INTERNATIONAL
With the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) resorting to purchase cotton at commercial rates from different parts of key cotton growing regions in the country, cotton prices have moved up and also improving the market sentiment. Prices have firmed up to R41,500 per candy from the prevailing rates of R38,000 and farmers are now beginning to get better rates from traders, according to top officials of CCI. International rates are currently at R42,000 per candy. CCI after a gap of four years this is the firm time that they has stepped in to make commercial purchases to protect the interests of farmers and industry, M M Chokhalingam, CMD (in-charge) said.
CCI has purchased 10,000 bales so far and for the last couple of days have been going slowly on purchases because rates have improved. . Chokalingam said that the Corporation will step in aggressively if the market rates slip down and it shall remain for the entire season. The Corporation expects to purchase around 15 lakh bales for the season of 2016-17. In the start of the season, cotton prices were ruling between R5,000 and R5,200 per quintal in various markets while Minimum Support Price (MSP) was at R4,160 per quintal. However, prices dropped down later because of which the CCI intervention helped. Chokhalingam pointed out that CCI now uses the e-purchase and e-sale modes for sale and purchase of cotton and therefore had called for bids through e-auction.
Apart from MSP operations, CCI also has to perform commercial operations at times in the interests of the farmers and to keep the market stable. If CCI does not have stocks then traders can control markets and bring out cotton during lean season. The intent of the CCI is to ensure that this does not happen and keep prices uniform. Instead, CCI will purchase some 15-20 lakh bales of kapas and make it available to the industry in times of need. CCI has been purchasing kapas or raw cotton from markets wherever the prices are lower, The commercial purchase of up to 15 lakh bales would be mainly from the west, central and southern parts of the country as prices in the northern markets are ruling much higher. CCI also caters to the needs of its customers, such as the National Textiles Corporation and several co-operative mills. It also meets the demand of private sector mills, mainly during the lean season, by releasing the fibre from its stocks. Meanwhile, the Maharashtra State Cooperative Cotton Growers Federation has urged both the state and the Centre seeking permission to purchase cotton from farmers at commercial rates.
N P Hirani, chairman of the federation said that they are usually the sub-agents for CCI and have been purchasing cotton at MSP rates but this time the prices are higher and therefore they would like to purchase at market rates. The Corporation has authorized the federation to make purchases. It is only private groups that have been told to register as buyers or sellers. The Centre had declared an MSP of R4,160 per quintal for the current season for the long staple fibre and R3,860 for the medium staple length.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Glimpse India, a manufacturer of textiles for home and hotel sectors, will be exhibiting its latest designs at the Heimtextil 2017 fair to be held in Frankfurt, Germany from January 10 – 13, 2017. The textile company has been operational for over nine decades and its range of products includes textile items for the bedroom, dining room and bathroom. “We are very excited to showcase our products at Heimtextil, one of the biggest international platforms for home furnishings and textiles. Our extensive line of products and the latest designs for home textiles will be on display at booth C28 in hall 10.0,” a spokesperson of Glimpse India told Fibre2Fashion.
Glimpse India produces and exports high quality textiles and makes use of the best raw materials, exclusive designs and knowledge that dates back generations. Heimtextil is the biggest international trade fair for home and contract textiles. The first trade fair of the year for its sector, it is a climate and trend barometer for the whole business year. At this leading event for interior textiles, design and trends, international manufacturers, dealers and designers will present their products and innovations to a large audience of trade visitors.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
Government of India has imposed anti-dumping duty on jute imported from Nepal and Bangladesh as these imports are undercutting and suppressing the prices of the domestic industry. The duty has been imposed in the bracket of $6.30 to $351.72 per tonne on all forms and specifications of jute yarn/twine, jute sacking bags and hessian fabric for five years. “The performance of the domestic industry has deteriorated in terms of profitability returns on investments and cash flow. Injury to domestic industry has been caused by dumped imports,” said a revenue department notification.
Local players had complained about the imports of jute products and a probe was initiated on the same by the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) in 2015. The duty has been imposed on the aforementioned products from Nepal and Bangladesh by the revenue department after considering the final findings of the DGAD.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Friday said the State government was favouring decentralised industrial development in Telangana and announced that a comprehensive plan would be prepared for establishing industries in other districts of the State apart from Hyderabad. Speaking during the Question Hour, the Chief Minister agreed to the suggestions of BJP MLA Kishan Reddy who demanded that the industries be set up in other big cities like Warangal. He said that the State government had formulated a policy for establishing industries in other districts like Medak, Warangal, Mahbubnagar besides Ranga Reddy district and Hyderabad. He directed Industries Minister K T Rama Rao to convene an all-party meeting to clear doubts and apprise the Opposition members on the issue.
The Chief Minister said the State had ample opportunity to develop pharma sector and to cater to drug production. He said that in view of the proposed industrial development, the State government was successful in getting necessary sanction from the Centre for regional ORR for 330 kms.
Replying to a question earlier, the Industries Minister informed the House that in addition to the National Investment Manufacturing Zone (NIMZ), Medak and Hyderabad Pharma City (HPC), the State government was also examining setting up of industrial clusters especially on Hyderabad-Warangal route. A request was being made to the Central government under the recent approved National Investment Corridor Development and Implementation Trust (NICDIT) to include Hyderabad-Warangal Corridor, he said.
Based on initial feasibility, three clusters are proposed on Hyderabad-Warangal Corridor. They are Yadadri Cluster (IT/ITES, Medical hub, mineral-based industries, dry port-logistic hub and transportation hub), Jangaon Cluster (Mineral-based industries, food processing units and leather-based units) and Warangal Cluster (IT/ITES, Textiles Park, agro-based industries and institutional/educational cluster). “Detailed planning is being done in identifying the potential for establishing sector specific development. So far, one Mega Textile Park (Kakatiya Textile Park) is proposed and the DPR is prepared for 1,000 acres for Phase-I,” he said. Stating that the textile park would provide massive employment opportunities for women, he said the textile park would be operational by 2018 and would play a key role in provision of jobs.
SOURCE: The Hans India
Toronto-based ticking supplier Fine Cotton Factory has received the Global Organic Textile Standard certification, which allows the company to offer GOTS-certified organic-cotton mattress fabric. GOTS logo Fine Cotton Factory Earns Global Organic Textile Standard CertificationGlobal Organic Textile Standard Certification (GOTS) is a stringent, voluntary international standard for the processing of organic, fiber-containing products and addresses post-harvest processing stages, such as spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing and manufacturing. It includes both environmental and social provisions for post-farm to retail-shelf management. Key provisions include a ban on the use of child labor, genetic engineering, heavy metals and highly hazardous chemicals such as formaldehyde, while requiring living wages and strict wastewater treatment practices. The certification must be renewed annually.
“The textile industry is interested in suppliers that offer GOTS-certified fabrics,” said Skip Kann, director of special projects for Fine Cotton Factory. “We have a nice organic cotton product line, and the GOTS-certified accreditation takes our product line to the next level. There’s a growing lifestyle in all types of organic goods, and we are involving ourselves in the demand for certified-organic textiles. Fine Cotton believes in the standard. “We worked diligently to earn this certification, and we know that our partners will appreciate the additional assurance the GOTS certification brings.”
