NATIONAL
The contribution of the textile industry to the country’s GDP is projected to double to 5 per cent from the current 2.3 per cent by the end of this decade, according to a recent report by CII and Primus Partners. Further, the Gross Value Added (GVA) is expected to see a consistent growth rate of 9 per cent during the period 2021 - 2028, the report said. “India, the fifth largest economy globally, has a share of just about 5% of the international trade in textiles and apparel. The Indian textile industry has a vast potential waiting to be explored, which demands an integrated approach simultaneously focusing on greater value addition, enhanced competitiveness and sustainable industry practices,” said Dr Praveen Sinha, chairman, CII western region and CEO and MD, Tata Power Company. The report said that the Indian textile industry is expected to achieve the 250 billion dollar milestone by 2030, along with textile and apparel exports expected to increase to USD 65 billion by FY 2026. In terms of segments, the report stated that technical textiles are expected to record a projected CAGR of 15 per cent. The study also highlighted the key roadblocks hampering industry growth, including a highly fragmented supply chain, the need for quality training programs, and overreliance on labour-intensive technologies. Sharing a way forward, the report said, digital technologies, regular upgrades, and blockchain-based supply chain traceability along with collaborations with e-commerce platforms, including ONDC, will play a pivotal role in achieving industry goals.
Source: The Retail.economictimes.indiatimes.com
The Ministry of Textiles by drawing inspiration from Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi’s vision to institutionalize Swachhata and minimize pendency in Government, launched a SpecialCampaign 3.0 from 2nd October to 31st October 2023 with special impetus on disposal of pendency. The drive started with the Preparatory Phase of the Special Campaign 3.0 from 15th September to 30th September 2023, wherein the Ministry identified the pending references from MPs/State Government/ PMO, Public Grievances/Public Grievance Appeals, Parliament Assurances, Files, both physical and electronic, for review and finalization of the cleanliness campaign sites. In the implementation phase of Special Campaign 3.0, a special drive was organized in the Ministry (Headquarter), O/o Development Commissioner (Handicrafts/Handlooms), all PSUs education institutions and field offices under Ministry of Textiles from 2nd October, 2023 to 31st October, 2023 with focus on Swachhata and Reducing Pendency in Government Offices with a focused approach. There was emphasis on field/outstation offices, manly engaged for service delivery and having public interface.
Source: India Education Diary
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said that in the medium term, global economic growth prospects have weakened further as the recovery has been slow and uneven. Addressing a webinar on 'Strong Sustainable Balanced and Inclusive Growth' here, she said,"Since the pandemic, the global economy has been grappling with multiple crises, adversely affecting global growth. While the recovery is underway, it remains slow and uneven. The current pace of global growth remains quite weak, well below the 3.8 per cent average in the two decades before the pandemic and looking ahead over the medium term, growth prospects have weakened further." Policy coordination, both global as well as domestic, is critical to ensure that growth comes back on track and remains strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive, she added. To this effect, she added that the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration (NDLD) underscores the urgency of implementing well-calibrated macroeconomic and structural policies to bolster equitable growth and enhance macroeconomic and financial stability. "Under our Presidency, the G20 placed close attention to integrating MSMEs into international trade. MSMEs account for 90 per cent of businesses, 60 to 70 per cent of employment and 50 per cent of GDP worldwide. They play a key role in sustaining livelihoods, in particular among the working poor, women, youth, and groups in vulnerable situations," Sitharaman added further. However, MSMEs, particularly in developing nations, often struggle with limited access to information, hindering their international trade involvement. To help address this challenge, the NDLD welcomed the Jaipur Call for Action which aims at promoting the MSME sector as well as bridging information gaps for MSMEs to help them expand their business and trade. "Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the manner in which it has revolutionised the financial inclusion landscape has been lauded globally. India has been at the forefront of this revolution, and India’s own growth story has gained significant momentum through DPI. They also play a crucial part in G2P payments, ensuring targetted, transparent payments and promoting the inclusion of vulnerable groups such as women, students, and the elderly," the finance minister said. Drawing inspiration from India's successful implementation of the India Stack, the G20 policy recommendations for advancing financial inclusion through DPI were endorsed in the NDLD, she added."As I reflect on the last one year, I believe we have delivered a G20 Presidency that has provided clear policy directions for addressing the needs of the majority of the global population whose voices are often unheard in global multilateral forums. However, we still have work left to do," Sitharaman concluded.
