• Contracted in calendar year 2016 for a consecutive year, due to weak global demand and India's losing competitiveness.
• Data from the ministry of shows a five per cent fall to $34.9 billion (Rs 2.3 lakh crore) for calendar 2016, from $36.7 bn in 2015.
• In September 2016, the central government announced a Rs 6,000-crore package to boost This was on recommendations from the industry, and a commitment from it to raise annual export to $50 bn and create 100,000 new jobs.
"Textile demand remained sluggish, following uncertainty in globally economy. And, India has been losing its competitiveness to China, due to almost flat (rise in) cost of production there and depreciation in their currency. In contrast, the cost of production had increased sharply in India over the past year. Additionally, the has appreciated around five per cent. So, India's receivable export proceeds have declined proportionately," said Rahul Mehta, president, Clothing Manufacturers' Association of India. According to trade sources, the past year has seen a 25-30 per cent jump in apparel production's labour cost. Since labour is a major component of the overall cost, this rose proportionately. And, while the Chinese weakened by nine per cent over the year, the rose against the dollar by five per cent. "Overall, therefore, India's and apparel export are estimate to remain flat in calendar 2017, as the benefits offered by the government are negated by a sharp increase in the cost of production and appreciation in the rupee," said Mehta. Rating agency ICRA says the global apparel trade remains under pressure, having contracted in 2016 for another year, with subdued demand in key importing countries. While volume growth was marginally positive, primarily aided by a recovery in demand from Europe, realisations fell. The latest trends point to a modest recovery in calendar year 2017. "India's apparel export grew a tepid one per cent (in dollar terms) for a second year in FY17. This trend, however, needs to be looked into in conjunction with the decline in global apparel trade in value terms," said Jayanta Roy, senior vice-president at ICRA. The pace of growth for other Asian apparel exporters Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Vietnam has also moderated during these two years, though their growth was better. Scrapping of the proposed Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) has weakened the prospects for Vietnam, which augurs well for India. Given the weak trend in global trade, home market-focused apparel makers are expected to do relatively better than exporters in FY17. However, given the temporary pressures observed in domestic consumption, owing to demonetisation, the gap in growth rates is likely to be narrower. Subdued offtake by apparel makers, in addition to meagre export, continue to weigh on demand. The country's production was tepid in April-September 2016, first half of this financial year, with modest growth of two per cent, after a flat trend in FY15. Demonetisation added to the challenges faced by this fragmented and unorganised segment, seen in a six per cent fall in production during the December quarter. This is expected to hit total output in FY17, which might see a one per cent fall.
Source: Newswire
In India, only 10 per cent of textile products belong to technical textiles as compared to developed nations such as Germany where 50 per cent of textile products belong to technical textile category, said Dr. Kavita Gupta, textile commissioner, Ministry of Textiles at the inaugural address of 57th Joint Technological Conference that ended recently. The Bombay Textile Research Association (BTRA) organised the conference which is held every year by each of the Indian textile research associations (TRA) in rotation. Ahmedabad Textile Industry's Research Association (ATIRA), South India Textile Research Association (SITRA) and Northern India Textile Research Association (NITRA) also participated in the conference. The highlight of the conference was ‘Geosynthetics’, and the second day was devoted to R&D in emerging areas, protective textiles, product development, eco-friendly process, and other topics related to traditional textiles. Gupta stressed on the importance of the link between academia and the industry. In order to grow in high value technical textiles segment, we should focus on research that is demand based and market driven. Moreover, ability to translate research output in to commercialisation is the need of the hour, she added. Welcoming the dignitaries and the delegates, Dr Anjan K Mukhopadhyay, BTRA director briefed the participants about the conference and explained about the scope of geo synthetics. He further said that the conference was an occasion for the conventional textile manufacturers to interact with geosynthetics manufacturers/users to know the opportunities available in terms of machinery, processes, etc. to make technical textile products, especially geosynthetics. Papers based on recent R&D trends and of immediate importance to the industries in all major textile areas from the four TRAs were also presented in this premier conference. Papers from all four TRAs were presented in the areas of protective textiles, emerging areas, spinning, product development, eco-friendly products and others. German Textile Machinery Manufacturing companies also gave presentations on needle-felt nonwoven and latest machine innovations on treatment of geotextiles. (RR)
Source: Fibre2Fashion
The State Government of Kerala (India) has decided to take all required steps to rejuvenate the crisis ridden textile industry in the state. This was revealed by Minister for Industries A.C. Moideen during his visit to Wayanad Handloom and Powerloom Multi-purpose Industrial Cooperative Society at Thrissilery in the district. “The industry in the State was in a crisis and it cast a shadow over the lives of thousands of families depending on the sector,” Moideen was quoted as saying. Hence, the Government has decided to give special focus to rejuvenate the sector, the Minister added. The Kerala Government has given financial assistance for all textile mills and has taken steps to make cotton available through Central purchase. All textile mills will soon be made functional. Rs. 51 crore for various textile mills has been allocated in the State Budget tabled by Finance Minister Thomas Isaac earlier this month.