SOURCE: The Bed Times Magazine
The Punjab's famous hosiery industry has become the latest victim of demonetisation as the cash crunch has led to a massive fall in demand of woollen apparels, compelling the manufacturers to resort to heavy discounts in a bid to clear the built-up inventory. Woollen garment makers are offering lucrative discounts starting from 20 per cent to 50 per cent in the month of December even on fresh products in the wake of lower offtake, according to industry representatives. They rued that garment makers were "forced" to offer heavy discounts in the month of December itself as against in January or February in order to meet their fixed expenses including payment of workers' wages. "Woollen garment manufacturers have started offering discounts ranging from 20 to as high as 50 per cent in December month even on fresh makings to clear their stocks which have built up because of low demand, caused by demonetisation," said Vinod Thapar, Chairman of Ludhiana based Knitwear Club. Notably, discounts are generally offered in the month of January or February. He alleged that hopes of hosiery industry to generate good sales this season were dashed after demonetisation came into effect. "Industrialists, be it small or big, were panicked thinking that their inventory might get stuck and might not be able to clear it during this season and could cause them heavy losses," said Thapar adding that the demand for woollen items within the state and from neighbouring states like Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh etc shrunk after scrapping of old notes. Ludhiana-based prominent industrialist and maker of Shingora brand of shawls, Mridula Jain said, "The industry has been hit hard because of low demand of products." Jain said Shingora Shawls is also offering 20 per cent discount across the board. "We are not against demonetisation. We want the sufficient amount of liquidity of cash be made available by banks," she said. The troubles for hosiery came at a time when it was expecting boost in sales during winter season. Industry representatives claimed that retails sales of woollen items including pullovers, sweaters were hit hard due to cash crunch situation. "Industry needs cash and they need to make payments to their labour and meet running expenses," said Ashok Jaidka, Ludhiana based woolen garment maker. Thapar said, "With industry facing cash crunch, the production of summer garments has also been suffered.
SOURCE: The MoneyControl
The Indian economy is expected to grow 7.1 per cent in 2016-17, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) said on Friday, in its advance estimates for fiscal 2017. Economists were unsusprised by the estimation. Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Chief Economic Advisor, SBI Group, said in a research note that the estimate was on expected lines . TCA Anant, Chief Statistician, said this was the “best effort estimate” for the full financial year of 2016-17. He made it clear that the CSO had not factored in deposits into the banking system in November 2016, the first month of demonetisation. The surge in deposits in November caused volatility, which the CSO wanted to avoid in the computation although his office had all the relevant data, he said. The second advance estimate of national income for 2016-17 and the quarterly GDP estimate for the October-December 2016 quarter will be released on February 28. This advance estimate of 7.1 per cent is lower than the 7.6 per cent GDP growth for 2015-16, but is in sync with the RBI’s recent projection of 7.1 per cent for 2016-17.
Under financial services, the CSO took note of aggregate bank deposits and bank credits up to October 2016, which grew at 9.8 per cent and 9.1 per cent respectively, against growth of 10.5 per cent and 8.8 per cent respectively for the same period in 2015. On an overall basis, financial services, real estate, insurance and professional services’ Gross Value Added (GVA) is expected to grow 9 per cent in 2016-17, lower than the 10.3 per cent growth in 2015-16. In arriving at the GDP advance estimate, the CSO has also not factored in the Index of Industrial Production for November 2016, which is yet to be released.
Anant said the real GVA growth at basic prices in 2016-17 is expected to be 7 per cent (against 7.2 per cent in 2015-16). While agriculture GVA is expected to grow a robust 4.1 per cent in 2016-17 (against 1.2 per cent in 2015-16), manufacturing sector GVA growth is expected at 7.4 per cent (against 9.3 per cent in 2015-16). To arrive at the estimates for agriculture, the CSO used the first advance estimates of production of major kharif crops for 2016-17 and targets based on rabi sowings. According to the Department of Agriculture, foodgrains production during the kharif season of 2016-17 was 8.9 per cent, against a decline of 3.2 per cent during the same period in 2015-16. The CSO has also projected mining and quarrying GVA to contract 1.8 per cent in 2016-17, against 9.3 per cent growth in 2015-16. Another significant projection is that the CSO expects ‘net taxes on products’ to grow 8.5 per cent, much lower than the actual growth of 11.9 per cent in 2015-16.
SOURCE: The Hindu Business Line
With the Central Statistics Office (CSO) not factoring in the demonetisation impact on GDP, the finance ministry on Friday said its 7.1 per cent growth estimates for 2016-17 financial year are based on ‘real statistics’ and not ‘anecdotal evidence’. The CSO on Friday came out with Advance Estimates of National Income for 2016-17 and projected India’s GDP growth to slow down to 7.1 per cent, from 7.6 per cent in 2015-16. However, the estimates do not take into account the impact of November 8 decision of demonetisation on 500/1,000 rupee notes on economic activity. “Being a statistical organisation, the CSO has to go on real statistics and we cannot expect them to go on the basis of impressions and anecdotal evidence,” Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said.
Several economists have predicted that growth will slowdown in the near term as economic activity has taken a hit on account of the note ban. Even former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has projected economic growth to plunge by two per cent. Das said, “Today whatever figures, whatever statistics are coming about the impact of demonetisation are broadly, mostly anecdotal and mostly based on anecdotal evidence.” Outlining gross fixed capital formation as an area of concern, Das said the government will take necessary measures in that direction. Gross fixed capital formation is a barometer of investment. “The economic survey and the Budget will spell out what approach the government will take, so I would not like to pre-judge and I cannot comment on that, but as I mentioned earlier,” he said, adding tax revenues will exceed Budget estimates this financial year. Das, however, said Friday’s CSO data showed that overall performance of the economy — the agriculture sector and the services sector — are doing quite reasonably well. He said the data received by the government post demonetisation reveal that there are some “positive data also”. “The VAT collection of states, in fact, most of the states have recorded substantial improvement in VAT collection in the month of November.”
Das said when the whole world is slowing down, even developed countries are slowing down, India cannot be an exception. “The entire global economy, including the emerging economies, there is a trend of slow down, India cannot be an outlier. Among the countries India is one of the best performing country,” he said.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
The government leeway to contain the fiscal deficit at 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) might be marginal, though the nominal economic growth is projected to be higher than estimated. India’s nominal GDP growth, according to the Advance Estimates released on Friday, was projected at 11.9 per cent for 2016-17 against 11 per cent estimated in the Budget.
Given that the fiscal deficit was pegged at Rs 5.34 lakh crore for 2016-17 in the Budget, the fiscal deficit to GDP ratio will see reduction from 3.54 per cent to 3.51 per cent. At 3.54 per cent, the government will get an additional space of Rs 2,196 crore, which is 12 per cent of the tax expected from the Income Declaration Scheme that saw valid declarations worth Rs 55,000 crore. The nominal GDP pegged at 11.9 per cent might be cut by the month-end, when additional data points emerge. But the Budget, likely to be tabled on February 1, will calculate the fiscal deficit on the numbers released on Friday.
EY chief policy advisor D K Srivastava said fiscal stress could come down only a bit due to advance GDP numbers. But, unlike the finance ministry, he said the tax numbers would not be buoyant. However, the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana or the Income Declaration Scheme-2 might give the government some ammunition to contain the fiscal deficit. The Centre's fiscal deficit had touched 85.8 per cent of the Budget estimates by November. It was 87 per cent of Budget estimates in the year-ago period.
SOURCE: The Smart Investor
The rupee on Friday ended steady at 67.96 against the US dollar amid renewed selling in domestic equities against the backdrop of sustained capital outflows. Besides, trading sentiment was influenced by investors turning cautious ahead of the advance GDP estimates. A smart rebound in the US dollar in overseas markets after two-day selling also added some pressure on the domestic currency. The domestic unit opened firmly higher at 67.85 from Thursday's closing value of 67.96 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market and strengthened further to 67.80 following fresh dollar sales by exporters and foreign banks. However, the initial bullishness short-lived as trading momentum suddenly turned volatile with the local currency taking a reversal to hit a low of 68.04 in afternoon deals, though it later managed to recoup all its early losses and ended steady at 67.96. The rupee has appreciated by a good 37 paise in last two trading sessions.
