Surat: The power loom weavers in the country’s largest man-made fabric (MMF) hub has urged the state government to launch a textile promotion scheme on the lines of Maharashtra government in Gujarat and provide an impetus package, slash electricity tariff and modernization in the weaving units to increase the quality of fabric production. Weavers have written letters to the chief minister, deputy chief minister, MPs and MLAs in Gujarat for considering the textile scheme for development of textile sector in the state on the lines of Maharashtra. As per the scheme launched by Maharashtra government, the textile units have been given an impetus package to the tune of Rs 4,600 crore and the reduction of electricity tariff by Rs 2 per unit. This, the power loom weavers believe will encourage even the entrepreneurs from Surat to set up units in Maharashtra as the fabric manufactured there will be 40 per cent cheaper than Surat. Power loom weavers stated that Maharashtra government is providing 25 per cent capital subsidy and there is no cap on investment made in the textile sector. This will encourage the textile entrepreneurs in setting up power loom weaving units in the textile pockets in Maharashtra, thereby giving a stiff competition to the MMF industry in Surat. President of Pandesara Weavers Cooperative Society Ashish Gujarati said, “The units in Maharashtra are already receiving electricity at the tariff lower than what we are paying in Surat. Still, the Maharashtra government has slashed the electricity tariff by Rs 2 per unit. This will make the end production cost of the units in Maharashtra 40 per cent less compared to Surat.” Gujarati added, “We have urged the state government to come up with similar scheme to encourage the MMF sector in Surat and Gujarat. If the scheme is not launched in a time bound manner, then the textile entrepreneurs may shift to Navapur and Tarapur, which are just 90 kilometre away from Surat.” Power loom industry leader from Sachin Mayur Golwala said, “The Goods and Service Tax and demonetisation has literally broken the back of the power loom sector. Many power loom weavers have shut down their units and more than 1 lakh conventional power loom machines have been sold in scrap in the last few months. We demand that the state government must come up with the scheme to rescue the dying industry.”
Source: The Times of India
Continuing the positive growth path, India’s exports grew by 4.5 per cent in February to $ 25.8 billion, Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia said today. Imports too rose by 10.4 per cent to $ 37.8 billion during the last month, leaving a trade deficit of $ 12 billion. The country’s merchandise exports are showing continuous positive growth, Teaotia told reporters here. During April-February period of the current fiscal, exports recorded a growth of 11 per cent to $ 273.7 billion, while imports grew by 21 per cent to $ 416.87 billion. Oil imports in February rose by 32 per cent. Export sectors, which are recording healthy growth so far includes chemicals, engineering goods and petroleum products.
Source: Financial Express
New Delhi :To ensure faster refunds of pending claims of exporters, the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has said that such claims should not be held back due to small errors. “Refunds may not be withheld due to minor procedural lapses or non-substantive errors or omission,” it said in a missive to its field officials. The directive comes at a time when the CBEC is holding a special refund fortnight from Thursday till March 29 to deal exclusively with pending refund claims of Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) and Input Tax Credit. While the CBEC has processed refunds worth ₹5,000 crore, a similar amount has been pending since GST was rolled out on July 1, 2017. The Prime Minister’s Office had also, earlier this week, held a meeting with officials from the Ministries of Commerce and Finance to resolve the issue. Exporters say that just 30-40 per cent of the IGST claims have been cleared and a mere 10 per cent of the input tax credit refunds have been processed. “We expect that these claims will be expedited in the camps and a significant amount of the pending dues will be cleared,” said Ajay Sahai, Director General, Federation of Indian Export Organisations, adding that the detailed circular by CBEC will help clear ground level confusion. Other industry leaders have also called for daily monitoring of the refunds processed to ensure that most claims are cleared during the camp. The CBEC circular also said that substantive benefits of zero rating may not be denied where it has been established that exports in terms of the relevant provisions have been made. “The delay in furnishing of LUT (letter of undertaking) in such cases may be condoned,” it added.
Self-declaration
The CBEC also pointed to instances where some field formations have asked for a self-declaration with every refund claim to the effect that the claimant has not been prosecuted. “This requirement is already satisfied in case of exports under LUT and asking for self–declaration with every refund claim where the exports have been made under LUT is not warranted,” it has said. Further, in case of a mismatch between values of GST invoice and shipping bill or bill of export, the CBEC has said that the lower of the two values should be sanctioned as refund.
