Ranchi (PTI): Jharkhand will be a ‘partner state’ for the upcoming season of the Amazon India Fashion Week Autumn Winter 2017, an official release today said. The four-day event will be held from March 15 to March 18 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Lodhi Road, the official release said. It said that Jharcraft (Jharkhand Silk Textile & Handicrafts Development corporation, Ltd.) is setting an example by creating new opportunities and making it profitable for weavers by giving them a definitive source of employment while making the best use of available resources. The highlight of the show will be designer interpretations of the fabric de rigueur – Tussar. The show has been curated by Shaina NC, who will also be presenting her collection for the first time at AIFW. Other designers include, Pinnacle Shruti Sancheti, Rina Dhaka and Dabiri by Divya and Ambika, the release said. The official release quoting President, Fashion Design Council of India, Sunil Sethi stated, “Associating with Jharkhand as our ‘partner state’ for the Amazon India Fashion Week Autumn Winter 2017 is in continuation of our commitment to preserve crafts.” “Jharkhand s hidden wonders will be unveiled by designers, who will translate its story through the magnificent swirls of fabric,” the release stated quoting Sethi. The event will also witness B2B (business to business) meetings and would be covered through a social media campaigning, the release added.
Source: PTI
VIJAYAWADA: Style and Weaves, a three-day exhibition-cum-sale of handloom and designer garments was inaugurated at Seshasai Kalyana Mandapam in the city on Tuesday. The exhibition with 65 stalls brought under one roof myriad flavours of the latest trends in the garments. Hyderabad-based organisation ‘My Identity’ organised the exhibition on the eve of International Women’s Day. The expo, which is on till March 9, has brought together the best of works of fashion designers and artisans showcasing garments and lifestyle accessories. The exhibition has on display, designer saris, dress material, jewellery and lifestyle accessories. Designers from Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi and Hyderabad have descended to showcase their handicrafts, gold jewellery, imitation jewellery, hand bags and other fancy items. “We have timed the exhibition with the festival season to enable buyers pick the best stuff available in both traditional and modern segments,” said event manager Manjulatha. She said the objective of the expo is to promote designers, women entrepreneurs, and artisans. She said the local crowd have a sound knowledge of the latest trends and the expo was here to cater to their fashion garments’ needs. The best part of the exhibition is that it offers the best of both worlds, traditional and contemporary.
Source: The New Indian Express
Southern India Mills Association (SIMA) today urged Tamil Nadu Chief minister K Palaniswami to withdraw the increase of VAT on petrol and diesel, which it said has a cascading effect on textile value chain. In a representation to Palanisamy, SIMA chairman M Senthilkumar said it was affecting the textile industry, which was already paying five per cent VAT on cotton and cone yarn, as against two per cent CST and zero per cent tax in other states,rendering the industry in the state lesser competitive. Moreoever, frequent use of diesel-run generators during power cuts and maintenance period was adding to their woes as there would be an additional burden, with diesel price increasing by Rs 1.76, he said. In view of GST being implemented from July 1, the VAT increase should be withdrawn to save the industry, he said.