On the global front, the greenback clawed back ground after two-straight day fall ahead of US non-farm payrolls due later in the session. The US dollar index was trading lower at 101.67 in late afternoon deals. The RBI fixed the reference rate for the dollar at 67.9522 and for the euro at 71.8662. In cross-currency trades, the rupee dropped further against the pound sterling to end at 84.01 from 83.65 and remained weak against the euro to settle at 71.97 as compared to 71.35 yesterday. It also drifted further against the Japanese Yen to finish at 58.63 per 100 yens from 58.30 earlier.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
India and Kazakhstan signed an agreement to amend the two-decade old bilateral tax treaty under which information exchanged between the two can be shared with other law enforcement agencies. The protocol to amend the existing Double Taxation Avoidance Convention (DTAC) between the two countries provides internationally-accepted standards for effective exchange of information on tax matters, an official statement said. "The information received from Kazakhstan for tax purposes can be shared with other law enforcement agencies with authorisation of the competent authority of Kazakhstan and vice versa," it added.
The initial DTAC between India and Kazakhstan was signed on December 9, 1996, for avoidance of double taxation and prevention of evasion with respect to taxes on income. The revised tax treaty will provide for a Limitation of Benefits clause to prevent misuse of DTAC. It would help allow application of domestic law and measures against tax avoidance or evasion. The protocol inserts specific provisions to facilitate easing of economic double taxation in transfer pricing cases. "This is a taxpayer-friendly measure and is in line with India's commitment under the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Action Plan to meet the minimum standard of providing Mutual Agreement Procedure (MAP) access in transfer pricing cases," the statement read.
The protocol also includes service PE (permanent establishment) provisions with a threshold and also provides that the profits to be attributed to PE will be determined on the basis of apportionment of total profits of the enterprise.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Amid rising fears about the direction American trade policies will move under President- elect Donald Trump, a Wall Street brokerage has placed India among the countries which are "relatively exposed" in case of a switch to protectionism but China will be the most impacted. Countries including India are "relatively exposed" under a change in the US trade policies, given that America currently runs a sizable trade deficit against them, Morgan Stanley said in a report. Other countries which would be affected are - Germany, Philippines, Italy and Thailand, it added.
India had a services trade surplus of USD 7 billion with the US in 2015 as most of the domestic software companies earn more than two-thirds of their business from the US alone. The USD 150-billion domestic IT and IT-enabled services sector has been looking at American developments very keenly after Donald Trump was voted to the White House. IT industry lobby Nasscom has cut its growth estimate for 2016-17 midway through the fiscal on a slowdown in demand. The American brokerage, however, said a rise in protectionism as displayed by Trump in his campaign is not its base case but a risk of its occurrence is "meaningful".
Relocating production back to the US implies output and employment losses for its trade partners, and potentially lower FDI inflows from the US in the longer run, it said, adding countries having a competitive advantage on trade deficits can be targeted. The report said China, which accounts for a bulk USD 348 billion deficit for the US from a goods trade balance side, will likely be among the most affected countries.
On the growth impact and measures to support GDP expansion if such a move indeed gets adopted, the report said, there is a limited room for further easing in monetary policies because of limited real rate differential with the US and current account deficit. "We believe that fiscal policy will be a preferred tool to support domestic demand across the Asian region," the report added. Trump will assume office on January 20.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Platts Analytics has predicted a 7% rise to 4.13 million barrels per day in Indian oil demand in 2017, compared with a 3% rise in Chinese oil demand to 11.50 million barrels per day. Platts expects China and India to boost their imports of LNG respectively by 28% and 38%. The first OPEC-led global production cut in 15 years underpins an emerging but fragile recovery, with 2017 set to see a huge stock overhang disappear by the third quarter. The oil market will move from over-supply to a more balanced supply-demand situation, according to Platts Analytics.
With Saudi Arabia and Russia joining forces to cut output by almost 800,000 barrels per day in the first six months of the year, and other oil producers under pressure to comply with their share of cuts to bring the total close to 1.8 million barrels per day, there remains a great deal of optimism in some quarters that the pace of rebalancing will be accelerated; in others there is scepticism that OPEC and its non-OPEC associates can really deliver. “Just how fast the market rebalances will depend on the discipline to enforce and maintain the cuts across a disparate group of oil producers, especially with crisis-ravaged OPEC members Libya and Nigeria exempted from the agreement, but with the potential to see large additions in output,” Platts said in a statement.
Moreover, the speed of return by US shale producers could ultimately keep a lid on prices. Most oil companies appear generally optimistic that prices will rise to a more sustainable level in 2017, but spending is likely to stay modest for now and production growth moderate. Caution is likely to dominate the North Sea oil industry, with a mini-revival in production in the last two years juxtaposed against years of decline since production peaked in 1999.
Paul Hickin, oil editorial director, S&P Global Platts said, “The next few years will be shaped by the relationship between US shale and OPEC, Russia and other key oil producers. This landmark agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC is providing a floor to oil prices and US shale is providing the ceiling. Compliance to the deal until the stock overhang disappears, most likely by the third quarter of 2017, according to Platts estimates, will be pivotal to ensuring the price floor holds, while the speed of return of US shale will determine how low the ceiling becomes.”
Reflecting large production cost reductions and productivity gains, Platts estimates that if US crude benchmark West Texas Intermediate reaches $65 per barrel, leading US production areas have an internal rate of return of between 35 and 40%. The Permian Basin could be the biggest beneficiary of expected double-digit increases in capital budgets in 2017. Platts Analytics forecasts that production in the West Texas-New Mexico basin will reach 2.226 million barrels per day in 2017 up from slightly below 2 million barrels per day in 2016. An increase in US crude production and a wider WTI-Brent spread since the end of 2016 are raising hopes that 2017 will be the year when US crude exports see a marked increase.
China’s independent refiners, which had emerged as increasingly significant importers of crude, are facing uncertain times. China has removed independent refiners from its oil product export quota allocation, which should see independents’ crude imports fall sharply. These challenges are likely to undermine the independent refiners’ profitability and slow increases in refining capacity. For the wider market, the trend to follow is the move towards importing sweeter crudes with lower sulfur notably from Angola, the North Sea and possibly the US. “The big question for the gas market in 2017 is whether strong signs of the emergence of a truly global gas market, evidenced by a large degree of price convergence between regional markets in 2016, will evolve further,” the Platts stamen said. “Traditional pricing in international gas trade has been based on oil indexation, but the oil price rollercoaster of the last few years, increasing LNG production and growing competition between LNG and pipeline gas have led to a rethink. The trend for de-indexation to oil is likely to continue in 2017.” This is illustrated by the emergence of the Japan Korea Marker (JKM) as a regional benchmark for LNG delivered into Japan and Korea. The marked increase in liquidity for swaps based on JKM prices is indicative of a market need for a pricing mechanism more reflective of the specific supply-demand balance of the gas market, one that offers more effective risk management opportunities.
Platts Analytics forecasts an increase in LNG production in Asia to 127 million tonnes per year for 2017, up 16% on 2016, led by increased capacity in Australia, while commissioning of the world’s first floating LNG plant in Malaysia heralds new global opportunities for LNG production. Nevertheless, Asia will continue to be a net LNG importer as demand across the region is forecast to grow 6% to 195 million mt/year in 2017. While demand in the large, mature Japanese and Korean markets is likely to remain flat, Platts Analytics expects China and India to boost their imports of LNG respectively by 28% and 38%.
As LNG production capacity continues to expand rapidly, particularly in the US and Australia, Platts Analytics forecasts an inevitable global LNG surplus that is expected to last until 2024. Some of this surplus is expected to find buyers across Asia, as the region is in structural deficit and pricing conditions remain economically viable.
In the US, the march towards a globalizing gas market means growing pipeline exports to Mexico and rising LNG exports to Latin America, Asia and Europe. Platts Analytics estimates US gas production will resume its growth while tighter regional market conditions, thanks to growing export opportunities and stronger domestic demand, should lead to higher prices.