Source: Morung Express
The Global Trade Helpdesk (GTH) has made its databases and other trade-relevant information easier to access by providing a single point of entry to users and is now seeking cooperation of other countries to make it more real time. Global Trade Helpdesk (GTH) is implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC), a multilateral agency that has a joint mandate of World Trade Organisation (WTO) and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The ITC has been around since 1964 and its GTH has been a single point source of trade related information – market opportunities, statistics, price information and regulation. It compiles information from 200 economies, agencies like World Bank, World Trade Organisation and United National Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), 14 different global databases and 11 partner providers. The information available on that platform is quite technical and the Jaipur Call for Action agreed at the G-20 Trade and Investment Ministerial Meeting in August called for making it more user friendly for small and medium businesses. “So we created a freely accessible platform that centralises information through a single digital entry point. The best is to come. Emerging technologies are changing the way we interact with data and complex information into clear and actionable fragments,” Director-International Trade Centre Mondher Mimouni said. “Together we can revolutionise how quickly and easily the MSMEs access the information,” he said at a seminar organised by ministries of finance, commerce and industry and labour. The information through the global trade helpdesk can help level the playing field for small businesses. “Without information or deficiency of information we are excluding many small and developing countries. They keep exporting to traditional markets without getting an opportunity to diversify their economy and move up the value chain,” Mimouni said. Help is needed from all the countries to enhance the functionalities of the helpdesk by getting data from them in a more user-friendly format for greater transparency and upgrading the tools, he added. “In some other instances we are moving to real time information. We are doing this with some countries. Our dream is to expand it to all countries. Technology is there, we need to move with partners.” At the domestic level, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has also started looking at the possibility of having a meta information portal that brings together information from diverse sources.
Source: Financial Express
India is looking at ways such as free trade agreements to enable domestic MSMEs to participate in public procurement of different countries, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said on Monday. He said that 10-15 per cent of the GDP of any country accounts for public procurement, which could be around $10-15 trillion in value terms. Several countries give preference to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in their public procurement. “In fact, there are various ways by which countries promote MSMEs, we also promote them in India in the sense that we give them special purchase preference. “As more and more FTAs (free trade agreements) are getting signed...we are also looking at...how MSMEs...can have access to public procurement of different countries, so (that) Indian companies may get an opportunity... MSMEs from other countries can get access to our portal,” Barthwal said here at an event. Under the India-UAE free trade pact, government procurement contracts worth over Rs 200 crore are open to UAE-based firms on the same terms as Indian firms. The government procurement chapter is also under negotiations in the proposed India-UK trade pact. The secretary also said that integration of MSMEs in the global supply chains would be important for global trade. Further, he said, “70 per cent of global trade happens through these chains...so a lot of opportunities are there.” Meanwhile, speaking at the event, Director-International Trade Centre (ITC) Mondher Mimouni said that the Global Trade Helpdesk (GTH) has made its databases and other trade-related information easier to access by providing a single point of entry to users. Originally created by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1964, ITC has operated since 1968 under the joint aegis of GATT/WTO and the United Nations. ITC is the focal point in the United Nations system for technical cooperation with developing countries and economies in transition, on trade promotion and export development. The GTH is a joint initiative of ITC, UNCTAD and the WTO and it streamlines market research for companies, with a focus on supporting MSMEs. This online portal is a one-stop-shop for trade information, covering trade flows, market access requirements, export potential, customs, sustainability standards, technical barriers to trade, rules of origin and more. The initiative is expanding, including through technological upgrades of the platform and multilingual options, as requested by the G20, to enhance MSME access.