Source: Apparel Resource
HYDERABAD : The Federation of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FTAPCCI) has come out with suggestions to further improve the effectiveness of the Telangana government’s TS-iPass policy framework for industries. It advocated the need to further strengthen the distributed development model for all-round development of the State. Addressing a press conference here today, Ravindra Modi, President of FTAPCCI, said while the new policy framework has played a major role in attracting new investments into the State, the federation believes some minor changes could make a big difference in attracting companies to the State. While complimenting the K Chandrasekhar Rao government for the innovative features and efforts to bring about distributed growth, Modi said the chamber has identified some sectors which need to be accorded high priority apart from encouraging setting up industries in backward regions of the State. Referring to Adilabad, a backward district, Modi said it has potential to be developed as a ‘cotton zone’ by extending special incentives for setting up spinning mills. After having developed a study paper, the Chamber said it would soon present the report to the State government seeking its attention to develop some other districts and sectors which will bring about a more distributed development in the State. Referring to certain policy initiatives of States like Gujarat and Maharashtra, Modi suggested that the State government could promote setting up of product-wise parks either under the public-private partnership mode or in the private sector by extending special incentives to units in the parks. On certain backward districts of the State, the Chamber said the Government could encourage setting up of a mother industry taking into consideration a comparative advantage of the region so that ancillary units will automatically come up, eventually leading to industrial development and job creation. The study also highlighted the need to strengthen district industries centres on top priority.
Source: Business Line
With GST all set to be rolled out from July 1, states have not made too many changes in the indirect tax structure in their budgets for 2017-18. According to a study on budgets for 15 states by CARE Ratings, the assumption is that there could be adequate compensation provided to the states for any shortfalls in revenue receipts on this count. The GST Council has already approved all the five Bills and union Cabinet on Monday gave nod to four of them, required to be passed by Parliament. The Central GST, Union Territory GST, Integrated GST and Compensation Bills would now be tabled in Parliament this week as money Bills. This would do away with the need to get the nod of the Rajya Sabha where the ruling National Democratic Alliance does not have a majority. The Council has approved four rates-- 5%, 12%, 18% and 28%. Over the peak rate of 28 per cent a cess would be imposed on sin, luxury goods as well as coal. Money collected from cess would go to the states as compensation. The Centre has agreed to give full compensation to the states for the first five years of the GST roll out. Also, the Budgets this time have been presented in a different manner in line with the Union Budget with the concept of plan and non-plan expenditure being dispensed with, says CARE. The study has not included states which have gone to elections recently, as also Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi. While states have their own priorities for spending money in different buckets, the interest cost preemption and those on pensions will continue to put pressure progressively on the state finances which will prompt them to focus more on generating additional revenue so as to also adhere to the fiscal targets that have to be followed. The largest size of the Budget for FY'18 for the set of 15 states is for Karnataka at Rs 1.86 lakh crore followed by West Bengal and Rajasthan which are also above Rs 1.8 lakh crore. MP and Gujarat are the other states with large outlays. These states put together had an outlay of Rs 19.65 lakh crore for FY'18. The states with the lowest outlays were Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Haryana and J & K. The five leading states which had greater dependence on revenue receipts were Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Chattisgarh and AP. Those which had capital receipts dominating the overall revenue mobilization efforts were J & K, Rajasthan, Telangana, Haryana and Kerala. The aggregate fiscal deficit of these states was Rs 2.95 lakh crore. In value terms the largest fiscal deficits were registered by Karnataka, Telangana, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. The states with the lowest levels of fiscal deficit were HP, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, J & K and Odisha. As many as 9 of the 15 states are to register revenue surpluses this year, and West Bengal is working on the assumption of a zero revenue balance. The five states that would be working with revenue deficits this year are Kerala, Rajasthan, Haryana, AP and HP. Typically states which have a higher share of own income to total revenue generated would be the ones that have more buoyant structures and be less dependent on allocations from the Centre. The leading states with higher shares of own tax revenue in total revenue are Haryana, Karnataka, Gujarat, Kerala and Telangana. Haryana had a share of 63% against a median value of 39.1%. Those with less than median share were MP, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, J & K, Bihar, Odisha and HP. So far as revenue expenditure is concerned, these are broadly classified under three headings: social, economic and general - with the last category also comprising interest payments and pensions. With the median of social spending at 40.9%, J &K, Kerala and Rajasthan have relatively lower shares. Telangana, AP, West Bengal and Chattisgarh have the highest proportion of expenditure on social schemes. However, Kerala, Bengal, Gujarat, Bihar, HP have relatively lower shares of economic services. Interest payments and its share in total revenue expenditure is indicative of the debt servicing commitments of state governments and higher proportions imply that a relatively a larger part is used for this purpose. West Bengal and Gujarat are the states with relatively higher shares followed by Haryana, Rajasthan and Kerala. The states which had less than 10% of revenue expenditure earmarked for interest payments are the relatively smaller states of Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Odisha, along with MP and Bihar. In case of pensions, Bihar, Kerala and HP had shares of above 15%, which is much above the median value of 10.4%. Haryana, Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Rajasthan and MP had relatively lower shares of less than 10%.