In Europe, the availability of -- and growing access to -- LNG imports has led to a market share offensive by traditional pipeline suppliers. Russian gas supplies to Europe, which hit an all-time high in 2016, are expected to be strong again in the first months of 2017 as buyers look to max out their take-or-pay volumes ahead of a likely rise in oil-indexed contract prices. Falling domestic European supply from Norway, UK and the Netherlands means a growing supply gap that will need to be filled, mainly by LNG and Russian gas. Moreover, coal-to-gas switching, and the closure of coal plant in Europe, should provide a boost to European gas demand.
Ross McCracken, managing editor of Platts Energy Economist, S&P Global Platts said: “2016 saw significant price convergence in the gas market and the strengthening of the JKM towards end-year is likely to prove temporary. The growing surplus of LNG, combined with the desire to burn cleaner fuels, creates positive conditions for coal-to-gas switching in 2017. In turn, this could provide the basis for more sustained growth in world gas demand and eventually another round of investment in the global LNG sector.”
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Pokarna Ltd has announced Pokarna Engineered Stone Ltd, its wholly-owned subsidiary, has partnered Swedish home furnishing products retailer IKEA in India, to serve as its exclusive quartz surfaces supplier and installation partner. Under the agreement, Pokarna will supply engineered quartz surfaces, counter-top and will also undertake measuring, planning, installation and home delivery of its products to IKEA's customer.
Gautam Chand Jain, Managing Director, Pokarna Engineering Stone, said: “Being IKEA's exclusive engineered quartz surfaces partner in India, we are delighted to have the opportunity to extend our products and services to the world's best known furniture company.” Sandeep Sanan, New Business Manager, IKEA, said: “We are currently building a new supplier base in India for the supply of home furnishings globally as well as for India stores. Our vision is to create a better everyday life for many people.”
While Pokarna is headquartered in Secunderabad and processes granite at its two manufacturing facilities, IKEA is the world's largest home furnishing company with about 389 stores across 46 countries and sales of €34.2 billion. IKEA is in the process of building a network of suppliers in India as it sets up a chain of stores. Its first store is expected to be commissioned in India at Hyderabad in the second half this year.
SOURCE: The Hindu Business Line
Readymade garment exports from Bangladesh increased by 4.37 per cent year-on-year during the first half of the current fiscal 2016-17. In July-December 2016-17, Bangladesh earned $13.709 billion from garment exports compared to exports of $13.135 billion in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal, Export Promotion Bureau data showed. The increase in the value of garment exports was slightly lower than the 4.44 per cent growth registered in overall exports by Bangladesh during the six-month period.
Category-wise, knitwear exports rose 5.93 per cent to $6.813 billion in the first six months of fiscal 2016-17, as against exports of $6.432 billion during the same months of the previous fiscal, as per the data. Likewise, exports of woven apparel increased by 2.87 per cent to $6.896 billion during the period under review, compared to exports of $6.703 billion during July-December 2015-16. Woven and knitted apparel and clothing accessories’ exports together accounted for 81.61 per cent of $16.798 billion worth of total exports made by Bangladesh during the period under review.
In the previous fiscal that ended on June 30, 2016, garment exports earned $28.094 billion for Bangladesh, showing an increase of 10.21 per cent over $25.491 billion exports made in 2014-15. Of this, knitwear accounted for $13.355 billion while woven apparel constituted $14.738 billion. For fiscal 2016-17, Bangladesh has set apparel export target of $30.379 billion, with knitted and woven categories contributing $14.169 billion and $16.210 billion respectively.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
Blame game continues in the textile sector, as millers pin dismal performance on the absence of state facilitation, Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) chairman calls out the government for not prioritising exports, and the apparel sector accuses millers of limiting product base. Textile exports have been going down for the last two years, though an increase of 9.25 percent was recorded in November 2016 from the lower base of the corresponding month in 2015. All textile associations have been highlighting their plight through media and advertisements. The basic textile sector comes up with different sets of demands and the wishes of the apparel sector are quite the opposite. Millers want zero duty on cotton imports but duties on all types of yarns and fabric. The apparel sector desires no duty on yarn and fabrics that are not produced in Pakistan.
On the government’s side, the chairman of TDAP SM Muneer feels isolated and powerless. During a recent briefing at All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) he lamented that the export development fund meant for use by TDAP was under the control of the Ministry of Finance. He felt disappointed that he was left out of a high level meeting held Thursday in Islamabad to discuss matters relating to exports. The meeting chaired by the Prime Minister was attended by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, FBR chairman and other high officials. Pakistan's overall exports have declined by around 25 percent since SM Muneer assumed charge.
The TDAP chairman pointed out that the decline in exports was due to global recession. He said last year Pakistan's exports declined by 14 percent while there was a dip of 18 percent in Indian and 12 percent in Chinese exports. This assertion opposes Aptma’s claim that only exports from Pakistan are falling while that of India are increasing. However, the Aptma leaders did not dispute the export statistics that TDAP chairman gave at Aptma House Lahore. The chairman of the trade authority said that due to neglect at the highest level, exports have not benefited from the improved macroeconomic indicators of the country.
One point on which all the stakeholders agree was the high cost energy and power. They contend that they are not prepared to bear the losses suffered by the power distribution companies on theft. They want industries to be excluded from surcharges levied to cover inefficiencies and theft. If this plea is accepted, then the entire burden would fall on domestic consumers, a majority of whom are honest. Nobody is pressing the state to shun corruption in the power sector to ensure relief across the board. The stakeholders complain of high cost of doing business. This again is an administrative issue as there are no flaw in rules and regulations but the devil lies in execution.
In case of refunds, some stakeholders started bribing the officials for early release of refund dues. After a while, speed money for refunds became a norm and the rates also started increasing. The turmoil in the textile sector is more due to conflict of interest among different subsectors of textiles and within the textile entrepreneurs operating in Punjab and other provinces. When the federal government announced reduction of Rs200 per mmcfd on industries using natural gas last month, the Punjab based industrialists opposed the move, as they were not the beneficiaries. They were producing power from RLNG that is imported regasified gas and its rate is subject to fluctuations of crude oil rates in the global market. The decision to benefit the industries in other provinces was withdrawn and the facility was passed on to the independent power producers operating on gas. This does not in any way mean that we should shift all the blame on the textile stakeholders. The government policies were also flawed. For instance, the use of manmade fibres was restricted in Pakistan by maintaining high import duties on all manmade fibres. This was done to protect domestic polyester fibre industry. Even manmade fibres that were not produced locally were subjected to non-refundable import duty even on exports. This resulted in restricting the domestic textile industry to cotton only. Globally 75 percent of textile fabrics are made from manmade fibres. This is the reason that product range of our textiles is restricted to 10-11 items, whereas Bangladesh’s textile product range is over 200 items. We cannot enlarge our product range on the current policies.
SOURCE: The News
Everest Textile Co, vertically integrated textile manufacturers have been seeking overseas sites for its new factories, as the fabric manufacturing process is quite labor intensive has scheduled to start operations at its two new plants in Ethiopia and the US in the first half of this year. The plant in Ethiopia is to manufacture garments for the company’s brand name customers from Europe, while the US facility is to supply knitted fabrics and garments to customers in the US, the firm said. The two new factories are expected to increase the sales contribution from garments, which currently generate less than 2 percent of the company’s total sales.