Source: Business Line
New Delhi: The goods and services tax (GST) implemented by the Narendra Modi government from 1 July last year is one of the most complex with the second highest tax rate in the world among a sample of 115 countries which have a similar indirect tax system, the World Bank said in a report. India’s GST structure has five tax slabs of 0, 5%, 12%, 18%, and 28%. Further, there are several exempted sales and exports are zero rated, which allows exporters to claim refund for taxes paid on inputs. Separately, gold is taxed at 3% rate, precious stones at 0.25%, while alcohol, petroleum products, stamp duties on real estate and electricity duties are excluded from the GST and continue to be taxed by the state governments at state-specific rates. As many as 49 countries around the world have a single slab of GST, while 28 countries use two slabs, and only five countries, including India, use four non-zero slabs. The countries that use four or more slabs of GST include Italy, Luxembourg, Pakistan and Ghana. Thus, India has among the highest number of different GST slabs in the world. Finance minister Arun Jaitley has promised to reduce the number of GST slabs by merging 12% and 18% slabs once tax compliance improves and revenue buoyancy increases. The federal indirect tax body, the GST Council, in its November meeting last year in Guwahati, pruned the number of items under the 28% tax slab to only 50 from 228 items earlier. The World Bank, in its bi-annual India Development Update released on Wednesday, said the introduction of GST has been accompanied by state administrations experiencing disruptions in initial days after GST’s introduction. This included lack of clarity on discontinuation of local taxes, for example, in Tamil Nadu where the state government devolved an entertainment tax to local governments in order to impose it over and above a 28% GST. To preserve revenue collections, Maharashtra has also increased motor vehicles tax to compensate for losses due to GST. There also have been reports of an increased administrative tax compliance burden on firms and a locking-up of working capital due to slow tax refund processing, the World Bank said. “High compliance costs are also arising because the prevalence of multiple tax rates implies a need to classify inputs and outputs based on the applicable tax rate. Along with the need to apply the correct rate, firms are required to match invoices between their outputs and inputs to be eligible for full input tax credit, which increases compliance costs further,” it added. However, the World Bank said while international experience suggests that the adjustment process can affect economic activity for multiple months, the benefits of the GST are likely to outweigh its costs in the long run. “Key to success is a policy design that minimizes compliance burden, for example by minimizing the number of different rates and limiting exemptions, with simple laws and procedures, an appropriately structured and resourced administration, compliance strategies based on a balanced mix of education and assistance programs and risk-based audit programs,” it said. The Bank advocated for a nuanced communications campaign to convey the various aspects of the new system of GST among businesses, consumers and key intermediaries, such as tax practitioners, as well as among the tax administration and the political class.
Source: Financial Express
World trade organisation, india exports, export subsidy, india export subsidy, trade, market, EXIM When the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (ASCM ) was made, developing countries with per capita gross national income (GNI) of above ,000/annum were given eight years to phase out export subsidies. Commerce secretary Rita Teaotia on Thursday contended that the country has a window of eight years to bring down export subsidies, if any. “The US has asked for a consultation process, we will engage fully in the process and we would make sure that we make our position known to the US. We expect that they would also engage with a positive spirit with an effort to resolve a dispute with a friendly country,” Teaotia told reporters. The US on Wednesday sought consultations with India under WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism. When the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (ASCM ) was made, developing countries with per capita gross national income (GNI) of above $1,000/annum were given eight years to phase out export subsidies. “We have clearly assumed that the same period of eight years is available to the countries as and when they cross the threshold of $1,000 and this is the spirit of the agreement. India has submitted a paper in 2011 and has been raising it,” she said. There are several countries who have crossed the GNI threshold and continuing with subsidies, she said, but declined to name any. “Our presumption is that India also has a similar period of eight years to graduate out of the subsidy regime and this is what we would be placing before the US. We are hopeful that they would recognise this time-frame,” she said, adding that India has always complied with WTO norms and will continue to do so. India will respond to the issues raised within 60 days as per the norm, she said. “It is very absurd to expect someone to get eight years if the country’s threshold is $1,000 and deny another country the same benefit if it reaches the threshold immediately next year,” said another official asking not to be named. Teaotia said India will review all existing schemes to ensure that they comply with the ASCM. Whether eight years will be calculated from the year of notification or the year in which India graduated the threshold could be a point of discussion, she said. However, since India got to know after WTO notified it in 2017, that should be the base year, she added. The commerce secretary also said one year before the expiry of eight years if a country feels there are reasons to continue with subsidies beyond that period, which are justified, it can seek consultation and extension of time. These provisions are already there in the ASCM. “We do not consider all these as export subsidies,” she said when asked what is the amount of export subsidies India provide. “We will ask them how they have arrived at that $7 billion,” she said, referring to the USTR estimate of India’s export subsidies, adding that there is a difference between production and export subsidies.
