The Indian textile and clothing industry is set to grow substantially in the coming years, according to a report in the latest issue of Textile Outlook International from the business information company Growth will be driven by strong expansion of the domestic market as well as higher exports, aided by government incentives and support policies. Textiles Intelligence. In June 2016 the Indian government announced a special package of measures for the textile and clothing industry under the heading of the New National Textile Policy with the aim of securing a substantial increase in exports by 2024/25 and generating 35 million new jobs, most of which would be taken by females. Twenty-one months earlier, the government launched the "Make in India" initiative with the aim of transforming the country into a global manufacturing hub with the support of foreign manufacturers. Such policies have provided considerable impetus behind foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows to the extent that India became the world's leading recipient of FDI in 2015 — ahead even of China and the United States. And, looking ahead, there are still opportunities for the textile and clothing industry to attract much more foreign investment. In addition to government policies, foreign investors have been attracted by a number of other benefits — not least India's sizeable and fast growing domestic market. The value of India's domestic market for textiles and clothing is forecast to reach $314 billion in 2025 — representing average growth of 14 percent per annum over a 12-year period — as a result of rising prosperity and a continuously growing population. India has a population of 1.28 billion and a fast growing economy, and is benefiting from a retail boom. The latter can be attributed to the country's fast expanding middle class, a large proportion of young consumers, and significant increases in personal disposable incomes. Not surprisingly, there is growing interest among foreign manufacturers and retailers in establishing a presence in the Indian domestic market. In fact, a number of foreign businesses with high profile brands — including Aéropostale, Gap, H&M and Massimo Dutti — have entered the Indian market in recent years. Also, global upmarket and luxury brands are looking to use the country as a base for manufacturing and supplying worldwide markets as well as supplying high income and middle income consumers in India itself. Admittedly, 90 percent of India's retail market continues to be dominated by unorganized trade. But the market is evolving rapidly and, according to Textiles Intelligence, organized retail outlets will expand strongly in line with the surge of Indian middle-class consumers who tend to develop stronger brand loyalty and are more able and willing to spend on better quality goods.
Source: Apparel Magazine
The Synthetic and Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC) of India is organizing an exclusive exhibition for man-madetextile products of Indian artisan dubbed as INTEXPO Ethiopia at Lalibella Hall of Sheraton Addis for two days, 6th and 7th March of 2017. According to a presser the Indian Embassy in Addis Ababa sent to Walta Information Center, the exhibition is part of Indian government Export Promotion Program for the year 2016-17. This event is being organized with the support of the Embassy of India in Addis Ababa, Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Textiles of India, local traders and Ethiopian Government wings such as the Ethiopian Investment Commission, Ethiopian Textile Industry Development Institute, Chamber of Commerce and Sectorial Associations, and Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce and Sectorial Associations. Among the expected list of attendees are Ethiopian Minister of Industry, Ahmed Abitew, Commissioner of Ethiopian Investment Commission, H.E. Mr. Fitsum Arega, and team of experts from the commission will make a presentation about the investment opportunities in Ethiopia particularly in relation to the textile and garment sector of the country. Exhibitors are expected to display a wide range of man-madetextile products including yarn, dress material fabric, suiting, shirting, made-ups and accessories. The event provides opportunity for importers, buyers and agents in Ethiopia to source their requirements in different product categories that represent the Indian textile craftsmanship. The event also has scheduled B2B meeting in order to present a unique opportunity for building long term and mutually beneficial relationships between Indian exporters and Ethiopian importers. The average share of man-madetextile products represent around 10 percent of the Indian textile and garment industry products. According to the embassy, there is a substantial scope to increase Indian exports to Ethiopia since the infrastructure and expertise for manufacturing man-madeand blended textiles is presently not available in Ethiopia. The Synthetic and Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC) plays crucial role in helping overseas buyers to firm up enduring and profitable business relationship with Indian exporters of synthetic and rayon textile items, noted the embassy. The Council will continue to support and guide the buyers and importers in Ethiopia in the coming years to strengthen the trade relations between the stakeholders in both countries, it said.
