The state government had agreed to provide assistance of Rs 300 crore for it and forwarded the proposal to the Centre in March last year (Express file Photo by Nirmal Harindran) As many as 30,000 beedi and textile workers in a federation of cooperatives in Solapur will be the first in the country to benefit from the Centre’s decision to allow construction of affordable houses on private land under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs approved the project Monday and sanctioned financial assistance of Rs 450 crore for it. Officials said the Raynagar Cooperative Housing Federation from Solapur had submitted a proposal to the state government to build 30,000 affordable houses for its members. The Federation’s members are beedi and textile workers along with others from economically weaker sections. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 1,811 crore under the PMAY. The state government had agreed to provide assistance of Rs 300 crore for it and forwarded the proposal to the Centre in March last year, said an official. Officials say the cost of each dwelling unit will be reduced now. “While the cost of the each dwelling unit of Rs 6, 03,777 was determined, its actual price would be Rs 3,53,777 with financial assistance from the union and state governments,” said the official. He added that the state government has assured Centre that a state-level committee set up under PMAY would oversee the implementation of the project for getting the approval. The Centre has also approved construction of 2,84,803 affordable houses for urban poor under PMAY (Urban). While the total cost of these houses is Rs 16,407 crore, the Centre has approved Rs 4,272 crore.
Source: The Indian Express
The cultivation of genetically modified (GM) crops with new transgenic traits such as herbicide tolerance (HT) is spreading fast in cotton growing states even though no license or approval has been granted by authorities such as GEAC or ICAR for growing them in India. Farmers are swayed by the multiple benefits of these GM varieties, which are being sold illegally, as they offer the twin advantage of bollworm resistance and herbicide tolerance. In comparison, the approved Bt variety (Bollgard I and Bollgard II) is only bollworm-resistant. The new GM varieties are being sold at half the price of approved hybrid cotton seeds by the grey market players, who seem to be outsmarting regulatory officials by operating directly in remote parts without any valid licenses. "During a recent field visit, I tried to sensitise a group of farmers about the risk involved in buying the cotton seed without an invoice. What they told me was this: We understand the risk in the event of a crop failure. But we have only seen the benefits so far and the yields are also better," N Kumara Swamy, deputy director, in-charge of Seed Cell at the Agriculture Commissionerate of Telangana government, told Business Standard. According to Swamy, farmers often keep the information under wraps fearing that they could be sent to jail if they were found cultivating the illegal GM cotton varieties. The National Seed Association of India (NSAI), an industry body of seed companies, believes that the unapproved transgenic cotton seed varieties that carry a combination of HT and IT (insect tolerant) traits are being cultivated in about 15-20 per cent of the total cotton crop area in the country. It was estimated that cotton is cultivated in about 12 million hectares in India. "According to our information, the cultivation of these GM cotton hybrids is happening in all the major cotton growing states. To that extent the cotton seed market has shrunk for the licensed seed companies," said M Prabhakara Rao, president of NSAI, who is also the chairman of Hyderabad-based Nuziveedu Seeds Limited. Seed companies cannot produce or sell these new GM traits in their proprietary hybrids because the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) has not granted approval for commercial cultivation of the HT GM trait in cotton despite allowing the field trials long ago. Apparently no evaluation is undertaken on the environmental impact, or other implications, if any, from herbicide tolerant cotton being cultivated in violation of law since 2013-14. The DNA Fingerprinting and Transgenic Crops Monitoring Lab (DFTCM Lab) in Hyderabad had established the presence of a GM cotton event called 1445 with a single gene copy of HT trait in a test conducted on samples about 4 years ago. A recent lab test on three samples of seed seized from a bus-stand in Guntur by the DFTCM Lab (the one which is now under the AP government's control), also found that the samples belong to the same unapproved 1445 event, which have been cultivated in countries like Australia and the US, according to the lab officials. A test report issued as recently as on July 3, 2017 by Telangana DFTCM Lab on a seed sample collected in Rangareddy district also confirmed that the sample contains herbicide tolerant traits. It is not fully known about the network of the unorganised, grey market operators who not only laid their hands on these unapproved GM cotton traits but also manage the breeding and production for development of several new HT varieties for their illegal sale across the country. Some say that there is a strong possibility of GM seeds being stolen during the field trials while others do not rule out the possibility of people bringing them from outside the country. As a matter of fact only a few seeds are enough to develop new varieties and keep producing their seeds year after year. "Both Monsanto and Bayer had conducted field trials on GM cotton with HT trait containing a single gene copy in 2007, 2008 and 2009 in India. But we do not have the traceability to tell whether the seed samples seized in Guntur belong to one of these GM cotton hybrids that had undergone field trials in Gujarat," K M V Prasad Reddy, additional director of DFTCM Lab (AP) says. However it's easy to establish through certain molecular tests its same event and gene that was tested or not, according to experts. The problem of unauthorized GM cotton has got further aggravated this year with grey market players allegedly selling the unauthorized Round-up Ready Flex (RRFlex) GM seed to farmers in several parts of the country, including AP and Telangana, in a big way. This is the same GM cotton trait that Mahyco Monsanto, the Indian subsidiary of global seed company Monsanto, had withdrawn from seeking approval for commercial use in August, 2016 in an act of protest. "We understand the sale of such seeds is happening in remote places of the state like, for example, Asifabad region, Mahadevpur region, Kamalapur to Kothagudem etc by agents who are not even having seed license. The farmers are getting attracted to purchase such seeds since they are available at very low prices at Rs 400-450 per packet and also due to the fact that cultivation of such varieties enables them to use broad spectrum herbicides based on glyphosate to control weeds thereby reducing the efforts and costs in weed maintenance," Hyderabad-based Seedsmen Association has informed Telangana government in a recent letter while seeking close monitoring and sampling of the sale of such seeds for testing for unapproved GM traits. In its letter the association also proposed to work within Indian IPR laws in collaboration of state agriculture university to obtain GEAC approval for various new GM traits available in the farmers' fields to develop new cotton hybrids and varieties. This was suggested to remove grey market operators and make approved traits and hybrids available to farmers so that quality regulation of seeds doesn't go out of hand thereby benefiting farmers, according to Seedsmen Association president A S N Reddy.
Source: Business Standard
Coimbatore, Jul 22 () A total of 35 spinning mills, members of Indian Texpreneurs Federation, an apex body of textile mills in the region, have formed a consortium to purchase quality cotton from ginners of Maharashtra and Telangana. On a trial basis, the consortium, which required 11 lakh bales per year, has purchased two lakh bales this year, with zero trash and low level contamination, ITF Convenor Prabhu Dhamodharan told reporter here today. Considering fruitful results, it was planned to buy four lakh bales during this cotton season, starting October, since raw material cost was the major factor in spinning mills manufacturing cost, ranging from 60 to 70 per cent, Prabhu said. Even one per cent savings by way of good quality, better pricing, timely purchase will help spinning sector reduce its cost of manufacturing, he said. On advantage to ginners, he said they can reach the top performing mills on a single platform and get a guarantee on professional transactions and timely payments and honoring contracts. As the consortium was able to partner with more than 50 ginners in Telangana and Maharashtra, some 25 ginners are on a visit of mills in and around the city to know the trend and purchase plans. Raveender Reddy from Telangana said the state is expected to have cotton crop of 70 lakh bales and Maharashtra 100 lakh bales this season. With more than one crore bales cotton requirement, Tamil Nadu mills need stronger partnership with cotton growing states, Reddy said, adding, the visit here was to evaluate a strategy to focus more on contamination controlled cotton. nvm BN
Source: The Times of India
Denim has become a basic western apparel for Indian consumers and this fact has contributed to the sustained growth of the category. The denim market in India stood at Rs 171 million in retail value sales in 2016 and grew at CAGR of 13.6% between 2011-16. Smaller towns and cities are increasingly contributing to the sales of denim, and especially of Indian brands where consumer preferences for western wear have evolved. In addition, branded store expansion in tier II and tier III cities over the last five years has also fuelled the growth of the overall denim category. Online retail has been another growth driver and has attracted price conscious small town consumers towards the branded market. Affordability is a major factor for consumers in smaller towns and Indian brands offer this to the aspirational consumer segment. Consumers can buy a pair of branded denims in the price range of Rs 700-1,500. While metro consumers spend on denims throughout the year, consumers from smaller towns plan their purchases typically around the festive sale season. Brands like FBB, Killer, Park Avenue and Pantaloons among others are seizing the first-mover advantage by developing their retail presence and driving promotions in these markets. The main push in smaller towns for Indian brands is from the 14-32 years age group, as older consumers perceive denim to be suitable for the youth and instead opt for cotton trousers. The young demographic is slowly warming up to online retailing. The growth potential for Indian brands in smaller towns lies with the middle income groups and typically teenagers, college students and youngsters entering the workforce. Simultaneously, there is competition from the unbranded sector. Jeans also has a market amongst lower income groups; typically these consumers are not really brand conscious and want affordable, long-lasting jeans. This segment will take time to graduate to the branded market based on their rising disposable incomes. Indian brands, thus, have an opportunity to capture this market by offering affordable prices.Currently, several local brands do not have offline presence in key towns and cities. It is also increasingly becoming important for local Indian brands to establish a clear brand identity to set themselves apart from rivals. Competition is expected to increase over the next few years from international brands as they look to serve the Indian market away from metros and bigger cities.
