The commerce ministry has set up a task force to identify and resolve trade barriers being faced by exporters in other countries, a move which would help provide greater market access to domestic goods, an official said. The development assumes significance as many times India's exports suffer from these barriers such as time taking prior registration requirements and unreasonable domestic standards/rules in many countries. “We have constituted a task force within the ministry where we will be looking at the trade barriers, and technical barriers. The ministry has been focusing on how to improve systems, and improve standards," the official said. The ministry is also looking at improving mutual recognition agreements (MRAs) with different countries so that product standards are as per the requirements of the importing countries. Standards for goods and services should help in promoting global trade and not act as non-tariff barriers, the official added. According to a report of the economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), India needs to act in a fast-track manner for removal of non-trade barriers (NTBs), being faced by domestic exporters in different countries like the US, China and Japan, to achieve one trillion dollar outbound shipment target for goods by 2030. It has asked for upgrading domestic systems, in cases where Indian products are rejected due to quality issues; and retaliating if unreasonable standards or rules continue to obstruct exports from New Delhi. Key Indian exports that routinely face high barriers include chillies, tea, basmati rice, milk, poultry, bovine meat, fish, chemicals products to EU; sesame seed, black tiger shrimps, medicines, apparels to Japan; food, meat, fish, dairy, industrial products to China; shrimps to the US; and bovine meat to South Korea, the report has said. According to the report, the other products which face these barriers include ceramic tiles in Egypt; chili in Mexico; medicines in Argentina; microbiological reagents in Saudi Arabia; electrical, medical devices, household appliances in Brazil; veterinary pharmaceuticals, feed additives, Machinery in Russia.
Source: Business Standard
Over 3,500 exhibitors and more than 3,000 overseas buyers are expected to participate in Bharat Tex 2024 -- a global textile expo to be held here from February 26-29, a senior official said on Tuesday. The expo is expected to bring together stakeholders across the textile value chain, including government and industry representatives, Secretary in the Ministry of Textiles Rachna Shah said. The mega event will provide a unique opportunity to India to showcase itself as a global sourcing and investment destination. "We expect participation of over 3,500 exhibitors from India and abroad, more than 3,000 overseas buyers and 40,000 business visitors at the Bharat Tex Expo, along with participation of policymakers, government representatives from India and abroad, the industry and buyers," she said. Elaborating on the various initiatives of the Ministry of Textiles, Shah said a "Centre of Sustainable Fashion Technology" is proposed to be established to promote capacity building and research in sustainability. The textiles secretary said the findings and recommendations of the INDIA size initiative have been finalised and it should soon be launched formally, which will pave the way for the Indian industry to work on making standard sizes tailored to suit the Indian body types."This is a very extensive study that's been carried out for sizing in the Indian market. The findings and recommendations have been finalised and shortly we will hopefully be able to make a formal launch so that the Indian Industry can start working on the size to make apparel garments more suited to the Indian population," Shah said, while addressing a press conference here. She said the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) will introduce a five-year integrated Masters Programme titled "Crafting Luxury; Restoration and Curation of Textiles and Fashion; Event and Experience Design" from the 2024-25 academic session in select campuses. "An integrated masters programme is being introduced from this year on luxury on restoration of textiles and fashion. The duration of the course will be five years and it will cover the Bachelors and Masters. NIFT currently offers 4 years Bachelors degree programmes and a two-year Masters degree," Shah said. She said the process of forming a special purpose vehicle between the Centre and the states, where the parks are being established, is currently underway. "Almost 3 lakh jobs in each park are likely to be created and about Rs 10,000 crore of investment in each park with focus on cutting edge technology and ease of doing business," Shah said. On the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) for Man Made Fibre (MMF) and Apparel, she said 64 companies are participating in the scheme, of which 30 firms have made considerable progress and expect to begin production from this year. "It is estimated that over a period of five years, the PLI scheme for textiles will lead to fresh investment of more than Rs 19,000 crore, cumulative turnover of over Rs 3 lakh crore will be achieved and will create additional employment opportunities of more than 7.5 lakh jobs in this sector and several lakhs more for supporting activities "The textiles industry predominantly employs women, therefore, the scheme will empower women and increase their participation in formal economy," the Textiles Ministry had said earlier.
