INTERNATIONAL
Textile Raw Material Price 2016-12-18
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1232.69 |
USD/Ton |
0.65% |
12/18/2016 |
|
VSF |
2188.09 |
USD/Ton |
0.07% |
12/18/2016 |
|
ASF |
1838.98 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
Polyester POY |
1249.93 |
USD/Ton |
1.16% |
12/18/2016 |
|
Nylon FDY |
3017.07 |
USD/Ton |
0.96% |
12/18/2016 |
|
40D Spandex |
4267.00 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
Polyester DTY |
2011.38 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
Nylon POY |
1580.37 |
USD/Ton |
0.92% |
12/18/2016 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
3232.58 |
USD/Ton |
2.27% |
12/18/2016 |
|
Polyester FDY |
5430.73 |
USD/Ton |
0.13% |
12/18/2016 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1494.17 |
USD/Ton |
0.48% |
12/18/2016 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
2859.03 |
USD/Ton |
0.51% |
12/18/2016 |
|
10S OE Cotton Yarn |
2068.13 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
32S Cotton Carded Yarn |
3325.24 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
40S Cotton Combed Yarn |
3800.07 |
USD/Ton |
0.27% |
12/18/2016 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2830.30 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1847.60 |
USD/Ton |
0.47% |
12/18/2016 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2629.16 |
USD/Ton |
1.67% |
12/18/2016 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2226.89 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
1968.28 |
USD/Ton |
3.79% |
12/18/2016 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
2212.52 |
USD/Ton |
0.65% |
12/18/2016 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2973.97 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.32 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.81 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.14 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.65 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.64 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/18/2016 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14367 USD dtd 18/12/2016)
The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
Did you know that your shirt may be among several products that mandatorily need a date of manufacturing? And till a few years ago, some shirts also had to mention the date of expiry to avoid "visits" by "inspectors". The country's archaic and often bizarre rules for garment manufacturers and retailers meant that the last vestiges of 'Inspector Raj' continued for this crucial sector. Most of them, including some of the biggest names in the industry, have been grappling with laws that treat clothes in the same way that inspectors deal with packaged atta or sugar. There are several examples to show how bizarre the rules are. In a metropolitan city, inspectors from the state's weight and measures department issued a notice to the directors of a leading garment brand as the tag did not mention the measurement in metres.
In the same city, another notice was served as the price tag on 10 out of 6,000 garments in a store did not carry the "proper retail sales price" since the law requires pricing in two decimal points. There was another alleged violation as the customer care number should have been a landline phone and not a mobile number, which was mentioned on the price tag. In another metro, the price instead of being "inclusive of all taxes" was "inclusive of all taxes" — reason enough for the state machinery to serve a notice for violation of the Legal Metrology (Package & Commodities) Rules, 2011. As a result of the outdated rules, even for a shirt or a pair of socks, the manufacturing date is required — something that most buyers hardly notice when buying garments. Similarly, just writing Small, Medium or Large will not suffice since the rules require garment makers to provide the measurement in centimetres. And, writing "cm" instead of "cms" allows the government to hold the director of a company liable with possible imprisonment and fine. That gives inspectors enough reason to land at outlets and start serving notices. "Basically, many of them want a monthly deal," said a leading textiles player who did not wish to be identified, fearing harassment in several states where he has outlets.
SOURCE: The Times of India
To help exporting units tide over the impact of demonetisation, the Apparel Export Promotion Council has asked for increased withdrawal limits and relaxation in rules for payment of statutory dues like PF, ESI and service tax for sometime. The council has shared recommendations with the government to facilitate transition towards digital payments and less cash usage, the exporters body said on Sunday. It suggested exporting units be allowed a higher threshold of cash withdrawal for making payments to artisans, loaders, purchases for developing new samples and for payment towards small freight amount. Adequate cash should be made available at banks in key clusters. It also asked for opening bank accounts of workers in RMG export sector on basis of unique identity. The account should be maintained in Employees Provident Fund Organisation in lieu of initiating a fresh KYC (Know Your Customer) requirement by the bank. Banks may be allowed to take PAN details of the employer.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Under the Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister’s Indigenous Textile Promotion Scheme (CMITPS) for the year 2015-16 to support the West Kameng district weavers, a selective 116 weavers were distributed improved frame looms with warping drum, accessories and yarns free of cost by Deputy Commissioner Sonal Swaroop on Friday at Craft Centre Complex. Speaking on the occasion, DC Sonal opined that the six major tribes inhabiting the district has one of the most colorful and vibrant traditional dresses. The free distribution of the improved frame looms should be a shot in the arm to preserve, promote and experiment with the local attires and endeavor for its large scale marketing. The Deputy Director , Textile and Handloom, Dorjee Phuntso urged the weavers to make the best use of the opportunity to promote the indigenous textile and handlooms. Under the present scheme, the components have been increased so that the weavers can concentrate producing indigenous textile and handlooms which would in turn also help generate a steady source of income for them.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Demonetisation could not have come at a worse time for Punjab’s textile industry, which relies on the winter season to boost their profits. In Amritsar, nearly 30 textile processing units have shut down in the past month-and-a-half owing to the cash crunch, an industry body told The Hindu. These units, which prepare dye and print fabrics, are considered the backbone of nearly 700-800 textile factories that are involved in warp-knitting, embroidery, spinning and weaving. The closure of these processing units is apparently having a cascading affect on the textile business. “At least 30 textile processing units in Amritsar have already shut down due to the cash crunch, and the rest of the units are running 25-30 per cent below capacity,” Krishan Kumar Sharma, president of the Amritsar Textile Processor Association, said. There are about 60 units associated with them. “If the situation doesn’t improve by December-end, we will approach Prime Minister Narendra Modi and hand over the keys of our factories and ask him to run the business. It has become almost impossible for us to manage our work in the absence of cash,” he said.
Industry players have although appreciated the government’s move of demonetisation of high-value notes, they believe that the poor planning of its implementation has hit the textile industry. “Production at the processing units has taken a severe blow in this past month. My unit is working 30-40 below capacity, resulting in loss of production by around 35 per cent since demonetisation,” said Kamal Dalmia of Amritsar-based Natraj Wooltex, a leading processor of yarn. “We need liquidity to run efficiently, but we don’t have enough cash. This has forced many of us to stop our units completely or partially. Not just me, most of the processing units here are working for only four days a week,” he added.