Source : Financial Express
MUMBAI— Dr. Kavita Gupta Textile Commissioner has called upon textile industry leaders to think out of the box and synergise their efforts. Today’s situation demands synergies of all textile sector because Indian textile industry is at a stage of either win-win or lose-out in the global market. Addressing the 9th Asian Textile Conference held under the theme “Textile Industry: Moving Beyond the Conventional Paradigms” organised by Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) Dr. Gupta while expressing confidence in the Indian textile industry said that it would be a win-win situation despite all the compulsions faced by the industry. The large and small players of the textile industry Textile Commissioner said need to synergise to create efficiencies of scale and create innovative textile and clothing and pull the value chain and create greater demand. Dr. Gupta presented a brief history of Indian textile sector which spanned from the age of poet and weaver Kabir up to the state-of-the-art infrastructure being developed in 72 Indian textile parks as of today. Textile Commissioner further informed that the government was keen to develop technical textile sector in India. It is a sun-rise industry and who ever entry into this field will have exponential growth. The profit of margin in technical textile sector are enormous she pointed out. Earlier Mr. Sanjay K. Jain Chairman CITI in his welcome address pointed out that ‘change’ is no longer constant. ‘Disruption has been the norm. Therefore rather than changing textile industry needs to disrupt. However CITI chairman cautioned that textile entrepreneurs need to disrupt 100% of their business. Let the organization run as it is running. Take only 10 to 20% of the business and check whether one can disrupt and try something new. There will be a risk in disruption. Many textile organisations have experimented and have come out with flying colours and are continuously growing he added. Mr. Jain also requested the government and industry to look for out of box solutions to resolve the long pending issues plaguing the textile and apparel sectors of the industry. The theme presentation was delivered by Mr. Prashant Agarwal Joint MD Wazir Advisors presented the global trends which are changing the shape of industry and focused on initiatives required to be taken up by industry to keep pace.
Source: Tecoya Trend
The removal of domestic content requirement (DCR) after a World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling, triggered by a petition filed by the US, continues to hound the Indian solar industry. Renewable consultancy firm Bridge to India noted that of 718 MW solar tenders cancelled in Q3FY18, most were engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) tenders with DCR stipulation. world trade organisation, WTO, WTO ruling, solar power, solar industry The WTO, in September 2016, went against India’s DCR programme. India had sought a reasonable time period to accommodate ongoing projects which had already commenced under DCR. The removal of domestic content requirement (DCR) after a World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling, triggered by a petition filed by the US, continues to hound the Indian solar industry. Renewable consultancy firm Bridge to India noted that of 718 MW solar tenders cancelled in Q3FY18, most were engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) tenders with DCR stipulation. It said 70 MW of DCR projects are pending commissioning, but their fate is not clear because of the WTO ruling. Through DCR, the government of India had mandated that a certain portion of solar capacity addition would be reserved for domestically sourced modules. NTPC’s 250 MW project under DCR category, awarded to Azure Power (at `3.14/unit), had to be cancelled because of the WTO ruling. Even as the country is ramping up the solar power capacity to meet the target of having 100 GW of solar capacity by 2022, domestic solar manufacturers are already under a lot of pressure as about 88% of all module requirement in India is met through imports. The current solar module-making capacity in the country is about 8.5 GW. Vikram Solar, which has a 1 GW solar module manufacturing capacity, believes that DCR was a suitable means to support the domestic industry. “Due to DCR compliance, domestic module manufacturing capacity was 50-60%. After the WTO mandate, it will be difficult for us to survive and it will significantly decline further,” Karunesh Chaturvedi, corporate affairs head, Vikram Solar, told FE. Solar panels worth $42 billion is expected to be imported within 2022. To support the solar manufacturing sector, the government is planning to come out with a scheme that would tie up solar project development with domestic manufacturing. Renewable energy minister RK Singh had said the Centre plans to award development contracts for 20 GW of government-owned projects to companies having equipment manufacturing units in the country. As the scheme would be earmarked solely for government-owned projects, it would be insulated against WTO anti-competition norms. The feedback of the industry on this proposal is awaited. The WTO, in September 2016, went against India’s DCR programme. India had sought a reasonable time period to accommodate ongoing projects which had already commenced under DCR. However, the US wanted India to scrap all the tenders awarded under the latter’s national solar mission and float them afresh, sources had told FE earlier. India made it clear that it could comply with the WTO ruling only prospectively for the sake of natural justice. The final date of ending the DCR scheme was set as December 2017. The US had accused that India was not abiding by the WTO mandates – an allegation which was strongly refuted by India. According to an official estimate, about 500 MW of solar projects (with DCR stipulation), which were in the pipeline, had already been affected by the 2016 WTO ruling.