Source: Daily News
As a teenager, Mumbai-based Ruhi Pradhan was utterly confused as to what she intended to do in her life. When she failed in the 12th standard, she plunged into ‘great depression’. But her parents supported her in this hour of personal crisis. In particular, her banker father encouraged her to overcome this grief. This worked miracles: she passed out of school and topped her college for graduation.Then, without informing anyone, not even her parents, she cleared the tests to enter the Ahmedabad-based Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII). While still a student at EDII, she acquired a sick textile unit at Vapi, South Gujarat, turned it around, and attracted attention of others facing similar problems in the industrial district. Now, another sick unit in Vapi and one plastic-maker in Daman also want her to turn them around. Her unit’s products are now being supplied to biggies like Big Bazaar and ONGC. “Since the time I joined EDII, the spirit of entrepreneurship just keeps getting bigger and bigger. The ‘greed’ of achievement keeps on increasing. The environment motivates me a lot, day in and day out, and entrepreneurship keeps building within me,” says the 24-year-old student-entrepreneur, who divides her time between Ahmedabad, Vapi and Mumbai on a weekly basis. Excerpts from the interview: What difference did EDII make in your life? I became more focussed and started taking things very seriously. On the very first day at EDII, I was taught that entrepreneurs are the ones who first identity a problem and then set out to provide the best solution. That was how I began to look for a problem I could solve and came across the sick ready-made garment unit, Podoval Garments, 20 km from Vapi. It was being run by a Malayali businessman for about 10 years. It had good infrastructure — 15 sewing machines and 10 skilled workers, plus 35 on contract work — but had fallen sick due to many reasons, particularly financial. What were the problems being faced by it and how did you sort them out? When I acquired 60 per cent stake in it for ₹3 lakh by signing a partnership deal in August 2016, it was making only 100 garment units per day against the installed capacity of 400. It had only a few local orders for garment supply. It was in default of a ₹5 lakh bank loan plus the owner had to pay ₹14 lakh to others. In order to get over these bottlenecks, I reached out to other units and got work outsourced to my unit from other garmenting and textile units in the same area to maximise use of our infrastructure. We began to manufacture units for exports as well. I am regularly paying in monthly instalments all the balance dues and hope to break-even in some 18 months. Subsequently, I acquired the remaining 40 per cent stake in the unit and renamed it Ruhi Kishore Pradhan Garments. Now we are making around 350 units per day. And workers are being paid regularly. Besides, we have vastly improved human resource relationships through a number of measures to make our workers rededicate themselves to production work wholeheartedly. How did you convince the factory workers for this turnaround? The ‘formula’ I used was that of teamwork and friendship. And I convinced them with my working performance. Now, I am able to successfully run a garment factory with almost 100 per cent work efficiency. Convinced with our new work culture, a local garment unit outsourced work to us for supplying garments for exports as well as for Big Bazaar and ONGC. Where do you go from here? Any new plans up your sleeve? Yes. Within four months, I have employed more than 50 people, of whom, 10 are on our own staff. And I am looking to expand and employ as many women as I can. And I am also toying with the idea of launching our own brand of garments for local consumption. Besides, I am also talking with another garment unit in Vapi and a plastic unit in Daman for undertaking a similar turnaround.
Source: Business Line
India’s oil-refining capacity is currently the fourth-largest in the world and the country has a robust expansion plan for each of its three oil-marketing companies. The capacity expansion will take place over the next few years. In spite of the slowing global oil demand, India’s demand may prompt refiners to continue adding capacity, experts say. By 2022, India will have added significantly more to its 230-million-tonne capacity. Indian Oil Corporation looks to take its refining capacity to more than 100 million tonnes by 2022 from the current 80.7 million tonnes, and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) will increase its capacity to 50 million tonnes by 2021. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), on the other hand, is likely to increase its current 24.8-million-tonne capacity to 60 million tonnes by 2030.British energy giant BP’s 2017 energy outlook said for 20 years, oil demand would continue to increase although the pace of growth was likely to slow with vehicles becoming .