Revenue from woven and knitted fabrics accounts for more than 80 percent of the company’s total sales, while textured yarns generate nearly 10 percent, according to company data. The official, who declined to be named, said that the company plans to build another plant in Haiti because of lower labor costs.Currently, Everest operates three plants in Taiwan, China and Thailand. Everest’s local peers, including Lealea Enterprise Co and Eclat Textile Co, also plan to accelerate overseas capacity expansion plans this year. Lealea, which mainly produces textured polyester yarn, has approved a plan to invest as much as US$50 million in its first overseas factory in Indonesia. The new plant is scheduled to begin operations in the first half of this year, with a target capacity of 4 million yards of polyester yarn per year, Lealea spokesman Chen Han-ching said. The plant is to distribute about half of its products to customers in Indonesia, a nation of 255 million people. Lealea is also considering building another plant in Vietnam because of lower tariffs on exports to the EU, Chen added.
While, Eclat plans to expand production capacity in Vietnam after dissolving its wholly owned clothing plants in China last month. Two new plants in Vietnam are scheduled to begin operations in the first and third quarters of this year respectively and expected to manufacture about 950,000 articles of clothing per month, boosting Eclat’s capacity by 20 percent annually.
Everest has also planned to purchase 88 new circular knitting machines, with 35 of them to be used for developing and producing body-mapping fabrics for functional clothing. Everest, whose customers include North Face Inc, Columbia Sportswear Co, Decathlon Group, is highly regarded in the industry for its adherence to sustainable production methods.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Weaving sector, especially indirect traders who supply goods to the exporters, are suffering and almost on the verge of collapse due to the discriminative policies of the government. In a statement issued Friday, Asif Siddiq, founding member and patron-in-chief of Pakistan Weaving Mills Association, said exporters have been allowed to import yarn at zero percent duty and no income tax and sales tax while the indirect exporters have to pay 15 percent custom duty and one percent income tax. “Due to the shortage of cotton in Pakistan and high input cost, the weaving industry is relying mostly on imported yarn from India, China, Indonesia, and Turkey,” he said. He was addressing Extra Ordinary General Meeting of PWMA held at SITE Area in the presence of PWMA president Ifan Moten, senior vice president Yousuf Prince, vice president Khalid Riaz, and other senior members of the association.
With this kind of policy, government has completely taken the indirect exporters out of the market, he said. “In other words, all trading activity, which is the backbone of any industry, has come to a halt and now all weavers are on the mercy of the exporters to get the yarn from them and only run their machines on overhead basis.” The government needs to immediately make an even playing field for the direct and indirect exporters and consult all the stakeholders before making policies of this sort to safeguard the industry. He further stated that the textile package which was to be announced by the government should address the issue raised by our association.
Pakistani textiles were unable to compete with India and Bangladesh due to the high input cost, which was obvious as Indian cotton prices were more than Pakistan’s but the Indian yarn prices were cheaper by 5.0 to 10 percent.
SOURCE: The News
Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) has signed an agreement with Golden Fiber Australia Private Limited (GFAPL) of Australia under this deal BJMC will export different jute goods including sacks to Australia worth Tk565 crore in next two years. The deal was signed at the textile and jute ministry’s conference room yesterday. BJMC Secretary Mohammad Saleh Uddin and Sakib Ahmed Khandoker of the GFAPL signed the agreement on behalf of their respective sides, according to a statement issued by the ministry.
The Australian company GFAPL will act as a strategic partner and provide assistance to the BJMC to expand Bangladesh’s jute goods market in Vietnam, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand and the USA. Although the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had proposed to reduce the tax at source rate on all the exports at 0.70%, she did not mention anything about the jute makers. However, the income tax wing of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) yesterday issued a Statutory Regulatory Order (SRO) that said the rate was fixed at 0.60% for the jute makers, which will remain effective till June 30, 2019.
The budget for fiscal year 2016-17 finally brought smile to jute goods manufactures as the government has reduced the tax at source to 0.70% from the proposed 1.50%. Not only the reduced tax at source, but the jute product exporters will also enjoy corporate tax at a reduced rate from the next fiscal year till FY20.
Export earnings from jute and jute goods achieved a moderate growth, riding on better performance of raw jute export. Earnings from jute and jute goods grew by 25.71% to $69.77, while earnings from raw jute increased 74.30% to $25.50 million. The agreement signed between BJMC and GFAPL will be renewed in every two years. Jute ministry and BJMC high officials including Textile and Jute Secretary Shubhashish Bose and BJMC Chairman Dr Mahmudul Hasan, among others, were present on the occasion of signing the deal.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Rates were firm on the cotton market on Friday in the process of restricted buying by mills and spinners, dealers said. The official spot rate was unchanged at Rs 6300, dealers said. In Sindh, seed cotton prices were unmoved at Rs 2800-3350, they said. In Punjab, phutti rates held the overnight levels at Rs 2800 and Rs 3550, as per 40 kg, they added.
In the ready session, around 10,000 bales of cotton changed hands between Rs 6100-6700, they said. Cotton analyst, Naseem Usman said that rates of cotton were up amid tight supply of best quality. Talking to Naseem Usman, Provincial Agriculture Minister of Punjab, Dr Farrukh Javed said that to achieve better production, the cotton growers should refrain from early sowing, the farmers would have to wait for April 15 for new sowing.
Other analysts said that phutti arrivals came down and variety is not so good, so some needy mills and spinners entered the trading ring to meet their demand, he said. The positive development is that after a long gap of time, the yarn is in demand, which may bring some relief for the traders, other experts said. According to private sector estimate, country may achieve 10.54 million bales of cotton, which is not enough for total consumption. They also observed that the trading activity revived due to Heimtextil fair, the biggest trade exhibition of textile products. The textile fair is to be held in Frankfurt, Germany from January 10 to 13, they said.
Reuters adds: ICE cotton futures hit a near-five month high on Thursday before settling marginally lower, pulled down by a bout of profit-taking. The March cotton contract on ICE Futures US breached the key 75 cent level for the first time since August 9 and hit a session-high of 75.37 cents per lb.
The following deals reported: 600 bales from Dharki at Rs 6600/6700, 400 bales from Mianwali at Rs 6100, 600 bales from Pir Mehal at Rs 6300, 400 bales from Haroonabad at Rs 6400, 400 bales from Bhawalpur at Rs 6425, 200 bales from Chistian at Rs 6450, 1400 bales from Fort Abbas at Rs 6450/6565, 1000 bales from Rahim Yar Khan at Rs 6550 and 2600 bales from Khanpur at Rs 6650/6675, dealers said.
SOURCE: The Business Recorder
Citing higher cotton supply scenario for the season 2016-17, the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) has hinted towards a bearish trend in the prices for the fibre in the second half of the year. The ICAC Secretariat has forecast the season-average for Cotlook A Index in 2016-17 (starting October-September) will range between 66 and 83 cents per lb, with a midpoint of 74 cents/lb, which would be 4 cts/lb higher than last season. But the world cotton production in 2016-17 is likely to rise by 8 per cent to 22.8 million tonnes (mt) and the world consumption is likely to remain stable at 24.1 mt , which may put pressure on the prices in the latter half of the season, the ICAC noted.
World ending stocks may fall by 7 per cent to 18 mt in 2016-17, though stocks outside of China are expected to grow by 6 per cent to 8.7 mt .According to ICAC, the current season began with lower stocks, particularly from countries in the Southern Hemisphere, which saw ending stocks in 2015-16 fall by 21 per cent to 1.6 mt , the lowest since 2009-10. The shortage in supply carried through the first few months of 2016-17 season thereby keeping the prices firm.
In Gujarat — one of the key producers of the commodity in India — prices for raw cotton hovered in the range of Rs. 5,500-5,670 a quintal inching towards new record. Traders cited the reduced arrivals and cash shortage in the banks as the reason for the rally in the cotton prices, whereas most believed that the rally may not continue longer on good production. ICAC predicts India’s cotton production to increase by 4 per cent to just under 6 mt , making it the world’s largest producer. The competing fibre, polyester, has shown uptrend but still well-below international cotton prices, making it unlikely that cotton mill use will expand unless polyester prices continue to rise. Mill use in India is projected to decline by 1 per cent to 5.2 mt .