Source: Financial Express
COIMBATORE: Trade and Industry in the region on Thursday welcomed the Tamil Nadu budget for 2018-19 presented by Finance Minister and Deputy Chief Minister O. Paneerselvam. In a statement, President of Local Chapter of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Vanitha Mohan appreciated the efforts of the government to lower the fiscal deficit from 4.12 per cent of GSDP to 2.82 per cent. Welcoming various features, including allocation for social welfare, Athikadavu-Avinashi project and allocation for higher and school education, Vanitha Mohan said that the budget has shown as revenue deficit of Rs.17,490 crore. “The long felt need of Coimbatore is the implementation of Metro Rail Project which we hope will see the light of day in the forthcoming year and we also expect allocation of funds for acquiring lands for Coimbatore Airport expansion project,” she said. In a separate statement, Tirupur Exporters Association president, Raja Shanmugham welcomed the announcement of releasing the long awaited new Integrated Textile policy. “Early releasing of the policy with incentives at par with other states will boost investment in our state itself at a time when other states have come out with attractive Textile Policies and have been periodically inviting Tirupur entrepreneurs to invest in their respective states,” he said. He also welcomed the increased allocation for Skill Development from Rs.150 crore to Rs.200 crore for providing training to two lakh unemployed youth, which will help the industry and the need of the hour to the industry. Raja Shanmugham also hailed the allocation of fund for removing the deficiencies in ITI and also allocation of more fund to ITIs and welcomed the announcement of increasing the loan from Rs.one crore to Rs.5 crore to first generation entrepreneurs. Chairman, CII Coimbatore zone, M. Ramesh said that, given the period of economic recovery following the demonetisation exercise and implementation of GST across the nation, the state is leading in ‘Enrollment to Higher Education Institutions in the country.’ “It has shown significant improvements in overall health care indicators (like Infant Mortality Rate) in the country,” he said. “Tamil Nadu is also quoted as the second biggest economy within the country which had a growth rate of 8.03 per cent during 2017-18,” Ramesh said adding that it is heartening to note that the State is expected to grow at 9 per cent during 2018-19 as per the plans made in the budget document.
Source: Covai Post Network
MUMBAI — There are various issues plaguing the industry which includes low level of value addition lack of economy of scales over dependence on specific export markets and high interest rates. Nevertheless the Indian textile industry has always been resilient and fought back and has made its market on domestic turf and globally observed Mr. Sanjay Jayavarthanavelu Managing Director Lakshmi Machine Works (LMW) here. Addressing the CITI Conference Mr. Jayavarthanavelu pointed out that growing economy and increasing disposable income has led to higher purchasing power of the Indian consumers resulting in higher consumption of textiles and clothing. On innovations front Mr. Jayavarthanavelu informed that number of fibres and their acceptability for human wear and touch was growing. These use of these fibres in the final garments and what they deliver in terms of heat cold and protection was also growing globally and Indian needs to step into this growing market. There is a huge economic potential in new age textiles. Therefore Indian companies should adopt these new fibre and new technologies and build an eco-system around it to increase bottom-line profitability. Smart textile Mr. Jayavarthanavelu stressed are here to stay whether in the area of defence medicine health and sports among others. 3-D printing although in a nascent state is also here to stay he added.
Source: Tecoya Trend
Surat: The textile processing unit owners in Pandesara GIDC have urged the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) to allow them to procure water needed for industrial use from other sources when the supply of piped water reduces drastically due to water shortage in Tapi river. Pandesara Green Environment & Water Welfare Cooperative Society has written to the municipal commissioner urging him to allow the textile dyeing and printing mills to procure water from other sources to keep their factories running. Sources said that the civic body has slashed the daily supply of water to over 125 textile processing units in Pandesara by almost 30 million litre per day (MLD) against the required quantity of 90 MLD. The water cut has been implemented following water management measures taken by the civic body due to depleting water level in the upstream of Tapi river and diverting potable water supply from water treatment plants for satisfying water needs of the denizens. Kamal Tulsiyan, president of the PGEWWCS, said, “We understand that people of Surat are the first priority when it comes to water shortage. But the industrial units in Pandesara need water to keep their factories operational. Hence, we have urged the municipal corporation to allow industrialists to procure water from other sources like water tankers, etc, till July-2018.” Sources said that the municipal corporation has taken action against the private water tanker mafia in and around Pandesara area by closing down borewells. The water mafia was drawing water from borewells and selling it to the industrial units in Pandesara and Sachin.
