An appreciating rupee has been posing a major challenge to sustaining growth of domestic textiles industry, which has seen a low turnaround in the past few quarters, mainly due to high raw materials prices. Major players in this segment, including Bombay Dyeing, Trident and Welspun, have seen a sharp turnaround in their profitability over the past six quarters, despite challenges in domestic demand. This is on account of demonetisation first, and then the recent implementation of the goods and services tax (GST) regime. Bombay Dyeing, for example, has seen its profitability increasing to Rs 211.36 crore on a turnover of Rs 447.50 crore for the March 2017 quarter. In the January-March 2017 quarter, however, the profitability had seen over 90 per cent growth over the year-ago period. The company had reported a loss of Rs 52.97 crore in the October-December quarter of 2016. Similarly, Trident and Welspun had also reported a fall in their profitability in the January-March quarter of 2017. “The Indian textiles industry is currently facing challenges in the form of currency risk, increasing competition from China on unfavourable currency and higher raw material costs. We believe that cotton prices are likely to soften from September quarter of 2017-18 as we expect higher supply due to liquidation of inventory and enhanced cotton sowing in India,” said Sumant Kumar, an analyst with Emkay Global Financial Services. Interestingly, China’s yuan has fallen by around 4 per cent in the past three months, even as the Indian rupee has appreciated by around 4 per cent in the same period. The recent currency movement has given China an advantage over India, as observers see a weakness in the rupee against the major global currency. Experts believe the currency risk for the Indian home textile players is likely to be moderate in the coming year. Moreover, India will continue to enjoy cost advantages in home textiles on lower labour cost, better availability of cotton and favourable government policy. “We, therefore, believe that Indian home textiles industry will recover and mitigate short-term risks like higher raw material costs and currency volatility,” said Kumar. The profitability increase in the Indian home textiles sector has reflected in their respective stock price movement also. Share price of Bombay Dyeing, Trident Ltd and Welspun Enterprises are shy of their respective 52-week highs. Bombay Dyeing stock closed on Friday at Rs 83.30 apiece against its 52-week high level of Rs 92.95 apiece. Similarly, share prices of Trident and Welspun Enterprises closed at Rs 83.95 apiece and Rs 135.95 apiece against their 52-week highs of Rs 92.30 apiece and Rs 149.30 apiece respectively. India, China and Pakistan together account for 80 per cent of all bed and bath linen imported by the United States; India has an edge with a 54 per cent market share in bed sheets and 42 per cent in terry towels in 2017 (as of March). In bed sheets imports by US, India’s share has increased 12 percentage points since calendar year 2009, while Pakistan's share has fallen by 3 percentage points during this period. China’s, meanwhile, has remained flat at 24 per cent. In the US’ bed sheet imports, India’s share doubled from 27 per cent in calendar year 2009; China’s fell from 29 per cent to 20 per cent, and Pakistan’s from 26 per cent to 16 per cent. “India is well poised to gain from long-term growth in the global home textiles market, as it leverages the twin benefits of lower cost of production and significant share of global installed capacity,” said a report from Emkay Global. Even India’s Ministry of Textiles is pushing the Commerce Ministry to pursue the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union to boost India’s textile trade. Meanwhile, India’s home textiles industry is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 8.3 per cent during 2014-21 from $4.7 billion in 2014 to $8.2 billion in 2021.
Source: Business Standard
In a move to sort out the procedural mess that exports have got stuck into after the roll-out of the goods and services tax (GST), the Customs department has notified that currency exchange rates for drawback purposes would be announced on a fortnightly basis, as was the case earlier. “Customs duty is payable only in the rupee, and GST norms had stipulated that foreign exchange conversions should be according to the Reserve Bank of India’s reference rate, which is updated on a daily basis. Traders had complained that it made processing large volumes of payments difficult,” said Abhishek Jain, tax partner, EY. Now, traders can go back to paying the free-on-board (FOB) value of exports based on the rupee value according to the exchange rate notified by the Customs department for drawback purposes, Jain said. For services exports, any generally accepted accounting basis is allowed. The circular also allowed self-certification for higher duty drawback. “Being asked to furnish a certificate from tax authorities stating that exporters will not claim benefits under the new GST regime if he claims higher duty drawback was causing problems,” said Ganesh Gupta, president, Federation of Indian Exports Organisations (FIEO). Tax authorities were not issuing such a certificate and, in its absence, grant of lower drawback was affecting the liquidity of businesses, especially those operating in the small and medium enterprises segment, and complicating administrative work at the exporter’s end, he said. Even services exporters are facing roadblocks — previously not having had to submit any letters but now required to do so. “Exporters are reluctant to export as getting certificate from GST authorities only adds to the transaction time and cost,” FIEO said in a representation to the finance ministry. The new move is expected to save the transaction time and cost, but exporters have been advised to to do their own calculation while claiming higher drawback as they have to forego IGST refund/ITC refund/carry forward of CENVAT credit. The circular also clarified that while supplying to SEZs for export purposes or otherwise, traders need to mention whether it was being done under an LUT (letter of undertaking) or a bond. After the GST implementation, exporters had raised the issue of lack of clarity on norms relating to submission of bonds or LUTs for clearance of export consignments and sought IGST exemption. However, earlier this month, the government had said big exporters with a good track record can give an LUT to the customs department while small exporters would have to give a bond to seek IGST exemption. But problems in this regard have persisted. The Customs department has notified that currency exchange rates for drawback purposes would be announced on a fortnightly basis The traders can now go back to paying the free-on-board value of exports based on the rupee value according to the exchange rate The new tax regime is expected to save the transaction time and cost Big exporters with a good track record can give an LUT to the Customs department, while small exporters would have to give a bond to seek IGST exemption