Source: Business Standard
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is in agreement with the gross domestic product (GDP) data for the third quarter, put out by the Central Statistics Office, even as critics have found loopholes in the figures because these supposedly do not bear out the impact of demonetisation. CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee has said the data are in line with the surveys by the chamber. The data showed that GDP grew 7 per cent in the third quarter against 7.4 per cent in the second quarter and 6.9 per cent in the October-December period of 2015. Critics were surprised at the data because they had thought that demonetisation had affected the economy much harder. "We don't see any reason to doubt the data since they are very much in line with what we have," Banerjee told Business Standard. Ahead of the second half of the Budget session of Parliament, the CII has demanded that the Budget provision of the long-term capital gains tax (LCGT) be applied with prospective effect and in case these are with retrospective effect inter-se transfers between promoter groups be exempted from it. The CII ASCON survey, which tracks production growth trends across sectors, has revealed a significant improvement in performance in the October-December quarter. Of the 83 sectors covered, the number of sectors recording growth higher than 10 per cent has increased, while the number of sectors that recorded less than 10 per cent growth has declined. Similarly, a CII study of a large sample of 2,130 companies shows that aggregate net sales of this group of companies have grown 6.5 per cent in the December quarter on a y-o-y basis. This is after a long period of declining sales. He said demonetisation had different effects on different segments. "There are sectors such as cement and two-wheelers that have been affected. In the case of passenger cars, there was a dip in December, followed by a sharp recovery in January. Domestic sales of tractors dipped in November but recovered in December and January. Steel was not affected and has been growing rapidly," he pointed out. He said it was hard to get an aggregate picture. "There are very little data on the informal sector. Given these constraints, the GDP data are in line with what we have seen," he said. On the 10 per cent LCGT proposed by the Budget on share sales where the securities transaction tax was not paid after 2004, Banerjee said though the intentions were good, certain genuine share purchases, done off-exchanges through ESOPs, even if sold on-exchange, were not eligible for exemption. A blanket denial of exemption might result in genuine hardships for honest taxpayers, he said.
Source: Business Standard
NEW DELHI: Finance minister Arun Jaitley-led inter-ministerial committee on labour is set to consider on Wednesday two labour codes on wages and industrial relations, a move aimed at improving the ease of doing business in the country. In his 2017-18 budget speech, Jaitley had said that his government will initiate legislative reforms to simplify, rationalise and amalgamate the existing labour laws into four codes. A senior labour ministry official told ET that the high-level committee will take a call on the two codes before they are put before the Cabinet. The ministry has held several rounds of tripartite consultation with all the stakeholders, including trade unions and employers before finalising the draft codes. The ministry has decided to amalgamate 44 labour laws into four codes that include the code on wages, the code on industrial relations, the code on social security and the code on safety, health and working conditions. The government intends to place the codes on wages and industrial relations before the parliament in the second half of the budget session, which is due to begin on March 9. The inter-ministerial panel also includes power minister Piyush Goyal, petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan and labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya. It was constituted in 2015 after some trade unions alleged that the government was trying to introduce anti-labour amendments in labour laws. Under the code on wages, the labour ministry plans to streamline the definition of wages by amalgamating four wage-related statutes—the Minimum Wages Act of 1948, the Payment of Wages Act of 1936, the Payment of Bonus Act of 1965 and the Equal Remuneration Act of 1976. At present, there are about half a dozen definitions of wages in various Acts across the Centre and states. The labour code on industrial relations proposes fixed-term employment in all sectors. This will allow units employing up to 300 people to retrench/lay off workers and/or close without government approval. It will also make trade unions more representative by barring outsiders from holding posts in unions in the organised sector and reducing the number of such people in union activities in the unorganised sector. The government had last year introduced fixed-term employment in textile and garment industries. The code will redefine industrial strike. The extension of fixed-term employment to all sectors is expected to help generate new jobs and thus could be a win-win for both the workers and employers. Some trade unions have, however, opposed the move, terming it an attempt to bring in the “hire-and-fire policy” through the back door.
