INTERNATIONAL
Apparel Training & Design Centre (ATDC), Chandigarh, held an interactive session for apparel manufactures and students of local fashion institutes. The session was conducted by the ATDC Training of Trainers (TOT) Academy to showcase workshops and training programmes conducted to benefit the the apparel industry earlier. Professionals and fashion institutes participated in the interactive session. Dr Sangeeta Dewan, Associate Professor from Government Home Science College, Chandigarh, said the Apparel Training & Design Centre had brilliant ideas for training young professionals in the field of apparel and textile designing.
SOURCE: The Tribune India
The debate over a devaluation of the rupee for increasing exports has drawn attention to the behaviour of the exchange rate in recent months. The hypothesis of effecting a devaluation of the rupee for increasing the competitiveness of Indian exports assumes that the rupee has been strengthening against other major currencies or is valued more than what it should be. What does the exchange rate behaviour reveal in this regard?
Looked at on a monthly basis for the last three years, the exchange rate does reflect appreciation. The Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (NEER) of the rupee, computed by the RBI on trade-based weights for a basket of 36 countries, indicates an increase in the indices, pointing to an appreciation. However, the appreciation has been patchy and inconsistent. Beginning from August 2013, the NEER appreciated by more than 10% till March 2015. The appreciation kicked in from the early months of 2014 and can be explained by the pick-up in short-term capital inflows in anticipation of the electoral success of the NDA government. The robust pace of inflows was maintained till the early months of 2015. These inflows increased the supply of foreign currencies in the Indian economy relative to the rupee, leading to an increase in the value of the latter. Since the beginning of the last financial year, however, NEER’s appreciation has been arrested. From April 2015 to August 2016, the NEER index has reduced by around 3%. While the value of the index still remains around 6% higher than its level in August 2013, the last 15 months reflect fluctuations in the NEER, largely due to withdrawal of portfolio flows following the volatility in Chinese capital market and reallocation of capital by FIIs since middle of last year.
What is noticeable, however, is the greater appreciation in the Real Effective Exchange Rate (REER). Unlike the NEER, whose pace of appreciation slowed from April 2015 onward, the REER continued to appreciate till November 2015. Beginning from August 2013, till November 2015, the REER index increased by almost 15%. While it dipped for a few months, thereafter, it has begun increasing again since March 2016. During the last six months, while the NEER index has barely increased by only 0.05%, the REER has increased by almost 3%.
Increases in NEER can lead to similar increases in REER. But if the latter increases more than the former, then it is important to look beyond the NEER. The most plausible explanation for the REER increasing more than the NEER is that of domestic price levels in India being higher than those of countries part of the trade basket. The appreciation during the last few months can be attributed to increases in the CPI, which have significantly pushed up the REER, notwithstanding negligible increase in NEER. If the trend is maintained then further increases in REER cannot be ruled out. Moreover, the overall trend in REER for the last three years reflects a greater increase in NEER, which again points to the contribution of domestic prices, relative to other country prices.
Given the trends in NEER and REER, how effective would be a calculated devaluation of the rupee in increasing competitiveness of Indian exports? The devaluation would work opposite to increase in prices. Whether the REER would increase or decrease following the devaluation would depend on whether the decline in NEER would be more or less than the increase in domestic prices. But if inflation continues to increase, then the effect of a devaluation on the REER might be marginal, or even none. Furthermore, from a policy perspective, while the Central Bank might have a direct handle on influencing the exchange rate, it would not have similar influence over the CPI, certainly not relative to prices of other countries.
It has for long been established that devaluation, or for that matter even currency depreciation, tends to increase the competitiveness of those exports that are price-elastic in nature, and whose demand is influenced by small changes in prices. In a situation of overall low global demand for exports, there could be arguments in favour of price substitution. However, the effectiveness of the argument depends largely on the composition of India’s export basket. India’s major exports – petroleum products, pearls & semi-precious stones, gold, pharmaceuticals and readymade garments – are a mixed lot in this respect. The price-sensitivity of their demand would vary according to markets and consumer segments.
The key challenge for addressing competitiveness of Indian exports remains domestic prices. These, if stubborn, would force the REER to appreciate, notwithstanding devaluation. The challenge is further increased at a point in time when India is introducing the GST. A relatively high GST rate might be inflation-inducing. Such a situation would entail further pressure on the REER making it appreciate and eroding competitiveness of exports.