Source : Business Standard
In the run-up to the goods and services tax (GST) regime, the commerce ministry seems a spectator. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) sought relevance by posting useful guidelines for exporters and importers but these are marred by some unnecessary indiscretions. The DGFT’s Trade Notice no 11/2008 dated June 30 says for items covered under the GST, no Advance Release Order (ARO) facility will be available under the Advance Authorisation and Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) scheme. Also, Export Oriented Units (EOU) can sell in the Domestic Tariff Area (DTA), subject to some conditions. These include refund of any benefits taken on procurement of inputs from the DTA under Chapter 7 of the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) and used in the manufacture of products under DTA sale. These changes amount to FTP amendments which can be done only through a notification issued by the central government, not a trade notice. The DGFT claims the notice was issued with approval of the competent authority. Which authority is competent to approve doing something beyond its powers and without jurisdiction? Under the FTP, the facility of domestic sourcing under the advance authorisation and EPCG schemes continue to be available through the invalidation letter route. The GST is payable on such deemed export supplies against invalidation letters. The DGFT says the customs portion of duty drawback may be claimed against such deemed export supplies. However, Para 7.04 of the FTP does not allow this benefit for supplies against invalidation letters. So, there is confusion at the operating levels. In its replies to the list it out on ‘Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)’, the DGFT says on imported items covered under the GST, duty credit scrips issued under the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme ( MEIS) and Services Exports from India Scheme (SEIS) can be used for payment of basic customs duty, safeguard duty, transitional product-specific safeguard duty and anti-dumping duty. This guidance is not backed by the exemption notifications issued by the finance ministry. The related notifications 24/2015Customs and 25/2015-Customs, both dated April 8, 2015, exempt only the basic duty of customs, CVD and SAD (i.e. the additional duties of customs levied under Sections 3(1), 3(3) and 3(5) of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975). They do not exempt anti-dumping duties or safeguard duties. So, MEIS and SEIS scrips cannot be used to pay these duties, unless the related customs exemption notifications are amended. In another tweet, the DGFT says the HSN Code for Chapter 3 scrips falls under Classification 4907, attracting a 12 per cent GST rate. It also asks this be got confirmed from the Tax Research Unit in the Central Board of Excise and Customs. Is it easier for thousands of traders in duty credit scrips to approach the TRU for confirmation or for DGFT to get it confirmed from the TRU and give a firm and conclusive opinion? Exporters are hit hard due to a strengthening rupee, increased working capital requirement due to denial of GST exemption on their imports or procurements under advance authorisations, falling premiums on duty credit scrips and procedural difficulties in execution of export orders. DGFT’s efforts to guide them in the transition to a GST regime are commendable but it should give instructions with due attention to the details.
Source: Business Standard
The government will offer only a tiny fraction of the subsidy amount it used to pay to apparel players earlier for the remission of state levies (RoSL) under the duty drawback scheme, thanks to the goods and services tax (GST) regime that has subsumed key indirect taxes at the states’ level. RoSL, under which garment exporters get refunds from the Centre against all the levies they pay at the states’ level, is the most important scheme (with fiscal significance for the government) in the Rs 6,000-crore garments package announced last year. The government has budgeted Rs 1,555 crore for the RoSL scheme in 2017-18. Before the introduction of the GST, garment exporters used to get refunds to the tune of 2.9-3.9% of the freight-on-board value of products under the RoSL scheme. The government has decided to reduce it to an interim rate of 0.39% (up to September 2017), as most of the state levies, including central sales tax, have been scrapped in the GST regime, said a senior textile ministry official. However, only two state levies (value-added tax on petroleum products and electricity charges) will continue under the GST regime as well, on the basis of which the interim refund structure has been based, he added. Last year, the government initially provided around Rs 400 crore for RoSL and some of the claims pertaining to 2016-17 are being settled this year. Garment exporters, however, have asked the government to review the interim rate, saying the reduction in relief will adversely impact apparel exports. The Apparel Exports Promotion Council (AEPC) said they have asked the finance ministry to restore the RoSL rate at 3.9%. It also wants the overnment to allow input tax credit on the GST paid on job work and stock transfer where drawback isn’t available. Recently, the textiles ministry made it mandatory for exporters to give a declaration and certificates in a prescribed format for seeking the duty drawback. However, in a letter to GK Pillai, chairman of the drawback committee of the finance ministry, AEPC chairman Ashok G Rajani said the declaration and certificates will raise exporters’ compliance burden, as well as transition cost. This is because GST has been rolled out only from this month and the offices are not yet fully ready to provide additional certificates. Recently, Rajani said as many as 80% beneficiaries of the RoSL scheme are exporters with a turnover of less than Rs 10 crore per year. Apparel exports have been registering double-digit growth since the start of the disbursement of RoSL (around December last year). During March and April, garment exporters were able to increase production by around 30% and employed at least 5% more workers during the same period, according to Rajani.
Source: Financial Express
Question 1: As per Chapter 53 heading 5303 of the GST rate schedule, raw jute has been kept at the NIL rate slab. Thus, it is presumed that suppliers dealing only in raw jute are not required to register themselves under GST. But Jute Mills are asking their raw jute suppliers to mandatorily register themselves else their supplies would not be accepted. Please clarify whether raw jute suppliers are liable for registration?