Source: Millennium post
INTERNATIONAL
Last week, in partnership with Worldly, the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) launched the Higg Facility Environmental Module (FEM) 4.0 tool. This update marks an industry milestone in sustainability reporting to meet pressing environmental issues and industry standards, positioning Higg FEM 4.0, part of the Higg Index suite of tools, as the most applicable and leading assessment for environmental performance in the consumer goods industry. Enabling more accurate reporting As well as offering improved and more streamlined usability, Higg FEM 4.0 delivers better data quality. Featuring a new anomaly detector designed to flag inconsistencies, Higg FEM 4.0 provides more accurate reporting, ultimately enabling a more accurate environmental assessment of the industry. Broader coverage of critical environmental issues The tool also offers a deeper look at key environmental issues such as groundwater and soil contamination to help the industry make improvements at a global scale on critical issues. The new tool aligns with key global standards – including the GHG Protocol, the SBTi, and ZDHC Roadmap to Zero – to drive emissions reductions and reduce duplicative reporting. Additionally, Higg FEM 4.0 includes targeted questions that are more relevant to a facility’s processes, weeding out questions that are irrelevant. Jeremy Lardeau, VP of the SAC Higg Index says, “Higg FEM 4.0 will bring impactful and necessary changes – from improved data quality to alignment with relevant industry standards, the updated tool offers a wide range of benefits to ultimately reshape how sustainable decisions are made along the supply chain.” Industry led update Higg FEM 4.0 was built on member and stakeholder feedback collected over the past two years It reflects the input of over 140 representatives across 12 Member Expert Teams (METs), including 62 representing manufacturers, 57 representing brands/retailers, 10 service providers, and five representing affiliate members. The METs, the FEM Strategic Council, partner organizations, and members all provided insights and feedback. The insights collected helped to shape the FEM framework, scoring methodology, question content, and more to build a tool that meets relevant industry standards and protocol. Additionally, Higg FEM 4.0 was tested by over 400 users who provided feedback within the platform. The SAC is excited for end users and stakeholders to experience the widespread benefits of Higg FEM 4.0, and empower them to identify, prioritize and scale sustainability efforts. Jimmy Summers, Vice President of Environmental, Health, Safety & Sustainability, at Elevate Textiles: “Elevate Textiles is looking forward to the release of Higg FEM 4.0. Higg FEM is an essential part of transparently sharing our verified sustainability metrics and progress with our customers. We also use Higg FEM as a foundational element of our overall sustainability program to ensure that all of our facilities around the world are meeting our expectations and improving their performance towards our facility-level and corporate goals and targets, including our Science-Based Targets for GHG reductions. We actively participated in the Higg FEM 4.0 pilot and are now prepared to ‘raise the bar’ with this more rigorous and beneficial version.” Alan Chin, Senior Manager, Supply Chain Sustainability, at VF Corporation: “At VF, the Higg FEM assessment enables the company and our brands to measure key Scope 3 supplier-related impacts. VF teams, along with the SAC staff, engage directly with our vendor partners to assess and improve supplier carbon emissions. We are excited about the enhanced ability of the updated Higg FEM 4.0 to deliver actionable data and insights, enabling VF to support impact reductions across our global supply chain.” James Schaffer, Worldly’s Chief Strategy Officer: “Higg FEM 4.0 is a game changer. In an industry with rapid change in impact reporting and regulation disclosure requirements, Higg FEM 4.0 directly addresses the current sustainability challenges and future needs businesses are facing. We’re proud to host this leading environmental assessment on the Worldly platform and provide businesses the impact intelligence they need. With new customized user experiences for facilities, Higg FEM 4.0 is an assessment tailored to facilities that gives brands visibility into the nuanced impact of their supply chain partners, so together they can identify hotspots and effectively improve their environmental footprint.” Kyle Chung, Senior Manager – Sustainability, at Crystal International: “Crystal International’s sustainability efforts are strengthened by industry tools like Higg FEM to enhance environmental performance. Collaborating with our supplier network to leverage Higg FEM data and insights, we can make informed decisions to drive sustainability advancement across our operations and value chain. With the launch of the updated tool, we are better equipped to address the industry’s most pressing issues.”