SOURCE: The Financial Express
Sharp drop in merchandise exports mainly contributed to a loss of 70,000 jobs during the second quarter of 2015 reinforcing a crucial point that the employment generation has to be led by the domestic demand in the wake of subdued global demand, an ASSOCHAM study noted. It said around 70,000 workers were retrenched in the second quarter of 2015. Livelihood opportunities in export units particularly shrank during this period. While slowdown in global demand compelled some of the units to retrench people from pay roll, the reduction was facilitated by the increasing contractualization of jobs. “There is a concern because most of the export-oriented units in the economy are dependent on contractual workers. So, massive reduction in contractual jobs in these sectors might as well imply deteriorating conditions in the export units,” added the paper.
Second quarter of 2015 particularly had been bad. While contractual jobs were lost, not adequate regular jobs were added to compensate that loss. Textile has been most affected with some new addition in regular jobs but massive drop in contractual jobs. Apart from marginal addition in jobs in leather sector, as many as seven sectors saw drastic retrenchment in both regular and contractual employment. For the first two quarters of the fiscal 2015-16, the country’s merchandise exports had dropped by over 17 percent. The fall in exports continues even this year despite advantage of a low base. Cumulative value of exports for the period April-August 2016-17 was $108519.94 million as against $111853.88 million registering a negative growth of 2.98 percent. Given the subdued global economic scenario, rejuvenating the economy by exporting or utilizing external trade remains a difficult proposition, if not immediately impossible.
“Therefore, Indian economy has to look internally at the domestic economy to restart the Indian growth story. That is only possible if there is extra demand generation within the economy. Employment generation is the most important factor to generate such extra demand. More employment means extra purchasing power in the hands of the people, and subsequently more demand generated for all kinds of commodities and services,” said ASSOCHAM Secretary General D S Rawat. The negative impact on employment generation was more visible on sectors like gems and jewellery, textiles and apparels etc.
SOURCE: The Indian Express
As the government readies plan to merge railway budget with the general budget and switch to January-December financial year, Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal today said the move will benefit the industry and exporters. “What do you think about the Railways budget merger with the general budget,” Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal asked industry bodies Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce and Calcutta Chamber of Commerce here. “We are taking these inputs as consent of yours towards the same”, he said. He also explained the benefits of the decision. The minister took feedback of the chambers on switching to January-December year instead of April-March. “Most of the countries have January-December year. And exporters will get benefit directly in their accounts maintenance,” Meghwal said. He also sought to take the pulse of the members’ on the two proposals of the Centre.
The finance ministry has also set up a committee under former Chief Economic Adviser Shankar Acharya to examine the desirability and feasibility of having a new fiscal year. The committee has been asked to submit its report by December 31. Meanwhile, Meghwal said the Finance Ministry has met RBI and has pegged inflation to be in the range of 2 per cent to 6 per cent in the next five years. “We have had a detailed discussion with RBI on the inflation issue. We have prescribed a mechanism of 4 per cent for next five years. There may be a plus, minus 2 percentage point change. We will not allow inflation to go beyond this limit,” he said.
SOURCE: The Financial Express
The Confederation of Indian Industry has called for simplification and rationalisation of inspection and regulations for the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The industry has also released a white paper on the same issue. “The government has accorded high priority to ease of doing business for Indian businesses and simplification of compliances and inspections for MSMEs would greatly enhance their efficiency and reduce their operation costs,” Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General of CII, said. CII has shared the white paper with various government departments and Ministries which says that a simplification in the inspection system is crucial for improving ease of doing business.
Pollution control
“A manufacturing company in India, on an average, has to comply with nearly 70 laws and regulations and as many as 40 inspectors and government functionaries may visit factories under an assortment of laws and acts,” the CII white paper stated. The industry body recommends that environment and pollution related compliances should be ensured by building awareness amongst MSMEs for such issues. CII suggests an encouragement of State-level labour law reforms, building of linkages between departments for sharing of information common to compliances.