Source: Business Standard
The next round of talks for the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the UK will start here from Wednesday to resolve remaining issues and conclude the negotiations, an official said. The 13th round of negotiations for the proposed pact was held between September 18 and December 15. "The UK and India will continue to negotiate towards a comprehensive and ambitious FTA. The 14th round of negotiations will take place here from Wednesday," the official said. These negotiations would focus on complex issues in the areas of goods, services, and investment. Issues that are pending include duty cuts on electric vehicles, whiskey, and the movement of professionals. Talks are also progressing on the proposed Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT). India and the UK launched the talks for an FTA in January 2022 with a view to boost economic ties between the two nations. There are 26 chapters in the agreement, which include goods, services, investments and intellectual property rights. The Indian industry is demanding greater access for its skilled professionals from sectors like IT, and healthcare in the UK market, besides market access for the bilateral trade between India and the UK increased to USD 20.36 billion in 2022-23 from USD 17.5 billion in 2021-22.
Source: Economic Times
Indian exporters are yet to see any large-scale rejection of export consignments or demand to re-negotiate contracts as a result of the Red Sea blockade, but are increasingly worried that any inordinate delay in the resolution of the crisis might seriously jeopardise their business. Exporters of textiles and apparel have already started witnessing an increase in transit time in some cases, and rise in freight, but still has the buyers’ confidence intact. In most cases, it is the buyer who pays for transport, sources from the exporting community say. Sensing delays, some of the buyers are opting to take cargo by air specially of seasonal fashion items because any delay will mean missed sales, managing director of Joyti Apparels and past chairman of Apparel Export Promotion Council said. Some buyers from US, Canada and Mexico have opted to take delivery by sea. According to exporters the use of longer routes via Cape of Good Hope in Africa to avoid the Red Sea and Suez will add 14 days to the travel time and higher freight. Rates to Europe and US for a 20-feet container have increased by an average of $1500 from $500 billion since the crisis erupted, managing director of Corona Steel Industries Arun Kumar Garodia said.The freight rates, however, are still nowhere near what they were during Covid 19 peak when a 40 feet container to US was hired for $18,000 to $20,000, CEO of Arvind Footwear R K Jalan said. The peak of shipping rates was scaled in September 2021. Since then they have been in retreat till the merchant shipping came under fire. Japan said prior to attacks on merchant shipping in the Red Sea prices of 40-foot containers were $1400-1800 but now they have risen to $2400 to $2600. The increase in insurance costs for sea freight has also not seen a big jump. Ships are still taking the Red Sea route and crossing the Suez Canal only a few some shipping lines are completely avoiding the route. According to data 12% of the global trade passes through Suez.
Source: Financial Express
New Delhi: India is pitching for greater market access for its textiles sector as part of the free trade deals, which are under negotiations with countries like the United Kingdom and Oman, Textiles Secretary Rachna Shah said on Tuesday. ADVERTISEMENT “Textiles would be one of our major interests in getting more concessional access,” Shah told reporters. India is negotiating free trade deals with several countries including the United Kingdom, Oman and the European Union. Also Read: EV sales jump by 49% in India, 15.29 lakh units sold in 2023: FADA Shah said India’s textiles exports have been impacted in the current fiscal due to poor demands in the US and European countries. “While we are continuing to strengthen our ties with these markets we are also looking at other markets,” she said According to Shah, the other markets where India is pushing its textiles exports include Australia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Japan. India has already signed free trade pacts with these countries. Shah said the government targets to boost textiles production through the initiatives like production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme and PM Mega Integrated Textile Regions and Apparel (PM-MITRA) parks. Under the PM-MITRA scheme, seven mega textiles clusters are proposed to be set up in as many states – Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. Talking to DH, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Textiles Rohit Kansal said land acquisition work for almost all the seven proposed textiles parks has been completed. In Karnataka, the textiles park will be set up in Kalaburagi district. The state government has allocated 1000 acres of land for the textiles park near Ferozabad at Kalaburagi-Jewargi Road in Kalaburagi district. “This year we will have significant progress,” said Kansal, adding the process of forming special purpose vehicles (SPV) is underway that would take up the infrastructure development work at the mega parks. Each park will be led by a SPV created for this purpose. The SPVs will be a joint venture between the centre and the respective state governments. States will control the majority 51% stake in the SPV, while the centre will own the remaining 49% stake. Kansal said MoUs worth over Rs 13,000 crore have been signed with different companies for development of the mega parks. “Through PM-MITRA park we are hoping to integrate the entire value chain. That will help reduce logistics costs and we will be able to set up integrated units,” said textiles secretary Shah. She said under the scheme the central government will provide Rs 500 crore financial support for development of required infrastructure at each park. Additional Rs 300 crore will be provided as incentives to companies who set up their units in the early stage. The mega parks are expected to enhance the competitiveness of the textiles industry by helping it achieve economies of scale as well as attract global players to manufacture in India, she added.