Answer: Raw jute has been kept at NIL rate of GST i.e. there would be no tax on raw jute. Therefore, as per Section 23 (1) (a) of the CGST Act, 2017 the suppliers dealing only in raw jute are not required to register. Jute mills are not required to pay tax under Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) as mentioned under Section 9(4) of the CGST Act, 2017 because both the goods have been kept at NIL rate of duty. Similarly, Raw Silk has also been kept at NIL rate of GST i.e. there would be no tax on raw silk. Therefore, the suppliers dealing only in raw silk are also not required to register.
Question 2: Cotton under chapter heading 5201 and 5203 has been kept in 5% rate slab. Does this mean that cotton farmer is required to register under GST?
Answer: No. As per Section 23(1)(b) of the CGST Act, 2017 an agriculturist, to the extent of supply of produce out of cultivation of land is not liable to registration.
Question 3: Does the buyer of raw cotton (who is a registered person) from the farmer need to pay GST on Reverse Charge basis?
Answer: Yes. As the cotton under heading 5201 and 5203 has been placed under 5% rate and the cotton farmer is not liable to registration, the buyers of raw cotton (who are registered persons) from the farmers are required to pay tax on reverse charge basis as per Section 9 (4) of the CGST Act, 2017.
Question 4: In respect of goods classified under Chapters 61, 62 and 63, the rate of tax for goods of sale value not exceeding Rs.1000/- is 5% and for those exceeding Rs.1000/- is 12%. Is this value transaction value or MRP?
Answer: As per the rate schedule, all goods of sale value not exceeding Rs.1000/- per piece would be taxed at 5% and the goods of sale value exceeding Rs.1000/- per piece would be taxed at 12%. Therefore, it is the sale value i.e. the transaction value on which the tax has to be paid and not the MRP.
Question 5: No rates have been announced for Jute bags and Jute blended bags. It is feared that they may be placed under Chapter 42 for leather wherein the rate for leather bags is indicated as 28%. It is suggested that the Jute bags may be kept at zero % to promote production of green Jute Diversified products for combating pollution and safe guarding environment?
Answer: The bags made of jute are clearly specified in the rate schedule under heading 4202 22 30. The rates for Hand bags and shopping bags of jute are 18%.
Question 6: Man-made textile yarns have been kept at 18% while fabrics have been kept at 5%. If I buy yarn worth Rs. 100 by paying tax at 18% i.e. Rs. 18/- and I sell grey fabrics at Rs 150/- considering 50% value addition by paying tax at 5% i.e. Rs. 7.50, what will be the treatment of remaining input credit of Rs. 11.50. Whether I would get refund of remaining credit and how much credit would I get?
Answer: You will be eligible for full ITC of Rs. 18/- paid on your inputs i.e. yarn but whatever credit remains unutilized will remain in your electronic credit ledger and no refund of the same will be allowed.
Question 7: We are a small saree manufacturer at Surat. We buy ready dyed fabrics and get job work, hand work, stitching etc. done to create designer sarees. Wholesalers and retailers from all over India buy these sarees on credit basis for 30 days to 240 days. I as a trader have some queries regarding implementation of GST from 1st July 2017: (a) Whatever is sold, 15-30% is returned. What would be treatment of goods returned and how would I adjust my taxliability if the entire GST has already been paid?
(b) What would happen to my opening stock on 1st July 2017? Will I get input credit on it or do I just need to supply it after adding 5% GST on it? (c) Is government assuring of payment within 180 days. There are rumours that the wholesaler/retailer has to pay within 180 days. Is it true? (d) How will I make my invoices if a buyer under the composition scheme come to buy our sarees? (e) We are confused about GST implementation as there was no tax on us before. Will we get relaxation for the return filing?
Answer: (a) You can issue a credit note in respect of the goods returned and adjust your tax liability if the person returning the goods has reversed the credit availed by him at the time of original supply. Such credit note cannot be issued after September of the fol lowing year or filing of annual return whichever is earlier. (b) Full credit of the tax paid on the stock would be available if the documents evidencing tax pay ment are available. However, if only documents relating to procurement are available with no documents evidencing tax payment, deemed credit would be admissible in respect of textiles only if the goods were taxable under the Central Excise Act. Such credit would be available after the tax has been paid on supply of these goods. This facility is available for 6 months period only or till the date of sale of such stock whichever is earlier and is limited to 40% of the central tax paid by you. (c) As per the second proviso to Section 16(2)(d) of the CGST Act, 2017 if a recipient of the supply does not pay to its supplier the value of the supply along with the tax within 180 days from the date of issue of invoice by the supplier, the amount of ITC availed proportionate to the unpaid amount would be added to the output tax liability of the recipient of the supply along with the interest thereon. The credit so reversed can be reclaimed when the value is paid to the supplier along with the tax thereon. Thus the government is not assuring payment within 180 days. (d) A normal invoice has to be issued irrespective of whether the buyer is under composition scheme or not. The difference would be only when you receive supplies from the person registered under the composition scheme. (e) Relaxation in filing of returns for the month of July and August, 2017 has already been provided as per which for the first two months of GST implementation, the tax would be payable based on a simple return (Form GSTR- 3B) containing summary of outward and inward supplies which will be submitted before 20th of the succeeding month. However, the invoice-wise details in regular GSTR – 1 would have to be filed for the month of July and August, 2017.
Question 8: I have a manufacturing unit of Cotton trouser where customer gives me fabric and I have to convert it into trouser. What would be the rate applicable on me 5 % or 18 %?