Source; Economics Times
The tempo has been maintained by successive meetings of the GST Council where crucial concepts are finalised and the demands of the states significantly addressed. Against the backdrop of the crucial UP elections, the government doesn’t seem to be losing sight of the biggest tax reform—the GST. The tempo has been maintained by successive meetings of the GST Council where crucial concepts are finalised and the demands of the states significantly addressed. Based on the news reports, it appears that in the recently-concluded 11th meeting of the GST Council, all 26 demands of the states were fulfilled. As we come closer to the resumption of the budget session of Parliament, the CGST and the SGST Bills are ready to be tabled, having obtained the green signal from the Cabinet. There were 15 main features of the Bills that were finalised by the GST Council. One of these is state-wise single registrations for all payers. Given the intricacies and scale of operations, many sectors, including banking and telecom, were hoping for only one registration, at the central level. This seems to be a lost cause now and industry must gear up to work on getting systems ready for all-states compliance structures. Another significant feature, relating to the threshold for payment of GST, has been agreed upon. Businesses with an annual turnover of less than R20 lakh (R10 lakh for Northeastern states) need not register—although they may voluntarily opt to do so to become taxpayers and avail of the input tax credit chain. This brings much-needed clarity for small dealers, and they will need to evaluate their positions and make quick decisions to avoid losing out to organised sector competitors. Admissibility of input tax credit on all goods and services ‘used in the course of business’ is also a key feature which has been agreed upon. Much of the litigation on service tax and VAT laws today is centred around admissibility of credit on goods and services. Even the many judicial precedents haven’t put the question to rest, as every case has been decided on the merits of its own facts. Consequently, this gives rise to long litigation, at cost of valuable working capital. The Bills cleared by the GST Council, though aimed at doing away with +cascading effect of taxation in India, still require the assesse to prove that goods and services are ‘used for business’. Some relief that the Bills provide is likely to have a favourable impact on exports—the GST Council has mandated that 90% of refund claimed by exporters must be granted within 7 days of filing. Similarly, agriculturists, too, can heave a sigh of relief as no GST will be levied on their produce. The drafts cleared by the latest meeting of the GST Council has retained the anti-profiteering provisions. Strong representations were made against such inspector-Raj provisions when they were introduced in the second GST Draft Bill November last year. Foreseeable lack of clarity while implementing these clauses was one of the major reasons that led to an overwhelming opposition to this move. It appears that the tax authorities have been provided with unprecedented power to examine every aspect of the pricing mechanism to ensure the positive effects of GST are passed on to the ultimate consumer. It needs to be seen if the fineprint provides for a workable mechanism that, on the one hand, does not alienate industry and, on the other, also takes care of consumer-interestinflation. The government has kept up the momentum by taking significant strides towards timely implementation. However, the most important issue, i.e., rates for goodsservices is far from being resolved. Though the four-rate structure of the GST has already been announced, industry is waiting for the specific rates for sectors and segments to be announced. The service sector hopes for a single rate that may be more than the current 15%, though there are tell-tale signs of more than one rate being announced (luxury, standard and basic). For goods, especially FMCGs and multi-product businesses, the rates are crucial to arrive at critical structuring decisions not only of transactions but also of internal regulatory and compliance decisions. No amount of preparation for the GST will seem complete until rates are announced. In addition, the announcement of 20% peak rate has added to the confusion and speculations are rife on the immediate inflation. Despite the mystery on rates, the recent progress by the GST Council and the government’s vigour makes July 2017 an achievable target.
Source: Financial Express
The international crude oil price of Indian Basket as computed/published today by Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas was US$ 54.71 per barrel (bbl) on 07.03.2017. This was higher than the price of US$ 54.24 per bbl on previous publishing day of 06.03.2017. In rupee terms, the price of Indian Basket increased to Rs. 3645.81 per bbl on 07.03.2017 as compared to Rs. 3620.85 per bbl on 06.03.2017. Rupee closed stronger at Rs. 66.63 per US$ on 07.03.2017 as compared to Rs. 66.76 per US$ on 06.03.2017. The table below gives details in this regard:
|
Particulars |
Unit |
Price on March 07, 2017 (Previous trading day i.e. 06.03.2017) |
Pricing Fortnight for 01.03.2017 (Feb 14, 2017 to Feb 24, 2017) |
|
Crude Oil (Indian Basket) |
($/bbl) |
54.71 (54.24) |
54.93 |
|
(Rs/bbl |
3645.81 (3620.85) |
3677.56 |
|
|
Exchange Rate |
(Rs/$) |
66.63 (66.76) |
66.95 |
Source : PIB
Close on the heels of power loom sector industrialists launching an indefinite production stoppage, the knitwear manufacturers too are planning to commence a series of agitations to express their displeasure on frequent increases of cotton and cotton yarn prices. The knitwear manufacturers along with the trade unions have decided to meet on Thursday to decide on what type of agitations should be carried out to draw the attention of the authorities to the issues that confront the knitwear sector. “We too are thinking to go for intensive protests as giving representations to the Union Government highlighting the functional problems faced by the sector, were becoming mere ritualistic procedures with the authorities not paying any attention to its contents,” said M.P. Muthurathinam, president of the Tirupur Exporters and Manufacturers Association.