Source: Financial Express
India will stay ahead of China in the growth sweepstakes in 2017 as well as 2018, said the International Monetary Fund (IMF), while retaining the country’s GDP forecast at 7.2 cent for the current fiscal year. According to the IMF’s World Economic Outlook Update, India’s growth is projected to accelerate to 7.7 per cent in 2018-19, from the 7.2 per cent forecast for 2017-18. While the multilateral agency has retained India’s growth estimate as provided in the World Economic Outlook (WEO) in April, in the case of China, the forecast has been marginally raised to 6.7 per cent in 2017 and 6.4 per cent in 2018 from earlier projections. India, however will continue to grow faster than China in 2017 as well as 2018. Growth in India, the IMF said, is forecast “to pick up further in 2017 and 2018, in line with the April 2017 forecast. It added: “While activity slowed following the currency exchange initiative, growth for 2016 — at 7.1 per cent — was higher than anticipated due to strong government spending and data revisions that show stronger momentum in the first part of the year.” According to the WEO update, inflation in advanced economies remains subdued and generally below target and has been declining in several emerging economies such as Brazil, India and Russia too.
Global growth
It further said economic activity in both advanced and emerging and developing economies is forecast to accelerate in 2017 to 2 per cent and 4.6 per cent, respectively, with global growth projected to be 3.5 per cent, unchanged from the April forecast.
Source : Business Line
Amid call for boycott of Chinese goods in India from certain quarters including RSS and its associated outfit Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM), the government on Monday said the trade deficit with China was a matter of concern and the issue had been raised with Chinese authorities at the highest level. "Trade deficit with China is amatter of concern. We are discussing the issue with China for greater access for Indian products and services in the Chinese market," commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in response in Lok Sabha. China tops the list of 25 countries with which India had trade deficit in the last three years. The other countries include Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and South Korea. Sitharaman said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had raised the issue with Chinese authorities and the government was working to reduce the trade deficit with China. The minister's remarks came at the time when the SJM has started a campaign against Chinese goods and launched a signature campaign to support its demand. The Manch claimed that it had received support from people across the country in good numbers. The SJM's campaign will conclude on October 29 with a rally in Ramlila Ground here. RSS mouthpiece Organiser also spoke about the Sangh's move to launch a nation-wide mass awareness drive against China-made products between August 1 and 15. Speaking about overall trade, Sitharaman said India exported merchandise and services worth $230.36 billion between December 2016 and May 2017 to various countries. Of the total exports, in May, India exported merchandise and services valued at $37.44 billion, which was 4.40% more than the previous month (April), she said. She said the government had taken a number of steps to overcome the trade deficit.
Source: Business Line
NEW DELHI: A proposal to refund central goods and services tax (GST) on items made in formerly excise-free zones in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the North-East is set to be presented to cabinet. The move will benefit companies such as Cipla, Dabur, Dr Reddy’s and TVS Motor that invested in those areas because of the tax break. Such exemptions have largely been scrapped under GST as part of efforts to create a common market across India with as few interstate variations as possible. The Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) has approved the scheme, which is likely to benefit a number of automobile, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and pharmaceutical companies that have invested in these zones. “EFC has cleared the scheme,” a senior finance ministry official told ET. It will shortly be introduced in the cabinet, he said. Hundreds of pharmaceutical companies including high-profile ones such as Cipla, Dabur, Dr Reddy’s, Johnson & Johnson and Wockhardt have plants in such zones in Himachal Pradesh.