Answer: The services provided by you fall under the category of job work by virtue of the definition of job work provided under Section 2 (68) of the CGST Act, 2017. The rate for job work in relation to trouser, which is a wearing apparel, is 18%.
Question 9: We are manufacturing Floor Coverings falling under Chapter 57. As per GST Council meeting dated 11.06.2017, the rate on Coir mats, mattings and floor coverings falling under Chapter 57 have been reduced from 12% to 5%. Kindly clarify as to whether rate of 5% will be applicable on all types of mattings and floor coverings of Chapter 57 or only to those made of coir?
Answer: 5% rate will apply to only the specified items of coir.
Question 10: We are manufacturing laminated textile under chapter 59. Previously, our product was exempted under Notification no. 30/2004-CE. But in States we were paying 4% VAT. Also we are doing job work of textile lamination for some customers. Our invoice value is sum total of raw material used for job work, labour charges and profit. Under GST regime:
(a) Whether we will get input credit on material?
(b) How can we make invoice, which rate, or we have to make two different invoice, one for material used for lamination and other for service charges?
Answer: (a) Yes. You would be eligible for credit of tax paid on material used for job work.
(b) No. You are not required to raise two different invoices. You would be raising one invoice similar one to what you have been doing till now and GST at the applicable rate will be charged on the invoice value. You can pay your tax liability by using Input Tax Credit (ITC). However, invoice should carry all the details as required by the CGST Act, 2017 and the CGST Rules.
Question 11: We are in Furnishing Fabrics Industries for curtain and upholstery fabrics. We mainly deal in Woven, Knitted, Polyester and Coated fabrics. You are requested to help us to know the chapter number under which our fabrics as mentioned herein above are covered and GST rate applicable to us?
Answer: The woven fabrics are classifiable under the various headings depending upon their composition. The knitted or crocheted fabrics fall under Chapter 60. Polyester fabrics fall under Chapter 54 and 55 and Coated fabrics fall under
Chapter 59.
Question 12: There is a gross confusion on the tax applicable for Embroidered Sarees and Fabric. Typically, principal manufacturers supply fabric/Sarees to Job workers and get various embroidery designs done on the fabric/sarees. We understand that the textile jobworker would charge an output supply GST of 5% on the composite jobwork supply. This embroidery fabric/ saree are then sold by the principal manufacturers to wholesale and retail sellers. What would be the output GST applicable on such embroidered fabric/sarees when the same is sold by the principal manufacturer?
Answer: The rate of 5% would be chargeable on the job process relating to the textile yarns (other than Man Made Fibre/ Filament) and fabrics. Sarees are treated as fabrics and a saree remains fabrics only as no new item emerges having distinct name, character and use. Stitching of two or more different kinds of fabrics also does not take away its classification. Therefore, the sarees whether embroidered or not would be taxed at the same rate at which the fabric is taxed.
Question 13: Will the 5 % fabric GST be applied or 12% GST of embroidery strips/badges be applied?
Answer: Embroidery strips/ badges (narrow woven fabrics) are classified under heading 5810 and chargeable to tax at 12%.
Question 14: What is the difference between Fabric and Made-ups? Whether Shawl is a fabric or apparel or made-up. What is the rate on Shawls?
Answer: Shawls fall in the category of articles of apparel and clothing accessories and are classified under heading 61.17, if knitted or crocheted and under heading 62.14, if not knitted or crocheted. The rate of tax is 5% if the sale value of shawl does not exceed Rs.1000/- per piece and the rate is 12% if the sale value exceeds Rs.1000/- per piece.
Question 15: Dress material are sold by length. They can include upto 3 pieces. These can be plain or embroidered (value-addition or further worked upon). Where should dress material be classified?
Answer: Dress sets are classified under heading 6307 and the rate of tax on the dress materials/patterns is similar to the apparels i.e. for dress material of sale value not exceeding Rs.1000/-, tax at 5% would be charged and for dress material of sale value exceeding Rs.1000/-, tax at 12% would be charged.
Question 16: Please clarify the ITC (HS) of yarn made from worn clothing, the material composition of which varies from lot to lot. It is uncertain as the clothing may be of cotton/woollen/ man made fibre?
Answer: Under HSN, the classification of yarn is on predominance basis. So the yarn having predominance of wool would fall under Chapter 51. If all kinds are in equal proportion i.e. no fibre is predominant, it will get classified in the chapter covering the fibre last in the numerical order, so Chapter 54 or 55 in case MMF are present.
Question 17: What would be the GST rate on old cotton dhoti used for cleaning purpose? It is a used product recycled for cleaning purpose. Is there any GST on old dhoti because there is no VAT on old dhoti?
Answer: Dhoti is classifiable under Chapter 52 or Chapter 54 as fabrics. Old dhoti is classifiable under heading 63.09 as worn clothing. The tax for chapter 63 is similar to apparels and related to sale value whereas cotton fabrics/man-made fabrics, irrespective of value, are taxed at 5%. Whatever be the classification, as presumably the old cotton dhoti would be below the sale value of Rs.1000/- per piece, it would be taxed at 5%.
Question 18: We are small traders of textile dealing in Suiting, Shirting, Sarees, Dress Material, Blankets, Dhoti etc. We have some queries regarding implementation of GST from 1st July 2017: (a) What will be the status of opening Stock of Textile items? Will 5% be added on closing stock as on 30th June 2017? (b) What is the GST rate in Fabrics, as there are various types of fabrics like cotton, synthetics, man-made fabrics, acrylic, Mixture of cotton and other fabrics etc. Will there be flat rate of 5% on all fabrics or different rate? (c) Please provide clarification on HSN number. Is it mandatory to quote in invoice by B2C traders & B2B traders? Further there are various codes in one type of item, would it not create confusion among traders? (d) As per news in CNBC, input tax credit would not be allowed in textile for some period? Please clarify. (e) Is Rs 1000/- bracket for 18% rate applicable on Sarees and suit lengths or will it attract flat rate?