Source: Walta Information Centre
A bilateral meeting was held on 03-03-2017 in New Delhi between visiting Canadian Minister of International Trade, Mr. François-Philippe Champagne and Commerce and Industry Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman. The two Ministers carried forward the discussion from the bilateral meeting held on the side lines of World Economic Forum at Davos in January, 2017. The discussion focussed on expanding bilateral trade and investment between the Countries. Both the Ministers agreed to expedite the conclusion of Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPPA) and Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). The Canadian Trade Minister pointed out regarding the interest shown by Canadian Pension Funds in the Indian market and emphasised on the need for FIPA which will provide the required predictability and protection to investments. Addressing the issues of MFN, ratchet, ISDS etc. raised by the Canadian side, the Commerce Minister, Smt. Sitharaman clarified that the negotiation should not get lost in peripheral issues and should focus on bringing in promotion and protection elements, which provide stability and predictability to investments in each other’s country. She said that India has approved the model text as a template and the negotiation under FIPA should go forward in accordance with the model text. However, both sides should remain flexible to incorporate the essential elements of investment protection while negotiating the Agreement. The Commerce and Industry Minister, Smt. Sitharaman also raised the issue of reforms in the Temporary Foreign Workers Programme (TWFP) which has been made more stringent by Canada and which adversely impacts the services trade from India. She discussed the importance of the ease of movement for intra-company transferees on short term visa for filling in certain crucial and specialized activities. She gave example of a few Indian companies who have made investments in Canada but are finding it difficult to source key employees from India as intra-company transferees. The Canadian Trade Minister assured that a number of steps have been taken to facilitate the ease of movement for professionals into Canada. He described the recent initiative under the Global Skill Strategy Programme wherein the visa application for high skilled technicians, Professors, Researchers etc. will be disposed of within two weeks’ time. Similarly, for professionals visiting for less than a year, a fast track process is being set up which will be similar to a concierge service. This will be extended to companies invested in Canada on a priority basis. Both the Ministers agreed that the present trade which is in the range of $ 8 billion is much below its potential and there is a need to conclude CEPA in a time bound manner for ensuring higher levels of trade in goods and services. They directed the respective Chief Negotiators on both sides to agree on a time line and conclude it as per the agreed time line. The Canadian Trade Minister raised the issue of the fumigation requirement for the pulses being imported into India and the need for a resolution to the issue. The Commerce and Industry Minister assured to look into the issue in consultation with the Ministry of Agriculture. Smt. Sitharaman also raised the issue of organic equivalence to India’s National Programme on Organic Production (NPOP) by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. The Trade Minister from Canada agreed to take up this issue with the Canadian Agriculture Ministry. Both the Ministers also discussed the potential benefit of business to business interface and, therefore, the importance of CEO Forum to provide the required perspective for improvement in bilateral trade and investment. While the Indian side of the CEO Forum has been reconstituted, the Canadian side will have to reconstitute the Forum. It was agreed by the Trade Minister of Canada to reconstitute the CEO Forum by the end of March. Both the Ministers agreed on ensuring that the business leaders from both sides should meet at the earliest and provide key inputs for furthering our bilateral relationship. Both sides also agreed for better mutual cooperation on issues of common interest at the International Fora. Both the Ministers resolved to take forward the momentum for enhanced bilateral trade.
Source: PIB
After a tussle between the Centre and the states over certain clauses in the draft Bills in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council meeting last month, the pending supporting legislation — Central GST (CGST), Integrated GST (IGST) and State GST (SGST) — will come up for discussion in the eleventh meeting of the Council on Saturday. The finalisation of the draft Bills will be crucial for ensuring the timely introduction of these Bills in the second phase of the Budget session of Parliament, which is scheduled to commence on March 9. The Council is slated to meet for two days, March 4 and 5, but if the Centre and the states are able to resolve all issues on the first day, the meeting is unlikely to be extended for the second day. On Friday, a technical team of officials from both Centre and the states met to discuss views of law ministry, which will be taken up for discussion in the Council’s meeting on Saturday. Apart from CGST and IGST Bills, the Council will also do a clause by clause discussion on the SGST Bill, even though it is going to mirror the model GST law. The Council will take a final view on the taxation powers of states with respect to taxation rights over new registrants. States have been asking that the division of administrative control over new registrants should be in the agreed upon formula of 90:10 below Rs 1.5 crore annual turnover threshold and 50:50 above the threshold, while Centre is of the view that the ratio of division should be decided only after achievement of a certain threshold by the new registrants after a certain period of time. In its tenth meeting, the Council had approved only one draft law pertaining to compensation to states, while other Bills had got caught in a tussle between the states and the Centre. There were clashes between the Centre and the states over the drafting of minutes of the previous GST Council meeting, with a dispute over the minutes related to the wordings over the division of new registrants, permission to states to tweak division of taxpayers after consultation with the Centre and referral of disputes relating to imports and exports to the Centre. Also, some state finance ministers had raised the issue of inclusion of certain terms in the minutes of the meeting, without them having been discussed in previous meeting. Subsequently, state officials had asked Centre to delete certain items from the minutes of the ninth meeting. Once the Bills are cleared, the Council will decide fitment of goods and services into the four approved slabs of 5 per cent, 12 per cent, 18 per cent and 28 per cent. After the CGST law is approved by Parliament, the SGST law will have to be cleared by respective state legislatures. GST, which will replace a plethora of Central and state taxes, is a consumption-based tax levied on sale, manufacturing and consumption on goods and services at the national level. Under it, CGST will be levied by the Centre, SGST by states and IGST on inter-state supply of goods and services.