Source: Deccanherald
A few industrial groups in Tiruppur have planned investments in textile related activities and in energy sectors. A couple of companies signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at the Global Investors’ Meet (GIM) held recently in Chennai. A couple of companies signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at the Global Investors’ Meet (GIM) held recently in Chennai. The Ramraj Group signed an MoU with the Tamil Nadu government at the GIM 2024 to invest ₹1,000 crores over the next five years. Founder and Chairman of Ramraj Cotton K.R. Nagarajan told The Hindu that the group plans to invest ₹200 crores a year to set up textile processing, weaving and spinning units. At the end of five years, the investment will create 5,000 jobs. “We make several products. The investments will be spread across different districts based on the strong textile activity in that district. We are creating capacities across the textile supply chain. Works have commenced for some of the projects,” he said. According to A. Sakthivel, chairman of the Poppys Group, it will set up a grain-based ethanol plant at Cheyyar at an outlay of ₹ 300 crores, providing direct and indirect employment to 500 people. The group signed an MoU with the Tamil Nadu government at the recently-concluded GIM. The plant will have a capacity to produce 200 kilo litres of ethanol a day. The grains will be sourced from other States too. It was decided to locate the plant at Cheyyar for easy access to the oil marketing companies. The plant is expected to be commissioned by mid-2025, he said. Jeyavishnu Clothing, which is part of KM Knitwear Group, is investing ₹330 crores in textile spinning and processing segments. Almost 90 % of the works are over and when commissioned, the project will generate over 2,500 jobs, said K.M. Subramanian, founder and chairman of the group. Similarly, SCM Garments is investing ₹500 crores over five years, generating 9,300 jobs. It will set up new garment factories, install solar and wind energy plants, and expand its existing garment factories. These facilities will be at Tiruppur, Coimbatore, Erode, Karur, and Tiruchi.
Source:: The Hindu
Synopsis Named 'Samay', the app will capture all the pending orders across levels from adjudicating officer to the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (Cestat) to High Courts, and reflect the pendency of review orders that are either under process at various levels or awaiting processing at the commissionerate level. The initiative will greatly reduce the litigation time, CBIC officials said. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) will roll out an app to alert officials about timely disposition of tax appeals by tracking all cases under the litigation process, officials said. Named 'Samay', the app will capture all the pending orders across levels from adjudicating officer to the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (Cestat) to High Courts, and reflect the pendency of review orders that are either under process at various levels or awaiting processing at the end.
Source: Economic Times
The last time the local unit traded below the 83 mark against the US dollar was on December 18 last year, when it hit 82.19 during intraday deals The Local Currency Opened Lower And Hit An Intraday Low Of Rs. 83.18 Per Dollar In The Early Trade. Traders Now Eye U.S. Consumer Inflation Data Due To Be Released On Thursday The rupee breached the crucial 83-mark on Wednesday to settle at 83.04 against the US dollar on the back of robust foreign inflows. The Indian currency appreciated to 82.97 against the greenback during the day. It, however, gave up some of its gains by the end of the trade as state-owned banks bought dollars on behalf of the Reserve Bank of India. Click here to follow our WhatsApp channel The last time the local unit traded below the 83 mark against the US dollar was on December 18 last year, when it hit 82.19 during intraday deals. “The rupee breached 83 per dollar after the RBI left buying and allowed it to appreciate as inflows from FPIs dominated the scene with money coming in for debt and equity. After making a low of 83.18, the rupee appreciated to 82.97 as flows continued,” said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director at Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP. Traders are now eyeing the US consumer inflation data due to be released on Thursday.