Source: Business Standard
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$ 50.53 per barrel (bbl) on 21.03.2017. This was higher than the price of US$ 50.39 per bbl on previous publishing day of 20.03.2017. In rupee terms, the price of Indian Basket increased to Rs. 3300.30 per bbl on 21.03.2017 as compared to Rs. 3294.95 per bbl on 20.03.2017. Rupee closed stronger at Rs. 65.31 per US$ on 21.03.2017 as compared to Rs. 65.38 per US$ on 20.03.2017. The table below gives details in this regard:
|
Particulars |
Unit |
Price on March 21, 2017 (Previous trading day i.e. 20.03.2017) |
Pricing Fortnight for 16.03.2017 (Feb 25, 2017 to March 13, 2017) |
|
Crude Oil (Indian Basket) |
($/bbl) |
50.53 (50.39) |
53.70 |
|
(Rs/bbl |
3300.30 (3294.95) |
3583.94 |
|
|
Exchange Rate |
(Rs/$) |
65.31 (65.38) |
66.74 |
Source: PIB
Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies are optimising and rationalising their operations ahead of the roll-out of the goods and services tax (GST) on July 1. Consumer goods giant Nestlé, for instance, is evaluating the realignment of its warehouses and supply chains, besides exploring locations to set up hubs and shutting down some distribution centres. “We are evaluating our distribution centres spread across the country, in terms of manufacturing, consumption, storage and most optimal transportation. We are trying to figure out which are the locations where we can set up hubs,” Suresh Narayanan, chairman and managing director, Nestlé India told Business Standard. The number of distribution centres, he added, will come down. Narayanan said while investments will be required initially for building such hubs and for the realignment, “in the long term, returns and cost efficiencies will be higher”. Nestlé has eight manufacturing facilities and four branch offices in the country. It manufactures an entire range of packaged food products, including noodles (Maggi), coffee, chocolates, powdered milk, etc. Presently, consumer goods companies end up having warehouses in every state to avoid paying a 2 per cent central sales tax (CST) for inter-state sales of goods. However, unlike CST, the integrated GST (IGST) for inter-state sales will be creditable. GST will also reduce the multiplicity of taxes and improve transaction time. Beverage giant Coca-Cola is also looking at depot consolidation and setting up mother depots in three to four states. “Since IGST is creditable, depot consolidation will happen. More and more of inter-state or IGST billing will happen. We are also looking at that possibility and get the best solution for the business,” said R Sridhar, vice-president-taxation, Coca-Cola India. The evaluation exercise is being carried out. In each state, the company has one or two small warehouses, which may be phased out if they do not fit into the business after the GST implementation, he added. Besides, the company is also training its vendors and distributors on what to expect from the GST. Pratik Jain, leader-indirect tax, PwC India, pointed out that companies will have a complete relook at their business operations after the GST roll-out. “Setting up manufacturing facilities will largely be business driven under GST, as it is unlikely that any special tax incentive will be offered by any state. Besides, there will be warehouse consolidation. Companies will work with a small number of warehouses as IGST will be creditable,” he said. Jain added that procurement models will also undergo a change.