Source: The Economic Times
Colorjet India Ltd, the largest manufacturer of digital inkjet printers in India, is set to launch Aurajet dye sublimation textile printer at the upcoming textile technology trade show Gartex 2017 in New Delhi. At hall 14, stall 75, Colorjet will also showcase the recently launched TXF digital textile printer along with its best selling model, the Vastrajet. The Made-in-India Aurajet, which is running successfully in Australia, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia and other parts of world, is the perfect choice for dye sublimation users as it can easily run low GSM paper starting from 45 GSM which will help in reducing the cost by using less ink and offering perfect colours. The sturdy industrial built of the Aurajet helps in ensuring that the machine runs for several years, while achieving maximum speed of 34 sq metres, thereby providing huge production runs. It comes with advanced feed and a take-up system for precise paper movement. The Aurajet is bundled with Colorgate RIP to give vibrant colours and also comes with new CB100 inks, for best results in sportswear, apparel and home furnishing applications. Colorjet is also showing its tech loaded digital textile printer, the TXF, at the fair that runs from July 29-31, 2017. TXF has been manufactured incorporating the latest technology, which imparts the printer with the power to print brilliantly and flawlessly, with reduced maintenance. It can achieve print resolutions of up to 1,440 dpi and is best suited when it comes to sampling and short runs, particularly suitable for fashion designers and home textiles applications. TXF is available to work with reactive inks for printing onto natural fabrics and also disperse inks for printing onto polyester fabrics. The TXF printer, which is equipped with industrial printheads, gives variable dot control for achieving smooth gradations and is also belt driven, which makes it suitable for printing fabrics including bulky textured materials, thinner fabrics and also stretchable fabric materials such as knits. The state-of-the-art and efficiently engineered Vastrajet printer is a commercial grade entry level digital textile printer, which meets the normal daily requirements of a textile printing house, while being suitable for a variety of fabrics like cotton, silk, wool, polyester and their blends, including for stretchable and normal fabrics. The structure of the Vastrajet is excellently designed to handle high speed production and precise dot placements, while the proprietary AIVC technology ensures high precision printing. The high speed is achieved through specially designed jetting controls to optimise printheads performance, to match the high jetting frequency. (RKS)
Source: Fibre2Fashion
The Ethiopian government is on a mission to get entrepreneurs in the textile hubs of Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode and Dindigul to establish their presence in that country’s industrial parks. A delegation led by Ethiopian Industry Minister Bogale Feleke Temesgen met textile industrialists at the Southern India Mills Association here, and impressed upon them the advantages of setting up a facility in his country.
Industrial parks
“Our government envisions making the country a leading manufacturing hub by 2025. To get there, we have been focussing on industrial park development and expansion, offering fiscal incentives such as income tax and customs duty exemption and providing ease of access to the parks at promotional rates. Four of the 13 proposed industrial parks is complete and ready for occupation,” he said. “Hawassa Industrial Park, for instance, is specifically for the textile and apparel sector, and large Indian companies such as Raymond, Arvind and Kanoria Textiles have established their presence there . The industrialisation process has just started; there are around 175 ginning and spinning units,” he added. Highlighting the advantages in terms of availability of raw material, labour and power, he said: “Our annual production of cotton is 100,000 tonnes. But the potential to grow is enormous; as close to 3 million hectares is available for cultivation of the white fibre. Only 20 per cent of the cotton growing area is now covered. “We need forward linkage to cultivate cotton; we are here to convince manufacturers to set up units closer to the raw material-sourcing centre,” and continued “power is aplenty and the cost works out to 3 cents/kilowatt hour. Our labour law is flexible and cost is around $60/month.” On Indian investment, he Temesgen : “Around 500 companies have got the licence, but many have not started yet.” On the sidelines of this discussion, J Thulasidharan, Chairman of Confederation of Indian Textile Industry, told BusinessLine that the East African delegation has been persistently trying to lure entrepreneurs for over a decade now to invest in their country. “There have been bottlenecks, changes in government policy, cultural differences, and so on. The government is proactive now and power is very cheap. Spinning mills that propose to set up a facility there will be able to get home-grown cotton. The restriction on employment of foreign labour is now an issue of the past, and there has been significant improvement on the infrastructure front, such as ports and railways.” CITI is planning to take a textile delegation to Ethiopia, “but we will have to explore every aspect before venturing to invest there,” he added. The delegation, meanwhile, said the African Textile Fair is scheduled between October 3 and 6
Source: The Hindu
The international crude oil price of Indian Basket as computed/published today by Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas was US$ 48.10 per barrel (bbl) on 21.07.2017. This was lower than the price of US$ 48.45 per bbl on previous publishing day of 20.07.2017. In rupee terms, the price of Indian Basket decreased to Rs. 3093.83 per bbl on 21.07.2017 as compared to Rs. 3121.22 per bbl on 20.07.2017. Rupee closed stronger at Rs. 64.32 per US$ on 21.07.2017 as compared to Rs. 64.43 per US$ on 20.07.2017. The table below gives details in this regard:
|
Particulars |
Unit |
Price on July 21, 2017 Previous trading day i.e. 20.07.2017) |
|
Crude Oil (Indian Basket) |
($/bbl) |
48.10 (48.45) |
|
(Rs/bbl) |
3093.83 (3121.22) |
|
|
Exchange Rate |
(Rs/$) |
64.32 (64.43) |
Source: PIB
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1235.38 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