SOURCE: The Hindu Business Line
FIPB will decide on 15 foreign investment proposals, including that of Idea Cellular Infrastructure Services and Sharekhan, on September 26. The 240th meeting of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) to be chaired by Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das will have 15 items on the agenda. These include investment applications of Limpkin Telecom, Perrigo API India, Flag Telecom Singapore, IBM India, BT Global Communication (Mauritius), Morgan Stanley India Primary Dealer and BNP Paribas Asset Management India. India allows FDI in most sectors through the automatic route, but in certain segments considered sensitive for the economy and security, the proposals have to be first cleared by the FIPB. The government has taken slew of measures in the recent past to boost foreign direct investment into the country. On June 20, the government had "radically liberalised" the FDI regime with the objective of providing major impetus to employment generation in India.This was the second big reform after some major changes announced in November 2015. The government has said measures undertaken by it has resulted in increased FDI inflows at $55.46 billion in 2015-16, as against $36.04 billion in 2013-14.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
A warehouse in India is usually a shed with four walls, no ventilation, no temperature controls and total lack of hygiene. According to Value Notes Strategic Consultants, a warehouse management system is essentially a man with a notebook keeping track of the inventory that comes in and leaves the premises. Lack of modern warehousing facilities has led to heavy losses. “Even today, a large part of warehousing continues to be unorganised with mostly sheds for storage. Due to the slow pace of modernisation, the industry is now facing a huge gap between demand and supply. Our estimates reveal that a deficit of 120 million sq ft exists in the sector. And this gap will continue to widen. This is mainly because demand for warehousing is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18% in the next 5 years”.
The implementation of GST is expected to change the face of the warehousing business in the country. Consolidation and modernisation of warehousing has already started gathering pace. With rising domestic and international freight movement, increasing organised retail outlets, and investments in infrastructure, modern warehousing may emerge as a sunrise industry. It has not realised its full potential as 29 states in India have been taxing goods which move across their borders and at different rates, resulting in goods being taxed multiple times. Interstate checkpoints cause long delays as the authorities review and examine the freight. These delays make trucks wait five-to-seven hours at all checkpoints. More than 65% of the freight moves by road. According to World Bank estimates, delays caused by roadblocks, checkpoints and other stoppages increases logistics costs by 30 to 40%.
According to P Sai Venkat Prasad, a Chennai based developer of logistics parks, the city is emerging as a major warehousing, logistics hub. “Small warehouses in multiple locations will slowly disappear as customers are becoming more demanding”. He feels optimistic about Chennai because it is a major consumption centre and also a port city. “You can distribute to other states from a single large warehouse from Chennai. Vessel traffic plays a major role in warehousing and distribution. The port has to deal with both imports and import ships which come from other ports have to be reloaded. There are ongoing exports (automobiles, textiles, leather to name a few) from the Chennai port. For truck operators, too, it is important to be competitive and Chennai works for them as they have two way business. Connectivity to all the highways is almost complete. Most FMCG goods are tried and tested in Chennai first, and they are distributed from here.”
Prasad’s family which was into manufacturing of PVC pipes under the brand name Trubore, sold out to the Chemplast Sanmar group in 2006. Prasad’s father and his partners decided to invest in warehouses as they had acquired a land bank of 120 acres, 34 km from Chennai on NH205 which is a good logistics point. They first built independent warehouses for Reliance and Britannia. Both companies wanted more space. “We decided to set up Sun Logistics Park which is a sustainable green technology centre. SLP has its own professional and technical teams. We are driven by our customers.” This was launched before the concept of logistics parks caught on.
The Park has dedicated as well as shared warehouses of varying sizes, to fit the customer needs. “We have some open spaces to accommodate ‘built to suit warehouses’ against specific customer requirements.” The Park, now, has customers such as Honda, Toll India, PN Writers ,Hindustan Unilever Limited and Yusen Logistics. It is a modern warehousing space with landscaped gardens ,solar lighting, all weather concrete roads, storm water drains which will avoid flooding during monsoon season and fire hydrant systems as per the individual need of the customer. Adequate toilet facilities and truck parking area has also been provided as per customer requirement. The Park has a 1,000 KVA sub-station to enable the customers to draw adequate power as and when required. “We collaborate and align to each customer’s unique logistic requirements. We work on providing realistic and cost effective designs,” says Prasad. SLP has a built up area of more than 1.1 million sq ft space for its clients.
