The commerce and industry ministry has started the exercise to revise base year to 2017-18 for computation of wholesale inflation with a view to present more realistic picture of the price situation, a government source said. In May last year, the government revised the base year for WPI-based inflation to 2011-12 to give a better indication of changes in prices of commodities. The new index, with 2017-18, is expected to have new items, which would provide a more realistic picture of price rise and its impact on people. Most of the additions could be in the manufactured products category. A working group would be formed to identify the new products which could be added in the index. Currently, the index has a total of 697 items, including primary articles, fuel and power and manufactured products. The source said that it would take around 24 months to complete the process and come out with the new index with revised base year. Further, the ministry has decided to come out with a Producers Price Index (PPI) next month for 10 services, including telecom and railways on experimental basis. The move will help track inflation in these services, which will also include ports, postal, insurance, banking, transportation and air travel. Two major indices are used currently for tracking price movement -- Wholesale Price Index (WPI) and Consumer Price Index (CPI). While the wholesale price index (WPI) measures price movement of goods in wholesale markets, the CPI tracks inflation at retail level and also includes certain services. While the incidence of taxes is accounted for in WPI and CPI, the PPI would reflect the cost at producers point sans taxes. PPI measures the average change in the price a producer receives for his goods/services sold in the domestic market/exports.
Source: Business Line
NEW DELHI: After growing above 7 per cent for last four months, India’s industrial production (IIP) moderated at 4.4 per cent in March, dragged mainly by capital goods and low mining activities, official data revealed on Friday. As per the data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), on a year-on-year (YoY) basis, the index value remained unchanged. IIP had edged higher by 4.4 per cent in May 2017. India’s industrial output grew at 7 per cent in February 2018. The previous low was in October, 2017, when IIP was at 1.8 per cent. The CSO’s data also showed that the sequential slowdown in factory output was mainly on account of lower production in the manufacturing sector. The manufacturing sector, which constitutes over 77 per cent of the index, grew at 4.4 per cent in March as compared to 3.3 per cent in the same month a year ago. The mining Sector also continued to drag, with output decelerating to 2.8 per cent from 10.1 per cent in March 2017. Similarly, power generation too slowed down to 5.9 per cent as against 6.2 per cent in March 2017. Capital goods output saw a negative growth and declined by 1.8 per cent during March compared to a growth of 9.4 per cent last year. The output of the Infrastructure sector rose at moderated pace of 8.8 per cent in March 2018, while the output of primary goods rose at slower pace of 2.9 per cent and intermediate goods at 2.1 per cent. Consumer durables output showed an increase of 2.9 per cent as against decline of 0.6 per cent in March 2017. On the other hand consumer non-durables segment showed an impressive growth of 10.9 per cent in March. In terms of industries, eleven out of the twenty three industry groups in the manufacturing sector have shown positive growth during the month of March 2018. Cumulative industrial production increased 4.3 per cent during the whole financial year ended March, 2018, compared to 4.6 per cent the previous year. “Though a favourable base effect has helped the numbers, other indicators like increase in demand for credit. point towards a confidence building macro picture,” D S Rawat, industry body Assocham’s Secretary General said.
Source: Indian Express
With the merger of the two separate bodies handling safeguards and anti-dumping to form the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR), it will now be easier for industry to take technical advice and support of the government in case there is a need to check imports of particular products, Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia said. “When we spread our resources thinly across agencies, it is not very efficient. The DGTR will have all expertise, including legal skills, people dealing with accounting, trade experts and revenue people, under one roof,” Teaotia said adding that the need for such a body was felt for a long time. So far, the Directorate-General of Safeguards under the Ministry of Finance was responsible for recommending safeguard duties which are penal duties on imports that witness a surge in a brief period of time hurting domestic industry. The Directorate-General of Anti-dumping, under the Ministry of Commerce, had the responsibility of examining requests from industry to impose countervailing duties and anti-dumping duties which are penalties on imports which are priced lower than what they are sold at in the seller’s own country. Now, the functioning of the DGTR, which will be a national authority, will be under the Ministry of Commerce. The recommendation of DGTR for imposition of anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard duties would be considered by the Department of Revenue. “At times, the domestic industry, suffering due to cheap imports, is confused about approaching the DGAD or the DG Safeguards with its problem. It may end up filing cases with both which may lead to a lot of hassle as they are under different Ministries. Now, when a case is brought to a DGTR, domestic industry can be sure that the best possible remedy would be thought of as all expertise is available at one place,” another government official said.