Source: Business Standard
The Rs 3-lakh limit proposed for cash payments in the Budget for 2017-18 would be brought down to Rs 2 lakh as part of an unprecedented 40 amendments to the Finance Bill. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley moved the amendments in the lower House on Tuesday. This is aimed at tightening the noose on those dealing in cash. Most other amendments — making Aadhaar mandatory for filing tax returns, applying for permanent account numbers (PAN) and allowing payments by only non-cash modes such as cheques, bank drafts or electronic transfers for electoral trusts — are also aimed at curbing black money. A few are aimed at rationalising tribunals by merging these to reduce the number to 12 from 40. The amendment related to reducing the cap on cash transactions comes amidst reports that digital transactions had declined after a spurt after demonetisation. “In the amendment to the Finance Bill, the government has proposed the limit of Rs 3 lakh for cash transactions be reduced to Rs 2 lakh,” Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia tweeted. He added the penalty for violation would be a fine equivalent to the amount of the transaction. The penalty would be paid by individuals or establishments receiving the payment. The Rs 2-lakh limit applies to single transactions, those in aggregate from a person in a day, and to those relating to one event or occasion from a person. The provision does not apply to the government, banks and post offices. The proposal said the penalty would not be levied if a person could give sufficient reason for contravention. Fines would be levied only by joint commissioners of the income-tax (I-T) department. On November 8 last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had demonetised the old series Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, leading to a cash crunch in the economy. Analysts said the fine was too high. “The penalty is huge when the system is yet to get used to the new rules and appropriate infrastructure yet to be created for individuals, small businesses and jewellers,” said Neeru Ahuja of Deloitte. While provisions were required to check the generation of black money, penalty should be low in the initial years, and raised only after the system got adjusted to it and proper infrastructure created, she added. The current requirement of quoting PAN for cash spending also starts from Rs 2 lakh. The value of digital transactions nationwide declined 1.5 per cent to Rs 92.6 lakh crore in February from Rs 94 lakh crore in November, according to provisional data on electronic payments released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Also, currency in circulation started rising every week since January 13 till March 10, against contraction every week from November 11 to January 4, roughly a period when people were allowed to deposit money in scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in banks. As the Finance Bill was taken up for consideration in the Lok Sabha, Opposition parties protested against the introduction of the amendments. Saugata Roy of the Trinamool Congress said when the government introduced the Finance Bill in February, it had 150 clauses and seven schedules but now the government has added another 33 clauses and two schedules. “This is unprecedented and we have already protested,” he saidQuestioning the electoral bonds to bring transparency in poll funding, Congress member Deepender Singh Hooda said the amendments to the Representation of People’s Act was not incidental, as they were not related to tax. He suggested the government should have brought a separate Bill for the purpose. Later, Communist Party of India (M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said several Bills had been smuggled into the Finance Bill; the move was a subversion of the Constitution, to bypass the Rajya Sabha as the Finance Bill was a money bill. The Opposition’s objections were overruled by Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, who ruled that the “incidental provisions” involved in the amendments constituted a money Bill and therefore could be considered as part of the Bill. Defending the amendments, Jaitley said if a substantial portion of a Bill dealt with imposition or abolition of taxes, then, even if it had incidental provisions, it could still be introduced as a money Bill. “No tax can be imposed without reference to courts or tribunals. These are incidental provisions,” he said. In his Budget speech in February, Jaitley had said, “The predominance of cash in the economy makes it possible for people to evade taxes. When too many people evade taxes, the burden of their share falls on those who are honest and compliant.”
Changes on cards
Got proposes 40 amendments to various Acts under the Finance Bill. Apart from a cash ceiling, these include amendments to make Aadhaar mandatory for filing of I-T returns, applying for PAN Amendments to the Companies Act in relation to non-cash payment to electoral trusts Amendments to the Representation of People Act in relation to electoral bonds.
Source: Business Standard
Workers at Tata Steel will soon be able to lift heavy equipment that was humanly impossible until now. Similarly, an employee at the Tata Motors plant could work for longer hours without becoming tired. Thanks to a joint project by Tata Sons and Harvard University, the workers in Tata-owned factories will be able to use wearable technology, such as a glove or an entire body suit, that will enable them to do more. The project is in pilot phase. Speaking to BusinessLine, Gopichand Katragadda, Group Chief Technology Officer at Tata Sons, said, “We are looking at it as the next generation factory... The approach is to wear a suit to do certain tasks more effectively. Because it is soft sensors, you can do operations that you wouldn’t do with other robotic means.” Using actuators The technology uses actuators, which is typically used in a machine for moving or controlling a system. For example, an actuator placed on the elbow helps in enhancing the movement of the entire arm. Until now such technologies have only been the topic of science fiction or superhero stories like the Iron Man. Researchers at Harvard University have now developed a way with which a wearable robot can be created in reality using softer materials such as textile, spandex and silicon instead of steel to make the suit almost as light and comfortable as regular clothing. Conor Walsh, Professor at Harvard University School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, told BusinessLine that he along with another Harvard professor Rob Wood have so far been using soft robotics to help people suffering from stroke and those with injuries to their spinal cord walk and use their hands and legs again. The researchers are now using the same technology to help factory workers perform dexterous and labour-intensive tasks with up to 50 per cent more efficiency. The suit, a working prototype of which has already been prepared by Walsh and his team, will not cost a lot more than regular clothing and could be commercialised for other purposes such as medical assistance once ready, Katragadda said. He added that the wearable tech will not replace existing workers or traditional robots but improve the efficiency of various tasks irrespective of the skillsets of a factory worker. “Before power steering, only people with strength were able to drive trucks. With power steering anyone can be a truck driver because there’s some assistance. The level of assistance of a power steering may not be large but the level of enablement you get out of it is,” Walsh explained. Cost-effective Tata Sons will also be using the technology to bring down the overall cost of automation. “In order to be disruptive, the cost of automation should come down,” Katraggada said.