VSF |
2345.01 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
ASF |
2189.66 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
Polyester POY |
1250.18 |
USD/Ton |
0.30% |
7/21/2017 |
|
Nylon FDY |
2973.80 |
USD/Ton |
1.01% |
7/21/2017 |
|
40D Spandex |
5030.30 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
Polyester DTY |
2367.20 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
Nylon POY |
1590.46 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
3106.95 |
USD/Ton |
0.96% |
7/21/2017 |
|
Polyester FDY |
5681.28 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1457.31 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
2751.87 |
USD/Ton |
1.64% |
7/21/2017 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2973.80 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1834.58 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2737.08 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
1952.94 |
USD/Ton |
0.76% |
7/21/2017 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2293.23 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
3121.75 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2322.82 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.37 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.85 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.19 |
USD/Meter |
-0.12% |
7/21/2017 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.67 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.69 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
7/21/2017 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14795 USD dtd. 21/7/2017). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
The International Monetary Fund has cut its growth forecast for the UK economy this year after a weak performance in the first three months of 2017. In its first downgrade for the UK since the EU referendum in June last year, the IMF said it expected the British economy to expand by 1.7% this year, 0.3 points lower than when it last made predictions in April. The Fund raised its forecasts for the UK after the Brexit vote as a result of the much stronger than envisaged activity in the second half of 2016. In October 2016, it pencilled in growth of 1.1% for 2017, raising this forecast to 1.5% in January this year and to 2% in April. Maurice Obstfeld, the IMF’s economic counsellor, pointed to a marked change in early 2017. He said the UK’s growth forecast had been lowered based on its “tepid performance” so far this year, adding: “The ultimate impact of Brexit on the United Kingdom remains unclear.” The IMF left its growth forecast for the UK in 2018 unchanged at 1.5% but said one key risk facing the global economy was that the Brexit talks would end in failure. It contrasted its gloomier outlook for the UK with a rosier forecast for the rest of the EU, with 2017 growth upgrades for the four biggest eurozone countries – Germany, France, Italy and Spain. Germany has been revised up by 0.2 points to 1.8%, France by 0.1 points to 1.5%, while Italy and Spain have both been revised up by 0.5 points to 1.3% and 3.1% respectively. The Fund produces a world economic outlook in April and October to coincide with its spring and annual meetings, but provides updates in January and July. Launching the report in Kuala Lumpur, Obstfeld said the IMF had left its global growth forecasts unchanged at 3.5% in 2017 and 3.6% for next year, noting that the stronger performance by the eurozone, China and Japan had been offset by weaker performances elsewhere. “The recovery in global growth that we projected in April is on a firmer footing; there is now no question mark over the world economy’s gain in momentum,” Obstfeld said. He added that Donald Trump’s failure so far to push through his promised package of tax cuts had dampened US growth prospects. “From a global growth perspective, the most important downgrade is the United States,” he said. “Over the next two years, US growth should remain above its longer-run potential growth rate. But we have reduced our forecasts for both 2017 and 2018 to 2.1% because near-term US fiscal policy looks less likely to be expansionary than we believed in April.” Three months ago, the IMF said it expected growth in the world’s biggest economy to be 2.3% this year and 2.5% next. The Fund said that while the risk of a repeat of the electoral shocks of 2016 – Brexit and Trump’s presidential victory – had declined, policy uncertainty remained at a high level and could rise further. It singled out “difficult-to-predict US regulatory and fiscal policies, negotiations of post-Brexit arrangements, or geopolitical risks”, all of which it said could harm confidence, deter private investment, and weaken growth.
Source: Financial Express
ADDIS ABABA- Ethiopia has a target to generate 30 billion U.S. dollars in foreign exchange earnings from the textile and garment sector by 2030, according to Bogale Feleke, Ethiopian Deputy Minister of Industry. The deputy minister made the remarks while addressing a workshop organized to promote Ethiopia's textile industry sector held in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa on Monday. "We intend to increase our area of cotton production. At present, only 20 percent of the three million hectares are used for cotton production while we aim to increase to around 80 percent," local media FBC quoted Feleke as saying. Noting his country's commitment in developing 13 industrial parks in the near future, majority of them in the textile and apparel sector, Feleke revealed that Ethiopia intends to have close to 150 textile and garment companies by the year 2020. The east African country is on the constant effort to increase its cotton production, Feleke told workshop participants gathered from the Ethiopian Investment Promotion and International Trade Centre. Ethiopia has nearly 175 textile units and it is increasing the investment scope with the provision of energy supply, trained work-force and other necessities at an affordable price, according to Feleke. According to the World Investment Report's 2016 edition, the east African country is the second largest in attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the textile industry sector, next to Vietnam. With a workforce of more than 47 million and a burgeoning younger generation, Africa's second most populous country is striving hard to generate employment opportunities, in which the textile and garment industry sector is said to be at the forefront.