Source: Business Line
Move will also ensure supply of goods is done properly, says GSTN CEO. To curb tax evasion, authorities will start matching details given in the Goods and Services Tax Return (GSTR) Form Number 1 with those given in the e-way bill. The matching will begin with returns to be filed for April as it is the first month when the tax authorities will have both GSTR1 and e-way bill data. In the meantime, tax authorities have issued notices to over 8,000 assessees for differences in sales figures of more than ₹50 lakh in their GSTR1 and GSTR3B forms. Notices have been served on the basis of returns filed during August and December, 2017. Based on their response, a decision will be taken on how much tax and penalty they need to pay. “Matching process will ensure supply of goods have been done properly,” Prakash Kumar, CEO of GSTN, the IT backbone of unified indirect tax system, told BusinessLine. The logic behind matching is to plug any possible loophole in filing of returns. All the GST assessees are required to file GSTR 1 either on monthly or on quarterly basis while e-way bill is required for movement of goods of value exceeding ₹50,000. Commenting on the development, Rakesh Nangia, Managing Partner, Nangia & Co LLP, said the matching of details mentioned in GSTR-1 with the e-way bills will help in curbing tax evading practices as the invoice matching mechanism will be a significant tool in ascertaining the transaction details while matching it with the details furnished by the taxpayer. “However, the said mechanism will be partly effective/beneficial since only supply of goods can be traced by the matching concept. Further, e-way bill is required on movement of goods where consignment value exceeds ₹50,000,” he explained while adding that in cases where value of goods does not exceed ₹50,000, matching would not be possible.
Action for mismatch
Option has been given on the e-way bill portal to take reports for particular tax period from e-way bill portal and match with tax invoices for outward supply and inward supply/delivery challan. Information about e-way bills, along with the transactions captured in GSTR1, will make it easy to spot mismatches in certain cases where invoice has not been reported in GST return by the taxpayer or where taxpayer fails to file his returns or furnishes wrong details. “In such cases, notice may be served by the authorities demanding clarifications for difference in tax amounts along with penalties. The said measures were adopted by the VAT authorities in the erstwhile regime also. Further in extreme cases, confiscation of goods, along with penalties may be imposed by the authorities,” Nangia said. E-way bill was introduced from April 1. It is applicable for both inter-State and intra-States movement of goods, though the latter is being introduced on phases. So far, 18 States have adopted e-way system. Maharashtra and 7 Union Territories will start the new system for the intra state/UT movement of goods from May 25 while the others will do so by June 3.
e-way bill capacity
GSTN claims that there is capacity to generate e-way bill up to 70 lakh every day. At present, on an average 11-13 lakh e-way bills are being generated everyday. Nearly three-fourth of the e-way bills are related to inter-State trade while the remaining are for intra-State. However, once all the States start using e-way bill for internal movement, the ratio is expected to change to 50:50.