Retrenchment on
Textile industry is a labour-intensive industry and since demonetisation, the industry has been witnessing lay-off because of the reduced business and cash crunch. “Weaving industry has seen over 50 per cent retrenchment since demonetisation. Most of our daily wage workers have gone back to their native places — mostly in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh,” said I.P. Mahajan, general secretary, Punjab Textile Manufactures Association. He said most of the factory owners are finding it difficult to pay wages to employees as cash withdrawals were restricted. Also, many manufacturers have reduced the workforce owing to drop in business orders. Ludhiana-based Vipin Mittal of Kudu Knit Process Pvt. Ltd., who runs a knitted fabric factory, has the same story to share. “Demand from wholesalers and retailers for the fabric has dipped to an all-time low as most of them are cancelling their orders. In winters, usually we see a rise in sales. But this year, due to cash shortage, retail sales of woollen-based fabric have been hit the most.” “Supply side has also seen a drop because the processing industries are facing same hardships. If processors won’t supply thread how will we manufacture fabric..It’s a cycle, the impact is cascading,” he added.
Warns govt.
The ATPA has, meanwhile, cautioned that if immediate steps to improve the cash-crunch situation were not taken they will stage demonstrations outside administrative government offices. The association is demanding to ensure adequate cash supply in the banks and easing the restrictions imposed for withdrawal of money from savings and current bank accounts of industrialists. Besides, interest on bank loans to be waived off for the next six months.
SOURCE: The Hindu
The cashless economy envisaged by the Central government is doing nothing much to help the public. Yet another example of the negative impact of demonetisation is that on the weaver community in Rajanna Sircilla district. The decision to scrap big notes has taken a toll on the textile units in Sircilla Textile Park, with over 50 per cent of the units situated in the park being shut down due to non availability of raw materials. There are about 116 textile units, which produce cloth with the help of about 1,600 power looms. However, post demonetisation nearly 700 looms have closed down due to non-availability of raw materials.
Until recently, 3.20 lakh metres of cloth was produced at these looms per day, which has now fallen to 1.80 lakh metres, bringing down the production drastically. Textile managements are not able to purchase raw materials due to shortage of cash affecting the production. With production falling down, textile unit managements have told workers to look for alternative sources of income.
SOURCE: The New Indian Express
Textile and apparel major Raymond have seen nearly 30 per cent decline in demand since demonetization was announced last month but expects the situation to ease early next year. “We have seen a nearly 30 percent decline in demand since demonetization was announced, and it has come at a time when the wedding season shopping is at its peak,” Raymond CEO Sanjay Behl told PTI here. “The liquidity has also shrunk, and more than 80 per cent of this (textile) business is cash driven. However, I see the situation easing up in the beginning of next year,” he added. Another major impact will be the Goods and Services Tax (GST) when it comes through, he said. “The textile sector is still largely unorganised and GST will help formalise the system,” Behl said.
Raymond, which is looking to expand its store count, however, reiterated that its expansion plans will not be affected by the current situation. “Most of our store expansion is franchise based and less company capital based, so it will not drastically affect our retail expansion plans,” Behl said. “We have 1,060 stores at present, and will continue to add about 150-200 stores every year for the next three years,” he added. The company is targeting about 1,500 stores for its brands by 2020, he said. The brands include Raymond (Ready to Wear), Raymond Made to Measure, Color Plus, Park Avenue and Parx. Raymond also recently tied up with Khadi Village and Industries Commission to launch a new line of clothing under the brand ‘Khadi by Raymond’.
SOURCE: The Financial Express
Bombay Textile Research Association (BTRA) will be hosting the 57th Joint Technological Conference of ATIRA, BTRA, SITRA and NITRA on 17th & 18th February accordingly this time it will be held at BTRA in Mumbai. Dr. Kavita Gupta, Textile Commissioner, has given her consent to be the Chief Gues for the conference. The papers for presentation in this premier conference will be based on recent R & D trends and of immediate importance to the industries in all major textile areas from the four TRAs. The conference provides threadbare discussions on R&D carried out by the four Textile Research Associations and possibility of adopting them in the industry. The enclosed research papers from four TRAs [18 papers] are scheduled to be presented and discussed during the conference.
Apart from sessions on textile related areas, BTRA is planning to have one dedicated session on ‘Geosynthetics’. This particular session is jointly being organised with Office of the Textile Commissioner, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. Moreover, German textile machinery manufacturing companies have shown interest in participating in this conference by way of presentation and networking with the participants.
SOURCE: The Tecoya Trend
Immediately after the demonetisation initiative, a quick survey of Powerloom units was undertaken in major Powerloom clusters to assess the impact on the decentralised Powerloom Sector. To address the issues of shortage of new currency, Government has initiated immediate action to enable cashless transactions for payment of wages in the textile sector, Union Textiles Minister, Ms. Smriti Zubin Irani informed in a written reply to a Rajya Sabha Question. She said that a mission-mode campaign has been launched to promote digital payments and opening of bank accounts for workers by organising a large number of camps in various textile clusters. Senior Officers were deputed to clusters to oversee the holding of camps in association with the banking sector. Industry Associations and Councils have also been advised to promote digital payments for enabling cashless transactions, she added.
SOURCE: The Tecoya Trend
You can't tell its wedding season from the desolate corridors of the historic Mulji Jetha cloth market. Traders sit vacantly in their wooden alcoves on trademark white cotton mattresses during what used to be their busiest months in the year. The wholesale cloth market-among the largest in the country-waits desperately for orders. The 180-year-old bazaar has an enviable legacy as a hub of human commerce. It was from here that textile tycoon Dhirubhai Ambani began his journey as a yarn trader. Spread across four acres near Zaveri Bazaar in Kalbadevi, it has 737 shops. Its turnover exceeds Rs 100 crore every single day, according to market chairman Mukesh Desai. Note bandi has resulted in a steep 70% crash in sales. "In the first two weeks, business was down 90%. Even now just 30% of trade is taking place," says Desai. His own shirt material firm put a stop to fresh supplies over a month ago.
Massive stacks of fabric, designer saris, churidar and shirt material, suit-cloth, bed-sheets, lungis, towels and curtains lie unsold. High quality linen and embroidery outlets are deserted. The erosion of consumer demand has hit trade. "People have lost purchasing power since they don't have cash?" asks Manishbhai Modi from Vardhaman Fashions, who has eight sari and churidar shops in the market. Modi used to sell upto 1,000 saris and 1,500 churidar materials daily. "Now I sell barely 300 of each," he says. His turnover has plummeted from Rs 1.25 crore a month to barely Rs 30 lakh.
Nearly 70% of the bazaar caters to wholesalers but 30% gets retail customers. The wholesale traders sell to other wholesale markets, retail shops and garment factories across the country, including in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Kolkata. Clothes from here find their way to high-end Mumbai stores, including Amarsons, Chiragh Din and Benzer. A handful of traders export readymade clothes and embroidery to Muscat, Abu Dhabi and even Nairobi. The gutting of the wedding season is keenly felt. Many sold 40% of their stock between November and January. "I expect a turnover of Rs 3-4 crore per month in the wedding season. In the past month, we got only around Rs 1.25 crore," says Nilesh Mehta of Nirali, among the big traders of salwar-kameez material.