Source: Indian Express
Sutanu Guru goes through one chapter of the Survey to find out structural problems that discourage investments in the country One chapter in the latest Economic Survey tantalizingly refers to apparel and footwear in the headline while asking if India can reclaim low cost manufacturing. Futuristic, forward looking and optimistic as the chapter seeks to sound, the message is loud and clear: the Indian economy is not even close to taking the first baby steps towards making Make in India a spectacular success as envisaged by prime minister Narendra Modi. According to the Survey, sectors like apparel and footwear hold out the most promise when it comes to generating gainful employment which could also be socially transformational as the two sectors employ a lot of women. But there is a lot of distance to be covered before promise becomes reality. Here are some sobering words from the Survey: "India has an opportunity to promote apparel, leather and footwear sectors because of rising wage levels in China that has resulted in China stabilizing or losing market share in these products. India is well positioned to take advantage of China's deteriorating competitiveness because wage costs in most Indian states are significantly lower than in China. Alas, this is not happening, or at least, not enough. The space vacated by China is fast being taken over by Bangladesh and Vietnam in case of apparels; Vietnam and Indonesia in case of leather and footwear (Figures 2(b), 3(b), 4). Indian apparel and leather firms are relocating to Bangladesh, Vietnam, Myanmar, and even Ethiopia. The window of opportunity is narrowing and India needs to act fast if it is to regain competitiveness and market share in these sectors. Hence, the urgency." There is a compelling reason why the Survey has singled out the two sectors, apparel and footwear. In terms of job creation, the reasons are immediately and painfully apparent. The Survey says: "The data show that the apparel sector is the most labor-intensive, followed by footwear. Apparels are 80-fold more labor-intensive than autos and 240-fold more jobs than steel. The comparable numbers for leather goods are 33 and 100, respectively. Note that these attributes apply to the apparel not the textile sector and to leather goods and footwear not necessarily to tanning. Drawing upon the World Bank employment elasticities, we estimate that rapid export growth could create half a million jobs annually". But the jobs are not being created. At least not at the rate needed. In stark contrast, poor Bangladesh which is still designated as a Least Developed Country has moved miles ahead of India in apparel exports. The average annual growth rate of apparel exports from Bangladesh over a 20 year period is close to 30%. For India, it is less than 13%. No wonder that apparel exports from Bangladesh have gone ahead of India and the gap is widening year after year. One reason for this, according to the Survey, is that exports from Bangladesh get tariff free entry to crucial markets like the EU and America. In contrast, exports from India attract at least 10% tariff making them less competitive. In some ways, this reflects the failure of successive governments to sign trade agreements with countries. The Survey admits as much. But the Survey does project an optimistic scenario as this government is systematically plugging the policy and procedural constraints that previous governments had ignored or failed to fix. After all, Rome was not built in a day.