Source: Business Line
Biba Apparels is looking at adding fashion jewellery to the product portfolio at its flagship Biba outlets Biba Apparels Ltd’s revenue grew 32.73% to Rs380.79 crore in the financial year 2014-15 versus the previous year. Bengaluru:Women’s ethic wear firm Biba Apparels Ltd plans to ramp up its store expansion over the next couple of years, especially of its value fashion brand Rangriti, and is looking at adding fashion jewellery to the product portfolio at its flagship Biba outlets. The company, which counts Warburg Pincus and Faering Capital among its investors, began operations from founder and chairperson Meena Bindra’s home in Mumbai in 1988 with a bank loan of just Rs8,000. It has since grown to become a near-Rs400 crore business and now has three brands – Biba, Rangriti and Indian by Manish – under its umbrella. Rangriti, the firm’s youngest brand, began around two years ago and is currently sold through 22 standalone stores and via other retail formats, including large multi-brand outlets and online marketplaces. The plan is to open another 100 standalone Rangriti outlets in the next financial year. “We’ve opened 10 stores in Bihar and then we will be moving into Uttar Pradesh. We’re also in 100 Reliance Trends stores and have launched it in Shoppers Stop, Myntra, Jabong, Amazon etc. (But) the whole idea there was also to go through local retail and capture market share from the unbranded segment. So we’re also selling through around 800 standalone mom-and-pop stores or larger departmental stores,” said Siddharth Bindra, the firm’s managing director. The company’s revenue grew 32.73% to Rs380.79 crore in the financial year 2014-15 versus the previous year, according to its filing with the Registrar of Companies. Bindra declined to give revenue growth targets for 2016-17 and the year after. Biba Apparels opened its first standalone kids’ wear store in Bengaluru last year. It currently has two stores and a third one is going to come up in Mumbai, the company said without divulging a timeframe. It plans to open at least 10 more kids’ wear stores over the next 6-12 months. The firm typically opens around 45-50 new Biba stores a year and now plans to add 150-200 stores over the next 2-3 years, taking the average count per year to roughly over 60. It currently has around 230 Biba standalone outlets. “We are looking at an addition into jewellery (at our Biba stores). So fashion accessories as well as bags – these are two areas where we clearly see an opportunity for brand extension. No timeline on it, but these are two immediate extensions we’ve now started working on,” Bindra said. However, the company is not planning on entering any new apparel categories — like sarees, western wear or men’s ethnic wear — over the next 3-4 years as the focus is on increasing its market share from 1% to 5%, Bindra added. But it is going to launch a new autumn/winter apparel line for Biba by designer Manish Arora during Diwali this year. The company acquired a 51% stake in the designer’s ‘Indian by Manish Arora’ label in 2012 but this will be the first co-branded line it is launching with design labels that it has invested in. Anju Modi is the other designer label that Biba Apparels is invested in with a 35-40% minority stake that it picked up in 2014.