While the cash crunch has hit the retail market, the bulk of the wholesale market operates on a one to three month credit cycle. Retailers take vast quantities of goods on credit and pay when they sell. Those who pay within a month get a discount. Yet, this means the traders are saddled with large outstandings. "Retailers owe me Rs 10 crore and it's going to take much longer to clear now. Some retailers are even taking advantage of note bandi to delay payments," says Mehta. Most wholesalers here are Gujarati and Marwari traders in the business for three generations. Portraits of ancestors hang in shops. Among the BJP's strong supporters, they are reluctant to openly criticize the government but everyone is worried. Their anxiety stems from evaporation of consumer sentiment. Even traders with credit card machines are not doing well. "The public is catering more to its immediate needs. After all, clothes are not such a necessity. It could take over a year for the market to recover fully," says Mukesh Desai.
SOURCE: The Times of India
The lacklustre show of exports from the country for almost past two years is no deterrent for the government, which is confident that it will see a "positive and solid difference" in 2017. "I look at the new year which is going to definitely see positive and solid difference in exports compared to the previous years when we have been really very slow. I hope newer market should emerge," commerce and industry minister Nirmala Sitharaman told PTI. The minister's optimism came against the backdrop of a positive growth recorded by the exports in the last three months. Since December 2014, exports fell for 18 straight months till May 2016 due to subdued global demand and slide in oil prices. Shipments started witnessing growth only in June this year, but again entered the negative zone in July and August. In September, October and November, it registered growth though.
According to the commerce ministry's latest data, exports in November grew 2.29% to $20 billion. Exporters, too, expressed optimism for shipments in the new year. Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) said that out of the 30 key product groups, close to 20 are exhibiting positive trends in the past couple of months. "If such a trend continues, we can achieve $280 billion or even more in exports in the current fiscal," FIEO president SC Ralhan said. There is a word of caution. He felt that poor demand pickup, slump in commodities prices, currency war may become more prominent in posing a greater challenge to exports in 2017. To be sure, improvement in outbound shipments will depend largely on demand revival in global markets. Experts say the uncertain global economic recovery may pose challenge to the country's export sector. The major markets for Indian exporters — the US and Europe — are yet to show strong signs of demand revival.
The two regions account for over 30% of the shipments. "Global economy is not going to grow. The world market is nervous," said Biswajit Dhar, professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, adding that demonetisation will also impact exporters, particularly from the MSME sector. This sector contributes about 45% to India's total exports. "Exports are expected to remain in depression for the first half of this fiscal. The government would have to extend support to boost exports," he said.
Labour-intensive sectors, including of handicrafts, have already flagged their concerns related to the impact of currency withdrawal. Ease of doing business too is another key parameter for higher export numbers. Though the government has taken steps to improve that by reducing the number of documents required for import and export of goods, more is required. According to the multilateral body, global trade growth should hit 3.6% in 2017, but the figure is still below the average 5% since 1990. The main reasons for the decline are fall in global demand and commodity prices, impacting terms of trade for exporters. The drop in crude oil prices had resulted in consequent decline in prices as well as export realisations for petroleum products. These are major product items of exports for India.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Polymer prices are likely to rise by 10 per cent in the wake of a sharp increase in crude oil prices. This is already prompting users i.e. flexible packaging material manufacturers, to shift to value-added products. The price of polypropylene, a derivative of crude oil, rose five per cent this month, to $1,050 a tonne. The price of Brent crude jumped 19 per cent to $54.50 a barrel since the petrol exporters cartel decided on November 30 to cut output. “Polypropylene prices tend to move in the direction of crude prices with a lag of about one month. Thus, we estimate at least a 10 per cent spurt in polymer prices in the next four weeks,” said Neeraj Jain, finance head at Cosmo Films, a leading maker of flexible packaging material. The company has already increased the proportion of speciality films in its output, to improve its margins. “Flexible packaging material manufacturers work on a cost-plus model. Hence, a volatility in crude oil prices is completely passed on to the client,” said a senior industry official.
Cosmo has an edge over other companies in this sector, with higher dependence on commodity films. It has focused on improving profitability through various cost-saving measures and in raising the share of value-added films to its revenue; it has plans to raise the share over the next two years. Also, its margins have gained from improved throughput, reduction in power costs and improved product mix. Operating earnings have dropped for most of the other companies in the flexible packaging segment, due to pressure in commodity films' gross margins. The industry has embarked on the next phase of expansion, with the end-user industry driving healthy demand growth; flexible packaging has been seeing a growth wave over recent years in India. There has been a keen shift from PET to BOPP as the preferred choice of packaging for the end-user segment. The trend is expected to continue.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
We embarked on an exhaustive on-the-ground analysis of demonetisation’s impact on the economy — Over 512 meetings were held across 58 key urban/semi-urban/rural stops (covering ~7000kms) by a 33-member team to discuss key developments, emerging themes/trends and expected recovery time. In this report, we discuss key takeaways across sectors and stakeholders. Our analysis suggests that North/ East/Central India were more impacted than South/South-western parts—also, rural regions were more affected than urban areas. Similarly, the unorganised space was hit more than the organised segment and the discretionary sector suffered more than staples. Also, traders, retailers and wholesalers were affected more than the manufacturers. While the liquidity crunch did lead to disarray, the situation is expected to mend as currency gets replenished.
Nevertheless, despite hardships, we observed massive acceptance of the move from the ‘bottom of the pyramid’ population — Many felt that this move would help check corruption and black money. Moreover, we also observed wide acceptability/movement of transactions to formal banking channels — if properly directed, this may boost the Indian economy both structurally and on the fiscal front in the long term.
However, undoubtedly, a few days into demonetisation, business activity has been hit significantly. Pre-dated sales, acceptance of old currency notes by some traders and credit extension might initially offset the demonetisation impact somewhat, but it would be reflected Dec-16 onwards. Below are the key gleanings from our interactions.
Impact on economic activities
Impact on GDP
Sector calls and top picks
The impact of such an enormous exercise is difficult to determine. We had recently increased weights for B2B, utilities, Oil & Gas and sectors that have businesses outside India. We had reduced our weightage on Financials and sectors facing the retail consumer (Autos, Consumer discretionary etc.). Our ‘on-the-ground study’ reiterates the sectoral recommendation shift. We would like to emphasise that over the next six months, we will have more of a ‘bottom up’ approach to stock selection as the impact of demonetisation could vary.