Source: The Times of India
The Indian city of Mumbai played a host to the leading players of the Asian textile industry, global input suppliers and service providers at the 9th edition of Asian Textile Conference (ATEXCON) – the flagship event of Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), the apex industry chamber of the textile and clothing sector of India, that raised curtains on March 14. The textile event was inaugurated by Indian Textile Minister Smriti Irani at Hotel ITC Maratha. The show has been themed “Textile Industry: Moving Beyond the Conventional Paradigms”, to achieve US $ 300 billion in trade. Further, Market, Innovations and Technological Developments Shaping the Future of Textile Manufacturing, Global Value Chain – Trade and Investment Perspectives and Retail in Textiles & Apparel: Emerging Scenario were discussed during the event. Key areas of business, including regional as well as global issues related to this sector, were also deliberated by the participants. More than 350 leading industrialists/decision makers, diplomats, trade & technical experts, industry associations from India and abroad participated in the conference. The need to tap on the emerging opportunities through cross-country cooperation was the major focus area of the conference. The event is designed to benefit the participants through direct interactions with Government officials, industry, mill-owners, potential customers of machinery and other inputs. “Through policy measures by the Government in partnership with the industry, India could achieve US $ 80 billion textile and apparel exports at an annual growth of 9 per cent. The overall market is expected to grow at 11 per cent annually to reach US $ 220 billion by 2025,” according to a white-paper representation released at the conference. Notably, CITI has been organising ATEXCON from 2005 with an aim to discuss key aspects of textile business, concerns and evolving prospects in the industry.
Source: Apparel Resources News-Desk,
The ninth edition of the Asian Textile Conference (Atexcon) took place in Mumbai on March 14 organised by the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI). CITI's Atexcon discussed the textile industry’s current issues and upcoming technologies - CITI- Facebook. On March 14, CITI’s Atexcon was held at Mumbai’s Hotel ITC Maratha and, over the course of the day, talks were held on the textile industry’s current issues and upcoming technologies. Focus areas included policy “support to achieve 300 billion dollar markets”, “innovations and technological developments shaping the future of textile manufacturing”, “global value chain- trade and investment perspectives”, and “retail in textiles and apparel: emerging scenario”. A presentation was released during the conference that stated: "Through policy measures by the government in partnership with the industry, India could achieve USD 80 billion textile and apparel exports at an annual growth of nine percent. The overall market is expected to grow at 11 percent annually to reach USD 220 billion by 2025." This promising prediction was then discussed by policy makers, industry leaders, and sector experts among others. The policy support that the textile industry currently requires was also discussed and it was agreed that research and development (R&D), quality and productivity enhancement schemes, and labour law reforms were all required in the near future. The Textile Commissioner, Kavita Gupta, spoke about how the government plans to integrate the textile industry through the continued construction of textile parks in order to tie together the value chains. With 72 such parks already, the idea is to continue to expand this scheme.
Source: In Fashion
Nagpur: The Cotton Association of India (CAI), in its latest estimates, has brought down the cotton production for the year 2017-18 by 5 lakh bales by putting the estimate at 362 lakh bales from the earlier projection of 367 lakh bales (of 170 kg each) in February. CAI claims that the production will be lower in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka by 2 lakh bales each while there be less procurement of another 1 lakh bales from other cotton growing states. The association has lowered the estimates due to the crop damage caused due to pink boll worm attack and water scarcity in some states. The projected balance sheet drawn by the CAI has estimates total cotton supply for the season at 412 lakh bales includes the opening stock of 30 lakh bales at the beginning of the season and the imports which the CAI has retained at 20 lakh bales as in the previous month. The CAI estimated domestic consumption at 330 lakh bales which is 10 lakh higher than estimated in the previous month. It has also estimated an increase in exports for the season from 55 lakh bales to 60 lakh bales because of a surge in demand for Indian cotton and increase in futures prices. The carry-over stock at the end of this season on September 30, 2018 is estimated to be 22 lakh bales which is lower by 20 lakh bales than the previous closing stock of 42 lakh bales estimated in the previous month.