Source: Business World
Australian cotton can be an option for Indian spinners after the failure of monsoon in India. Australia, which is globally the fifth largest exporter of cotton, is looking at India to emerge as a consistent and major buyer of its commodity. An eight-member delegation representing the Australian Cotton Shippers’ Association held meetings in Ludhiana, Mumbai, and Coimbatore between February 27 and March 3. “We came to promote and enhance use of Australian cotton,” Matthew Bradd, chairman of Australian Cotton Shippers’ Association, told The Hindu here on Thursday. “We want India to become a consistent buyer of our cotton.” Australia has nearly 1,200 cotton growers and can supply even small quantities of cotton to India. China purchased over 30% of Australia’s cotton production last year. However, this was lower than its usual purchase. “India is a big market for cotton and spinners in India said they have had good experience with Australian cotton,” he said. Drop in output According to Hamish McIntyre, vice-chairman of Cotton Australia and a member of the eight-member delegation, India used to purchase 5% to 7% of cotton produced in Australia every year. In 2016, it shot up to nearly 23 %. This was mainly because of the drop in production in India last year. Indian textile mills can use Australian cotton as a blend to produce high value garments. The area under cotton and production was increasing in Australia, he said. K.N. Viswanathan, vice-president of Indian Cotton Federation, said that Australia cotton is known for its quality and strength. However, its production was limited until last year. India is the largest producer and consumer of cotton globally. But, India’s imports are also more to meet the need for long staple cotton. For Indian spinners, with failure of monsoon in many places this year where long staple cotton is grown, Australian cotton can be an option. At present, Australian cotton and Indian cotton prices seem to be almost at par.
Source: The Hindu
Mumbai: The state cabinet on Friday approved major reforms in the central apprentice Act to make it more industry friendly. The Act, which was formulated in 1961, has been amended by the state to add key features that will allow companies to take in more apprentices and has also provided safeguards for the apprentice and the company in case either party decides to end the apprenticeship before the prescribed duration. All Industrial Training Institutes are governed by the Act which makes it mandatory for them to ensure student internships beyond course duration. Under the 1961 Act, a company could take apprentices amounting to 2.5% to 10% of its total formal work force. The state has increased the quota to 25% of total workforce. This will lead to more jobs and will also make it easy for companies to expand business in the state. “The reforms will help more youth gain employment and also provide skilled hands for industry expansion,” said Deepak Kapoor, principal secretary of the skill development department. Another change made is to ensure companies don’t leave students in the lurch if they decide to scale down. The amendments make it compulsory for the company to give a student a onemonth stipend in case they downsizing and lay off the apprentice. Conversely, if an apprentice decides to discontinue, s/he will have to give up pay for that month. Under the new rules, minimum apprenticeship work hours have been reduced to four from the current eight. “Most freshly passed out students want time to work privately with the apprenticeship and long hours didn’t allow for that,” said an official.
Source: Times of India
Slump comes on the back of fresh demand for the American currency from banks and importers. The rupee turned shaky after a brief overnight recovery and ended lower by 11 paise at 66.81 against the US dollar on fresh demand for the American currency from banks and importers. Hardening expectations of an imminent US interest rate hike in March against the backdrop of the central bank's upcoming meet and also Fed Chair Janet Yellen's speech largely kept domestic currency under immense pressure through the day. The US Federal Reserve is due to come up with the country's economic outlook in Chicago later in the day. Sluggish domestic equities also added some discomfort for the rupee trade even as global stock rally took a pause after Wall Street retreated overnight from historic highs. Meanwhile, the dollar traded weak against its major rivals as traders unwound positions after a two-day surge. The US dollar index was trading marginally weak at 102.00 in late afternoon session. The domestic currency resumed substantially lower at 66.87 from Thursday's close of 66.70 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) Market. It remained subdued throughout the day and mostly traded in a tight range of 66.79 and 66.8850 before concluding at 66.81, showing a loss of 11 paise, or 0.16 per cent. The domestic unit had ended higher by 12 paise on Thursday. The RBI fixed the reference rate for the dollar at 66.8354 and for the euro at 70.3509. In cross-currency trade, the rupee continued to move higher against the British pound and finished at 81.65 from 81.91 and also strengthened against the Japanese Yen to settle at 58.34 as compared to 58.38 earlier. However, it fell back against the euro to end at 70.44 from 70.22 on Thursday. Meanwhile, stocks ended marginally lower after recouping from steeper losses initially as investors booked profits for the second straight day amid sluggish global cues. The benchmark Sensex edged lower by 7.34 points to settle at 28,832.45, while broader Nifty ended a tad weaker at 8,897.55. In the forward market, premium for dollar declined owing to fresh receivings from exporters. The benchmark six-month premium for August edged lower to 159.50-161.50 paise from 161-163 paise and the far-forward February 2018 contract also moved down to 316-318 paise from 318-320 paise on Thursday. On global commodity front, crude prices regained some lost ground on Friday in early Asian trade as weaker dollar encouraged buying but investors remained cautious after Russian production figures showed weak compliance with a global deal to cut output.