Meanwhile, we maintain our sector calls — Our top picks are HDFC Bank, SBI, Tata Motors, HPCL, Adani Ports, Sun Pharma, Godrej Consumer, Aurobindo Pharma, Motherson Sumi, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Adani Transmissions, UPL, EIL, Nava Bharat Ventures, TeamLease, PI Industries, Sintex, Kaveri Seeds and Suzlon. Our top sells are Nestle, Bajaj Auto, HMCL, Titan, BHEL, CCI, DLF and Gujarat Gas.
SOURCE: The Financial Express
With the April 1, 2017, deadline for rolling out the goods and services tax (GST) looks like slipping away, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday said as it was a transactional levy, it could be implemented anytime during the year, unlike income tax. The GST, he said, can be implemented anytime between April 1 and September 16, 2017, in accordance with the Constitutional amendment legislation that allows a national sales tax by subsuming central and state levies. The GST Council has resolved 10 issues and only one pertaining to administration of tax is pending, he said. “It is a transactional tax and not an income tax. A transactional tax can start in any part of the financial year and therefore, the range of timing when it has to come into force because of constitutional necessity is April 1, 2017 to September 16, 2017. Hopefully, the earlier we do, the better it is for the new taxation system,” Jaitley said at the annual general meeting (AGM) of FICCI here.
After Parliament passed the landmark constitutional amendment in August and more than half of state legislatures ratified it by mid-September, several key decisions have been taken by the GST Council headed by Jaitley and comprising state representatives. Jaitley alluded to “certain kinds of turf issues” that are yet to be resolved. “But the constitutional embargo is very clear. The entire amendment was notified on September 16, 2016, and it permits the old taxation regime to continue for a period of one year.” he said. “So on September 16, 2017, as far as the current mode of taxation is concerned, the curtain will be down. Therefore, neither the Centre not the state can go in for collection.”
According to the finance minister, there are about 10 important decisions that have already been taken through consensus. The legislations which have to be passed by Parliament and state legislatures are currently in the process of being drafted. “I don’t see any major difficulty for these legislations being finally approved,” he said. The only issue remaining “is very small in the larger frame of things” and the tax administration is under discussion of the GST Council as three major and some minor taxes are being merged into one. Jaitley suggested there is a need that each assessee is assessed only once since central taxes like excise and service tax and state levies like VAT are being subsumed into one. “You have the pre-existing (tax) machinery of the Centre and states. (It has to be decided) how the burden of this assessment is going to be shared between the Centre and states and how we cross-empower both the Centre and states,” he said further.
Saying GST will usher in a common taxation and should lead to a federal bureaucracy, Jaitley felt that both the Centre and states should figure out sharing of the tax assessment. Ideally, he said, it should be proper for the issues to be resolved at the beginning of financial year on April 1 for the new regime to kick in. “But then, in any case, nobody has the luxury of time,” he cautioned.
Hints on lesser remonetisation
Jaitley also hinted that not all of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore worth of currency junked will be remonetised through issuance of new notes as he said digital currency will fill the gap. Calling the scrapping of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes “a courageous step”, he said the government could do it as India today has the capacity to take such decisions and experiment boldly.
Arun Jaitley, Demonetisation, GST Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley spoke on the goods and services tax (GST) and demonetisation The move will create a new Indian normal as the one that existed for the past seven decades is “unacceptable”, he said, adding that demonetisation will help rid the economy of high cash circulation that had led to tax evasion, blackmoney and currency being used for crime. “One of the efforts of this exercise has to be that even though a reduced cash currency could remain, our conscious effort... (is) to supplement the rest with a digital currency,” he said.
As many as 17,165 million pieces of Rs 500 denomination and 6,858 million pieces of Rs 1,000 banknotes were in circulation on November 8 when the government made the surprise announcement. Jaitley also said, “The whole process of remonetisation is not going to take very long time and I’m sure very soon the Reserve Bank by injecting currency daily into the banking and postal system will be able to complete that.” Also, the push to use the digital mode to make payments has been gaining ground. “The manner it has taken place in the last five weeks is indeed commendable. Only a section of Parliament seems unaware of what is happening,” he said.
Once the remonetisation process is complete, it will mark “the creation of a new Indian normal because the normal that existed for 70 years is an unacceptable normal,” he added. “The 70-year normal had become a way of life for almost every Indian. It was not merely a fact that you had a lot more cash currency, far larger cash currency as part of your GDP... the economic and social consequences of that are extremely adverse.” He made a point that dealing in that cash currency had led to a lot of aberrations in terms of tax non-compliance, currency being used for collateral purposes like crime, escaping the tax net and not getting into the banking system. “The fact that India today has the capacity to take these decisions and capacity to enforce them, to experiment boldly even when at a time when the world is looking more inwards, marks an exception as far as India is concerned,” the finance minister asserted.
Jaitley also spoke of the country’s “stamina” to sustain a decision like demonetisation, which has “clear long-term gains even at the cost of short-term inconveniences”. “Therefore, once we have that stamina notwithstanding fringe positions taken by national parties, one would always be able to implement these extremely successfully. Long-term benefits of these are going to be absolutely clear even if we bear the short-term pains,” he said. He seemed confident that the existing almost 75 crore debit and credit cards in the market, besides e-wallets, will help increase digital transactions. He also made a pitch that these transformations will have to be carried to their logical conclusion. “There are, of course, even as we reform, domestic trends which are being visible on digitisation of payments,” Jaitley said, adding that the government has clarity of direction as well as a broad shoulder and stamina to sustain these decisions.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
India is waiting for dates from European Union to negotiate the long pending Free Trade Agreement as well as a fresh Bilateral Investment Treaty, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. "I am waiting for dates to talk about both (FTA and BIT)," she said at a function here organised by industry body Ficci. The proposed Broadbased Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) or FTA has been pending for long. "We have repeatedly asked for dates for negotiations with the EU... This FTA has gone through several stages," the minister said. She indicated that the delay in resuming talks could be because EU is now looking more at getting the investment treaty "quickly done". The European Commission (EC) had raised concerns over negotiations for a fresh Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT). Sitharaman said the government has come out with the revised model text for BIT and all existing investment protection agreements will be null and void from March 31, "so we want countries to do that".
Launched in June 2007, BITA negotiations have seen many hurdles with both sides having major differences on crucial issues like intellectual property rights, duty cuts in automobile as well as spirits and a liberal visa regime. On other FTAs which India is negotiating, Sitharaman sought feedback from industry chambers on those and ways to increase share of India in the global trade to 3.5 per cent by 2020 from about 2 per cent currently. She also expressed concerns about the increasing protectionism in the world. "There is very high degree of protectionism across the globe," she said adding India is opening up but in a calibrated manner.