Source: The Times of India
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1404.54 |
USD/Ton |
-0.17% |
3/14/2018 |
|
VSF |
2339.58 |
USD/Ton |
1.02% |
3/14/2018 |
|
ASF |
2766.40 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
Polyester POY |
1371.34 |
USD/Ton |
0.46% |
3/14/2018 |
|
Nylon FDY |
3667.46 |
USD/Ton |
0.43% |
3/14/2018 |
|
40D Spandex |
6007.04 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
Nylon POY |
1604.51 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
3398.72 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
Polyester FDY |
2971.90 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1612.42 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
3833.44 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
Polyester DTY |
5975.42 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
3050.94 |
USD/Ton |
0.52% |
3/14/2018 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
2181.50 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
3019.33 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
3193.22 |
USD/Ton |
0.50% |
3/14/2018 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2703.17 |
USD/Ton |
0.59% |
3/14/2018 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
2339.58 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2545.09 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.47 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.90 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.26 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.71 |
USD/Meter |
0.22% |
3/14/2018 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.75 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
3/14/2018 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.15808 USD dtd. 14/3/2018). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
China's economy kicked off 2018 on a strong note with better-than-expected data for the first two months. Industrial output expanded at 7.2 percent year-on-year in the first two months, accelerating from 6.2 percent growth in December 2017, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement. The growth was faster than the 6.3 percent growth during the same period last year, and was well above analyst expectations. Retail sales of consumer goods grew 9.7 percent year-on-year, faster than the same period last year. Fixed-asset investment grew 7.9 percent, up from 7.2 percent for the full year of 2017. "The economy had a good start with accelerating industrial production, active consumption, and stable prices," said NBS spokesperson Mao Shengyong. A breakdown of the data pointed to higher quality growth, which the country has been trying to prioritize over mere pace. Industrial structure continued to improve, with production in high-tech industries and the equipment manufacturing sector expanding by 11.9 percent and 8.4 percent, respectively. Output of new energy vehicles saw a surge of 178.1 percent year-on-year during the period, while industrial robots production jumped by 25.1 percent, NBS data showed. While such rapid growth was partly due to a low comparable base, it indicated that emerging sector expansion is accelerating, according to Mao. The mining sector grew by a modest 1.6 percent year-on-year, lagging behind the 7 percent growth achieved by the manufacturing sector. Amid the drive to restructure and optimize industry, the country aims to reduce overcapacity in traditional sectors such as coal, iron, and steel while facilitating growth in emerging areas. China plans to cut 30 million tons of ineffective steel capacity and 150 million tons of coal capacity in 2018, according to a government work report released earlier this month. Wednesday's data also showed that consumers in China tend to spend more on high-quality goods, a trend that is in line with the country's overall consumption upgrade. One of the main contributors to retail sales growth was automobile sales. While the total volume of sales only saw modest climb, the average sales price jumped, indicating that the demand for cars is more quality-oriented, according to Mao. "China's economy has maintained a stable and sound momentum. Such momentum will lay a solid foundation for the economy to achieve its annual growth and employment target," Mao said. China aims to see economic expansion at around 6.5 percent this year, unchanged from 2017, according to the government work report. It also planned to keep the surveyed urban unemployment rate within 5.5 percent, the first time the country has used this indicator as a projected target. In the first two months, the urban unemployment rate was below 5 percent, lower than the same period last year, NBS data showed. In 2017, the economy achieved better-than-expected growth of 6.9 percent, underpinned by strong consumption, stable investment, and a comeback in exports. Earlier data showed that China's export growth in February came in at 36.2 percent, a high reading that analysts said was a surprise given that holiday effects were expected to limit the pace of increase. As China continues to improve the quality of goods, exports should be able to keep stable growth, Mao said.
Source: China Daily.