Source: Livemint
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1138.093 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
VSF |
2500.905 |
USD/Ton |
-0.29% |
3/21/2017 |
|
ASF |
2218.194 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
Polyester POY |
1152.591 |
USD/Ton |
-0.25% |
3/21/2017 |
|
Nylon FDY |
3334.54 |
USD/Ton |
-2.13% |
3/21/2017 |
|
40D Spandex |
5291.77 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
Polyester DTY |
2392.17 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
Nylon POY |
1406.306 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
3653.496 |
USD/Ton |
-1.18% |
3/21/2017 |
|
Polyester FDY |
5813.698 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1406.306 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
3146.066 |
USD/Ton |
-2.69% |
3/21/2017 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
3059.078 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1738.3102 |
USD/Ton |
-0.08% |
3/21/2017 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2696.628 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2319.68 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
1913.736 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
2261.688 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
3233.054 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.3512136 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.8466832 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.174338 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.6654582 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.6654582 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/21/2017 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14498 USD dtd. 21/3/2017)
The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
KARACHI: Textile exports fell 1.74 percent to $8.214 billion in the first eight months of the current fiscal year of 2016/17 as improvement in exports from value-added sector arrested a major revenue setback during this period, official data showed on Tuesday. Textile exports fetched $8.359 billion for the country during the corresponding period of the past fiscal year, said the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). Knitwear exports remained almost flat at $1.561 billion in July-February 2016/17, while bedwear exports rose 5.07 percent to $1.405 billion. Exports of readymade garments increased 4.3 percent to $1.499 billion. Cotton cloth exports decreased 6.26 percent to $1.392 billion. Exports of raw cotton nearly halved in the period under review. In February, textile exports slid 6.48 percent month-on-month and 2.53 percent year-on-year $995 million, the PBS data said. In July-February FY17, food exports declined 11.79 percent to $2.339 billion. Sugar exports slumped 88.38 percent. Total exports, during this period, amounted to $13.317 billion. Machinery imports accounted for 20 percent of the total imports of $33.494 billion during the period under review, standing at $7.811 billion, up 42.36 percent over the previous fiscal year. Import bills of power generation machinery stood at $2.181 billion in July-Feb 2016/17. The second highest import bill was of petroleum products. Oil import bill was recorded at $6.682 billion, up 20.97 percent. Food imports soared 13.47 percent to $3.970 billion in the first eight month of the current fiscal year. In February, machinery imports increased 41.93 percent year-on-year to $962 million, but they decreased 18.47 percent month-on-month. Import of petroleum products surged 67.02 percent year-on-year and rose 4.39 percent month-on-month to $858 million
Source: International News
VietNamNet Bridge -With the collapse of TPP, the textile & garment industry will have to revise its investment and development strategy. Textiles & garments has been an important export item for many years. In 2005, textiles and garments made up 14.9 percent of export turnover. In 2016, the figure rose to 17.8 percent. In 2005-2016, Vietnam was one of the countries pioneering in global economic integration. It did not skip any free trade agreement (FTA), meaning that Vietnam has exploited all possible FTAs, at least in the medium term. With the collapse of TPP, the textile & garment industry will have to revise its investment and development strategy. However, analysts said that even if the agreement became realistic, TPP would not be a ‘magic wand’ that helps the industry skyrocket. With the ‘yard forward’ principle, Vietnam’s textile and garment exports would enjoy preferential tariffs if they use input materials sourced from TPP member countries. A research work by Vanzetti & Pham in 2014 showed that Vietnam only imports 5.3 percent of input materials from TPP member countries. This means that if the figure cannot improve, only 5.3 percent of Vietnam’s textile & garment output would enjoy preferential tariffs under TPP. Analysts have every reason to doubt Vietnam would not be able to get many benefits from TPP. In fact, Vietnam did not carry out any research work on the quantitative benefits it could expect from TPP. Vietnamese businesses were only inspired by surveys by international organizations that Vietnam would most benefit from TPP. It’s still unclear how the textile and industry would work out after TPP collapsed. When TPP was under negotiations, three scenarios for the industry were drawn up. First, Vietnam would increase imports from TPP member countries. The solution was not feasible and it should not be discussed further as the US has left TPP.Second, Vietnam would rely on external resources, a solution easily implemented. In 2014-2016 alone, $2.563 billion worth of foreign direct investment (FDI) was poured into the textile & garment sector. However, this means that Vietnam’s supporting industries would depend on the foreign invested sector. Third, Vietnam would rely on its internal strength. Establishing an inter-provincial cluster of textile & garment production centers has been suggested. If the solution is implemented, the eastern part of the southern region, which now makes up 60 percent of total textile and garment export turnover, would be a good choice. HCMC, the nucleus of the cluster, would focus on branding and designing, while other localities would be production centers. This southeastern region makes up 50 percent of Vietnam’s most important indexes, including GDP, industrial production output and exports.