Answer:
(a) When you make supplies out of this stock after 1st July, 2017 you will be liable to pay tax as applicable to the goods sold by you.
(b) GST rate on fabric is flat 5% irrespective of composition.
(c) Upto Rs. 1.5 cr turnover, no HSN code is required to be mentioned. For those having turnover of Rs. 1.5 to 5 Cr, first 2 digits of the HSN code are required i.e. the chapter number. Only those who have turnover above Rs. 5 Cr are required to mention 4 digits of the HSN code. You will start getting the HSN code in your supplier's invoice, so it would not cause any issues once the supplies under new regime take place. (d) ITC would be admissible as per the Transitional provisions of GST Law. (e) Rate of tax linked to the sale value applies only to garments and not for sarees and suilengths which are fabrics.
Question 19: I am an un-registered trader dealing in textile fabrics which was exempted from tax under the State VAT Act. If I get registered under the GST Act, will I be eligible to avail of input tax credit on my stock of goods lying on the appointed day?
Answer: Since the goods you are dealing with are exempted from tax under the State Act, you will not be eligible to avail input tax credit as SGST under the SGST Act, 2017 on your stock of goods lying on the appointed day. But, you will be eligible to enjoy CENVAT credit as Central Tax on your stock if you have invoices or other prescribed documents evidencing payment of excise duty under the existing law and such invoices/prescribed documents were issued not earlier than twelve months immediately preceding the appointed day. Your product was not unconditionally exempt from the whole of the duty of excise under the Central Excise Tariff. If you do not possess invoices/other documents evidencing payment of excise duty in respect of your stock of goods, you will be allowed to avail input tax credit on goods held in stock on the appointed day at the rate of 40% of the central tax on your intra-State supply of goods after the appointed day or 20% of the integrated tax on your inter-State supply of goods after paying central tax/integrated tax on such supply. You are allowed to enjoy the scheme for six months from the appointed day or till such stock is sold out, whichever is earlier, and tax paid by you shall be credited as central tax in your electronic credit ledger.
Question 20: I am a manufacturer of readymade garments. If I send any inputs to the job worker, will it be treated as taxable supply under the GST Act? Can I supply the goods after completion of job work from the place of business of the job worker?
Answer: You can send your inputs or capital goods to a job-worker for job work without payment of tax and also bring back the same, after completion of job work, within one year or three years respectively. You can also supply the inputs or capital goods from the place of business of the job worke subject to the condition condition that you have to declare the place of business of the job-worker as your additional place of business if the job-worker is not a registered person. However, if the inputs or the capital goods, other than moulds and dies, jigs and fixtures or tools, which have been sent to the job-worker are not received back within the specified time period, it shall be deemed that you have supplied the inputs or capital goods on the day when you have sent it to the job-worker and you have to pay tax on such supply accordingly.
Source: CBEC
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) is learnt to have unearthed a fraud involving at least half a dozen textile exporters who allegedly laundered at least Rs 200 crore in the last one year and a half. According to sources, some Mumbai-based exporters allegedly laundered the money and fraudulently availed duty drawback from the government on the basis of forged currency declaration forms (CDFs). CDFs are typically available at airports and are used by passengers to declare to the customs the foreign exchange they are bringing in to the country in case it is more than $5000 — the limit prescribed by the RBI. Such forms are countersigned by customs officers for authenticity. Once declared, this foreign currency can be deposited in a bank with the CDF. The sources said the modus operandi adopted by the exporters was to forge CDFs bearing genuine serial numbers. These forged CDFs were used to declare high value foreign currency in the name of fictitious passengers, said the official sources, adding that the signatures of customs officials could also be forged on the forms. The exporters would then, said sources, buy foreign currency of the amount declared in forged CDFs from grey market using unaccounted money and deposit it in their accounts, claiming that the money was given to them by buyers who visited India. “The foreign currency deposited was shown as export earnings or advance against exports,” said a source. Interestingly, these exporters have also claimed duty drawback of Rs 16 crore from the government by declaring such deposits as proceeds against bogus exports. At least two banks are learnt to have accepted fabricated CDFs. DRI has written to several others, enquiring about deposits using CDFs. The agency has so far arrested three exporters — Juzar Mustansir Angooriwala, Sameer Ansari and Ammar Hussain Ansari — for allegedly laundering money using the CDFs. They are in judicial custody. According to court filings, the DRI is probing The Shaikh’s International Trading LLP, Mumbai, Al Hind Imports and Exports LLP Mumbai, Roomster Trading Pvt Ltd and Walton Trade Link Pvt Ltd in connection with the scam.