Source: Business Standard
Canada is throwing its weight behind an early “progressive” bilateral investment treaty (BIT) with India before it concludes a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) to ensure a stable and predictable environment for its investors. “Canadian pension funds and other investors feel that the absence of an FIPPA (Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement), popularly referred to as BIT, is kind of restricting the scope and volume of investments they can make in India. For me it is very important that we work to put that in place very quickly,” Canadian Minister of International Trade François-Philippe Champagne said in an interview with BusinessLine . This means that India will have to soon sort out Canada’s apprehensions on certain provisions of the model BIT such as the Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism — which lays down that a foreign investor cannot go for international arbitration without exhausting all domestic options — if it wants progress on the FTA. Champagne is in India to take forward talks on the proposed FTA, formally known as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), and the FIPPA. He met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Commerce & Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday. The Canadian Minister pointed out that while his country recognises the importance of signing both agreements as soon as possible for trade relations to reach their full potential, the FIPPA is a simpler agreement and can be signed earlier. “We are closer with respect to FIPPA because it is a more simple agreement (compared with the CEPA). In terms of timing we may have one before the other, but we are very committed to both,” he said. With the US, under President Donald Trump, pulling out of the ambitious Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement which also included Canada, the latter is focussing on intensifying its trade ties with Asia, specifically India and China. While not getting into the technicalities of Canada’s problems with India’s model BIT based on which New Delhi wants to draft the FIPPA, Champagne said that Canada wants the agreement to be “progressive”, like all its international pacts including the one with the European Union.
Progressive elements
“Canada has been very clear that in every agreement we do we want to see progressive elements. Yes, we are talking with India about progressive elements in our pacts. That is what people expect from us,” he said. In the last bilateral meeting with India’s trade team earlier this year in Vancouver, Canada had reportedly said that the ISDS in India’s model BIT is a cause of concern as there is no guarantee when a dispute will get resolved in Indian courts. Canada has become a big source of investments for India with over $12 billion pouring in from companies such as Scotiabank, Sun Life Financial and McCain Foods in the last two years alone. It holds huge potential for India, as the country’s outward investments crossed $750 billion in 2015.
Source: Business Line
The Chinese government is likely to start sales from its cotton reserves on the sixth of this month, offering around 30,000 tons a day until the end of August 2017. If sales are strong and market prices rise, the government may put up more cotton for auction, the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) says in its latest world cotton analysis. Last year, around 2.6 million tons of cotton were sold by the Chinese government through the end of September 2016. Assuming a similar volume is sold this year, the total volume held by the Chinese government will reach 6 million tons by the end of 2016-17. As a result, China's total stocks, including those in the private sector, are forecast to reach 9.3 million tons at the end of 2016-17, accounting for 53 per cent of world stocks, the ICAC report said. In 2017-18, world cotton consumption is projected to exceed production by 1.2 million tons and stocks are expected to decline for the third consecutive season to 16.7 million tons. China's ending stocks could fall by 19 per cent to 7.5 million tons, accounting for 45 per cent of world stocks at the end of 2017-18. This would mark the first season since 2011-12 that China's stocks account for less than half of world inventories. World ending stocks outside of China are forecast to grow by 7 per cent to 8 million tons, which could place downward pressure on prices later this season. Meanwhile, global cotton production is forecast to grow by 23.1 million tons on a planted area of 30.4 million hectares in 2017-18. India's cotton production is projected to rise by 2 per cent to 5.9 million tons, as area expands by 7 per cent to 11.2 million hectares. China's cotton production may increase by 2 per cent to 4.8 million tons, but will greatly depend on whether a subsidy is provided this year. While high cotton prices relative to competing crops is likely to lead to a large increase in planted area expected in the US in 2017-18, production is forecast to rise by just 1 per cent to 3.7 million tons. ssuming normal weather patterns, the harvested area is projected to expand by 3 per cent to just under 4 million hectares. Pakistan's cotton production is forecast to grow by 11 per cent to 1.9 million tons. Its cotton area is projected to expand by 3 per cent to 2.5 million hectares as high prices this season encourage farmers to plant, and the average yield may grow by 8 per cent to 736 kg-ha as the crop recovers from pest pressure. After declining by 1 per cent to 24 million tons in 2015-16, world cotton consumption is expected to remain stable in 2016-17. Given the strong demand this season and anticipated world economic growth in 2017 and 2018, world mill use is forecast to increase by 1 per cent to 24.3 million tons, the report said. World trade is expected to expand by 3 per cent to 8 million tons in 2017-18. China's import volume is expected to rise by 11 per cent to 1.1 million tons in 2017-18 as its mill use continues to outpace its production. Bangladesh's imports are projected to rise by 3 per cent to 1.5 million tons in 2017-18, while Vietnam's imports are forecast to increase by 7 per cent to 1.24 million tons. The US is expected to remain the world's largest exporter and its volume is forecast to rise by 5 per cent to 2.9 million tons in 2017-18. Exports from India, the world's second largest exporter, are projected to grow by 3 per cent to 990,000 tons.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