Source: Tecoya Trend
Korea Importers Association (KOIMA) and the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to strengthen trade relations between the two countries, a spokesperson for the Korean Embassy in Dhaka said on Monday. According to the data of Korea International Trade Association, the bilateral trade volume in 2022 stood at USD 3.035 billion, registering an increase of 38.71 per cent from last year's USD 2.188 billion. The MoU signed on Sunday aims to expand bilateral trade between Korea and Bangladesh while diversifying and stabilising global supply chains and strengthening partnership, he added. The two-way bilateral trade has exceeded $3 billion for the first time, which is a testament to the robust economic ties between the two countries. This MoU between KOIMA and FBCCI is expected to play a significant role in enhancing two-way bilateral trade and investment in the future, said Tapan Kanti Ghosh, Senior Secretary, Ministry of Commerce, who was present in the signing ceremony. South Korean Ambassador Park Young-sik said the year 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Bangladesh. "The year will also mark a significant turning point in the bilateral trade between the two countries by overcoming the challenges of COVID-19 pandemic and global economic challenges stemming from the Russian-Ukrainian war," said the ambassador. He also hoped that the Bangladeshi business sector would take advantage of Korea's preferential trade policy, which has provided duty-free and quota-free access to the Korean market for 95 per cent of Bangladeshi products since 2008. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Bangladesh, a high-level delegation from the Korea Importers Association (KOIMA) visited Dhaka from November 5 to 6. Korea and Bangladesh have strengthened cooperation in various fields such as trade, investment, development and people-to-people exchanges. Korea is currently the fifth largest contributor of foreign direct investment (FDI) to Bangladesh, with the most notable recent investment being the expansion of manufacturing industries in automobiles, mobile phones and electronics. Companies such as Samsung Electronics and Hyundai have established a strong presence in Bangladesh, creating quality employment opportunities through domestic manufacturing.
Source: The Financial Express
Global apparel sourcing landscape this year has been changing due to the sluggish demand as global brands and retailers are pushing for higher sourcing from China and lower from Bangladesh. The inspection-and auditdemands by western apparel buyers in Bangladesh have witnessed a 10-percent decline year-on-year (YoY) during January to September period of 2023 while it increased by 14 percent in case of China, first of its kind since 2019, according to a latest report.
Source: Apparel views
Industry experts and analysts have projected that cotton prices will decline in the current quarter but increase in 2024, particularly from the second quarter onwards. This is due to a projected 5 million bale decrease in global cotton production for the October 2023-September 2024 season, with China, the US, Australia, and India being affected. However, the textiles industry is not expected to be significantly impacted as it is shifting towards alternatives such as synthetic and blended fibers. The lower cotton production is unlikely to cause a shortage as carryover stocks from the previous season will help overcome any shortfall. The move towards synthetic fibers is being driven by higher prices of cotton and advancements in technology that make synthetic fibers more functional. Despite the lower production, the average price forecast for 2023 has been lowered to 84 US cents a pound, while the average annual price forecast for 2024 is maintained at 88 cents, representing a year-on-year increase of 4.1%.