Talking about quality and standards of products, she said Indian industry needs to increase standards and its compliance to boost its competitiveness in the world market. Sitharaman further said that the Commerce Ministry will soon call the meeting of Board of Trade to discuss issues related to exports. Exports rose for the third straight month in November, recording a growth of 2.29 per cent, though the trade deficit shot up to about two-year high of USD 13 billion mainly due to increase in gold imports.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
The Make in India Business Forum focused on the investment opportunities available in India for Chinese entrepreneurs was organized by the Indian Consulate of Shanghai yesterday at Gaoyou a country level industrial hub to attract investments where about 100 Chinese firms took part. Local companies from Gaoyou from sectors like textile, garment, textile machinery, photovoltaic cells, electrical appliances, renewable energy, real estate and construction participated at the seminar.
During the investment forum, Consul General Prakash Gupta made presentations about the policy incentives available to foreign investors in each of the above sectors and assured Gaoyou companies of necessary facilitation in their investment plans for India. Ruling Communist Party of Chinas Gou Feng Cheng, who is Secretary of Gaoyou, also interacted with the Consul General and it was decided that Gaoyou leaders would be heading a high level investors delegation on a visit to India next year. The Make in India seminar was a follow-up to deepening engagement with Yangzhou city, which continues to be a key focus partner for the Indian Consulate in Shanghai for 2016. Yangzhou city, under which Gaoyou is located, had hosted a large scale business forum and an India Week in September.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Will Pakistan be able to sign free trade agreement (FTA) with Iran? It is a big question that is doing rounds among relevant circles as some key hurdles stand in the way of exploiting the huge potential of trade with Tehran. In an encouraging development, Iran has accepted Pakistan’s offer to join the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), paving the way for enhancing bilateral commerce. International sanctions on Iran against its nuclear programme, which were a major impediment to deepening the trade ties, have also been lifted earlier this year.
According to an official of the Iranian embassy, Iran has floated its proposals for the FTA and it is waiting for the response of Pakistan government. He acknowledged that tariff structures in Iran were high and unstable, but said free trade would bring down tariffs and duties as well as improve the trade volume. “If Iran joins CPEC, it will help enhance bilateral trade and even clear the way for supply of Pakistani goods to Central Asian states and Russia,” he said. The official called the Chabahar port deal among India, Iran and Afghanistan a political show in the region, which was not expected to be implemented. He revealed that India was not investing in the development of Iran’s Chabahar port, therefore, the deal would not prevent Tehran from joining CPEC. “Iran wants to work with Pakistan and its participation in CPEC will help improve relations further.”
Hurdles to the FTA
An official of the Ministry of Commerce, however, cautioned that Iran was not a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and that made it tough to engage in trade with it. He pointed out that bilateral trade had come down because of sanctions in the past, but despite that Iran’s tariff structure was very complicated. “Iran imposes high tariffs on imports from around the world,” he said. Pakistan’s major export product could be textile but Iran has slapped 100% duty on textile goods. On leather garments, the duty is 120% whereas rice exports face 80% duty. In addition to these, citrus export to Iran is banned. According to the commerce ministry official, Iran increases import duties on different occasions with no stable tariff structure. In this scenario, it is hard to do business with the neighbour. Another major hurdle is the closure of entry gates on the border by Iran at 5pm. However, entry gates remain open on the Pakistan side for 24 hours a day. Pakistani traders are also required to pay load and road taxes in the Iranian territory.
Pakistan took up the matter with an Iranian delegation in August 2015, but they argued that road conditions in Iran were quite good, which was the reason behind the collection of load and road taxes. Being a WTO member, Pakistan can impose a maximum 25% import duty. This way, Iranian traders enjoy a level playing field but Pakistani traders encounter tax and tariff barriers in Iran. “Trade with Iran could not be increased unless it becomes a member of the WTO,” the ministry official remarked. Earlier, Iran was not willing to sign the FTA, but this time, it is expected to strike a deal. Some officials suggest that Delhi’s influence is quite effective in Iran, which will also be looking to tap the big market of India.
Post-sanctions scenario
After the lifting of sanctions earlier this year, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs endorsed plans to step up political and business relations with Iran. Bilateral ties had been at a standstill since 2011 due to tightening global restrictions. The two countries have been pushing for the past few months for an agreement between their central banks to streamline the payment mechanism. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), however, argued that though sanctions had been removed, Pakistani banks were mostly unable to find international banks that could process payments in respect of Iranian banks. To tackle this, the SBP is engaged in active coordination with the Central Bank of Iran in an attempt to establish a trade settlement mechanism to restore and encourage trade. In the transit trade arrangement, Iran provides the shortest route to Russia and Central Asian states as it is only 90 km away from Pakistan. Iran has already the infrastructure and it is ready to join CPEC. The positive developments come at a time when Afghanistan has no intention of signing a transit trade agreement with Pakistan if India is not allowed to transport its goods via Pakistan.
SOURCE: The Tribune
Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PRGMEA) Central Chairman Ijaz A Khokhar on Sunday said setting up of Sialkot Development Forum (SDF) was under consideration of the business community. Talking to APP here, he said the forum would be set-up with consensus of the business community. The objectives of the SDF were to find out ways and means for resolving problems confronting by the business community of this export hub and to identify other problems, he added. He said the exporter community of the city was making strenuous efforts for enhancing the export volume. He said, “We are making adequate efforts for boosting exports of garments to $1 billion by 2020”, adding that the PRGMEA was making hectic efforts for achieving the target.
Ijaz underscored the need of setting up Business Promotional Board in Sialkot for finding out ways and means for the growth of different industrial sectors, including sports goods, surgical instruments, hand-made badges, leather garments, musical instruments, gloves and sports wears sectors. The establishment of business promotional board would help resolve problems and open new vista of industrial development in the area, he said. The PRGMEA chairman also suggested that federal and provincial governments should focus attention on setting up industrial villages and special economic zones to facilitate the business community across the country.
SOURCE: The Nation
US president-elect Donald Trump’s promise to bring manufacturing jobs back home not only played well among millions of American voters; it also perked up the ears of Taiwanese technology and other companies, who are now looking stateside for fresh investment opportunities and a chance to reduce their dependence on China. The day after Masayoshi Son, SoftBank Group chief executive, told Mr Trump of the Japanese IT company’s plan to invest billions in the US, Taiwanese contract manufacturing powerhouse Hon Hai Precision Industry, also known as Foxconn, said it was considering expanding in the US. “We can confirm that we are in preliminary discussions regarding a potential investment that would represent an expansion of our current US operations,” Foxconn said in a December 7 statement, adding that the group had yet to determine the scope of the potential investment.