Source: The Hindu
BL RESEARCH BUREAU: Cotton prices are on a strong footing. The cotton futures contract traded on the Multi Commodity Exchange has surged 13.3 per cent so far this year and currently trades at around ₹21,560 per bale (of 170 kg). Strong demand from domestic millers as well as export demand has aided this rise. The rally in cotton prices is anticipated to sustain as demand fior the commodity is expected to remain high. Prior to the recent rally, the MCX cotton futures contract was on a strong downtrend and has been so since July 2016, when it tumbled about 24 per cent from a high of ₹23,990 per bale. The contract halted at a low of ₹18,250 in November. After a brief consolidation for about a month, the contract reversed higher, signalling the end of the downtrend.
Trend reversal
The strong break and a rise above ₹20,500 confirms the trend reversal in the contract. The current uptrend is intact. But there is a key resistance coming up at around ₹21,800 — the 61.8 Fibonacci retracement level. A test of this resistance is likely in the near term. Whether the contract breaks above this hurdle or not will decide the next leg of movement. Any inability to break above the ₹21,800 mark may trigger a corrective fall. A pullback from this resistance point can drag the MCX-cotton futures contract lower to ₹21,000 or ₹20,800. On the other hand, if the cotton futures contract manages to breach ₹21,800 decisively then the uptrend can extend to ₹22,500 or even ₹22,700 thereafter. Since the MCX-Cotton futures contract has been on a continuous rally over the last couple of months, the uptrend could be ripening for a corrective fall. This leaves the possibility high of the contract reversing lower from ₹21,800 in the coming weeks.
Source: Business Line
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1223.65 |
USD/Ton |
-0.59% |
3/7/2017 |
|
VSF |
2530.08 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
ASF |
2222.17 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
Polyester POY |
1260.68 |
USD/Ton |
-0.23% |
3/7/2017 |
|
Nylon FDY |
3616.48 |
USD/Ton |
-0.40% |
3/7/2017 |
|
40D Spandex |
5228.64 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
Polyester DTY |
5780.55 |
USD/Ton |
0.51% |
3/7/2017 |
|
Nylon POY |
1488.71 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
3413.14 |
USD/Ton |
-0.42% |
3/7/2017 |
|
Polyester FDY |
2396.46 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1554.07 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
3834.34 |
USD/Ton |
-0.38% |
3/7/2017 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
3166.23 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1859.07 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2715.99 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
3296.95 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2323.84 |
USD/Ton |
-0.62% |
3/7/2017 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
2018.84 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2280.27 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.35 |
USD/Meter |
0.11% |
3/7/2017 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.84 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.17 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.67 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.67 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/7/2017 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14524USD dtd. 07/03/2017)
The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
MULTAN: Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) President Khawaja Jalaluddin Roomi said on Monday that the liquidity crunch, high production costs, and inability to compete with regional players are some of the factors behind the fall in Pakistan’s exports. US top export, China import destination for Pakistan in 2015. In January 2017, exports of knitwear declined by 3.44% year-on-year, readymade garments declined by 3.60% and of all textile products declined by 1.30%. Between July-January, exports of textile products declined by 1.54% year-on-year to $7.34 billion. Roomi said the decline has led to lower production and subsequent closure of a number of export-oriented industries in both sectors. The official said that in the light of these events, the government should immediately release all pending refunds as a relief to exporters so that they are able to halt this declining trend. A recently-publicised export package, which was announced a day before Heimtextil kicked off on January 10, led to foreign buyers demanding more discounts from the exporters of Home Textile. Roomi lamented that his organisation was unable to understand the objectives behind announcing the export package a day before Heimtextil that prompted buyers to ask for further discounts. Grim year for textile exports Unwillingly, the exporters had to offer around 3% discount to keep their buyers. “Seeing it this way, the export package has actually failed to provide any relief or benefit the exporters of home textiles.”