Source: Business Line
Surat: Textile processors in the country’s largest man-made fabric (MMF) in the city have unanimously decided to increase job charges by Rs2 per metre on processing of all kinds of finished fabrics from May 15. A meeting in this regard was held under the aegis of South Gujarat Textile Processors’ Association (SGTPA) on Friday. The hike in job charges is attributed to increase in average cost of dyes, chemicals, coal and wages of textile workers. The SGTPA office-bearers said there was an average increase of 25% in dyes, around 15% in chemical and Rs1,500 per tonne in coal price. There has also been a steep increase in labour charges in the processing sector. At present, MMF cluster in the city manufactures around two crore metre of fabrics per day. There are 6.5 lakh powerloom weaving machines, out of which around 3.5 lakh machines have been shut in the last few months. There are around 400 textile dyeing and printing mills located in the city, including Sachin and Pandesara and on the outskirts at Palsana and Kadodara. SGTPA president Jitu Vakharia told TOI: “We are compelled to hike job charges to sustain the processing sector from slowdown and because of increase in cost of raw materials. The hike in job charges will effectively increase the per metre cost of the finished fabrics in the range of 50 paise to Rs3. We understand the ongoing situation in the textile sector. We are hoping that the production of MMF fabric will pick up pace in the upcoming festival season.” Pandesara Weavers Cooperative Society president Ashish Gujarati said: “The textile sector is passing through a rough patch. The entire powerloom sector is operating only one shift for eight hours to curtail production. The hike in processing job charges is only going to impact the industry further.”
Source: The Times of India
KOCHI: Garment exports from Tiruppur, the knitwear hub of the country, have shrunk by close to 8% to Rs 24,000 crore in 2017-18 from a year ago period. This is the first time in the past five years that knitwear exports from Tiruppur have declined. In 2016-17, the exports at Rs 26,000 crore, had shown around 13% increase over the previous year. The cut in duty drawback scheme from last September is cited as one of the main reasons for the slump in exports. “Till September, the exports were growing at 6%. From October, it fell 13-14% a month,’’ said TR Vijayakumar, general secretary of Tiruppur Exporters Association. The incentive duty drawback scheme available to the exporters was slashed to 2% from 7.6% in the latter half of the year, which has put India at a disadvantage vis-à-vis competing countries such as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. “Both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh enjoy duty-free access to Europe and the US, the main buyers of garments,’’ Vijayakumar said. Tiruppur accounts for 46% of the total knitwear garment exports from the country. The total knitwear exports from the country too saw a decline last year. But the drop has been more for Tiruppur exports. The total knitwear exports from the country fell by just over 5% to Rs 52,170 crore from a year earlier. The delay in refund of GST and state levies is pointed out as another reason for the setback to exports as it crimped the working capital flow. Most exporters began to get refunds after February. “The funds crunch affected our order booking. The competing countries took advantage of the situation,’’ said Raja M Shanmugham, chairman of the association. He said the government has to provide incentives either in the form of free trade access or by restoring the duty drawback scheme to earlier level to regain the lost markets. The exporters have been trying to widen their reach by exploring new markets such as Latin America and Africa in the past few years. “But we don’t enjoy any exclusivity. All the other competing countries are also looking at these markets,’’ Shanmugham said. The current sluggishness in the international market also necessitate policy support for the exporters, the exporters said.
Source: The Economic Times
Fitch, which last month kept India's sovereign rating unchanged for the 12th year in a row, said the country's ratings "balance a strong medium-term growth outlook and favourable external balances against a weak fiscal position and difficult business environment". New Delhi : Fitch, which last month kept India's sovereign rating unchanged for the 12th year in a row, said the country's ratings "balance a strong medium-term growth outlook and favourable external balances against a weak fiscal position and difficult business environment". : India's economic growth will accelerate to 7.3 per cent in the current fiscal and 7.5 per cent in the next as money supply has recovered to its pre-demonetisation level and disruptions related to the rollout of GST have diminished. But the business environment is likely to improve gradually with the implementation and continued broadening of the government's structural-reform agenda. "Fitch expects growth to accelerate to 7.3 per cent in the fiscal year ending March 2019 (FY19), and 7.5 per cent in FY20, from 6.5 per cent in FY18," it said in second quarter Sovereign Credit Overview for Asia Pacific region. The Indian economy continued to bounce back in the final quarter of 2017, growing 7.2 per cent. "The influence of one-off, policy-related factors, which had been a drag on growth, has now waned. The money supply recovered to its pre-demonetisation