The Nikkei Asian Review reported in November that Foxconn had been thinking about moving iPhone production to the US after Apple, which accounts for more than half its sales, in June asked it to look into the issue. Industry experts say it is not unrealistic to expect US manufacturers to shift production back home. And such a move, they say, could benefit foreign manufacturers. “It’s possible that Apple will transfer some of its iPhone manufacturing processes to the US because the country is the largest market for the gadget,” said Chaney Ho, president of Taiwan’s Advantech, the world’s biggest maker of industrial PCs. “Given there are only a few iPhone models and each is produced in large quantities, the manufacturing processes can be standardised and highly automated, which enhances the likelihood of the device being made in America,” Mr Ho said. However, such a production shift would hurt an already-slowing Chinese economy, not least by causing jobs there to disappear. China’s growth in 2016 is expected to be slower than the 6.9 per cent it recorded in 2015, its weakest in 25 years.
Mr Ho said that although Mr Trump’s “made in the USA” policy could be a boon for his company, he was not about to make any hasty investments. “Advantech will increase its US operations once it generates more business, rather than let its expansion plans be dictated by political concerns,” he said. The Taipei-based company counts IBM, General Electric, Cisco Systems and Philips among its customers, though no single client accounts for more than 3 per cent of total sales. Other Taiwanese tech companies are also considering expanding their US operations, including Quanta Computer, a supplier of data centre servers for big companies such as Google, Facebook and Amazon and a key assembler for Apple’s MacBook range. Quanta already has server-assembly plants in Nashville, Tennessee; and Fremont, California. As such, a senior executive said, the company had a better chance than its rivals to benefit from Mr Trump’s push to make goods locally. “We have the upper hand now . . . Unlike companies that have to decide whether to move their facilities from Mexico or elsewhere to the US, we are already there and are expanding our US operations,” said Mike Yang, senior vice-president of Quanta and president of the company’s cloud-computing unit, Quanta Cloud Technology.
Quanta is also the world’s leading contract manufacturer of notebook computers, while the fast-growing QCT ships data centre servers and related products worldwide. Mr Yang said QCT plans to double its server-assembly facilities, production and employees in the US over the next three years. Manufacturing servers in the US would have advantages over producing them in China, such as shorter delivery times and improved ability to make modifications, according to Mr Yang. Although Quanta still makes most of its products in China, the company is determined to diversify its product mix and ease its dependence on the mainland. Juicy profits are another factor behind its heightened interest in US production. The margins for its data centre-related business are over 10 per cent, compared with just 4-5 per cent for its notebook business. Advantech is also moving to reduce its reliance on China. “Output at our Taiwanese sites will probably eventually exceed that of our Chinese base in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province,” said Advantech’s Mr Ho. “Making products in China no longer offers any low-cost advantages,” he said. “When factoring in all the hidden costs, wages in Taiwan are actually lower than in China.” Tech companies are not the only ones looking to diversify away from China.
Taiwan’s Pou Chen, the world’s largest contract footwear maker, is gradually reducing output in China to diversify risk. The production shift began after its Hong Kong-listed subsidiary, Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings, was forced to fork out $90m in 2014 to settle a wage dispute with its Chinese employees. Eclat Textile, Taiwan’s largest apparel maker and a supplier for the likes of Nike and Under Armour, said on December 8 that it was pulling out of China due to the deteriorating investment environment and surging wages. Roger Lo, Eclat vice-president, said that in addition to rising wages, another challenging aspect to making products in China was finding employees willing to work in a garment factory. He said young Chinese tend to have lived a sheltered existence due to the country’s former one-child policy. Mr Lo said the company’s sole Chinese plant, in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, had been losing money for the past three years. Eclat decided to leave the country, he said, because the company saw no way to turn the Chinese operations round. As for whether the company, which is boosting capacity in Vietnam and considering doing the same elsewhere in Southeast Asia, will try to take advantage of Mr Trump’s policies, Eclat is not ruling out the possibility. “We are watching whether Trump offers some favourable terms to bring manufacturers there,” Mr Lo said. “In our case, the garment plants — which are labour-intensive — are not likely to move to America. But our fabric-weaving factories, which can be highly automated, could be a possibility when we are assessing our options.”
SOURCE: The Financial Times
Between 1984-85, Kenya’s cotton production peaked at 38,000 metric tons of seed cotton. Thirty-two years later, Kenya is producing only 15,700 tons of seed cotton, creating about 5,240 tons of lint. This tumbling spiral must serve as a wakeup call to the policy makers and cotton farmers. Because Kenya needs double the lint being produced, it ends up importing the deÚcit. Cotton provides yet another example of a lucrative local market that doesn’t optimally beneÚt small scale farmers. This market is even more rewarding because it is inclusive of US through the Africa Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA). There should be a bridge between this market and small scale farmers so that they can voluntarily return to cotton farming in their multitudes.
It is telling that in most rural enclaves like Kaw’ongo in Kitui and Butere in Kakamega, you will rarely come across cotton in farms. But you will never miss to catch sight of maize, beans and a host of traditional vegetables. Food crops achieve a simple purpose of placing food on our tables. But cash crops that don’t place cash in our wallets become completely anathema to farmers. Cotton still has such a negative perception among majority of farmers and it is time to change that.
On the policy front, the CS for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Willy Bett nailed what needs to be done during a visit to Kwale last month: “Since the inception of revival initiatives, the government’s emphasis has been on enhancing strong relationships with key stakeholders such as the farmers, input suppliers, market agents, ginners, spinners and textile millers, in order to boost self-regulation and also promote not only production but also value and consumption of cotton.” It is mandatory on government to employ its clout, Únancial muscle and political will to build these strong relationships that the CS spoke about. According to the Cotton Development Authority, there are 350,000 ha in the country suitable for cotton production, with a potential production of 50,000 tonnes annually. To realise this potential, the government must give small scale farmers reason to either revive or commence cotton farming. This government eÙort, whether through subsidies or credit to farmers, should be tangibly rooted in policy and not political declarations. Gratefully, over the last four years, the government has spent 20 billion US dollars on railway, road, energy and water. All these four areas set a tremendous foundation to support agro-processing and therefore, crops like cotton should be a primary beneÚciary. Cotton must also beneÚt from the 600 million people population with a $1.35 Trillion Gross Domestic Product of the existing trade economic blocs of EAC, COMESA and SADC. The ultimate litmus test of policy success towards cotton revival will be if more and more small scale farmers start planting it in their farms. Think green. Act green!
SOURCE: The Standard Media
Government says the Leather and Textile industries have high growth potential that can significantly contribute to the growth and wealth creation of the country. Minister of Commerce Trade and Industry Margaret Mwanakatwe however says more needs to be done to contribute to the growth of the Leather and Textile manufacturing base. Mrs Mwanakatwe was speaking in Lusaka over the weekend at Dinner Gala to mark the end of the 5 days of the 2016 Leather and Textile Expo.