Source: Huaxia
This year, Pakistan faced its highest ever trade deficit of $35.6 billion despite low oil prices throughout the year. When Budget 2017-18 was announced, the finance minister had said that the government was going to launch a special package for the five biggest export sectors to revive exports. A strategy focused on no taxation would always be a limited one. Now, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association has given its own position on the government’s strategy. Noting that Pakistan has lost 23 percent of its share in global textile exports, Aptma has issued a report claiming that the Pakistani textile industry has some of the highest costs in the region, which is preventing it from becoming competitive. The result has been a 44 percent decline in investment, with most textile industries operating at under 35 percent of their capacity. At least 150 industrial units have shut down over the same year, which has reduced the labour force employed in textiles by 30 percent. In terms of technology, Aptma claims that Pakistan has lost 15 percent of its technological advantage. If the facts are accepted, the question becomes: who is responsible? Aptma seems to want to put the blame on the government, but this is not such a simple task. The failure to upgrade technologies cannot be blamed on the government. It is simply a product of most textile mill owners deciding to pocket the high profits they were able to reap without putting it back into improving technologies and competitiveness. Moreover, the failure to develop their own brands and remain reliant on foreign benefactors has meant that value addition to textile products is happening elsewhere in the globe. The failure of industries like textile to conform to basic labour standards is a well-known fact – and the question of why an industry cannot be competitive in a situation where it continues to exploit labour is a startling one. Moreover, Aptma must itself be blamed for not showing enough initiative. For example, why can it not show an improvement in exports despite the government’s conditional decision to agree to its demand of zero taxation on exports as well as promise of no power outages in the industrial sector? Pakistan is the only country in the South Asia region to show shrinking agricultural exports. Surely, there is more to the picture that is being told. Free trade agreements have played a part in making the textile industry open to more competition from the market, but international trade could never be sustained on a quota system for an export-oriented industry. The government can do more; but the textile industry must also practise some introspection.
Source: The News Internationa
Working environment in some of the reputed factories can compete with the best in the world. So the examples are there within the country. There is a need to follow in the footsteps of those factories and give a good account of all others as well Bangladesh's relegation as an exporter of fashion wear to the United States of America to the seventh position this year from the fifth the previous year does not augur well for the country. Intriguingly, the study titled '2017 Fashion Study Benchmarking Study' finds Bangladesh most competitive in terms of price. But this advantage has been more than negated by the high risks involved in trade compliance. The result is that the US-based fashion companies have started turning their back to Bangladesh as a source. Still 61 per cent of those companies have so far sourced their apparel from this country but this percentage is down from the 70 per cent the previous year. If the trend continues, Bangladesh's hope of grabbing the high-end apparel market will receive a serious blow. True, Bangladesh's weakness to have a strong presence at the upmarket of readymade garments (RMG) is well known. It has just started making a sortie and along with India, it is a top supplier of only two categories whereas Vietnam is credited with the top spot for supplying as many as five categories. So the predominance of the compliance issue is going to cost the RMG sector quite a price this time. Like Bangladesh, India and Cambodia are also high risk destinations in terms of non-compliance. But Vietnam and Sri Lanka are not. The sector in Bangladesh is likely to be a further loser in terms of increasing prices of raw materials and slightly higher fees for shipping. Remediation under the prescription of the Alliance and Accord, associations of importers from America and Europe, has already made production of RMG articles costlier. At this transition period, Bangladesh garments factories are absorbing more shocks than they can possibly do. In a situation like this, it is better to follow the methods Sri Lanka and Vietnam have made their plus points. Vietnam, in particular, has adapted well with the strict business regime of North America, notwithstanding the fact that it is a late entrant to this business. Bangladesh needs more transparency in maintaining factory environment and employer-employee relations. Remediation has taken care of only infrastructural matters but workers' aptitude and skills, along with their welfare, are still grey areas where greater attention is needed. Some of the non-compliance risks are certainly related to workers' unrest in Ashulia. It is not for nothing that factories have been compelled to reappoint sacked workers there. By all accounts, Bangladesh's relegation by two notches as a supplier of fashion wear will prove costly for the country in terms of export earning. After all, RMG is its top earner of foreign currency. Now there is a need to get over the reversal. In order to do that, there is a need for collective effort towards improving the status of compliance. Working environment in some of the reputed factories can compete with the best in the world. So the examples are there within the country. There is a need to follow in the footsteps of those factories and give a good account of all others as well.