Cotton stocks in China are expected to fall significantly in 2018-19, similar to the current season, according to the US department of agriculture (USDA). Continuous rise in consumption at a rate faster than the world average, slight decline in production, and limited imports will result in continued reductions in China’s cotton State Reserve. Outside of China, despite forecast lower production, rest-of-world stocks are expected to rise for the third consecutive year as an expected modest growth in consumption and relative weak import demand by China leave supply higher than demand, the Foreign Agricultural Service of the USDA said in its March 2018 report ‘Cotton: World Markets and Trade’. Meanwhile, US cotton exports are projected at a 13-year high of 16 million bales of 480 lb each in 2018-19, due to expectations of a large exportable surplus. The US share of world trade is projected to rise. Ending stocks are projected at 6 million bales, which would be the highest level since 2008-09. Greater supplies outside of China are expected to pressure cotton prices in 2018-19 with the average price received by producers falling within the range of 58-68 cents per pound, compared with the 2017-18 current forecast of 69 cents. For 2017-18, global cotton production and trade are both raised. Production is raised due to expected higher production in Australia and Sudan, partially offset by lower production in Uzbekistan and the US. Trade is up on higher imports in Turkey, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and China. The US exports are raised. World consumption is marginally higher with world ending stocks up reflecting the increased production. The US balance sheet has lower production, higher exports, and lower ending stocks. (RKS)
Source: Fibre2Fashion
For fiscal 2017, Lenzing Group, a supplier of global textile and nonwovens industry with high-quality, botanic cellulose fibres, has recorded revenue growth of 5.9 per cent to €2.26 billion. The company has recorded high revenue and earnings due to a better product mix and higher selling prices in combination with a generally favourable market environment. The company EBITDA improved by 17.3 per cent to €502.5 million (2016: €428.3 million). The corresponding EBITDA margin rose to 22.2 per cent (2016: 20.1 per cent). For the reported period, EBIT increased 25.2 per cent to € 371 million, resulting in a higher EBIT margin of 16.4 per cent (2016: 13.9 per cent). The net profit for the year totaled €281.7 million, a rise of 23 per cent from the prior-year €229.1 million. Earnings per share in the 2017 amounted to € 10.47 (2016: €8.48). The return on capital employed increased to 18.6 per cent in 2017 compared to 15.1 per cent in 2016 and adjusted equity increased by 9.9 per cent to €1.53 billion from the prior-year level of €1.39 billion. "The Lenzing Group looks back at a very successful year 2017. We continued to implement our corporate strategy sCore TEN with great discipline and focus on our investment projects and successfully captured value in a positive market environment. Our commitment to innovation and customer centricity was underpinned by the opening of an application innovation center in Hong Kong and the creation of the new sales and marketing office in Turkey. In line with sCore TEN we decided to revamp our brand architecture and image to sharpen Lenzing’s corporate and product profiles for customers and consumers. We want to put a stronger emphasis on our ambition to make the textile and nonwoven market more sustainable," said Stefan Doboczky, chief executive officer of the Lenzing Group. In 2017, the Lenzing Group presented a number of game changing sustainability innovations, that underline the ongoing transformation of Lenzing into a genuine specialist player focused on high-quality botanic materials made from the sustainable raw material wood. In September last year, the Lenzing Group opened a new textile application innovation center in Hong Kong, thus setting a further milestone in strengthening its innovation offering to all partners along the value chain. The International Monetary Fund expects a further acceleration in global economic growth to 3.7 percent in 2018. The Lenzing Group sees a number of, in part contradictory, factors which limit the visibility over fibre prices in 2018. The prices for several key raw materials, e.g. caustic soda, remain at a very high level and their further development is difficult to estimate. These general conditions are expected to form the basis for a challenging market environment in the standard viscose fibre business during the coming quarters; coupled with anticipated negative exchange rate fluctuations, the Lenzing Group expects its results for 2018 to be lower than the outstanding results in the last two years. "We are very positive about our chosen strategy as it will help us to be more resilient as we expect more headwinds in the upcoming quarters," concluded Doboczky.
Source: Fibre2fashion.
Abuja – The Federal Government says it will exploit potential in the cotton sector by empowering producers to enhance their productivity. The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Mrs Aisha Abubakar, said this at the 16th African Cotton Association (ACA) Annual International Congress in Abuja on Thursday.