The 2016 Leather and Textile Expo was held under the theme:“Enhancing Competiveness of Leather and Textile sectors through value addition”. Mrs Mwanakatwe expressed hope that the 2016 Leather and Textile Expo will go a long way in enhancing the progression of the two sectors in the country. She also said the Expo has been a platform for the leather and textile sectors to create synergies, collaboration, and networks that will see the two sectors become the market leaders at Regional and International levels. Mrs. Mwanaktwe noted that the overwhelming support that the Expo received is a true reflection of how much Government and other Cooperating partners values the leather and textile industry.
SOURCE: The Lusaka Times
Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) President Abdul Rauf Alam while speaking to Ambassador of Lebanon to Parkistan Mona El Tannir, urged Pakistan business community to explore the untapped trade potential of Lebanese market. Abdul Rauf also asked the government to take steps to promote greater economic cooperation which will bring masses of the two countries closer. Abdul Rauf Alam briefed the ambassador about the functions of trade bodies in Pakistan and invited Lebanese businessmen to visit and hold single country exhibition in Pakistan. The president FPCCI was of the opinion that enormous potential for bilateral trade was available; however, both the countries could not explore the untapped potential so far. At the occasion, Mona El Tannir said that her country is famous for production of olives and olive oil. Pakistan is importing olives, generators and some other items from Lebanon while, Pakistani textiles, handicrafts, and carpets are very popular in her country. Hence the bilateral trade can be improved.
Pakistani businessmen can benefit from opportunity to have an access to their products in Lebanese market as the embassy grants visas to the Pakistanis to attend lectures, seminars and workshops in the field of medicine, pharmaceutical, information technology and software. Pakistan always assisted Lebanon in every form and crisis for which we are grateful, she said. The meeting was also attended by leading businessmen, who discussed ways and means to promote greater trade relations between the two countries.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
The growth of Ghanian local textile industry due to smuggled goods into the country, unstable exchange rates, influx of Chinese products and high utility is hindered. The in-coming Ghana government of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has been called on to take some measures to revive the crippling local textile industry and help create an enabling environment for local textile industries to grow., said Mr Samuel Hemans-Arday, Deputy Marketing Manager Akosombo Textiles Limited (ATL). Mr. Hemans-Arday cautioned that if the current economic situation persist, ATL would be pushed to lay workers off or close down the spinning and weaving sector which employs about 500 people and resort to importing gray cloths for production. They have moved from employing about 3,000 people to 1,100 currently.
In order to prevent fabrics smuggling into the country, the government should consider allowing only one border for importing fabrics, preferably the Tema Harbor. This would help curb the problem of smuggled goods and the government could earn some revenue from the tax or import duty paid. Besides avoiding duty payments, these smuggled goods usually copy their logo, design and brand and they sell it cheaper on the market. Fake fabrics are smuggled into the country. He added that the custom officers and authorities at the various borders should be able to identify these fake goods and take the appropriate action against smugglers. Because of these challenges, the local textiles industries such as Printex, GTP and ATL inclusive run their machines three times a week instead of five times a week. To achieve 50 percent production capacity a textile company must run five times in a week on three shifts.
Mr. Hemans-Arday also recommends reconsideration of the VAT rate for the local industries. The government can decide that the Textile industries pay VAT rate of 5 per cent to help the local industries compete with the Asia Products. As Asian textile companies, for instance China, get 13 percent export incentive on any export they do. So they can decide to sell their products at the cost price and then keep the rebate as their profit. The cost of production has been very high for local industries. Besides paying high duties for the importation of raw material, high utility tariff, paying Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) contribution for each staff and high cost of raw materials has made production very expensive.
Ghanian textile industry makes use of black oil for their production, which is a petroleum by product but it is more expensive than even petrol which should not be the case. Chinese companies use steam which is free to run their machines. Energy cost is also crippling the textile industry, Hemans-Arday said. The government should give a concessionary tariff for local industries in terms of energy and water for all industries, reduce interest rates and also ensure the cedi stability. Moreover, the interest rate on loan is 30-32 percent which is too high for companies, making it difficult for companies to invest, reap profits and pay back loans. Some bank even has a rate as high as 40 percent. The exchange rate is also not too stable. Despite all these challenges, ATL part of the CHA Textile Group of companies, a leading textile multinational conglomerate remains the only vertically integrated manufacturing company noted for its quality cotton fabrics..
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Turkey is seeking to increase the trade volume with Arab countries to reach $70 billion in 2017. The head of the Turkish-Arab Countries Business Association, Sabuhi Attar, said on the sidelines of a fair in West Turkey’s Izmir that Turkish-Arab relations are witnessing strong collaboration since 2003, which reflected positively on economic cooperation. The trade volume between Turkey and Arab countries stood at $9 billion in 2003 and increased fivefold. This figure will be $70 billion in 2017, he said. Attar said that Turkey and Arab countries have strong relations with ongoing partnerships, recalling that Ankara has collaborated with many Arab countries, especially Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait. According to Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci, trade volume between Turkey and Arab countries reached $53 billion at the end of 2014, and is expected to increase to $70 billion in 2017. The minister said that his country is working on establishing a Turkish industrial zone in Iraq and is seeking to create economic zones in all Arab countries.
Turkey is also seeking to improve economic relations with Gulf Cooperation Council states and culminate them with a free trade agreement as soon as possible. On recent terrorist attacks that shook Turkey, Attar said that investors usually look for safe areas, and terrorism affects the economy in Turkey but things ultimately go back to the right track. Attar pointed out that the attacks in Turkey and the attempted coup on July 15, may occur in all countries, saying terrorism was a global problem. “When it comes to trade, investment and industry, stability is required,” he said, adding, “If there is no stability, investments will slow down. In such times, we are trying for more collaborations and guidance with our businesspeople so that this tempo will not fall. We are trying to create more projects.” Noting that Arab countries mostly invest in the construction sector, Attar said the investment projects in the tourism, food, and textile industries were also drawn up.
SOURCE: The Albawaba News
With the fall of the mega regional trade deals like TPP, under US President-elect Donald Trump, India must tread cautiously, while concluding trade pacts like the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, and such other agreements, in Asia and beyond. Civil society groups across Asia, Latin America, Oceania, and North America are upbeat on what they are calling the “definitive demise” of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), with Donald Trump becoming the President of the US. The mother of all trade agreements, the TPP was criticised for the cloak of secrecy surrounding its negotiations, that would have impacted the health, environment and labour of the countries involved. Civil society groups have been opposing it, for over seven years now.