Nigeria loses over N3.2 billion annually due to closure of most of the textile mills in the industry across the country, LEADERSHIP investigations have revealed. It was gathered that an industry that once employed 500,000 people directly and another two million indirectly can only boast of about 30,000 jobs to its credit presently. Unlike in the 1980s when the country had over 200 functional factories producing fabrics for local and international markets, the situation in the textile industry has changed for the worse three decades after. Findings by our correspondent revealed that while the industry created 500,000 direct jobs in the 1980s and about two million jobs indirectly at the time, the federal government was generating about N2 billion annually as revenue from the textiles industry. Between 1985 and 1991, the textile sub-sector which was responsible for 25 per cent of the entire manufacturing sector in Nigeria was a national pride. There were reputable textile mills, mainly in Lagos, such as International Textile Ltd and First Spinner Ltd, in addition to the ones in Kano and Ibadan. Today, most of the factories have been shut down due to poor maintenance, mismanagement, smuggling, little or no access to funds, low supply of electricity and high cost of inputs. The textiles sub-sector, which had factories scattered all over the country a few decades ago that were busy producing to meet endless domestic demands, were then the highest employers of labour after the government. Kaduna Textile Mill Limited which was established in 1956 was the first modern textile mill, not just in Nigeria but all over West Africa. The gigantic factory was built with $2,500,000, according to available information. Within a short space of time, other textile firms, both public and private, joined the industry, including Arewa Textile PLC, Nortex Nigeria Limited, Finetex Limited, and United Nigeria Textile PLC, all in Kaduna. Today, only one of them is struggling to survive, as others have since laid off their workers, thereby populating the legion of persons searching for jobs in the country’s ever crowded labour market. Chairman, House of Representatives committee on Industry, Trade and Commerce, Hon. Abubakar Moriki, lamented that the remaining textile industries operating in the country are now producing below 30 per cent capacity, a development he said calls for serious concern. Observing that there is no nation that can develop and sell its locally made goods when the goods are not produced in the country, he said, “We need policies that will make Nigerian industries operate with minimal stringent efforts”. Speaking to LEADERSHIP Weekend in Lagos, the president, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Dr. Frank Jacob, said disputed the claim by the immediate past administration that it saved 8,070 jobs and created about 5000 new ones through the disbursement of funds to the tune of N100 billion. On the contrary, he said only 38 cotton, textile and garment firms benefited from the funds, while capacity utilisation in the textile sub-sector remained abysmally low. On the N51bn budgeted for the sector, Jacob said, “We welcome the development, provided the fund will not go the way of previous intervention funds that promised much but achieved little. Two years ago, a report by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment showed that over 145 Cotton, Textile and Garment (CTG) mills across the country collapsed in the last few years”. The MAN president disclosed that at present, there are less than 30 functional cotton, textile and garment mills in the country, while the current annual global output of textile firms is estimated at over $400 billion, with half of that amount from China. To this effect, Jacob said, “Any serious effort in this direction must tackle the myriad problems facing the industry. These include instability in the power sector, high cost of production, competing textile imports from Asian countries and uncontrolled smuggling and dumping of substandard fabrics in the country. Over the years, very little has been done to address these problems. “It is sad that in spite of the importance of the textile industry to the economic recovery of the country, especially on account of its revenue and job creation abilities, little has been done to maximize its potentials. Government has estimated that it can create three million jobs in the sub-sector. It should do whatever is necessary to achieve this”, he added. Jacob further maintained that, considering the amount of money that has been committed to the resuscitation of the industry in recent years without any appreciable results, the federal government must investigate how the N100bn Textile Intervention Fund of 2010 was spent. He said, “Beyond the intervention funds, we believe that the textile industry needs a comprehensive policy framework that will address all the constraints hindering its progress. This has become even more crucial now that the economy needs a lift through diversification from oil. Making the fund accessible to operators at a reasonable interest rate will be a step in the right direction”. In 2015, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had raised a glimmer of hope for textile industry operators when it floated an N300bn Real Sector Support Facility with nine per cent interest rate, but potential borrowers considered the rate too high.