Cotton-stalk
According to her, the importance of cotton to the economic development of not only the individual producing countries but also to the entire African continent cannot be over emphasised. She said in Africa, the sector provided a means of livelihood to millions of smallholder farmers, whose economic lives revolved around the production, processing, transportation, food and non-food activities. She added that for these reasons, most countries of the world were adopting new strategies toward reviving cotton production and processing as critical element in socio-economic development, especially in rural areas. “Cotton, no doubt offers to the African economies unprecedented opportunities for economic growth and development. “Unfortunately, the sector is not making the desired impact on the economies which depend on it as a source of income and foreign exchange. “Asia and India produce 60 per cent of global output, while Africa produces only about 16 per cent in spite of our huge potential for the production. “The global market value was about 1.6 trillion dollars in 2015 alone, and this shows how important the sector is to the economies of the producing countries. “It, therefore, means that Africa’s quest for industrialisation can be achieved by developing this viable sector,’’ she said. According to her, most producing countries in Africa export raw cotton with little or no value addition, which has become a major concern to us now. “Our challenge is how to grow and process to sustain this quest. The continued export of cotton lint by Africa producers is unsustainable in view of global instability in the prices of cotton. “The development of this sector in Africa relies on our ability to influence both its production and trade. “To do this effectively, we must leverage on our potential and develop our capacities by strengthening the sector and providing producers the support to enhance competitiveness and improve technology.’’ Abubakar said that Nigeria would welcome any research findings and support innovation that would enhance the ability to develop and tap the enormous benefits of the sector from the congress. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, said that cotton was at a point one of the largest employer of labour in the country before the discovery of oil. Ogbeh, represented by Mr Yarima Uba, Team Leader, Cotton Value Chain in the ministry, said that the country’s current seed cotton production stood at 98,000 to 112,000 tonnes, while cotton lint was about 70,000 to 80,000 tonnes. According to Ogbeh, cotton crop is seen as the most miraculous natural fibre under the sun and it is referred to as white gold in the country. He explained that the current trend in the international oil market had resulted in the urgent need to diversify the revenue base of the country’s economy and conserve foreign reserve by limiting imported goods. The minister assured the stakeholders of government’s commitment to provide enabling environment through policies and incentives that would attract private sector investment in the country. In his remarks, Mr Abubarkar Moriki, the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Industry, said that there was a sharp decrease in cotton farming. He said that statistics revealed that the contribution of the sector to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell from about 25 per cent in 1980 to about five per cent according to recent indicator. “This sharp decline has been due to lack of mechanisation of the production process, lack of improved cotton seed, diseases and inconsistent government policies.’’ He advised government to invest in cotton production and provide not only the necessary enabling environment but improve the process of production through modern mechanisation as a panacea to boosting production in the country. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the congress with the theme: “Mechanised Cotton Farming: Essential Requirement to Boost Africa Cotton Production’’, brought stakeholders across Africa countries to brainstorm on the way forward in the sector.
Source: Vanguard
ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, and the Italian Trade Agency for the promotion and internationalisation of Italian businesses abroad, will be organising an exhibition space at the upcoming edition of Techtextil Russia, the specialised trade fair dedicated to technical textiles and nonwovens, to take place in Moscow next week. A total of 23 companies will be on hand at Italy’s exhibition space, including the following ACIMIT associated members: A.T.F. Automations, Beta Machinery, Bombi Meccanica, Bonino Carding Machines, Cibitex, Cogne Macchine Tessili, Durst Phototechnik, Fabotex Tecnology, Fadis, Ferraro Spa, Guarneri Technology, MCS Officina Meccanica, Nuova Cosmatex, Pugi Group, Ratti Luino, Salmoiraghi, Sariel, Reggiani Macchine, Santex Rimar Group, Smit, Sicam Soc. It. Costruzioni Aeromeccaniche, Tessil Gomma Di Sergio Buson, and Toscana Spazzole Industriali. The trade fair event arrives at a time of growth for Russia’s textiles sector. The Russian government has recently initiated pilot projects specifically targeting the modernisation of existing technology in the textiles sector and increasing the supply of local products on the Russian market. The production of technical textiles, in particular, is deemed by competent government authorities to constitute a driver in reviving the fate of Russia’s textiles industry. “This restructuring phase provides an opportunity to further strengthen existing relations between Russian textile manufacturers and Italian technology suppliers, which are already in good stead thanks to the promotional initiatives launched by ACIMIT and the ICE-Agency over the past few years,” commented Alessandro Zucchi, ACIMIT President. “The result of this interaction between Italy’s textile machinery manufacturers and Russian producers, is the Russian market’s constant presence among primary destinations for Italian exports of textile machinery.” In 2016, Italy exported EUR 22 million worth of textile machinery to Russia, whereas figures updated to the first seven months of 2017 show a 51% increase compared to the same period for 2016, for a corresponding value of EUR 11 million. ACIMIT represents an industrial sector comprising around 300 manufacturers, employing close to 12,000 people and producing machinery for an overall value of about EUR 2.7 billion, with exports amounting to more than 85% of total sales.
Source: Innovations in Textiles