Source: The Eznews.in
Bangladesh today not only continues striving hard to innovate apparel items that fetch greater revenues, but also looks at diversifying its export industry by foraying into special engineered products like suits, jackets, lingerie, fine-knitted sweaters and dresses and technical textiles that help the nation achieve its export target of US $ 80 billion by 2030. In FY ’23 that ended on 30th June 2023, Bangladesh clocked its highest-ever apparel export revenues valuing US $ 47 billion, noting 10.27 per cent Y-o-Y growth – though some may argue that the growth is because of Taka depreciation! Whatever the take, the road is not easy at all for Bangladesh’s entrepreneurs, especially at this time of global economic slowdown and uncertainties that may pose some long-term challenges for the factories to overcome. Share in key markets decreasing, non-traditional destinations becoming key During FY ’23, EU continued to be the largest apparel export destination for Bangladesh with US $ 23.52 billion, however EU’s share in the country’s overall apparel exports decreased to 50.07 per cent as compared to 50.82 per cent in FY ’21. The second largest market USA also fell by 5.51 per cent in its apparel imports from Bangladesh during FY ’23, valuing US $ 8.51 billion as against US $ 9 billion a year before! Markedly, USA’s share too decreased to 18.12 per cent in FY ’23 as compared to 18.90 per cent in FY ’21 and 21.15 per cent in FY ’22. On one hand, the share of traditional export destinations is found declining, and on the other hand, emerging and non-traditional markets are proving to be a saviour for Bangladesh’s apparel factories. Of total apparel exports from Bangladesh in FY ’23, non-traditional countries contributed US $ 9.93 billion, noting 29 per cent Y-o-Y growth. Interestingly, the market share also increased to 21.12 per cent from 18.07 per cent in FY ’22. Summarising the data, it is quite obvious that non-traditional markets are becoming key factors for Bangladesh’s RMG industry to inch closer to the country’s export target while traditional countries will continue to play pivotal role.“Bangladesh’ position in non-traditional markets such as India, China, Australia amongst many others is strengthening rapidly. From less than 7 per cent share in non-traditional markets in 2010 to over 21 per cent market share in FY ’23, we have come a long way. We have recently interacted with a lot of buyers from middle-east countries as well. Interestingly, they have shown keen interest in working with Bangladeshi factories,” commented Faruque Hassan, President, BGMEA in an exclusive conversation with Team Apparel Resources. AHM Ahsan, Vice-Chairman and CEO of Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Bangladesh also resonated the same as he mentioned, “We have been observing a shift in destination markets. We were previously heavily reliant on Europe and North America, but now we are experiencing more than 25 per cent – 30 per cent growth in non-traditional markets due to an increase in orders from these countries.”The factories such as Dressmen Ltd., amongst others strongly endorse the need for market diversification to increase share in the global market. Dressmen has shifted its focus away from the European market following the Ukraine-Russia war due to increased unpredictability amongst European retailers. Instead, the company has explored and successfully penetrated the Indian market, positioning itself as one of the first Bangladeshi factories to do so. Additionally, it is exploring opportunities in the Middle East, particularly UAE, as part of its strategy to expand into non-traditional markets. “The role of the USA as well as non-traditional countries is vital for our future growth. We are striving hard to make visible footprints in UAE, while strengthening our presence in India,” asserted Maashed Rumman Abdullah, Director, Dressmen Ltd.Factories align themselves with the country’s goal; focusing on products that fetch greater revenues According to the government officials, a well-defined roadmap has been created to achieve the target and the capacity expansions that the country is witnessing will also become fully operational in next couple of years which will further help them boost exports. The country has also seen a rise in input prices, which has led to an increase in output prices. As a result, the factories are witnessing growth in terms of value, although there has not been much growth in terms of quantity. The lower demand in Europe and the USA has also affected the industry’s growth. Additionally, some companies have shifted to producing higher value-added products that were previously being sourced by buyers at US $ 7-8 per unit but now the companies are getting around US $ 10 per unit!As per Helal Uddin Ahmed, Chairman of Fashion Flash Limited (FFL), a specialist in high-end denim and woven garments, manufacturing jackets and high-fashion jeans with thicker fabrics – especially denim and heavy twill – fetch greater export revenues