Source: VietNamNet Bridg
Islamabad: Advisor to Prime Minister on Energy Zahid Muzaffar on Tuesday said that around 20,000 houses would be turned into solar energy system under 'Roshan Pakistan Scheme', in order to exploit alternative energy resources to overcome the power crisis in the country. Addressing a round table conference on 'efficient energy mix through entrepreneurial engagement', organized by Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), he said that drastic measures were taken by the government which had started bearing significant results in energy sector. Currently, he said that local gas production was recorded at4 billion cubic feet as against the domestic demand of about 8billion cubic feet, adding that the gap could not be fulfilled by overnight. He said that first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal was established which enhanced the gas supply to different sectorsincluding fertilizers and textile industry.From last 16-18 months un-interrupted gas was supplied to textile sector as the sector was the main contributor in the total exports from the country, he added. Zahid Muzaffar said that oil and gas were the main energy mix in the country and government was planning to develop other two-three LNG terminals within next two years. These measures would help in overcoming the menace of energy shortage which was the major impediments in economic development and industrial growth, he added. The advisor called upon the business community to come forward and initiate joint ventures to exploit the huge alternative energy resources of the country. He said that country was endowed with huge hydal, coal, solar and wind energy resources and stressed the need for reducing the reliance on fossil fuel energy mix. He called upon the business community to install solar energy plants to fulfil their energy requirements as well as to sell it in national grid and earn a reasonable profit. He also asked the business community for untaping the hydal energy resources as about 61 percent domestic hydal sources were still un-exploited. Speaking on the occasion, hairman Advisory Council of the independent power producers Abdullah Yousuf said that 66 per cent energy needs were fulfilled by the fossil fuel which was not an efficient mix. He informed that 50,000 MW electricity production could be produced by wind, bio-gas by 40 million kilo watts and hydal production potential was estimated at 60,000 MW, besides having over180 billion tones of coal reserves. President ICCI, Khalid Malik speaking on the occasion said that aim of the event was to provide a way forward for the policymakers to develop an efficient energy mix by engaging the business community. He said that country was rich in energy resources, adding that a comprehensive policy was required to exploit these reserves and create an efficient energy mix.
Source: The News International
WHILE Government has moved in to revive the cotton industry through a three-year free input support programme, inadequate regulatory enforcement, particularly during the marketing season remains a threat to the sustainable recovery of the sector. The Presidential Input Support Programme, which began last season has seen the Government providing free inputs to farmers, largely small scale in a bid to revive the industry. Cotton has been a source of livelihood for 200 000 families, making it a strategic national priority. During the past two seasons, Government has spent in excess of $70 million on inputs. Analysts said the intervention by the Government was timely as it has helped to lure back many farmers who had abandoned the crop due to inadequate funding from merchants. However, the sustainable recovery of the industry remains under threat, largely due to side marketing resulting from inadequate regulatory enforcement to curb the practice. Based on the established crop, a national crop size of about 110 000 tonnes is expected this year. Analysts said since opening up the industry as a result of the International Monetary Fund dictated Economic Structural Adjustment Programme there had been a failure to control side marketing. This killed the investment case for cotton as regulatory control has been largely ineffective due to “regulatory capture.” They are of the view that the Agricultural Marketing Authority, which is the regulatory body charged with enforcing cotton legislation in the form of Statutory Instrument 142 of 2009 has “totally” demonstrated a total reluctance to enforce effective deterrent measures or penalties, resulting in chaos in the marketing of the crop. The regulator is empowered to cause the arrest and prosecution of unscrupulous merchants for non-compliance and promoting side marketing, suspend licences for errant merchants and to cancel licences for continued breach of cotton marketing regulations. “We have not seen much of these things happening despite clear evidence of serious breaches (of regulations) by some players,” Mr Nhamo Muchapondwa, an agricultural economist said. “What is disturbing is that the Government is laying a solid foundation for the recovery of the industry but this will not be sustainable if such breaches continue to happen. “What people need to understand is that, the crop is only coming back because of Government intervention. “Almost everything is being funded by the Government but come marketing season; the bigger size of the crop will be bought by private players. “It happened last season. Out of about 30 000 tonnes produced, Government only bought a third.” A senior official with AMA said the authority would ensure Government adequately recover its investment, adding licenses would be issued on the basis of investment made. “We are working with all stakeholders including the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe to ensure that all loopholes that may promote side marketing are eliminated,” said the official. “This year, private players have not invested much . . . most of them have only provided seed. So ideally, Government should buy the bulk of the crop. In any case, this middle man should be removed because their investment model is not production oriented.” Some farmers contracted by