level in mid-2017 and is now increasing steadily, similar to the previous trend. Meanwhile, disruptions related to the rollout of the goods and services tax in July 2017 have gradually diminished," it said. The BJP-led government's last full budget before general elections has left much of the task of addressing the country's relatively weak public finances to the next government. The budget deficit target for FY19 is set at 3.3 per cent of GDP, down from an expected 3.5 per cent in FY18, implying fiscal slippage of 0.3 per cent of GDP in both FY18 and FY19 relative to last year's budget targets. "The government plans to adopt a ceiling of 40 per cent of GDP for central government debt, as recommended by the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Review Committee in January 2017, compared with an estimated 50 per cent of GDP for FY18. "This would be a positive step towards a more prudent fiscal framework, even if debt is unlikely to fall below the ceiling by FY23, as recommended by the committee," Fitch said. It went on to list a reduction in general government debt over the medium term and higher sustained investment and growth rates without the creation of macro imbalances, such as from successful structural reform implementation, as positives. The negatives included a rise in the public-debt burden, which may be caused by stalling fiscal consolidation or greater-than-Fitch-expected deterioration in the balance sheets of public-sector banks that could prompt large-scale sovereign financial support. Also, loose macroeconomic policy settings that cause a return of persistently high inflation and widening current-account deficits, which would increase the risk of external funding stress, it added. Demand for cotton seeds in Punjab down 20-30% from year ago, say companies
Source: The Economic Times
Mumbai: The work of setting up India’s first textile museum in the city will start this month, confirmed a senior official from the Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee (MHCC). Work on the first phase of the project, which includes a light show and depiction of a mill worker’s life, will start in a few days. The first textile museum in the country will come up at United Mills’ compound, Kalachowkie. The second phase will be executed after four to five months. A senior MHCC official said, “The contractors had communicated that they would start work on phase one of the textile museum this month itself. Work on components of the first phase i.e. the light show and musical fountain, and murals depicting the lives of mill workers, will begin.” In January this year, the BMC finalised the contractor who would execute phase one of the project. Sawani Constructions, which emerged as the lowest bidder, bagged the contract. The first phase will come up on a 10,000 square metre area in the mill premises. It will include beautification and landscaping around a lake inside the compound; setting up of an exhibition centre; a multipurpose plaza with art stalls and murals depicting a bygone era; and a cafeteria. The main aim behind developing such a museum is to highlight history and the contribution of mill workers in the city. The project will be implemented on an area of 44,000 square metre at the defunct United Mills.
Source: The Asian age
Cotton season in Punjab is off to a sluggish start, with seed companies reporting low demand for BT cotton seeds, the variety that accounts for most of the cotton grown in the country. Seed companies say farmers are shifting to other crops, especially paddy and maize, in which they see higher returns. Accordingly, cotton acreage in the state this kharif season is expected to drop by 15-20% despite an 8% discount in price of seeds this year. Experts said if sowing doesn’t pick up pace, it could affect the revival of cotton in Punjab, where acreage under the cash crop had jumped by about half in 2017-18. “Demand for cotton seeds so far is 20-30% less than last year due to factors including delay in supply of canal water and higher income in paddy in the last season,” a Fazilka-based distributor of Rasi Seeds said. Cotton, largely BT cotton, was grown over 122 lakh hectares in India in 2017-18. In recent years, pest infestation, high input costs and drop in earnings in cotton have hit farmers hard. "Use of spurious seeds and unscientific use of pesticides and insecticides are reasons for crop failures," said an executive of a cotton seed companyNSE 0.88 %.The sowing of cotton in the state is less than last year, according to cotton seeds distributors, although seed prices have come down by about Rs 60 per packet (450 gm) to about Rs 740. The government had revised BT cotton seed prices in March this year. Some traders said farmers have moved away from cotton because of lower-than-expected earnings from the crop in the previous season. “Cotton price had increased to Rs 5,000-6,000 per quintal in the previous season, while they have remained below Rs 4,500 in 2017-18,” said Jaspal Singh, an Abohar-based cotton trader. The delay in supply of canal water is another reason for low sowing in some districts, especially Mansa. “Late cotton crop is highly prone to pest attack, including whitefly, that has hit crop hard in recent years,” an official of Punjab agriculture department said. This year, the Punjab government is aiming to bring 4 lakh hectares under cotton. “Higher income in basmati last year is influencing farmers to grow less cotton,” said Jasbir Singh Bains, director of agriculture for Punjab. Cotton, a crucial crop helping in moving farmers away from water-guzzling paddy, had regained lost ground in Punjab. As per government data, it covered 3.82 lakh hectares in 2017-18 compared with 2.56 lakh hectares in 2016-17. However, a serious whitefly infestation is making farmers rethink their plans. Sowing of cotton in Punjab begins at least a month ahead of sowing in the other states. Executives of some seed companies said the shift in cropping pattern in the northern state is unlikely to be replicated in the other major cotton-growing states including Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