Source: Indian Express
Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), an integrated producer of polyester fibre and yarn in the world, has been awarded with ‘Golden Peacock Eco-Innovation Award’ for 2017. RIL received it for its innovative excellence and eco-friendly products Recron Green Gold fibres and Recron Green Gold Dope-Dyed (EcoD) Fibres & Tow by Golden Peacock Awards Secretariat. The award was presented at Institute of Directors, India’s 19thWorld Congress on Environment Management and Golden Peacock Awards Presentation Ceremony at The HICC - Novotel in Hyderabad. The award was presented by Justice Kurian Joseph, judge, Supreme Court of India to RIL, vice president and regional head (East) for polyester sector, Prabir Bhattacharya, in the presence of Lt Gen JS Ahluwalia, PVSM (Retd), president, Institute of Directors, India and other corporate sector dignitaries. Recron Green Gold fibres and Recron Green Gold Dope-Dyed (EcoD) Fibres & Tow are the greenest fibres produced in the world, which have been manufactured from eco-friendly processes of the highest standard. These fibres have been granted the Global Recycle Standard from the internationally recognised Control Union Certificates, Netherland. The fibres have been tested for lowest carbon footprint number and they meet the most stringent environmental criteria for being green fibres providing confidence to consumers on genuineness. Recron Green Gold Fibres & Tow are Oekotex 100, product Class-1 certified, meeting the human-ecological requirements of the standard established for baby articles. These products also fulfil the requirements of Annex XVII of REACH as the fibres do not make use of Azo dyes, nickel, etc. Recron Green Gold Fibres & Tow offer great value and opportunity to the textile industry enabling them to offer certified green products and to meet the overseas buyers and brands need for sustainable apparels. Recron Green Gold EcoD polyester fibre circumvent the need for high cost downstream dyeing of grey fibre. The entire range of Green Gold EcoD fibres offers a very high consistency of shade as well as unbeatable washing, light, and sublimation fastness, making it suitable for both apparel and technical textiles. These fibres are available in pre colour form with vide range of deniers, cross sections and functionality for cotton and worsted spinning system. The product range include a vast range of more than 40 shades and other shades or customised products with functionality like anti-microbial, sun protection can be made on request. RIL’s fibre brand portfolio includes several high specialty fibres such as Recron FS (fire retardant fibre), Recron Feel Fresh (anti-microbial fibre), Recron Super Micro (ultra-fine fibre) and Recron GreenGold (eco-friendly fibre). RIL has a strong supply chain system that focuses on timely delivery to its customers. In domestic market, delivery can happen directly from manufacturing unit or from smaller depots that are strategically located across the country. RIL uses road transportation and multi-modal depending on the requirements. For exports, marine (containerised) is the prime mode of transportation used by RIL. RIL focuses on the entire ecosystem of operations to ensure that every touch point produces delightful experiences for its customers and stakeholders. At RIL the polyester staple fibre is produced at four sites in Hazira, Patalganga, Barabanki and Hoshiarpur. These plants comprise a manufacturing set-up of complementary technologies, hardware and vintages. The technologies and hardware have been licensed or bought from leading companies like DuPont, Zimmer, Neumag, Chemtex etc. RIL possess state of the art polyester manufacturing facilities, which has a continuous polymerisation vessel, spinning lines, drawlines, fibre cutters and packing machines. In addition to this, recycling operation is equipped with a washline to convert bottles to flakes. RIL’s R&D and product development facilities for polyester business such as Reliance Technology Centre at Patalganga, Reliance Testing Centre at Coimbatore and Reliance Fibre Application Centre at Patalganga constantly focus on developing and introducing innovative products for the textile industry. All fibre production facilities of RIL are ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001 compliant and it obeys all local labour, competitions laws. RIL’s polyester staple fibre business has over 350 customers. All these customers are spinners, who convert fibre into yarn. RIL supply fibres to most of the largest and innovative players in the spinning industry. Its top 10 customers constitute 50 per cent of our total domestic sales. RIL’s fibres eventually find usage in all segments in the textile and apparel industry namely men’s wear: shirts, suiting, denim, innerwear; women’s wear: dresses, formal wear, innerwear; kid’s wear: dresses, t-shirts, sleepwear, fashion wear: jackets, dresses; footwear: foot soles, mesh; accessories: scarves, stoles, throws; home textiles: bedsheets, curtains and technical textiles: automotive fabric, geo bags.
Source: Fibre2fashion
Investors to get capital subsidy, MIDC to develop common effluent treatment plan Maharashtra government will develop an integrated textile park on the sprawling 345 hectare of land in Malegaon. The government took a decision to hand over the land to the state undertaking Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) on Thursday. State industries minister Subhash Desai told DNA, "The proposed park will be developed on the theme of Cotton to Cloth, Farm to Fashion.The integrated textile park will house units from weaving, spinning, garmenting segments. The investment of Rs 1 lakh crore is expected, and 10,000 jobs will be created there.'' He also informed that the objective is to strengthen linkages that would take into account farmers who produces cotton, to spinning of yarn, to ready-made garments in industrial units, complete with innovative design and marketing. The MIDC will develop common effluent treatment plant at the Malegaon integrated textile park. Desai said investors will get both physical and fiscal incentives envisaged in the state's textile policy. The government's strategy is to ensure increased participation by the investors in the state's textile industry. The capital subsidy is given to self-financing textile projects — spinning mills, cotton ginning, processing and printing units, which will get 35 per cent capital subsidy, technical textiles and composite units, which will be given 30 per cent capital subsidy, and powerlooms and other textile related units, which will get 25 per cent capital subsidy. The state government has already reduced the premium on MIDC land to encourage investors to invest in these parks. Similar integrated textile parks were proposed at Amravati, Majalgaon, Chikhli, Akola, Naldhana, Parbhani, Yavatmal, Aurangabad and Nanded.
Source: DNA
India and South Korea are carrying out a review of their free trade agreement (FTA) to further boost bilateral trade and investment, a senior commerce ministry official has said. The agreement, officially dubbed as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, between the two countries was implemented in January 2010. Both the sides have constituted sub-groups on issues such as goods, services, investments and rules of origin.