Source: Financial Express Bangladesh
HÀ NỘI — The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has announced the termination of the anti-dumping investigation on polyester fibre imported from Việt Nam. Earlier, on June 20, DOC officially initiated the investigation on polyester fibre imported from Việt Nam, China, India, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan (China), based on petitions filed by DAK Americas LLC, Nan Ya Plastics Corporation and Augira Polymers. The plaintiffs alleged that polyester staple fibre products were being shipped to the United States at prices lower than their normal value. In addition, the dumping had caused significant damage to the domestic industry due to price depression. The scope of the investigation covers fine denier polyester staple fibre, not carded or combed, measuring less than 3.3 decitex in diameter, coded HS: 5503.20.0025. The withdrawal of the lawsuit was requested only for Việt Nam, and the investigation into products from China, India, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan (China) continues. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Việt Nam exported some 13,000 tonnes of fine denier polyester staple fibre worth an estimated US$12.4 million to the United States in 2016, ranking third behind China ($79.4 million) and India ($14.7 million). — VNS
Source: Viet Nam News
"“We’ve sat back and allowed polyester to take over and define sustainability,” says cotton analyst O.A. Cleveland, Jr. "Whoever heard of a petroleum, acid-based fiber being sustainable while cotton is not?” "U.S. cotton just keeps getting beaten up by synthetics," says cotton analyst O.A. Cleveland, Jr. "That’s where we need to focus: What can we do to regain market share for cotton?” Polyester is a dirty word for Dr. O. A. Cleveland, Jr. He wryly recalls that his daughter-in-law was somewhat miffed at him because he wouldn’t wear “the fancy 100 percent polyester shirt she gave me for Father’s Day. ”It cost $75 and some-odd cents,” the veteran cotton analyst told those attending the joint annual meeting of the Mississippi Boll Weevil Management Corporation and the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation Cotton Policy Committee. “It felt like linoleum, and I knew it would lose its color, or the fibers would snag.” The shirt, says Cleveland, Mississippi State University Extension economics professor emeritus, is yet another symbol of how man-made fiber has increasingly edged cotton out of the fashion arena. “Cotton continues to lose market share. We just keep getting beaten up by synthetics. That’s where we need to focus: What can we do to regain market share for cotton?” Fast fashion “is beating cotton to death,” he says, “and something needs to happen to counteract this.” Fast fashion, he explains, is a term for apparel designs that move rapidly from concept to retail, often in as little as two to four weeks. “Most of us know a fashion market with four seasons. Today, with fast fashion based on polyester, there are many changes in a year. They can do this because polyester is cheap and doesn’t last as long as cotton, so they can keep cranking out new things as quickly and as cheaply as possible. This has really bitten cotton in the behind. “The result: cotton continues to get beaten up in international trade — it’s been going on for 15 years. All importers are bringing in polyester, even some cotton importers are bringing in more polyester than cotton.” “In five to 10 years, I’m convinced that growing hemp will be legalized," says cotton analyst O.A. Cleveland, Jr.. "Once it can be grown and processed in the U.S., it will be more competitive for cotton than polyester. So, we need to be thinking 10 years down the road about things like this and how they will impact cotton.” It’s also particularly galling in sports-happy cotton country, he says, that several Southeastern Conference universities have signed multi-year, multi-million dollar contracts for athletic team apparel that’s polyester or includes non-U.S.-grown cotton. Mississippi cotton producers have been less than overjoyed that apparel for its Land Grant university athletic teams is from a company that uses no U.S. cotton in those uniforms, supposedly because it uses only BCI (Better Cotton Initiative) cotton that’s sourced as sustainable. “We’ve sat back and allowed polyester to take over and define sustainability,” Cleveland says, “and the textile industry has bought into it 1,000 percent. Whoever heard of a petroleum, acid-based fiber being sustainable while cotton is not?” “I was opposed to BCI initially — I didn’t think U.S. cotton growers should have to pay to get their cotton certified. But it’s the only certification program that has standing in the world market; they have the exporters, merchandisers, and big box retailers, and that’s where we have to get our cotton into. Until we do, we’ll continue to lose market share. It’s fairly clear it’s something we have to do.” And down the road, Cleveland says, cotton may be facing another competitor in the fiber market, hemp, which has not been legal to grow in the U.S. for decades because of its similarity in appearance to marijuana. “In five to 10 years, I’m convinced that growing hemp will be legalized. Once it can be grown and processed in the U.S., it will be more competitive for cotton than polyester. So, we need to be thinking 10 years down the road about things like this and how they will impact cotton.”
Source: Delta Farm Press
PIKEVILLE, Tenn. — Textile Corporation of America, Inc. (TCA) will locate its headquarters and manufacturing facility in Pikeville, Tennessee. Governor Bill Haslam, Dept. of Economic and Community Development (ECD) Commissioner Bob Rolfe, and TCA officials made the announcement Monday. TCA will invest approximately $27.1 million and create 1,000 new jobs in Bledsoe County, a private investment which the ECD says is the largest in the county's history. TCA produces quality industrial and institutional textile products including apparel, bedding, healthcare, hospitality, and kitchen linens. The company will locate its headquarters and manufacturing facility in the Bledsoe County Industrial Building in Pikeville. The existing building is 186,000 square feet, including offices, and sits on 16 acres. "By choosing Pikeville," says Haslam, "Textile Corporation of America is helping us get one step closer to our goal of making Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs.” Governor Haslam says that TCA's commitment to creating jobs in Bledsoe County (a Tier 4 economically distressed county) will have "an incredible impact on the community and surrounding area." "We are proud to call Pikeville, Tennessee home to our new mill," said Chattanooga businessman and TCA owner Ed Cagle.