With GST becoming a reality, the demand for larger warehouses is going to increase. The warehousing sector has remained under developed because of high entry costs. Real estate can be prohibitively expensive. Land cost varies vastly between regions leading to unequal development of warehousing across the country. “Finance for logistics and warehousing will be available now. Banks will start funding against future lease rentals. Logistic parks are now being looked at as alternative asset class. Rental income from warehouses is higher than from commercial and residential buildings. What is going to make a difference is size.” Prasad adds.
Foreign investors have also started looking at this sector seriously. Everstone Capital, an India-focused private equity funding group with $1.5 billion (about R8,300 crore) of assets under management across four funds, is understood to be aggressively looking to expand its portfolio in logistics. Investments are being made near manufacturing hubs like Oragadam in Chennai.
Is Prasad worried about completion? Not really. “We can add another 1.1 million sq feet as we have 60 more acres we can develop. Our existing clients themselves are expanding year on year,” he says.
SOURCE: The Financial Express
The government may have to re-notify parts of the Constitutional Amendment Act for Goods and Service Tax (GST) since, the way the current Act reads, the central government now probably only has the powers to levy excise duty on petroleum products and tobacco. On September 16, the government notified 19 sections of the Act. While petroleum products and tobacco were meant to be exempt from GST when it finally came into operation – and therefore subject to excise duty – changing entry 84 of the Union List with effect from September 16, 2016 implies the centre cannot levy excise duty on any other good other than petroleum and tobacco. While Article 19 of the Constitutional Amendment could offer a way out since it exempts any existing taxes on goods or services ‘in force in any State immediately before the commencement of this Act’ for a period of one year, this seems to apply only to taxes in states and not excise duty – some tax experts, however, argue that this is a matter of interpretation and can be extended to excise duties as well. According to experts, the centre can also rely on Entry 97 of List 1 to continue to levy excise duties – this reads ‘Any other matter not enumerated in List II or List III including any tax not mentioned in either of those Lists’ and, initially, service tax was brought in through this entry. The other option is to issue a clarification to say Article 17 of the Constitutional Amendment Act will not be brought into force till the GST comes into force.
SOURCE: The Financial Express
The Centre and the States are unlikely to review the structure of the Goods and Services Tax Network, whose ownership pattern, with a majority private stake, is causing disquiet in some circles, given that the company, which is building the IT infrastructure for the GST, will have access to sensitive tax data. “There is no plan to change the GSTN structure,” said a senior official. “The company was set up after three years of deliberations and was duly approved by the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers and the Union Cabinet.” The official further noted that GSTN was set up based on the recommendations of the Technology Advisory Group for Unique Projects and an empowered group for IT infrastructure for GST that was set up under the Empowered Committee. The government’s current priority, say officials, is to ensure smooth implementation of the goods and services tax from the next fiscal. GSTN Chairman Navin Kumar declined to comment on the issue, but told BusinessLine , “GSTN is a not-for-profit, non-government private limited company.”
Strategic control with govt
GSTN’s ownership structure — LIC Housing Finance has 11 per cent equity in it, while ICICI Bank, HDFC, HDFC Bank and NSE Strategic Investment Corporation have 10 per cent stake each — has come under a cloud in recent times. Sources, however, noted that though the Centre and the States, with 24.5 per cent stake each, have a collective minority stake of 49 per cent in GSTN, the Board is structured in such a way that the government will always have strategic control. Of the 14 directors on the GSTN Board, seven are government nominees: three directors are nominated by the Central government, three more are nominated by the States, and the Chairman is selected jointly by the Centre and the States.
Of the remaining seven, private shareholders can nominate three directors; three others are independent directors.The 14th director is the CEO, who emerges from an open selection process. “Private companies may have a 51 per cent stake in GSTN, but they cannot dictate terms. No Board decisions can be taken against the interest of the government,” said the source, adding that the rules also mandate that the quorum for a Board meeting requires that at least half of the government-nominated directors should be present. Another official pointed out that most large government IT projects have been given to private software firms, and GSTN was no exception, in that sense.