Source: PTI
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1220.67 |
USD/Ton |
-0.60% |
7/30/2017 |
|
VSF |
2352.30 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
ASF |
2196.47 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
Polyester POY |
1236.26 |
USD/Ton |
-0.24% |
7/30/2017 |
|
Nylon FDY |
3072.09 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
40D Spandex |
4971.74 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
Polyester DTY |
2374.56 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
Nylon POY |
1587.99 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
3190.82 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
Polyester FDY |
5698.94 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1447.00 |
USD/Ton |
-0.51% |
7/30/2017 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
2819.79 |
USD/Ton |
0.53% |
7/30/2017 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2983.04 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1828.41 |
USD/Ton |
-0.08% |
7/30/2017 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2767.85 |
USD/Ton |
0.81% |
7/30/2017 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
3131.45 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2270.67 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
1914.49 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2300.36 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.38 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.85 |
USD/Meter |
-0.17% |
7/30/2017 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.19 |
USD/Meter |
-0.12% |
7/30/2017 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.67 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.69 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
7/30/2017 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14841 USD dtd. 30/7/2017). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
After the two years considered the high point of FDI in the textile industry (2014-2015), since the start of 2016, the number of FDI projects in this industry has decreased considerably. In early 2017, Chinese investors invested $220 million in the Billion Vietnam polyester synthetic fibre plant in the southern province of Tay Ninh. Aside from this, however, capital flows consist mostly of capital expansion investments in existing projects. According to the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas), since the start of the year, the two projects with the largest investment capital increase in the textile industry were in the southern provinces of Dong Nai and Binh Duong. In Binh Duong, Far Eastern Group (Taiwan) increased its investment capital by $485.8 million in its polyester and synthetic fibre production project, Far Eastern Polytex (Vietnam) Ltd. The project was green-lighted in June 2015, with the registered investment capital of $274 million, and the capital increase will push the total registered investment to approximately $760 million. This capital increase of nearly $500 million makes Far Eastern Polytex Vietnam one of the largest projects to be certified in 2017, besides Samsung Display Vietnam, which registered a $2.5 billion capital increase in its projects in the northern province of Bac Ninh. Another Taiwanese giant, Tainan Spinning Company Ltd., also increased its investment capital in Long Thai Tu Spinning Factory at Long Khanh Industrial Zone in Dong Nai. The company registered a $50-million increase in investment capital. Prior to the capital increase, Tainan Spinning has initiated the construction of Long Thai Tu Spinning Factory-Phase 2 at Nhon Trach 2 Industrial Zone in Dong Nai. The project has a floor area of 37,000 square metres and a plot area of 18 hectares, consisting of a main factory, four finished product warehouses, a garage for workers, and other auxiliary structures. The factory began operation at the end of 2016. Tainan Spinning Co., Ltd. is a major textile company based in Taiwan. To expand its market share as quickly as possible, Tainan plans to build its factories in Vietnam to take advantage of Vietnam’s existing export markets. As such, just from the three above mentioned projects, the total FDI capital in the textile industry has reached $755 million.
Attractive investment environment
According to Le Tien Truong, vice chairman of Vitas, the fact that a number of textile projects still attract capital after the US withdraw from the TPP is a good sign. “With TPP going in the wrong direction, the decision of foreign investors to continue increasing capital in the Vietnamese textile industry means that the investment environment is still very attractive,” Truong said. As one of the largest textile exporters in Asia, Vietnam’s total value of garment and textile exports has increased 3.6-times in the last decade, from $7.78 billion in 2007 to $28.02 in 2016, accounting for 16 per cent of total export turnover. In 2017, the industry is expected to grow by 7 per cent, reaching $30 billion in the total export value. In recent years, thanks to competitive labour costs and preferential policies, Vietnam has become the ideal destination for investors in the textile industry. The amount of FDI in the textile and apparel industry in the last decade has helped Vietnam become one of the five largest textile and apparel exporters in the world. According to Vitas, even without the TPP, the Vietnamese textile and apparel industry still benefits from a number of free trade agreement, such as the Vietnam-EU FTA, Vietnam-South Korea FTA, Vietnam-Japan FTA, among others. At the moment, Vietnamese textile and apparel products only account for 3 per cent of the EU market, which means with the right strategy, Vietnam’s export can see sharp growth in the 2018-2020 periods.