Source: The Express Tribune
Local Textile workers will on Thursday (March 9, 2017) embark on a protest to express their displeasure over what they say is the Trade Ministry’s inability to stop the smuggling of pirated goods onto the local markets. According to the workers, the development has rendered local textile companies uncompetitive while they have also been compelled to lay off thousands of workers. The protest will comprise workers of GTP, ATL, and Printex. Ebenezer Asumadu, Chairman of the Concerned Workers of the Textile Industry who spoke to Citi Business News about the development said they expect the Trade Ministry to address the issue immediately. “This is not the first time we are embarking on such a protest. We have written to the sector minister, we wanted to meet him so that we iron the issue out. There was a task force put in place by the previous administration that had been checking the influx of these pirated designs on the market. For some time now, the task force has not been working. Their reason being that there has been a change of government so the people are taking advantage of that and importing pirated designs into the market which is killing our industry,” he lamented. Government in August 2010 introduced a task force to rid the markets off pirated goods. Since then, over 10,000 pirated Ghanaian textiles have been seized and destroyed. Meanwhile the Deputy Communications Manager at the Trades Ministry, Nasir Ahmed Yartey says the Ministry is developing new ideas to eliminate the pirated goods on the local market. “The issue of the piracy is what we are fighting through the task force and members of the textiles industry form the bulk of the membership of this task force. They know the industry, they know what people are doing to harm the industry so it is their expertise that the ministry relies on to try to fight this menace and so we are working with them.” “We have a very cordial relationship with them and we are hopeful that with the coming in of our new minister (Alan Kyerematen), practicable or new strategies will be brought on board,” he asserted.
Source: Citifmonline
Cotton prices are poised to hold long-term well above lows which lasted from late 2014 into 2016, with demand growth to outpace production increases despite "favourable returns" for growers, Abares said. The official Australian commodities bureau stuck by a forecast of cotton prices, as measured by the Cotlook A index of physical values, averaging 78.0 cents a pound this season, on an August-to-July basis. That is 1 cent higher than an upgraded estimate last week from the International Cotton Advisory Committee, although implies a fall ahead for the Cotlook A, which currently stand at 87.10 cents a pound. Abares foresaw prices averaging 80.4 cents a pound in 2017-18, rising to 88.0 cents a pound for 2021-22. 'Favourable returns' The forecasts factored in expectations of continued falls in world inventories, from a high of 24.3m tonnes reached two years ago, falling to 16.0m tonnes in 2021-22. World cotton production is expected to rise by 1.8m tonnes to 24.7m tonnes next season, and to keep rising, at a rate of some 2% a year – supported by the appeal to farmers of the crop from its buoyant prices. Abares forecast a "gradual increase in world cotton plantings in response to expected favourable returns to cotton production, compared with alternative crops". The bureau forecast prices of corn, for instance, a major competitor in spring sowings programmes in many countries, showing slower growth, of less than 10%, over the next five years. 'GM saturation' Improvements in cotton yields, by contrast, "will be constrained over this period because of the almost complete uptake of the current generation of genetically modified varieties". However, India, the top cotton-producing country, will prove an exception, thanks to government-backed drives to support the likes of irrigation, pest control and mechanisation. "Currently India has the lowest average lint yield among the major producing countries. "Government training in the use of farm machinery in India will drive productivity gains through the reduction in labour-intensive operations such as hand-picking cotton." 'Expanding rapidly' Meanwhile, global cotton consumption will, after a 7% jump next season, rise by 2.4% a year, spurred by "an expected rise in demand for clothing and textiles in Europe, the US, Japan and Australia". This increasing demand is seen fuelling increased mill activity in particular in countries such as Bangladesh, Brazil, India, Indonesia and Turkey, outside the OECD group of nations. "The textile and garment industries in these countries are expanding rapidly," Abares said, while flagging the prospect of "constrained" consumption in China, where a growing reliance on imported fibre will constrain industry competitiveness. "China is facing strong competition in the international textile market from neighbouring, low-cost Asian countries such as India, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Indonesia and Cambodia."