SOURCE: The Hindu Business Line
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, which will usher in India’s biggest indirect tax reform measure, will have a few tax slabs and levy different rates in the “ transition period” before migrating to a single tax structure. According to Arjun Ram Meghwal, Union Minister of State for Finance, the tax slabs are necessary to protect sections of the manufacturing sector, which now figure in the low tax brackets. The slab-based rates and the standard rate will be decided by the GST Council, which is expected to meet later this month. “There are industries where the present tax rates are as low as 1 or 2 per cent. “In such cases, rates cannot be at par with the standard GST one,” he said, during an interactive session organised by the MCCI Chamber of Commerce & Industry. “Similarly, luxury goods cannot be taxed at the same standard rate. Hence, we will have different tax slabs,” he added. Meghwal further assured city-based businessmen that GST will not lead to increased incidence of indirect taxation. Some goods will be exempted from taxation, but the flip side was that the cost of services may move up post-imposition. Product and location-based exemptions will also be taken up by the GST Council. “I can assure you that it (tax rate post-GST) will be not more than the present indirect taxes that you all are paying,” he clarified.
Petroproducts in GST net
Petroleum products, too, will come under GST, but at a later stage. “Economists have told us that the purpose of introducing GST will be defeated if petroleum products are outside its ambit,” Meghwal said, while addressing a meeting at the Calcutta Chamber of Commerce. Efforts will also be made to ensure that inflation does not cross 6 per cent after the implementation of GST. “We have had detailed discussions with the Reserve Bank of India on the inflation issue. The inflation target is 4 per cent for the next 5 years, with plus-minus 2 percentage point swing. We will not allow inflation to go beyond this limit,” the Minister said.
‘Bengal must pass Bill’
Meghwal also made a strong pitch for passage of the Constitution Amendment Bill in the Bengal Legislative Assembly. State Finance Minister Amit Mitrais the Chairman of the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers on GST, but ironically, his own party’s government has not put the Bill up for discussion. The Bill was inexplicably withdrawn from discussion during a special session of the Legislative Assembly, owing to “lack of time”. “The Bill is pro-industry and, ironically, Mamata Banerjee was the first one to support it. It is strange that Bengal has not yet passed the Constitution Amendment Bill,” Meghwal said. He urged the various Chambers of Commerce and other industry bodies to take up the matter with the Bengal government and ensure its passage.
SOURCE: The Hindu Business Line
Cinte Techtextil China will be staged on October 12-14, 2016 at Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC), China. Asia’s leading biennial trade fair for technical textile and nonwoven products. With the rapid growth in China market, the demand for technical textile is enormous. Cinte Techtextil China includes twelve application areas which comprehensively span the full range of potential uses of modern textile technologies. The full coverage of product groups and applications enable the fair become the tailor-made business solution for the entire industry. The 2014 show saw a record-breaking 460 exhibitors from 22 countries and regions and pavilions from Belgium, Germany, Italy and Taiwan. Exhibitors were able to extend their business beyond their booths by participating in the concurrent fringe programme, which included Innovative Showcase Area featuring the latest innovation and achievements, and Seminar Programme, where show participants could absorb new technologies via a series of educational and informative presentations. The Cinte Techtextil China is devoted to these areas and comprehensively covers the entire spectrum of their applications. That is why the exhibition is the meeting place of the industry and allows both exhibitors and visitors to establish new business connections and contacts.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
A business delegation from France would be visiting Pakistan in the first half of next year to build new partnerships in Pakistan and to strengthen the already existing business relations in various sectors of economy. Thierry Pflimlin, President Pakistan-France Business Council, who is also Vice President, Asia Pacific Region, TOTAL informed Finance Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar during a call on meeting. The Finance Minister welcomed the decision of the Business Council to visit Pakistan and assured him of full support of the Pakistan government in arranging the visit. Pflimlin informed the Finance Minister that infrastructure development, oil and gas, food processing, mining and railways were identified as prospective areas for future cooperation, according to statement received here fron Paris on Friday.