Source: Business Standard
London Textile Fair's exhibitor list for the SS25 edition, which runs for two days on 9-10 January, features over 300 global manufacturers ranging from Europe to Pakistan, Vietnam and China. The most prominent challenge faced by manufacturers present at the trade show included freight diversions in the Red Sea, but spirits were high amid the rare January sunshine which greeted attendees on the first day of the show. Turkish businesses dominated the exhibition, with 113 manufacturers present. Mehmet Aydin is the general manager of jersey kids wear and homeware supplier Kayteks, from the industrial city of Denizli in the south west of Turkey. He said the ongoing Red Sea diversion has been both "an advantage and disadvantage" for Turkish suppliers. The diversion has been intermittently in place since December, in an effort to avoid attacks on freight ships by Houthi militants based in Yemen. "We use [cotton] yarns from India, so that is a disadvantage, but we ourselves are lucky to not be affected by [the Red Sea blockade]. Turkey's location within Europe means it can reach customers via the Mediterranean Sea, enabling it to avoid the diversions. Andrew Choi, manager at South Korean polyester manufacturer Dongkeuk Textile, which works with fashion brands including Spanish retailers Zara and Mango, told Drapers that the two-week shipping delays for deliveries to Europe - caused by ships being diverted along the coast of Africa instead of the Suez Canal - have been avoided by using air freight. Some manufacturers have been wary about the additional expenses incurred as a result of the diversion, with caused some shipping costs to increase between 20% and 400%, although Choi said that in his experience, retailers are taking on the surcharges: “We work with Inditex, which normally uses a mix of air and sea transport [for orders from manufacturers in Asia]."[Inditex] has now asked us to ship all our deliveries through planes. We don't cover the extra costs [of air travel] - Inditex does." An agent for a Chinese textile manufacturer said: "Many Chinese [textile suppliers] have managed to avoid being impacted [by the Red Sea diversion] because many, including us, do not ship to Europe - we only ship to other Asian countries [including Bangladesh] where the garments are sewn."Some exhibitors told Drapers that the manufacturing industry is continuing to feel the impact of political and economic instability. Antonio Gratacós, manager for Gratacós, a Barcelona-based manufacturer specialising in silk, crepe and taffeta, said that although production price increases have stabilised compared to last year, the conflict in the Middle East could cause further uncertainty:"Every year there are more wars and more political problems, then there are problems with transportation, delays and the customer gets angry," he said. Roman Beraid was representing French jacquard fabric manufacturer Dutel at London Textile Fair. He told Drapers that confidence among retailers remains low amid the ongoing cost increases caused by geopolitical crises: "Back in the day, [textile buyers] used to buy right away when they liked [a fabric]."Now is more difficult. They want to do trials, they want to test [the fabric], they want to get the approvals and only then buy," he added. Despite the ongoing challenges, the mood of the show was described by "positive" by Hobbs buyer Catherine Ellis: "We are happy to be here. One fabric we are interested in [for SS25] is linen.” Rebecca Byers, fashion designer at womenswear brand Rat & Boa, described the London Textile Fair as "well-organised." She added: "We are here looking for exciting new fabrics - [pieces] that bring something new to the table." The SS25 fabric focus for Emma Clarke, swimwear buyer for Dunnes Stores, will be on “blurred shapes and gorgeous stripes”. Subtle stripes are one of the main SS25 trends named and exhibited at the London Textile Fair by Trend Hub. Catherine Baldwin, a representative for the trend consultancy, told Drapers that consumers will buying “thin, almost paper-weight fabrics with a nice balance between luxe and rustic naturalness” next year. London Textile Fair organiser John Kelley was positive about the show’s exhibitor numbers, despite them being lower than September’s event. He says the dip has been caused by more exhibitors choosing to register at Kelley’s other trade show, TexPremium, which last took place on 12-13 December 2023 with 120 exhibitors in attendance. He continued: “I’m very pleased [with the turnout]. I opened the doors to 20 or so people queuing outside." Kelley named “accessibility to customers” as the main challenge to textile manufacturers: "It seems like a fair is a great place you can meet new people. But on a day to day basis, visiting people has become quite difficult. Many people don't really have time [to meet] and they do it all in one go at the exhibition. And that's why this is becoming more and more important,” he said.