SOURCE: The Hindu Business Line
Pakistan, one of the largest raw cotton exporter to bridge the gap between the production and consumption of raw cotton will have to foot a bill of around $1.58 billion for the import of 4.5 million bales (170kg each) as cotton production is expected to be around 10.54m bales in 2016-17. Pakistan has been an importer for the last two years. Last year, Pakistan imported around 2.7m bales from India at a cost of $800m. With cotton production clocking up at 15m bales in 2014-15 and 9.5m bales in 2015-16.
The country has also lost its fourth position in the world in terms of the production of raw cotton. There was a time when Pakistan was the largest exporter of cotton yarn globally, according to Asif Inam, chairman of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) for the Sindh-Balochistan zone. About two months back, cotton prices in India were low owing to higher cotton production estimates, But the prices have moved up substantially now, making the import of cotton from across the board costly, Mr Inam added.
At the start of the cotton season in India in October, prices were as low as Rs35,000 per candy (356kg). More recently, the prices soared to Rs50,000 per candy due to the intervention of the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI). Mr Inam said that Pakistan’s Department of Plant Protection (DPP) restricted cotton imports from India when low prices prevailed there citing phytosanitary conditions. According to reports, the DPP has also restricted the import of cotton through the Wagha border because it is usually via open trucks, which may expose local cotton to pests and other diseases. This means cotton imports can only be via sea. However, this will further enhance its cost for Punjab-based textile mills that are already complaining about high gas tariffs. The APTMA official said that the government should remove 4 percent import duty from raw cotton as 4.5m bales will be required to meet local demand because current stocks in the country are insufficient.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
The Air Freight Rebate Scheme for textile and apparel known as the 'Speed-to-Market' Scheme (STMS) as announced in the Budget Speech 2016/17 by the Minister of Finance and Economic Development will be launched this month after consultations with the various stakeholders. STMS aims at developing the 'Speed-to-Market' textile and apparel export segment in the wake of Brexit. It will also allow Mauritian textile and apparel exporters to become more competitive vis-à-vis other countries exporting via air freight to Europe.
Another objective is to enhance the competitiveness of Mauritian exports in the European market, especially in terms of speed of delivery while at the same provide support to the textile and apparel enterprises facing difficulties in the wake of Brexit. The STMS which will be applicable to the textile and apparel manufacturing companies only, will among others; provide a 40 % refund on air freight cost to exporters to Europe including UK; be time-bound for 2 years; and will be operated and managed by Enterprise Mauritius. The refund will be applicable for exports as from 1st April 2017.
SOURCE: The All Africa
Calls for a living wage in low income garment manufacturing hubs such as Bangladesh have been dismissed as 'nonsense' by a leading free market proponent and fellow of the Adam Smith Institute in London. The comments were made in the context of continued factory closures and strikes in Bangladesh by garment workers who are calling for significant increases in local minimum wage rates – which are currently among some of the lowest in the world.
Writing for Forbes, Tim Worstall claimed that the only way to increase wages in poor countries such as Bangladesh, where incomes and wages are low, is by increasing GDP. "We cannot drive minimum wages up over GDP per capita, that's just not one of the things the universe allows us to do," said Worstall. Worstall suggested that wages in the likes of Bangladesh are low because productivity is low and that the only solution to low wages was increasing productivity. "When ...the average value added of that labour is the same as it is in the US then everyone will be getting paid US wages. And yes, wages will rise to US levels, not US fall to those of Bangladesh," he said.
He also dismissed calls for a 'living wage' by organisations such as the Asia Floor Wage Alliance. "Well, no, people are living on those wages so obviously it is possible to live upon those wages," he said. "What they actually mean is that wages should be high enough to afford the standard of living which the campaigners desire people should have. Which is where we come to our problem of course."
While the sentiments expressed by Worstall are not necessarily new – free market proponents have long-since opposed market distorting mechanisms such as minimum wages – they do open up an interesting debate about wage rates generally in countries such as Bangladesh. For example, will market forces, left unchecked, lead to rising wages for garment workers? Or is intervention required by local trade unions which, buoyed by the support of international campaigning groups and NGOs, are proving increasingly successful in bringing about affective collective bargaining mechanisms for workers' groups?
The case of China also provides an interesting blueprint here. Wages in China's textile sector have risen significantly in recent years, and those increases have gone in hand in hand with technological upgrading and, consequently, productivity. In theory, China's situation provides some support for Worstall's proposition. However, there is some irony here: China's economy is heavily state controlled and its huge textile industry takes its lead largely from the government's ongoing five-year plans. As such, the success of China's textile industry, and consequent wage rises, could be attributed as much to smart, long term state planning as it could to market forces.
SOURCE: EcoTextile
Oeko-Tex, independent textile testing institutes working for enhanced product safety and sustainable production in the textile value chain, has reviewed the requirements of its products and has published the new regulations at the beginning of the year 2017. A large number of new changes will be made to MADE IN GREEN, MySTeP, STeP, and STANDARD 100. The Oeko-Tex Association has established a new price strategy for the MADE IN GREEN by Oeko-Tex product label to fully satisfy market requirements. The new pricing offers label issuers the option to use smaller packets of labels, or even a single label for their product to be labelled with MADE IN GREEN by Oeko-Tex.
After three years in the market, Oeko-Tex has revised the STeP by Oeko-Tex limit value tables in Annex G1 and G2 of the standard document. These revisions have been influenced by ongoing changes in the global environment, input from customers and current regulatory developments. A new chapter has been added in Annex D: “Hazardous Processes That Should Be Avoided”. These processes to be avoided include the use of potentially hazardous surfactants, sodium hypochlorite (as a bleaching agent) and defoamers that are potentially damaging to the environment.
The new regulations for STANDARD 100 by Oeko-Tex will come into force on April 1, 2017 following a three-month transition period. At the parameter “per- and polyfluorinated compounds”, a large number of substances have been added or listed explicitly by name in product class I (items for babies and small children) and provided with limit values. As a result, in product class I, the use of per- and polyfluorinated compounds is severely restricted and nearly eliminated. A large number of substances are also included in the list of regulated softeners (phthalates) in all of the product classes. The three organic tin compounds dipropyltin (DPT), monophenyltin (MPhT) and tetraethyltin (TeET), are now regulated with limit values in all product classes. In addition, the use of the blue colourant “Navy Blue” is also now explicitly prohibited for product certification according to STANDARD 100 by Oeko-Tex.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
MAS Fabric Park, second industrial park of leading intimate apparel supplier MAS Holdings, has been opened in Giriulla, Sri Lanka and operations are expected to commence in it soon. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe ceremonially opened the park that is set up on the site of the former Kabul Lanka lace factory that was shut down over 12 years ago. The park will require an investment of $28 million and is expected to create over 3000 direct employment opportunities.
The Government of Sri Lanka handed over the factory site to the company with the intention to accelerate the economic progress in all parts of the country. The park will feature state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies to develop products that can compete in the global market, according to Sri Lankan media reports. A MAS Fabric Park is already operational in Thulhiriya since 2006 and the new park will replicate sustainable features and services of the former. These include water treatment and supply, various engineering services and uninterrupted power supply. MAS Holdings collaborated with the Board of Investments (BOI) to set up and develop the park in Thulhiriya, thus becoming a successful public-private partnership of the country.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
The 48th Hong Kong fashion week for winter will kick off from January 16. The event will witness participation of more than 1,500 exhibitors from 19 countries and regions, showcasing the latest collections and fashion designs from international brands and an assortment of fabrics and accessories. The fashion show will focus on the theme— Hall of Games. The four-day fashion event is being organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) will have about 20 fashion events, including fashion shows, trend forecasting seminars, buyer forums and networking receptions, providing an excellent platform for buyers to gather the latest market intelligence and source fashion products and accessories.