The Finance Minister offered French companies facilitation for setting up Special Economic Zone in Pakistan, to cater for local markets but also for exports to neighboring countries in the region. Later, the Finance Minister also held meetings with senior executives of the French company Veolia, which specializes in solid waste management and environment services and Vetigraph, which has expertise in latest IT and software technologies for textile and fashion industry. These companies evinced interest in doing business in Pakistan. Senator Ishaq Dar also visited the headquarters of French Federation of Energy Producers in Paris, and briefed them about various ongoing energy projects in Pakistan and scope for future investment in this important sector.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology have created a unique type of fabric that can harvest energy simultaneously from sunshine and mechanical movement. This micro-cable power textile can generate electricity using two sources and can be used for directly charging a number of portable devices such as a cell phone or an electric watch. The hybrid power fabric can be utilised in various types of cloths, tents and curtains as it is breathable, lightweight, flexible and adaptable. Researchers have found that the fabric can withstand rigorous use and they are going to carry out further tests to find out about its durability. It can charge devices using wind and solar energy, according to Zhong Lin Wang, regents professor, Georgia Tech School of Materials Science and Engineering, who is a part of the team that developed this fabric. According to the study published on Nature journal, the team of scientists used a shuttle-flying process with fibre-based triboelectric nanogenerators to weave solar cells made from lightweight polymer fibres into micro cables to create the smart fabric. The nanogenerators capture the energy created when materials get electrically charged on coming in contact with another material, while wire-shaped photoanodes that can be woven together with other fibres are responsible for harvesting solar energy. A piece of this fabric measuring 4cm by 5cm could charge a 2mF commercial capacitor up to 2V in about a minute when exposed to sunlight during a mechanical activity. Scientists are also slated to carry out research for optimising the fabric to protect its components from moisture and rain.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
US president Barack Obama has signed a proclamation reinstating Myanmar’s (formerly Burma) eligibility for benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) programme as of November 13, 2016. Since Myanmar is a least developed country (LDC), it will be able to export approximately 5,000 products to the US duty-free under this programme. The trade preference benefits were restored after the conclusion of a review of Myanmar’s compliance with the eligibility criteria under the GSP statute, including whether the country is taking steps to afford internationally-recognised worker rights. “While there is more work to be done, including to address concerns regarding human trafficking, Burma has made important progress in recent years with respect to worker rights,” said United States Trade Representative (USTR) Michael Froman. “We see Burma’s democratically-elected government giving new hope to its people, making commitments to continue implementing reforms that strengthen workers’ voices, and working to combat forced and child labour. We have partnered with Burma to support many of these reforms in the past and will continue to do so with GSP in place.”
GSP benefits to Myanmar were suspended by the US in 1989 due to worker rights concerns. In 2013, the Myanmar government requested the US to restore the trade benefits. Subsequently, the Office of the United States Trade Representative led an extensive review of Myanmar’s compliance with all of the GSP eligibility criteria, and in particular of Myanmar’s recent record of labour reforms and strengthened worker protections. Since the new democratic government took office in March 2016, senior Myanmarese government officials, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, and joined by Myanmarese business and labour leaders, have also engaged closely with the United States on labour issues to demonstrate their country’s eligibility under the statutory GSP criteria. The benefits under the GSP programme will be reinstated effective on November 13, 2016, after a 60-day Congressional-notification period. As a United Nations-listed LDC, whose per capita income is at $1,280, the second-lowest in East and Southeast Asia, Myanmar will be able to export approximately 5,000 products to the United States duty-free. “Regaining GSP trade benefits will spur economic development, generating opportunities for exports that create jobs and help reduce poverty in the formerly-closed economy,” the USTR said in a statement.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
China's potential economic growth rate in the next five years is expected to be in the range of 6.5-6.6 percent as long as China continues to advance structural reform to unleash growth impetus, according to a leading university research paper. Besides reshaping the relationship between the market and the government, structural reform should focus on the financial sector and factor market, strengthening product standards, market supervision and establishing a national innovation system, said Liu Fengliang, professor with the Economic School of Renmin University of China, the major compiler of the report. Innovation-driven development should be the core of China's new growth impetus, said Liu, adding that private investment in equipment, modern agriculture, upgraded manufacturing and high-quality opening-up will all be major sources of new growth impetus.
China's economic growth held steady at 6.7 percent in the second quarter, the lowest level since the 2009 global financial crisis but still within the government's target range of 6.5-7 percent for 2016. Amid downward economic pressure, China has resisted the temptation of temporary fixes like aggressive monetary easing. Instead, it chose structural reform as the tool to put the economy on a more sustainable path. To push supply-side structural reform, the country prioritized the tackling of industrial overcapacity, reduction of housing inventories, deleveraging to defuse financial risks and lowering companies' financing costs.
SOURCE: The Global Textiles