Source: Lagos Leadership Newspapers
Stuart McFadyen, "Glen Prairie", Moree, is still optimistic that his irrigated cotton crop will yield well despite an extremely hot season. EXTREME summer heat conditions have been less than ideal for northern cotton, with most growers counting on lower yields and quality issues coming into picking. By early February, the Moree and Mungindi regions hadn’t had a day under 35 degrees since Christmas time, smashing the record of 17 consecutive days above 35 degrees. Many of these days had temperatures soaring past 40 degrees, which B&W agronomists Chris Maunder, Moree and Mick Brosnan, Mungindi said knocked both dryland and irrigated cotton around. Mr Brosnan said in dryland crops, top bolls had started to blister from the heat, which will restrict them from being able to open properly. This was the same for Moree crops and Mr Maunder and Mr Brosnan sadi a lot of crops would have to be harvested with strippers instead of pickers, which could cause logistical problems for growers. “Because the bolls are so small from the heat, pickers won't be able to get the cotton out of it- growers will have to look at using strippers,” Mr Maunder said. Despite having more rainfall this year compared to last, Mr Brosnan said yields were still expected to be down due to the high temperatures. Both Mr Maunder and Mr Brosnan said the micron of crops would be high and the fibre length short, which could cause discounts. In mungindi, Mr Brosnan said yields were expected to be down in irrigation crops as well due to bolls “parrot beaking” in the heat (going thin at the end of the boll). Mr Brosnan said this has meant plants haven’t been able to “fit as much cotton in the bolls” as usual. Mr Maunder said in Moree, most growers were still expecting average to above average yields in their irrigated crops, although, they won’t compare to the highs of last year. Cotton Australia chief executive, Adam Kay said it was disappointing growers weren’t expecting much more than average yields on irrigated crops across the state after a fantastic couple of cotton growing years. On the upside, Mr Kay said growers were still receiving $540 a bale for their crop, meaning prices have held up well thoughout the duration of the season In the north, yields and quality are expected to be down because of the heat but Mr Kay said even southern yields are expected to be a bit off after a wet, cold start to the season. Mr Kay said most growers had to use much more water than first anticipated to keep up with the sky rocketing temperatures. Some growers have had to go back on the market to buy more water to finish the season.
Source: Western Magazine
Thomas Caudle, President, Unifi Inc Supply chain flexibility is still a challenge for processed yarns Unifi Inc. is one of the world's leading innovators in synthetic and recycled yarns. The company provides global textile solutions and unique branded yarns for customers at every level of the supply chain. Thomas Caudle, President, Unifi shares his insights on the global fibre market and the latest developments at the company. What kind of impact will the presidency of Donald Trump have on the textiles and apparel market of the US? The overall narrative supporting domestic manufacturers should favour Unifi given our advanced technology assets in this region. However, we will be paying close attention to the details around trade agreements and tax policies to ensure that they are supportive of the US textiles and apparel industry. Which major factors will have an influence on the global fibre market? The global textile fibres market continues to grow, with a projected 3 per cent annual average growth rate from 2015-2020. Polyester and nylon account for 60 per cent of the market, and we expect this share to continue to increase. Fluctuations in raw material costs will have an impact on production costs and overall consumer spending levels will impact fibre demand and production volumes. What is the size of the market for specialised yarns? At what rate is it growing? Although we can't speak for the industry, Unifi's premium value-added (PVA) yarn sales have grown at an estimated 10-15 per cent rate each year. We expect this to continue in the future. Which are your big markets for Sorbtek, Repreve, Reflexx and Dynamic Cross-Section? Apparel continues to be the largest market for Sorbtek, Repreve, Reflexx and Dynamic Cross-Section. What markets do you plan to penetrate into in near-future? Since opening the Repreve Bottle Processing Centre in 2016, we have been exploring additional options for our recycled bottle flake. Currently, flake is being sold for use in a variety of consumer packaging applications, such as thermoformed food-grade packaging as well as non-food applications, for example, strapping and film. On the Repreve chip side, among others, we supply the non-woven markets. These are non-traditional markets for Unifi where