Source: The Economic Times
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1412.40 |
USD/Ton |
0.28% |
5/13/2018 |
|
VSF |
2193.56 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
ASF |
2966.83 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
Polyester POY |
1465.27 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
Nylon FDY |
3361.35 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
40D Spandex |
5681.16 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
Nylon POY |
1751.69 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
3613.85 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
Polyester FDY |
5965.22 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1720.13 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
3077.30 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
Polyester DTY |
3077.30 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2974.72 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
2209.34 |
USD/Ton |
0.86% |
5/13/2018 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
3014.17 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2335.59 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2556.52 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
3140.42 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2698.55 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.47 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.90 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.26 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.70 |
USD/Meter |
0.22% |
5/13/2018 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.74 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
5/13/2018 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.15785 USD dtd. 13/5/2018). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
HCM CITY — The affluent Middle East is a promising market for Vietnamese companies, the Việt Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry has said. Speaking at the Việt Nam-Middle East Business Forum held in HCM City yesterday, Nguyễn Thế Hưng, deputy director of the VCCI’s HCM City office, said: “The Middle East has high demand for farm produce, seafood, garment and textile products, footwear, and wood products from Việt Nam.” Trade between Việt Nam and the Middle East had gone up sharply in recent years, doubling from 2011 to US$12.8 billion last year, he said. According to Lê Thái Hòa, deputy head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Asia-Africa Market Department, Việt Nam enjoys a trade surplus with the Middle East, which consists of 16 countries and has more than 300 million people. The United Arab Emirates is Việt Nam’s largest partner in the region, with their trade increasing from $4.46 billion in 2013 to $5.6 billion last year. With a per capita GDP of over $60,000 and a large number of immigrants and tourists, the UAE has large demand for various products. “Vietnamese goods such as seafood, garment and textile, footwear, farm produce, foodstuff and household appliances have established a firm foothold in the market,” he said. But despite the increase in trade, Việt Nam’s exports to the Middle East still account for a very small portion of the region’s total imports. The forum was held to further promote economic, trade and investment ties between the two sides, Hưng said. “Việt Nam hopes to attract more investment from the Middle East in the fields of renewable energy, hospitality, infrastructure, ports, aviation, property, and agriculture.” Obaid al Dhaheri, the UAE ambassador to Việt Nam, said as the hub of the Middle East and gateway to Europe and Africa, his country could serve as an entry point to the global market for Vietnamese companies. In turn, "Việt Nam is the gateway to Southeast Asia for UAE firms," he said. “Thus, more opportunities to enhance co-operation between Việt Nam and UAE are available.”
Warnings
When doing business with the region, enterprises must always keep a close eye on its unstable political situation, Hòa warned. They must also understand the regulations of each market and Muslim cultural factors such as not consuming alcohol and requiring food and foodstuffs to have Halal certification, he said. “Exporters of agro-forestry and fisheries products should focus on improving hygiene and food safety because the market is increasingly adopting trade barriers.” Sharing his experience in doing business with the Middle East, Đỗ Hà Nam, deputy chairman of the Việt Nam Coffee and Cocoa Association and chairman of Intimex Group, which has exported to Dubai for nearly 20 years, said the market had huge demand for Vietnamese pepper, cashew, coffee, and seafood. “To penetrate the market, enterprises should participate in trade fairs in Dubai, where they will meet potential customers. Finding a right business partner is very important," he said.