Recently, the outgoing Obama Administration conceded it could not gain Congressional approval for the TPP, which had been its top priority, since the pact’s February 2016 signing, a note from civil society groups said. The bipartisan revolt against the deal in the US electorate, that played out in Congressional and presidential elections, has left no path for a resurrected TPP, signifying its definitive demise. This signals India in the ‘demise’ of the TPP, at a time, when it is involved with multiple trade negotiations in the region with the European Union, to tread cautiously on issues concerning intellectual property rights.
The signing of the TPP in February at Auckland, was a mega deal that involved 12 countries — Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam. It was criticised by pro-health, and other civil groups, for its proposals that could expand monopolies for pharmaceutical firms, expand investor rights, deregulate finance, and so on. A key concern was also the enhanced protection of intellectual property, and the Investor-State Dispute Settlement provision, that allowed foreign investors to sue a Government internationally, if they felt domestic policy had hurt their investment in the country. The lesson for India from the death of the TPP, is to proceed with caution in its trade negotiations — be it the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) or the free trade agreement with the European Union, as experts state in the Third-World Network. The anti-TPP groups are clear — they will continue the fight against any other trade deal, that did not put “people and the planet first”. The TPP, they say, would have “expanded corporate power to destroy peoples’ livelihoods, undermine human rights, and the environment, threaten financial stability, increase the cost of life-saving drugs and attack health and other pro-people safeguards”.
US President-elect Trump outlines that his administration will withdraw from the TPP within his first 100 days in the office, and this should ring alarm bells in India. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has already warned that the US pullout will make the deal meaningless. It appears that Abe’s meeting with Trump recently did not have the desired outcome. The plan was that the US would invest in a “long-term strategic partnership”, where India was to serve as a “regional economic anchor, and provider of security in the broader Indian Ocean region”. But, with the US walking away from the TPP, there will be a cascading effect on its pivotal role, leaving the Asia-Pacific ground open to China. The move could give Beijing an opportunity to forge ahead with its own trade deals through the RCEP, thereby filling a vacuum left by any American withdrawal.
The RCEP brings together the 10 members of the Southeast Asian grouping (Asean) plus China, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, but notably excludes the US. Hit by slowdown and glut, China is trying to overcome its economic difficulties by resorting to geo-politics. Little more than a week after Trump’s victory, Chinese president Xi Jinping set off for Latin America — his third since 2013 — clutching a sheaf of trade deals. Also, the strengthening of the China-Pakistan alignment in the last decade, is a reaction to the rise of India. In the new environment, rather heavily depending on the US, India needs to anchor on its own a multilateral security architecture, wherein all the Asian powers can work together and cooperate on vital economic and political issues for achieving their common interests. It also calls for a thorough review, if not of the rest of India’s Act East policy.
If a TPP country restricts market access for non-TPP members such as India, on account of higher labour standards, a potential violation of WTO provisions may arise, which India should not shy away from pursuing using its dispute settlement mechanism. India should, therefore, conclude, on a priority basis, its ongoing free trade negotiations. These include — the India-EU Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement, and the mega RCEP with the Asean, China and others. Benefits from these agreements will help mitigate some of the export losses that India may face in leather goods, textile, and plastics on account of trade diversion due to the TPP. Aiming to diversify export destinations to hitherto untapped markets like Latin America and Africa, would also help.
India also needs to identify its trade interest areas, and propose alternative negotiating templates. One such area is biopiracy, protection of traditional knowledge, and the link between the WTO’s Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights agreement, and the Convention on Biological Diversity. There have been several instances of biopiracy in the past, of Indian traditional knowledge, such as the patenting of the wound-healing properties of turmeric. Being among the 12-mega biodiversity-rich countries, India needs to bring this issue to the negotiating table in its own free trade agreements. The Government should launch a comprehensive initiative to enable Indian exporters to not only comply with standards prevalent in the importing market, but also demonstrate the compliance through appropriate conformity-assessment procedures. India should resist any attempt to converge its domestic public standards with the dominant private standards in TPP countries. If India’s public standards are harmonised with foreign standards, they will be equally applicable to domestic and export sales on account of the ‘national treatment’ principle of the World Trade Organisation, which prohibits less favourable treatment to imported products. The harmonised standards may result in most producers not only being excluded from export markets, but also being edged out of the domestic market, undermining the Make in India initiative in the process.
SOURCE: The Daily Pioneer
Teijin has announced the launch of Xfire DENIM, a practical and fireproof denim-like aramid fibre fabric for firefighting uniforms. The new aramid fabric is expected to meet the growing demand for extra-manoeuvrable clothing for volunteer fire corps. Sales of Xfire DENIM will begin this month and Japanese manufacturers will start selling uniforms for fire corps made with Xfire DENIM in 2017. Made with Teijinconex meta-aramid fibre, Xfire DENIM is produced with a proprietary technology to realise a pliant texture similar to that of denim, a universally popular fabric. Xfire DENIM is also designed to offer comfort and design flexibility. The fabric’s appearance is also practical because it enables professional and volunteer fire corps to be easily distinguished when working side-by-side, the company explains.
Protective apparel
The launch of Xfire DENIM is expected to further strengthen Teijin’s leading position in the Japanese market for protective apparel, where the company is renowned for incorporating high-performance materials in innovative hybrid safety solutions. Looking ahead, Teijin forecasts global sales in its safety and protection field to rise to JPY 20 billion by 2020. Over the decades, Teijin’s durable, heat-resistant and flame-retardant aramid fibres have provided police, firefighters, and chemical-plant workers with high-performance clothing for added protection and safety. Teijin says it is the top-selling brand of protective apparel for professional firefighters in Japan, who highly value the heat-resistant and flame-retardant properties of Teijinconex. Many volunteer fire corps in Japan, however, still use uniforms made of low-flame-retardant materials, so the demand for greater protection is increasing in this segment. Uniforms that also offer enhanced design flexibility, comfort and durability, as well as easy maintenance, are in demand.
Teijin's Aramid Fibers
Teijin is a leader in aramid fibres. Renowned for their strength, sustainability, safety, heat resistance and low weight, Twaron, Technora, Teijinconex and Teijinconex neo are used for applications including automobiles, ballistic protection, marine products, civil engineering, protective clothing, and oil drilling. Twaron para-aramid fibre is produced by Teijin Aramid in the Netherlands, while Technora para-aramid fibre is produced by Teijin Limited in Japan. Both can withstand temperatures of up to 400°C and offer strength for bulletproof and stab-resistant protective clothing. They are also suitable materials for automotive brake pads and reinforcement in tires and fibre-optic cables. Teijinconex meta-aramid fibre produced by Teijin Limited in Japan is said to offer highly durable heat resistance and flame retardation for firefighting protective apparel and industrial uniforms. It is also used as a reinforcement material for heat-resistant filters, rubber belts and turbocharger hoses.
SOURCE: The Innovation in Textiles