Source: Business Standard
Producers across the cotton belt received some good news this week when the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the Fiscal Year 2018 agriculture appropriations bill, which included a key provision regarding a cottonseed program. The bill, approved with a vote of 31-0 by the committee, provides $145.4 billion in discretionary and mandatory funding. It is $4.85 billion above President Trump’s budget request and $7.9 billion below the FY2017 enacted level, according to a news release. The legislation calls for cottonseed to be designated as an “other oilseed” under Title 1 of the 2014 Farm Bill. If enacted, the cottonseed program would begin with the 2018 crop. The cottonseed designate clause has been a standing proposal by the cotton industry for several years. Matter-of-fact, it was sent to the USDA several times but rejected by former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “This bill certainly is a step in the right direction to helping ensure long-term stability for our industry, and we appreciate our friends in Congress who are standing with us,” said Steve Verett, Lubbock-based Plains Cotton Growers Inc. executive vice president. “We are hopeful, but the cottonseed program is not a done deal yet, and we must stay the course in our efforts to get meaningful relief for cotton producers.” Verett said the FY18 House Agriculture Appropriations Bill includes similar language and goes even further in urging the USDA to implement the Cotton Ginning Cost Share program, an initiative that remains a priority for the industry. “Even as we continue to work on a cottonseed program, our growers need a short-term solution, and the Cotton Ginning Cost Share Program already has been proven to be an effective and efficient way to help meet their needs.” Meanwhile, the American Farm Bureau Federation board of directors outlined the organization’s key objectives for the 2018 Farm Bill following a meeting in Washington D.C. last week which included “support a cotton lint program and/or designating cotton seed as an ‘other oilseed’ to make cotton eligible for Title 1 commodity support programs.” “Because of low commodity prices, many of America’s farmers and ranchers are struggling,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall. “The risk management and safety net provisions of farm bills are most important in times like these. “The bill also will help protect our nation’s food security and our supply of domestic renewable energy and fiber. It will provide critical food assistance to those who need it, and it will continue to offer incentives to conserve our natural resources. Farm Bureau stands ready to work with the House and Senate Ag committees to ensure the next farm bill works for farmers, ranchers and all Americans,” Duvall said. In a letter, Duvall told the congressional ag committee chairmen, Sen. Pat Roberts and Rep. Mike Conaway, and ranking members, Sen. Debbie Stabenow and Rep. Collin Peterson, that Farm Bureau is prepared to help them “achieve the best possible farm bill that meets our key farm policy objectives while assisting you in meeting the challenges this important legislation will endure.” The AFBF objectives also include: Maintain a unified farm bill that includes nutrition programs and farm programs together; Ensure any changes to current farm legislation be an amendment to the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 or the Agricultural Act of 1949; Prioritize our top funding concerns (risk management tools, which include both federal crop insurance and Title 1 commodity programs); and Ensure programs are compliant with World Trade Organization agreements. “We are hopeful that we can find a long-term solution for cotton growers as we work diligently to develop policy recommendations for the 2018 Farm Bill,” Verett added. Lackey is agriculture editor emeritus of the San Angelo Standard-Times.
Source: ReporterNews.com
Rhonda Ristow, a volunteer at Hillcrest Thrift Shop, clears out clothing items from a rack. Clothing is a majority of the store’s donations and sales - A shift toward lower-cost, disposable clothing is generating more textile waste nationwide, but local organizations and companies are working toward reducing that and giving clothing a second life. “One of the big issues is what we call ‘fast fashion,’” said Jerry Bartley, territory manager with USAgain and member of the Missouri Recycling Association. “It used to be, you have summer, spring, winter, fall clothing. Now fashion changes monthly, and the clothing, they buy such amounts of it and it’s easily disposable. Because the fashion changes so fast and clothes have become so cheap, people tend to just throw them away instead of recycling them.” According to the Environmental Protection Agency, as much as 85 percent of textiles generated each year are discarded annually. On average, each American donates or recycles 12 pounds of apparel, footwear and household textiles yearly. Of items that are donated, 10 to 20 percent are sold through thrift stores to raise revenue for the organization. Statistically, approximately 80 percent of the donated items are sold to secondhand clothing recyclers, which also can generate income. “Textiles are the easiest recyclable product when you compare it to aluminum, glass or paper,” Bartley said. “You simply have to capture it, pull it out of the waste stream and get it back into the market. The biggest issue that we have is the general public simply is not aware that textiles are recyclable.” At the Hillcrest Thrift Shop, clothing accounts for approximately 80 percent of their donations and 80 percent of their sales, said Abbey Resler, thrift store manager. All donations are sorted, and clothing that isn’t able to be sold or doesn’t sell in the thrift shop is “recycled,” or sold to a secondhand recycling company. About 50 percent of the donated clothing is recycled, which also contributes income to the organization, Resler said. “Almost all of the clothes that we can’t put out gets recycled,” she said. “Someone, somewhere in this world are getting to use those. All your donations are really helpful. It’s just a big cycle, which I think is great. Nothing is really getting wasted.” Of the items sold to secondhand recyclers nationwide, about 45 percent are reused or re-purposed, often exported as secondhand clothing. About a third is recycled and converted, and about 20 percent is recycled into fiber for products including home insulation and carpet padding. About 5 percent ends up as waste. “The clothes that are not usable or wearable are cut up into rags,” Bartley said. “The clothes that aren’t even suitable for being cut up into rags are ground up into insulation. A lot of automotive dealers are starting to use that underneath the floor mats and things in their cars.” Used clothing resale and consignment stores are another model of recycling clothing. The 2017 thredUp annual resale report estimated that apparel resale is an $18 billion dollar industry, expected to grow to $33 billion by 2021.
At Uptown Cheapskate, a locally owned chain secondhand clothing retailer, customers can sell gently used, trendy teen and adult clothing for cash or store credit. Locally, clothing that isn’t sold, or isn’t eligible for purchase by the store, is often donated to Big Brothers/Big Sisters, owner Brittney West said. “A lot of the stuff that we see, it comes in in great condition and it’s good stuff that you don’t necessarily want to get rid of it,” West said. “It’s kind of nice to know that you are giving it a second life for someone who might use it or wear it more.” Nearly 100 percent of textiles, including clothing, curtains and towels, are recyclable in some way. Any reduction to the amount of textiles that end up in landfills, Bartley said, is beneficial. “The key issue is that they are recycled,” he said. “There is a local church, a local thrift store, there’s somebody in their area that, if they do the minimal amount of research, they can find that will take the clothing. Do most anything with it other than throw it away.”
Source: News-Press