Trade platform
Also at the forum, Relam Investment L.L.C, a partnership between Dubai-based Vault Investment L.L.C and Việt Nam’s MIG Holdings, announced the establishment of Trade-Hub (T-Hub), a full-fledged trading and logistics platform, in Việt Nam to help Vietnamese firms promote their exports in Middle East and other markets. The forum was organised by the VCCI in collaboration with MIG Holdings and Relam Investment.
Source: Vietnam News
Bahawalpur : The cotton variety develop by the Islamia University of Bahawalpur has been cultivated in 30% of total cotton cultivated area of the Punjab Province. This achievement makes IUB as the only university in the country developing cotton seeds having large scale popularity. According to the vision of Prof. Dr. Qaiser Mushtaq, Vice Chancellor, research compatible with national priorities, the advanced level research on the most important crops of the country including cotton, rice and wheat is underway at University College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, the Islamia University of Bahawalpur. The university scientists are working on such varieties of crops which are suitable and productive in local climate and geographical condition, drought and resistance to viral diseases. In this connection, Prof. Dr. Qaiser Mushtaq, Vice Chancellor visited cotton crop cultivated by department of Plant Breeding and Genetics in experimental area at University Agriculture Farm. The University produced cotton varieties IUB-222, IUB-13 and MM-58 have been cultivated in the agriculture farm and thirty percent cotton land in Punjab Province is covered by the variety IUB-13. It was also revealed that new varieties of the university QM65 and IUB-69 got 7th and 42nd positions respectively out of 95 varieties competed in recently held national level trials. Prof. Dr. Qaiser Mushtaq said that currently, research projects worth Rs. 80 million are being carried out in the college. Further the college has been provided the first ever molecular breeding laboratory in Southern Punjab. Similarly, genoplasm preservation laboratory also added recently. On this occasion, College Principal Prof. Dr. Muazzam Jamil, Chairman Plant Breeding and Genetics, Prof. Dr. Iqbal Bandesha, faculty members and students were also present.
Source: Pakistan observer
“Without strong commodity and crop insurance policies underpinning U.S. agriculture, lenders would be reluctant to provide financing to an industry operating at the mercy of weather extremes and volatile global market prices," says Ron Craft, a ginner in Plains, Texas, and current Chairman of the National Cotton Council. The National Cotton Council, located in Cordova, Tenn., represents all seven segments of the U.S. cotton industry.
NCC urges passage of farm legislation
Legislation related to the next farm bill (the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018) was recently approved by the House Agriculture Committee. It includes critically important policies, not only for cotton producers, but also for the entire cotton industry. Because that legislation now moves on to the House of Representatives, the National Cotton Council (NCC) is urging them to approve the bill without any damaging amendments to farm policy. Ron Craft, a ginner in Plains, Texas, and current NCC Chairman, notes that although budget constraints did not allow all of cotton’s priorities to be included in the legislation, the work conducted by the House Ag Committee should be commended. “Cotton producers rely on the certainty and predictability of farm law to obtain the financing necessary for capital investments and annual crop production,” say Craft. “Without strong commodity and crop insurance policies underpinning U.S. agriculture, lenders would be reluctant to provide financing to an industry operating at the mercy of weather extremes and volatile global market prices.” Craft understands a strong farm bill also supports a healthy and thriving economy as evidenced by the jobs and economic impact made in the U.S. by the cotton industry. There are 20,000 cotton farms and other cotton-related businesses that employ 126,000 people who collectively generate more than $21 billion in annual revenue. “The current trade tensions further underscore the importance of having a strong, predictable farm policy,” adds Craft. “Cotton is heavily export dependent, and this farm bill will continue important policies to help U.S. cotton producers contend in a highly competitive global marketplace.” As the unifying force of the U.S. cotton industry, the Memphis-based NCC’s mission is ensuring the ability of U.S. cotton industry’s seven segments to compete effectively and profitably in the raw cotton, oilseed and U.S.-manufactured product markets at home and abroad.