Australian prospects
For Australia itself, Abares forecast sowings – which doubled to 557,400 hectares this season, thanks to good water availability – increasing further in 2017-18 to 570,000 hectares, driving production to 1.12m tonnes, the second biggest crop on record. "Assuming average seasonal run-off between March and November, the level of water in irrigation dams should enable large Australian cotton planting in 2017–18," the bureau said, seeing the ample water availability boosting yields too. Exports - supported by the improved production, and "strong world demand for high quality Australian cotton" - were seen rising by 44% to 774,000 tonnes this season and to 1.06m tonnes in 2017-18.
Source: Agrimoney.com
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is launching a new programme in Uzbekistan in order to help cotton farmers improve their production efficiency, safeguard the environment, and improve labour practices. This programme is part of an effort by IFC to accelerate Uzbekistan’s economic growth by modernising one of the country's most important industries. The programme will help farmers to improve the quality and productivity of cotton production through the implementation of responsible cotton production principles. IFC will begin by introducing sustainable production practices and a continuous improvement system at 12 farms in the Fergana and Jizzakh regions as a pilot project. After the trial run, the programme will be expanded to 3,000 farms before ultimately being rolled out nationwide. “Cotton from Uzbekistan has been recognised in international markets for its good quality,” said Moazzam Mekan, IFC regional manager for Central Asia. “By introducing sustainable cotton production principles, IFC will help to address concerns over the risk of forced labour, supporting investments in the sector and allowing producers to access valuable export markets. This will help to modernise the agriculture sector, create jobs and strengthen economic growth across the country.” To roll out the project, IFC will partner with the holding company Uzpakhtasanoatexport, the ministry of agriculture, the Association of Farmers, the Federation of Trade Unions, and the International Labor Organization, and IFC’s investee client, Indorama Kokand Textile. The project will be implemented with financial support provided by Hungarian EXIM Bank, IFC’s long-term donor partner.Uzbekistan became a member of IFC in 1993. Since 1996, IFC has invested $144.7 million in Uzbekistan, including $12.9 million in mobilised funds, to support 28 private sector projects in the financial, agribusiness, and food processing sectors.
Source: Fibre2fashion.
The National Development and Reform Commission of China announced late last year that China will offer 30,000 tonnes of cotton per day for sale until the end of August, as Beijing seeks to scale down its large, ageing stockpile. China's textile mills have worked off cotton inventory in the hope of picking up lower-priced fiber when the government in the world's top textile market resumes annual sales of state reserves on Monday even after getting caught short last year. Ye Jianchun, vice president of China Cotton Textile Association, at an annual cotton industry conference held in Beijing on Friday said that most of the companies have low stocks, as they expect cotton prices would drop with the coming state reserves auction. They are also confident that the quality of auctioned cotton would be quite good. Last year, delays in the auctions until May from March and poor quality of the fiber in the first few sales tightened supplies, leading to panic buying by mills and spurring a surge of almost 70 percent in prices in just under nine months. The most-active futures hit 4-1/2-year highs in November. Industry insiders, however, think this year will be different. A purchasing manager at a textile company in Shandong province, a major producer of the fiber, said that she only had one month of cotton in stock, rather than the usual two to three months of inventory. Last year, (the auction) was rushed. This year, (the government) is better prepared. Traders are confident that the government will be able to meet its daily auction target this time, and prices will drop, at least in the short term. Still, hurt by price volatility last year, the industry is more guarded against potential risks. Wei Gangmin, chairman of Henan Tongzhou Cotton Trade Co Ltd, a cotton trader and processor in China with 11 ginning mills and two spinning mills said that if the government meets its promise, in terms of the volume and quality structure of the auctioned cotton, it will benefit the market a lot. Wei said that if it fails, it will cause volatility. If prices push up, it would restrain demand and obstruct the goal of reducing stocks. As China holds more than half of the world's stocks in reserves and an increase in domestic supplies would further dent imports. China’s state sales are being closely watched by the International market.
Source: YNFX.
