangladesh Bank, the BTMA demanded the banks be given clear instructions to ensure payment within the stipulated time. The association also demanded interest if the payment was not settled on time. On the same day, the president of the association Mohammad Ali Khokon met the governor of the Bangladesh Bank and mentioned the issue in detail. Export-oriented garment factories – the main buyer of yarns and fabrics from local textile mills – have acknowledged the late payment, but the apparel-makers have passed the blame on foreign buyers over payment delays or non-receipt of the bill. But textile mill owners said apparel makers cannot pay late while importing yarn or clothes from abroad. Then why would they be delaying payment to local millers? Textile mills send the raw materials to export-oriented garments under the back-to-back LC. The process includes sending the proforma invoice to the garments specifying the rates and when it will be delivered. If the buyer agrees, the concerned mill delivers the raw materials through truck receipt and delivery challan. There are two types of arrangement for the raw material supplied by the mills. The first one is called "at sight condition", under which the apparel-maker will pay the bank price within five days of receiving the document after sending the goods. The second one is "the condition of deferred payment", which stipulates payment within 90 days after receiving the document. But the textile mill owners complained that the terms of payment are not being met in either case. Khorshed Alam, chairman at Little Star Spinning Mills Limited, told The Business Standard that yarn and fabric suppliers are now facing delays in payment by three to six months. In some cases, the payment is made after nine months. As a result, each mill needs about ten times more working capital than the usual, or has to continue production with loans. "In case of yarn and fabric imports from abroad, the exporter has to be paid within five days after the importer receives the bill of lading from the shipping company," he said. Mohammad Hatem, executive president of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) said, "They [textile millers] have approached the Bangladesh Bank. But who do we go to for late export bills?" "They eventually get the money, but sometimes we do not get it from foreign buyers. We did not get 15% to 20% of the payments during the pandemic." Refuting payment delays in almost 100% of the cases, Mohammad Hatem cited the example of his own factory, saying the delays might be in 15%-20% of the cases. He said apparel-makers pay the foreign textile suppliers mostly on time for the sake of the country's image. According to BTMA sources, the number of textile mills affiliated to the association is over 1,500, while the number of deemed exporters, who supply the raw materials to exportoriented factories, is about 150. In the 2020-21 fiscal year, Bangladesh's readymade garment export was about $35 billion. Apart from the late payment, the BTMA mentioned six issues in the letter to the central bank. Those include raising the limit of export development fund (EDF) for textile mills to $40 million from the existing $25 million for one year, tripling the bank loan ceiling (cash credit or back-to-back LC) and waiving interest for the pandemic period, otherwise allowing a ten-year repayment period by adjusting the interest and easing textile mills' access to the central bank's technology upgradation fund.
Source: TBS News