Source: National Cotton Council
The Government of Bangladesh has extended the permission of the Accord, a western buyers’ platform working to improve workplace safety in Bangladesh readymade garment sector, to work beyond May 2018. A joint Transition Monitoring Committee (TMC) set up by the government determined that the criteria agreed by the Accord and the BGMEA have not yet been met. The TMC comprises Accord brands, global trade unions, BGMEA, ILO and the Bangladesh government. It has been established by the Government for the purpose of determining when the agreed conditions for a handover of the Accord work to a fully-functional and competent national regulatory body have been met. At its first meeting on May 6, 2018, the TMC concluded that the criteria as recognised by the government to handover the Accord work to a national regulatory body have not yet been met. The criteria include demonstrated proficiency in inspection capacity, remediation of hazards, enforcement of the law against non-compliant factories, full transparency of governance and remediation progress, and investigation and fair resolution of workers’ safety complaints. Meanwhile, the government has formed a Remediation Coordination Cell (RCC) under inspection for factories and establishment department. The RCC will take over the responsibility of monitoring from Accord after being fully organised and capable, said Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) president Md. Siddiqur Rahman at a press conference. The government and entrepreneurs are working jointly for making the RCC active before the end of the extended six months period of the Accord, he added.
Source:Fibre2Fashion
Hong Kong – Attendees at HKTDC trade fairs here last month largely believe the U.S. and China will work out their current trade dispute. The trade development commission polled attendees at its seven fairs in April, which included the co-located Hong Kong International Home Textiles and Furnishings Fair and Hong Kong Houseware Fair, about their views on the situation. On-site surveys conducted found 70% of respondents expected no negative impact on Hong Kong's export performance, while 80% were neutral or optimistic that the two nations would resolve their differences. Asked about business challenges, 47% expect operating costs to increase and 44% expect raw materials prices will fluctuate. More than 230,000 buyers from 176 countries and regions attended the seven fairs organized by the HKTDC in April, a yearly increase of nearly 3%. Among them, 130,000 of the buyers were from mainland China and overseas, up 4%, while there were more than 9,000 exhibitors. The other expos HKTDC held last month include the Hong Kong International Lighting Fair (Spring Edition), Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Spring Edition), International ICT Expo, Hong Kong Gifts & Premium Fair, and the Hong Kong International Printing & Packaging Fair.
Source: Home Textiles Today
BIGTEX 2018, a garment and textile machinery, equipment, technology, and accessories expo, has opened its doors to leading garment and textile companies at the GEC convention centre, Chattogram, Bangladesh. The event, which provides an excellent platform for manufacturers to network with global traders and wholesales, will go on till May 12, 2018. A J M Nasir Uddin, honorable mayor, Chattogram City Corporation, inaugurated the exhibition. At the opening ceremony other special guests were Moinuddin Ahmed, first vice president, BGMEA, Mansoor Ahmed, first vice president, BKMEA, Sayed Nurul Islam, CEO Well Group. The expo has almost 120 stalls with products from 12 countries including Bangladesh, China, England, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Sri Lanka, and Turkey. The trade event will play an important role with the latest machineries, technologies, dyes / chemicals, yarns, fabrics available for Bangladesh on display with manufacturers / suppliers from the world available to our Industry at the doorstep. It will also provide an opportunity to experts, engineers, and technicians in the field of textile to have a practical knowledge of the recent technological advancements available, without going abroad. Ahmed Imtiaz, CEO, Redcarpet365 Ltd., said, “The vast economic potential of Chittagong, a city with unique advantages of ports, roads, and railways, largely remains untapped. The port city can well drive the economy to achieve the coveted middle income status and reach the target of US$ 50 billion garment export. So there is lot of opportunities with sustainable business in this area.”
Source: Fibre2Fashion