private players in Gokwe-Nembudziya and Sanyati areas told The Herald Business last week that the support from private payers had been inadequate. Farmer, Mr Moses Muzingiti, 32, said he was contracted by Alliance and received only seed. “I established 4 hectares with the seed I got from Alliance and there was no further help,” said Mr Muzingiti, also chairman of 150 farmers contracted by Alliance in Sanyati. Mr Rangarirai Siyai, also from Sanyati and represents 37 farmers contracted by Olam expressed dissatisfaction with the inputs they received from the company. He said he joined Olam’s scheme under the impression that Cottco and Olam were merging. “We have been short-changed for a while and we wanted to join the Government input programme. But we were told that Olam was going to merge with the Cottco,” he said. Late last year, Olam made a failed bid to acquire an exclusive management contract for Cottco. Mrs Kudzai Muleli, 40, from Gokwe said she was contracted by Grafax and only received little chemicals and seed. “They promised to bring fertilisers but they did not,” she said. Many farmers who benefited under the Presidential Input Scheme told a totally different story as they expressed satisfaction with the level of input support. Those interviewed in Sanyati and Gokwe all expressed satisfaction with the level of support. Chairperson for Vere area in Sanyati Mrs Silibaziso Makovere, 30 said she was expecting a good yield after receiving enough inputs from the Government. “I have about 76 farmers under me and I can tell all happy with what Government did for us,” she said. “Since I started growing cotton after leaving school in 2005, this is my best year.” Cottco area managers for Nembudziya and Sanyati Mr Tichaona Mamutse and Mr Cloud Kanhema said the crop situation was “good” and the mid-season drought would enhance output and quality. Economist Dr Gift Mugano said crop losses were being caused by merchants paying higher prices as they would have not made any meaningful investment in inputs finance or infrastructure. “Government support is only limited to three years and the possibility of the industry ‘collapsing’ again is very high if there is no proper regulatory enforcement especially during marketing season,” he said. A former senior executive with a leading cotton company said there was an urgent need for “immediate and drastic intervention” in the cotton industry to stop the continued hemorrhaging from the scourge of side marketing. “This issue of side marketing has been happening for a long time and this has largely resulted in the decline in cotton production and to a certain extent, pulling out of some serious investors,” said the executive. “When merchants invest in production they are taking risk and the return on making that risk is the crop volume they get from the farmer. “But side marketing has been allowed to prevail and the collapse of cotton industry is evidence of that.” United States based company, Cargill closed its cotton business in Zimbabwe in 2014 citing high levels of farmer’ defaults resulting from side marketing. The company said the practice had resulted in the company failing to operate profitably.
Source: The Herald
The design and merchandising students of the Colorado State University (CSU) have developed environment friendly fashion pieces. These students have created ‘Alice in Wonderland’ theme inspired sustainable fashion that will be displayed at the CSU Avenir Museum Gallery which will host an exhibition titled 'Eco-Fashion: Through the Looking Glass'. "This exhibit highlights student ingenuity and creativity and, as such, is a delight to behold," said Diane Sparks, design and merchandising professor and exhibit director. "Students in a design foundation course create garment structures using non-traditional and hopefully recycled materials to apply the elements and principles of design." The 'Alice in Wonderland' theme inspired students to take designs from all the different characters and props in the story, and they did not disappoint. Each unique garment created by students showed their craftiness in turning recycled materials into beautiful clothing. Students were not allowed to buy any new material for their creations and have used various sustainable materials such as garbage bags, duct tape, zip-lock baggies, tissue paper, comic book pages, playing cards and telephone book pages for their creation. "We had to keep recycling and sustainability in mind while picking our materials," said one of the students who worked for the exhibit Nicole Pink said. "When I design, I always make sure I waste as little fabric as possible so I can reuse it for other projects." This project showed the serious side of sustainability, but also the playful and wearable side of it, she added. Director of Avenir Museum Doreen Beard said the Avenir Museum has an exciting future ahead. "In the coming months you can visit not only the students' eco-fashion work, but also exhibitions on bridal apparel, the influence of floral design in 150 years of women's dresses and the influence of the caftan heritage of Morocco," Beard said. "There will also be exhibitions of 35+ years of CSU's Homecoming 5000 t-shirts, 19th century woven coverlets and an exhibition of our Design & Merchandising faculty’s stunning creative work in artistic apparel." (RR)
Source: Fibre2Fashion
The Bangladesh cabinet has approved the draft of the Textile Act 2017, which will make it mandatory for all companies operating in the textile and apparel sectors to register their companies with the Directorate of Textiles. As per the draft, companies will have to obtain a licence from the directorate to set up or operate a textile or apparel unit. This was informed by cabinet secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam to reporters after a cabinet meeting. "All industries related to the textiles and apparel sector will need to be registered with the Directorate of Textiles," Alam said. "The directorate will supervise and monitor these textiles companies." Additionally, officers from the directorate will have the authority to collect samples and verify the standard of any imported textile raw material.
Source: Fibre2fashion