Source: Draper online
KARACHI: Pakistan’s textile exporters should diversify their products and tap into new sectors to take full advantage of a preferential trade scheme with the European Union, the bloc’s ambassador to the country said on Tuesday. Riina Kionka, the EU’s envoy to Pakistan, was speaking at a meeting with the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI). The GSP Plus grants Pakistan duty-free access to the EU market for 66 percent of its products, mainly textiles and garments, which account for more than half of the country’s exports. The EU has recently extended the preferential trade scheme for another four years. ”Rather than staying confined to exporting textiles only, the business community of Karachi should broaden and diversify their exports to EU so as to take maximum advantage of EU’s GSP Plus for Pakistan, which has recently been rolled over for four more years up to 2027,” Kionka said.The envoy said the GSP Plus had been “tremendously important” for Pakistan’s economy, boosting its exports to the EU by 108 percent and its imports by 40 percent since the start of the programme in 2014. GSP Plus is tremendously important for Pakistan’s economy whose overwhelming beneficiaries are not just textile producers but by trickledown effect, all those people as well who work in textile factories.”Kionka said the EU had extended the GSP Plus for Pakistan without any changes to the rules framework, so everything was going to stay the same up to 2027. But new regulations could be negotiated after the EU elections in June 2024, she said. “We also have elections in June 2024, which means there will be political changeover in the parliament and the EU’s Commission. Once everything settles, we expect that the new parliament and the council of EU member states will once again take up negotiations on a new directive for GSP Plus with Pakistan which couldn’t happen last year,” the envoy said. “Although it’s a four-year rollover for GSP Plus but if they come up with a new regulation, it will become effective before 2027.” Kionka also identified gems and jewelery, tourism, handicraft and auto parts as potential sectors for Pakistan to expand its exports to the EU, which is the country’s largest trading partner. “Around 28 percent of Pakistan’s exports come to European single market which is a good number but it could be lot bigger which is one of the main things EU delegation in Islamabad has been working on, so that Pakistan’s exports could be enhanced through better utilisation of GSP Plus, diversifying exports, investing in value-addition, using new technologies & IT solutions for better access to EU market, besides bringing in the SMEs who are the backbone of any economy.” She said the EU delegation in Islamabad was working to set up a platform to promote business-to-business relations between Pakistan and the EU, especially for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). “Gems and jewellery sector of Pakistan has huge potential so they must add value here and export them to the European Union rather than exporting the raw material around the region and have somebody else doing all the cuttings, polishing and making jewelery,” the envoy said. According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, the EU was the largest export destination for Pakistan, which stood at $8.4 billion, followed by the United States at $5.93 billion and China at $2.02 billion in the fiscal year 2022-23. Pakistan’s exports to the EU are dominated by the textile sector, which is the backbone of the country’s exports. Last year, Pakistan’s total textile exports remained at $16.50 billion, which is almost 60 percent of the total exports.
Source: PK News
Pakistan seeks to increase trade exchange with Egypt by tenfold in the coming few years, said Gohar Ejaz, Pakistani Federal Minister for Industries and Commerce. Egypt to host 4th Pakistan Africa Trade Development Conference in January Egypt’s exports to Africa rise 13 percent in 10 months. Ejaz made his remarks on the sidelines of the fourth edition of the Pakistan Africa Trade Development Conference (PATDC) and Single Country Exhibition (SCE), being held in Cairo 9-11 January. Egypt is the portal to Africa and already has exceptional trade relations with Pakistan, Ejaz added. He noted that the conference aims to seal deals for joint agreements between African and Pakistani parties in sectors including agriculture, textile, engineering, services, and energy. For his part, Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry Ahmed Samir revealed that the trade exchange between Egypt and Pakistan reached $400 million in the fiscal year 2021/2022. Egyptian exported $300 million worth of natural gas, oil products, cotton, and other products to Pakistan in that period, Samir highlighted. PATDC kicked off on Tuesday at the Egypt International Exhibition Centre under the title “Bridging Opportunities, Connecting Transformation.” The event was attended by a high-ranking Pakistani delegation that includes 200 businessmen from more than 20 sectors. During the third edition of PATDC, $24 million worth of agreements were signed between Pakistani and African companies. In September, Egypt and Pakistan signed seven Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) for cooeration in various economic fields at the Pakistan-Egypt Business Opportunities Conference in Cairo.
Source: Ahram Online