for the company. “We are now venturing into MMF-based garments too as some products have never been made by Bangladesh and FFL wants to make its space in quality jackets made by using high-quality yarns – blended, MMF, etc., because normal jackets, padded jackets and fur jackets have already been here since long,” commented Helal Uddin Ahmed.Venturing into MMF-based garments is now being normalised by Bangladesh’s factories to increase share in the global apparel markets. The country is still shipping cotton-made apparels in majority that is around 75 per cent of its overall garment shipment, whereas the global share of cotton-based apparel is just around 25 per cent! However, in non-cotton fibre such as MMF, there is huge opportunity and the focus of factories is shifting there. By further breaking the data, it is found that Bangladesh currently holds 9 per cent share in global apparel export market, with the global share of cotton apparel being around 16 per cent and the share of MMF apparel being less than 5 per cent. Achieving the target of US $ 80 billion within a defined period is feasible if Bangladesh increases its share of cotton-based apparel to 20 per cent (from 16 per cent) and MMF-based apparel to 12 per cent (from 5 per cent), as suggested by the largest denim apparel factory in the country, Pacific Jeans Ltd. This strategy seems to be a critical factor to consider as, out of hundreds of items that Bangladesh is producing, around 80 per cent of revenue, is shared by only five categories – trousers, sweaters, shirts and blouses, T-shirts and underwear. In FY ’23, the country shipped US $ 47 billion worth of apparel and these five products collectively contributed US $ 37.70 billion in that!We know we need to work to increase share of other products too and the factories, including us, have now started producing MMF-based apparel such as lingerie, sportswear and activewear/athleisure and nowadays, many new investments are entering into these segments,” commented Akib Rahman, Director, HAMS Group. He, further shared that Victoria Intimate – a sister concern of HAMS Group which produces lingerie and intimate garments – has expanded its capacity as buyers are now demanding innovative lingerie products.HAMS Group is also eyeing to have another 64 lines in its woven unit wherein it would make denim jackets, padded jackets and other similar high-end garments that fetch greater unit prices. However, on the contrary, one solution may not be everybody’s solution. Dressmen Ltd., recognises the need to consolidate its strengths and capitalise on its expertise rather than moving towards MMF-garments. Maintaining a deliberate approach to expansion, Dressmen is currently focusing on enhancing capacity only for value-added products instead of pursuing massive growth. Notably, it highlights the doubling of production capacity for wrinkle-free women’s shirts, targeting high-end customers transitioning from China to Bangladesh. Addressing the industry’s ambitious US $ 80 billion export target, Maashed urges a careful consideration of associated costs and profitability. Rather than solely focusing on achieving higher export figures, industry stakeholders should advocate prioritising profitability by targeting a more attainable export goal. “Even if Bangladesh is trying to increase its revenues in MMF-based products, I look at the entire situation from Dressmen’s point of view. We are capitalising on our strength which is value-added woven products,” informed Maashed. Cross-border trade and collaboration with online brands pave way for factories Furthermore, the factories in Bangladesh have been successful in establishing partnerships with online brands like ASOS, Boohoo and Myntra, aiming to diversify the customer base and reduce dependency on a single channel. This diversification strategy was prompted by the Covid pandemic, which served as a wake-up call for two important aspects: product diversification and the inclusion of online retail. Consequently, the factories adapted to the changing market demands by repurposing their production lines to manufacture various value-added items such as premium denim bottoms, jackets, swim shorts, loungewear etc.“This approach allowed other factories as well as us to mitigate the adverse effects of the decline in the demand of few product categories. Furthermore, by expanding our reach to encompass online brands, we have fostered ongoing business relationships with a diverse range of customers,” commented Rayeed Chowdhury, Director, Evinc e Textiles.Even BGMEA President Faruque Hassan strongly feels that there is a need for ‘e-commerce marketplace’ that can help the country conduct cross-border business and increase visibility on global online retailing. “Right now, we can’t sell our products to Alibaba, eBay and other global e-commerce channels from Bangladesh but we are looking at the possibility to develop a marketplace for ‘Made in Bangladesh’ products that can be sold globally,” mentioned Faruque.
Source: Apparel Resources