Source: WTVC
If you want to know what's on deck in the fashion world, you can take a clue from Mother Nature. The more erratic our weather patterns, the more we're seeing clothing that transcends seasons, says fashion trend forecaster Emily Miller Palmquist, keynote speaker at the upcoming Apparel Textile Sourcing Canada (ATSC) show, to be held Aug. 21-23, 2017, at the Toronto International Centre. Registration – which includes entrance to both the exhibits and conference sessions – is free of charge. Presenting at ATSC 2017 on August 22 at 11:00 a.m., Palmquist – founder of EMP Creative – will give attendees a glimpse of what's in store for 2018 and beyond when it comes to global design and consumer apparel trends. "Clothing brands are no longer thinking in terms of spring, summer, fall and winter lines, but are creating pieces that last in our wardrobe much longer than a single season," Palmquist said. "It's a direct reaction to climate change and we're experiencing it all over the world." The biggest trend is the emergence of athleisure: casual, comfortable clothing designed for both everyday wear and exercise. The concept is permeating all levels of fashion, from children's clothing through to women's and men's wear, as consumers are becoming more sensitive about how clothing feels and are gravitating towards performance-based textiles, she said. "Because we spend so much time in the digital world – in front of computer screens and on our mobile phones – we're drawn to things in our physical world that have more tactility," Palmquist explained, adding that designers are putting as much emphasis on the fabric used for the interior lining of a garment as the exterior.
At ATSC 2017, Palmquist will uncover trending silhouettes, colours and textiles, including which fabrics, finishes, washes and patterns will dominate the apparel market. In general, the color palette is "going to be lit up with warmer hues," she said, and textures are going to reflect handmade craftsmanship. Debuting last year as Canada's premier international apparel and textile sourcing event, ATSC 2017 returns on a larger scale, with 300 local and international exhibits, three full days of seminars, panels and sessions, and a fashion runway event showcasing Canadian student and international exhibitor designs. Additional ATSC 2017 sessions include:
• Insight from the newest source in the international apparel production market: the Chinese city of Changshu, which was approved as a national trial market for procurement trade in 2016. Deng Yunhua, Vice Chairman of Changshu Garments Town Management Committee and Vice General Manager of Changshu Garments Town Ltd. Co., explains how the city is embracing its new role.
• Global apparel industry leader Jeff Streader and a panel of Canadian Apparel Executives discuss the modern supply chain best practices and responding to the ever-changing consumer trends and shifts that today's e-commerce world demands.
• An update on the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) Least Developed Countries Program
• A summary of key issues and developments in Canada's trade policy – including the important topic of NAFTA re-negotiation and new agreements (CETA) set to come into force – presented by Canadian Apparel Federation Executive Director Bob Kirke. from CBSA representative Germain LeBlanc, outlining how CBSA continues to audit the program, used by apparel importers to import duty-free from countries such as Bangladesh and Cambodia.
• Tech Meets Textile, a panel discussion showcasing members of the Canadian Smart Textile movement and faculty from Toronto's George Brown College and OCAD University as they look at how technology is changing the face of the textile industry and what it means for both businesses and consumers. Avedis Seferian, president and CEO of Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP), examines why social compliance is more important than ever in today's world of instant communication and what companies need to do in order to ensure business continuity and competitive success. "Pre-registration is up exponentially for the show's second year," said Jason Prescott, CEO of JP Communications, ATSC producer and North America's leading publisher of B2B trade platforms TopTenWholesale.com and Manufacturer.com. "Significant early registration numbers and strong exhibitor interest – both internationally and locally– indicate a renewed strength in the Canadian apparel and textile industry," Prescott said Exhibits at ATSC 2017 include top apparel and textile manufacturers from more than 20 countries, including Canada, China, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, the U.S., the U.K., Turkey, Switzerland, Spain, Nepal, as well as a delegation of 30 artisanal companies from eight Least Developed Countries (LDC) sponsored by Ottawa-based TFO Canada. ATSC is supported by many international governments and associations, headed by the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Textile and Apparel (CCCT) and the Bangladesh High Commission on behalf of the Export Promotion Bureau and the Bangladesh Garment and Manufacturers Export Association.
Source: Apparel News