we will continue to explore profitable growth opportunities. We are also continuing to expand in Asia to meet customer supply chain requirements. What are the latest innovations dominating the industry of value-added yarns? Consumer demand for comfort and performance combined with style will be the driving force for continued innovation in the industry. We also continue to see growing support and interest in sustainable products and processes. Which are the three main sustainable policies followed at your units? Unifi integrates sustainability into everything we do. Our flagship recycled product line, Repreve, is produced from recycled materials that would have otherwise ended-up in landfills. To date, we have recycled more than 5 billion plastic bottles into Repreve fibre. Repreve not only alleviates the use of crude oil products, it also requires less energy and water for production and results in lower greenhouse gas emissions. At our bottle processing facility, we have a water treatment plant that recycles water from the fibre dyeing process to be used for bottle washing. We also have a solar farm that supports energy usage at our domestic plants.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
The Dhaka Apparel Summit to aid the development of textile and apparel industry in Bangladesh took place as planned on 25th February 2017 at the Pan Pacific Hotel in Sonargaon in the Bangladeshi capital. This year's edition again brought together hundreds of attendees and dozens of speakers, among them the world’s leading experts in their field. This year's topic was all about establishing a more sustainable apparel supply chain with the specific aim of creating a better future together. Thus, three panel discussions, titled "Business policy & environmen: towards a better Bangladesh", "Collaborative and responsible sourcing for sustainable growth" and "Bangladesh apparel industry: transformation and the road ahead" offered an inter-active approach and the opportunity for a valid exchange of ideas. Speaking of a better Bangladesh, Shwapna Bhowmick, country head, Marks & Spencer Bangladesh & Myanmar, pointed to the importance of a true partnership between buyers and manufacturers and lauded the support Marks & Spencer has been getting from its suppliers in Bangladesh, its largest sourcing country, whenever the company has been wanting to push the boundaries. This has led to product diversification from swim shorts to denims, a capacity expansion and shorter lead times. Where M&S ordered simple products like basic polo shrts and denims in the beginning, it has now moved up to value-added products like dresses and tailored suit jackets. Bhowmick also mentioned the true partnership with the workers who are very young, enthusiastic and keen to learn, which is why, in her opinion, business grew in Bangladesh. Christopher Woodruff, professor of development economics at the University of Oxford, brought up the interesting point that Bangladesh's main competition is not other RMG-producing countries like India and Vietnam but its own booming sector, which is competing for talent. Woodruff said that workers have other opportunities now, hence the sector needs to compete for that talent. Among the solutions he gave were moving women into management roles, better training of the workforce and lower and mid-level managers and competitive wages. Speaking about Canada's involvement with Bangladesh's RMG sector and the fact that Bangladesh is the second largest source of Canadian merchandise imports in South Asia, Robert Mc Dougall, executive director for South Asia global affairs of the government of Canada, stressed the fact that buyers want assurances about issues such as environment, gender, labour rights and worker health. He emphasized that Canadian buyers want products that meet the demands of their customers and do not tarnish their labels with bad publicity overseas. Buyers also want assurances that their markets and their major sources of goods are stable and dependable. Many speakers referred to the recent events in Ashulia and worker relations in Bangladesh. In December, Bangladesh took a giant disappointing step back on labour rights. Ashulia has damaged Bangladesh's image and reputation as a reliable source for garments, said Marcia Bernicat, US ambassador to Bangladesh. Thomas Klausen, CEO of Dansk Fashion & Textile, sees vocational and soft skill training as the need of the hour, together with trust and collaboration. He also cautioned against racing for cheap goods, which Bangladesh is currently doing, because of the risk of stagnation. Suppliers and buyers need to change the race to the bottom. Bangladesh should seize the opportunities from existing initiatives. It is already ahead in competing markets and can take a front row in sustainability. Klausen also pointed to the fact that working with busines-driven CSR will often lead to savings.
Source: Yarns and fibres