Italy, Pakistan and Sweden will debut at the Hong Kong fashion week while there will be five pavilions at the fair representing India, Indonesia, Japan, Macau and Pakistan. The event will also feature a number of thematic zones, including two new zones: fashionable sportswear and denim and casual wear. These zones will help the buyers easily identify relevant products and suppliers.
Ten fashion shows, including designers’ collection and brand collection shows will be held during the event. Young designers from 14 fashion labels will be showcasing their design talent at the fashion event. The fashion show will feature various collections including Chinese arts and crafts and modern womenswear among others.
For products, Italian brand Salto will display its collection of eco-leather silver pleated skirts, fully designed and manufactured in Italy. Japanese designer Hikami Masahiro will feature his children’s shoes brand and Ninos, an amalgamation of nearly 70 years of traditional craftsmanship and delicate designs will be also be showcased at the international fashion show.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan, which have recorded a massive 60% increase in bilateral trade with the revival of Quadrilateral Agreement for Traffic in Transit, are set to hold a huddle of the Joint Ministerial Commission next week to suggest fresh measures for boosting cooperation in energy and trade. “The Joint Ministerial Commission of the two countries is going to meet after a hiatus of 10 years on January 12 and 13 in Islamabad,” a senior government official said while talking to The Express Tribune.
Kyrgyzstan is part of the Central Asia-South Asia (Casa) 1,000-megawatt power supply project, which will bring electricity to energy-starved Pakistan and Afghanistan. Tajikistan is also a stakeholder in the project and will export cheap hydroelectric power. In the wake of slow progress on the part of Afghanistan on a trilateral transit trade agreement with Pakistan and Tajikistan, Islamabad had sought to revive its trade accord with China, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan to gain access to the markets of Central Asia.
The four-nation pact was signed in 1995, but it came into force after many years in May 2004. It permitted the transport of goods to Central Asia via China. The agreement provides Pakistan with a gateway to Central Asia without passing through Afghanistan and relies on the Karakoram Highway, which connects Pakistan and China, as a transit corridor. It also allows movement of transit goods without levy of any duties in territories of all the contracting parties. This is the alternative route on which Pakistan and China have worked as transit and bilateral trade with Afghanistan is at a standstill. “It is a big setback for Afghanistan that could otherwise have earned huge money in transit fee and could have become a hub. However, due to its foreign policy, it has lost this opportunity,” commented a Pakistani official.
A senior diplomat of Kyrgyzstan told The Express Tribune that Kyrgyzstan and Pakistan had taken benefit of the quadrilateral agreement as bilateral trade recorded a 60% growth in just one year with big potential for a further increase in commerce. “The two countries will see a further rise in trade spurred by the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC),” he said. At present, Pakistan’s exporters import furniture from Malaysia and then export it to Kyrgyzstan. Pakistan’s textile products are also shipped to the Central Asian state.
Kyrgyzstan shares border with Kazakhstan and Russia and it could become a trade hub in Central Asia. Kyrgyz parliament has approved Pakistan’s inclusion in the regional political, economic and military group, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), with headquarters in Beijing. Earlier, Pakistan had observer status in the body, but now it has won its membership. Other members are China, Kazakhstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Pakistan has invited all SCO member-states to use its ports for gaining access to trade routes through the Arabian Sea after CPEC is completed and becomes operational. According to the official, Kyrgyzstan has praised the CPEC project and will try to capitalise on the opportunities at Gwadar port. At present, traders are using the Karachi Port, but Gwadar will reduce freight cost and give a further push to bilateral trade.
Kyrgyzstan is also a member of the Eurasian Economic Union. Its other members are Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and Armenia. No customs duties are levied on the goods that are transported among member-countries of the union. Pakistan has also expressed the desire to sign a free trade agreement with the union, with vital support of Kyrgyzstan, to step up bilateral commerce.
SOURCE: The Tribune
The organisers of the Copenhagen Fashion Summit have announced that their popular sustainable fashion conference will now become a yearly event with the fifth edition set to take place on 11 May 2017 at Copenhagen Concert Hall. The summit, which is under the patronage of HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, is attended by businesses, non-profit organisations, policy-makers and media organisations.
Since the first Copenhagen Fashion Summit was held in 2009 during COP15, it has become one of the largest and most influential platforms for creating awareness on the current state of sustainability in fashion. "Today, sustainability and responsible innovation is considered the most significant business trend in the fashion sector, therefore the time is right to expand the reach and potential of the Summit," said a note from the show's organisers, who have also now launched the Global Fashion Agenda.
The Global Fashion Agenda is a year-round agenda setting forum that "aims to convene the entire fashion sector, governments, civil society and all the great many initiatives out there around a global commitment to positive change."
Eva Kruse, CEO of Global Fashion Agenda said: ""It is a very exciting time for us; taking our initiatives to the next level! The goal is to take the Summit from being a great conference to being an actual Summit focusing on commitments from individual companies and on a much broader scale. The Summit must deliver tangible outcomes, guidelines and hands-on solutions that will create positive change. The Global Fashion Agenda cannot do this alone, therefore we are forming a strong group of strategic partners behind us and will focus on convening the conveners to help streamline the great many initiatives out there. The Summit will first and foremost be a fashion event but also has the potential to make sustainability mainstream and provide the business case for the industry."
SOURCE: The EcoTextile
At the Première Vision show to take place this month in New York, Shima Seiki will exhibit at booth A3 at PIER 94, 711 12th Avenue within the new 'Manufacturing' area dedicated to technical and logistical manufacturing solutions as the sole machine technologist with a machine exhibit. Shima Seiki’s novel SRY computerized flat knitting machine with specialized loop presser beds that provide unprecedented capability especially with inlay patterns. Inlay fabric is produced by inserting yarn into knit fabric in a weave fashion, offering new and exciting possibilities in hybrid knit-weave textiles that open up opportunities for expansion into markets for wovens will also be on display at Première Vision.
Given current conditions in garment manufacturing especially in the U.S., Shima Seiki says that its proposals at Première Vision New York should be of timely significance. Reinforcing the Made in USA movement for returning garment production back on-shore, consumer trends such as increase in online shopping activity have also changed supply chain requirements, with growing demand for mass customization and short turnaround. The combination of Shima Seiki’s WHOLEGARMENT knitting technology and SDS-ONE APEX3 3D design system, the company said that it offers an ideal manufacturing model to support just that.
Because of their capability to produce elegant items in their entirety in 3D without the need for sewing or linking, WHOLEGARMENT knitting machines realize high-quality quick response production thanks to reduced lead times as well as reduced dependence on labour. These qualities are maximized with the latest MACH2XS series WHOLEGARMENT knitting machines.
According to Shima Seiki, WHOLEGARMENT knitting, together with the aforementioned SDS-ONE APEX3, form a synergy that provides revolutionary game-changing flexibility in the knit supply chain. Ultra-realistic simulation capability on APEX3 allows Virtual Sampling to minimise the time- and cost-impact that the sample-making process has on current manufacturing. With this new manufacturing model, the production cycle can be shortened to such an extent that on-demand production is possible without being limited to seasonal cycles.
To further enhance the planning and design capability of APEX3, Shima Seiki’s new web-based fashion service “staf” (shima trend archive and forecast) will also be demonstrated. staf provides a massive collection of fashion related content including an archive of fashion and colour trends covering the past 50 years. This information can be neatly organised on a virtual concept board that can be shared across various devices, improving on planning efficiency significantly.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Oil prices dipped on Friday over lingering doubts that some producers might not implement announced production cuts in an attempt to curb global oversupply. Brent crude futures, the benchmark for international oil prices, were trading at $56.76 per barrel at 0756 GMT, down 13 cents from their close the previous day. In the United States, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $53.65 a barrel, 11 cents below their last settlement.
Analysts said that current prices were around break-even levels for many producers, providing little reason for much bigger rises, barring unforeseen outages. "Since the Opec cut announcement, oil prices are above the $54 per barrel level which we believe is the... cash breakeven for the sector in 2017," US investment bank Jefferies said. Friday's dips came after prices increased the previous day following reports of supply cuts from Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi coming into effect as part of efforts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and other producers to curb a global supply glut.
Overall supply from Opec in December fell only slightly to 34.18 million barrels per day (bpd) from a revised 34.38 million bpd in November, according to a Reuters survey this week based on shipping data and information from industry sources. While traders said oil markets were well supported by the agreed cuts, they said doubts remained that all producers would fully implement planned reductions. "The ball is in Opec's park to deliver on the announced cuts and prove the naysayers wrong," said Virendra Chauhan, oil analyst at consultancy Energy Aspects in Singapore. "There will be some countries who will cheat...We expect zero compliance from Baghdad... And we definitely do not expect the Kurds to join in, given that they are autonomous from the federal government," Energy Aspects said in its 2017 oil market outlook, published this week.
BMI Research said that Iraq may send some of its crude through Iran via shared oil fields, in order to nominally comply with Opec's commitment to cut its production. With Iran potentially 100,000 bpd short of its Opec production target, Iraq's 210,000 bpd planned cut could be lightened if the countries cooperated by enabling Iraqi oil to move through Iran, BMI said. Both countries share five oil fields - North & South Azadegan (Majnoon in Iraq), North & South Yaran, and Yadavaran - which are estimated to produce around 400,000 bpd, BMI said.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
China's yuan traded in the offshore market is set for its biggest weekly gain on Friday, hovering around two-month highs after the authorities were suspected of pushing up overnight borrowing costs to discourage bearish bets on the currency. Both onshore and offshore yuan have been rallying this week, driven predominantly by a blow-up in yuan borrowing costs offshore and tighter liquidity. The spread between the two spot rates widened to its highest since 2010.
Chinese authorities are keen to deter speculation in the currency and analysts and traders suspect policymakers have sought to prevent it from weakening to the 7-per-dollar level ahead of US President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20. Traders said the market had long held a strong "one-way" expectation of depreciation in the yuan and the rally in the currency over the week was the authorities' attempt to alter such views. But while policymakers may have some success in the short-run in arresting the yuan's descent, pressure will remain on the yuan to depreciate over time, they said. "I don't think the volatility in the yuan so far this week will reverse the trend of depreciation. But the yuan is at least unlikely to have another rapid fall ahead of the Lunar New Year," said a Shanghai-based trader at a foreign bank, referring to the week-long holiday starting at the end of January.
The People's Bank of China (PBOC) set the official midpoint for the yuan, which is allowed to move in a tight band around that guidance rate, at 6.8668 per dollar prior to the market opening, 639 pips or 0.9 per cent, firmer than the previous fixing. That made it the largest upward move since the yuan was revalued and taken off a fixed dollar peg in July 2005. By 0706 GMT, onshore spot yuan was trading at 6.9334 per dollar, down 0.7 per cent from late Thursday. The Chinese currency, however, is around 0.2 per cent higher than Friday's close and is on track to log its best week in more than a month. Onshore yuan's retreat on Friday was a result of increasing dollar demand by companies after the US currency eased off 14-year highs, said a trader at a Chinese bank.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
The US trade deficit in November rose to the highest level in nine months as imports of oil and other foreign goods increased, while American exports fell for a second month. The trade deficit jumped 6.8 per cent to $45.2 billion, the largest imbalance since February, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Exports edged down 0.2 per cent to $122.4 billion, reflecting lower overseas sales of American-made airplanes, autos and farm products. Imports rose 1.1 per cent to $231.1 billion, led by a 7.6 per cent jump in oil.
President-elect Donald Trump made America's large trade deficits a central part of his campaign. He promised to impose high tariffs on countries such as China and Mexico unless they reformed what Trump charged were unfair trading practices that have cost millions of American jobs. A lower deficit adds to the overall economy because it means American companies are selling more to foreign countries than Americans are purchases from abroad. The deficit is the difference between exports and imports.
In November, imports rose to the highest level since June 2015, and economists predicted further increases as the US economy picks up momentum. Sal Guatieri, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, said the drop in exports in November was not surprising given that the value of the dollar has risen to a 14-year high against other currencies. A stronger dollar makes America products more expensive on foreign markets. Guatieri predicted the trade deficit would be a drag on growth going forward. ``Trade will weigh on economic growth this year but other sectors will more than pick up the slack,'' he said in a research note.
For November, America's deficit with China narrowed slightly to $30.5 billion. For the first 11 months of 2016, the deficit with China totaled $319.3 billion, 5.9 per cent lower than the same period in 2015 but still the largest imbalance with any single country. The deficit with Mexico dropped 6.5 per cent in November to $5.8 billion and totaled $58.8 billion through the first 11 months of 2016, up 4.9 per cent from 2015. The overall deficit through November is running 1.1 per cent below the pace in 2015 when the deficit in goods and services trade totaled $500.4 billion. Trump has threatened to slap tariffs as high as 45 per cent on China and Mexico unless those countries stop practices Trump believes have cost American jobs. To carry out his campaign pledges, Trump is assembling a trade team that represents a break from traditional Republican free-trade policies.
This week he announced he would nominate Robert Lighthizer, a former trade official under President Ronald Reagan, to be US trade representative, the government chief's trade negotiator. As a Washington lawyer representing US steel companies, Lighthizer has been a vocal proponent of imposing tariffs on steel imports. The rise in imports reflected a 7.6 per cent jump in petroleum imports, which rose to $14.3 billion. The deficit with the European Union rose 12.4 per cent in November to $14.8 billion.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Further evidence emerged Friday to show that the 19-country eurozone economy ended 2016 strongly and that it's poised for a period of faster growth, at least until a run of elections that have the potential to cloud confidence. In a wide-ranging survey across the single currency bloc, the European Union found business and consumer sentiment running at near six-year highs. Its economic sentiment indicator rose 1.2 points to 107.8, its highest level since March 2011. The survey found confidence up across sectors, from retail to industry, and in most countries, from powerhouse Germany through to heavily indebted Greece. Italy, though, was flat and Spain suffered a retreat.
Consumer confidence was particularly strong, suggesting that recent drops in unemployment across the eurozone and increased optimism over the outlook have helped alter individuals' propensity to spend in the crucial run-up to Christmas. That echoes other recent findings - most notably from the closely watched purchasing managers' surveys - showing that the eurozone economy gained traction in the latter months of 2016. A number of economists now think the eurozone economy expanded at a quarterly tick of 0.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016, up from 0.3 percent in the previous three-month period.
One mild disappointment was news Friday that retail sales across the eurozone eased 0.4 percent in November, though that was came after a 1.4 percent jump in the previous month. Despite the monthly slowdown, the EU's statistics agency, Eurostat, says retail sales were 2.3 percent higher in the year to November, markedly ahead of the year's average. Overall, this week's run of economic data will likely come as relief to many of the region's governments facing tough re-election battles ahead as well as to policymakers at the European Central Bank.
Elections in Europe are likely to play a key role in business and consumer sentiment this year. Notable votes are due in France, Germany and the Netherlands, and in all three there are populist politicians looking to gain an advantage from the economic malaise that has gripped the eurozone for nearly a decade. Many economists think that eurozone growth will likely falter through 2017 because of the uncertainties that will be generated by the elections as well as higher inflation caused by higher oil prices. "With this week's data also confirming that rapidly rising energy inflation is now biting into consumers' disposable income growth, and given the heightened level of political uncertainty ahead of key elections this year, the pace of economic expansion seems set to slow,'' said Stephen Brown, European economist at Capital Economics.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
