The Synthetic & Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC) has lauded the historic Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Support and Outreach programme launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently. As part of the programme, Modi unveiled 12 key initiatives which will help the growth, expansion and facilitation of MSMEs across the country. Welcoming the initiative of the Union Government, SRTEPC chairman Narain Aggarwal said that the various announcements and deliverables focused on access to credit, access to market, hand holding and facilitation support measures, etc for MSME sector will substantially encourage and uplift the Indian MMF textile segment, as most of the manufacturing units of this segment are MSMEs. “Small and Medium Enterprises are the backbone of Indian economy. The Outreach Programme is also likely to further invigorate the MSME sector since this sector is one of the major generators of employment opportunities and make a significant contribution to the overall growth of the economy,” said Aggarwal. He also mentioned that the MSME focused Outreach programme will give boost to the man-made fibre (MMF) textile manufacturing units in textile hubs like Surat, Bhiwandi, Ichalkaranji, Malegaon, etc. The MSME Outreach programme will run for 100 days covering 100 districts throughout the country. Various Central ministers are likely to visit these districts in order to apprise the entrepreneurs about various facilities being extended to MSME sector by the government and financial institutions and to come forward and make best use of these facilities including access to credit and market, etc. Access to credit has been made easy under the programme. The 59-minute loan approval up to ₹1 crore will enable easy access to credit for MSMEs. There is also 2 per cent interest subvention for all GST registered MSMEs, on fresh or incremental loans. For exporters who receive loans in the pre-shipment and post-shipment period, the interest rebate has been increased from 3 per cent to 5 per cent. All companies with a turnover more than ₹500 crore, must now compulsorily be brought on the Trade Receivables e-Discounting System (TReDS). Joining this portal will enable entrepreneurs to access credit from banks, based on their upcoming receivables. This will resolve their problems of cash cycle. To ease access to markets, public sector companies have now been asked to compulsorily procure 25 per cent, instead of 20 per cent of their total purchases, from MSMEs. Out of the 25 per cent procurement mandated from MSMEs, 3 per cent must be reserved for women entrepreneurs. For technology upgradation, 20 hubs will be formed across the country, and 100 spokes in the form of tool rooms will be established. Under ease of doing business, returns under 8 labour laws and 10 Union regulations must now be filed only once a year. The establishments to be visited by an Inspector will be decided through a computerised random allotment. Under air pollution and water pollution laws, now both these have been merged as a single consent.
Source: Fibre2fashion
The finance ministry said on Thursday that GST refund of Rs 82,775 crore to exporters has been cleared as on October 31, which is 93.8 per cent of the total such claims with the tax authorities. In a statement, the ministry said Rs 5,400 crore worth GST refund is still pending with the government and that is being “expeditiously processed”. “As on October 31, 2018, total GST refunds to the tune of Rs 82,775 crore have been disposed by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and the state authorities out of the total refund claims of Rs 88,175 crore received so far,” the ministry said. It added that, the disposal rate of Goods and Services Tax (GST) refunds is 93.8 per cent as on October 31. Giving the refunds’ break-up, the ministry further said that Rs 42,935 crore of IGST refunds have been disposed of as on October 31, which is 93.27 per cent of the total such claims. As much as Rs 3,096 crore worth of IGST refund claims are held up on account of “various deficiencies” which have been communicated to exporters for remedial action. With regard to refund of input tax credit claims, the ministry said of the total claims of Rs 42,145 crore, the pendency as on October 31 stood at Rs 2,305 crore. “Provisional/final order has been issued in case of (ITC) refunds amounting to Rs 34,602 crore. In claims amounting to Rs 5,239 crore, deficiency memos have been issued by respective GST authorities,” the statement said. The ministry said there are concerns that there is a growing pendency of GST refunds and sought to assure the exporters that there is no let up in the sanction of GST refunds. “The pending GST refund claims amounting to Rs 5,400 crore are being expeditiously processed so as to provide relief to eligible exporters. Refund claims without any deficiency are being cleared expeditiously,” it said. Efforts are being made continuously to clear all the pending refund claims, where ever requisite information is provided and found eligible, it said. “Co-operation of the exporter community is solicited to ensure that they respond to the deficiency memos and errors communicated by Centre and State GST as well as Customs Authorities and also exercise due diligence while filing GSTR 1 and GSTR 3B returns as well as Shipping Bills,” the statement added.
Source: Financial Express
Indian economy will expand 7.4 per cent in 2018, but the growth will slow down to 7.3 per cent in the next year as domestic demand tapers on higher borrowing cost due to rising interest rates, Moody's Investors Service said Thursday. Stating that borrowing costs have already increased on higher interest rates, Moody’s said it expects the Reserve Bank will continue to steadily raise the benchmark rate through 2019, which will further dampen domestic demand. Indian economy will expand 7.4 per cent in 2018, but the growth will slow down to 7.3 per cent in the next year as domestic demand tapers on higher borrowing cost due to rising interest rates, Moody’s Investors Service said Thursday. In its report titled ‘Global Macro Outlook 2019-20′, Moody’s said the economy grew 7.9 per cent in the first half (January-June) of 2018, which reflects post demonetisation base effect. Stating that borrowing costs have already increased on higher interest rates, Moody’s said it expects the Reserve Bank will continue to steadily raise the benchmark rate through 2019, which will further dampen domestic demand. “These factors will limit the pace of the Indian economy’s growth over the next few years, with real GDP growth of 7.3 per cent in 2019 and 2020, from around 7.4 per cent in 2018,” Moody’s said. It said the greatest downside risk to India’s growth prospects stem from concerns about its financial sector. “The impact of higher global oil prices compounded by sharp rupee depreciation raises the cost of households’ consumption basket, and will weigh on households’ capacity for other expenditures. Borrowing costs have already risen because of tightening monetary policy,” it said. Moody’s said, in the short term while measures to stabilise the financial sector are put in place, credit growth is likely to slow. “Downside risks from a prolonged liquidity squeeze for non-bank financial institutions, which could lead to a sharper slowdown in their credit provision, remain,” it added. Moody’s said global economic growth will slow in 2019 and 2020 to a little under 2.9 per cent from an estimated 3.3 per cent in 2018 and 2017. The US-based agency expects trade and geopolitical frictions between the US and China to persist for some time. “This will weigh on the global trade growth and will reshape trade flows and supply chains,” Moody’s added.
Source: Financial Express
The government is making a mockery of itself in an effort to subsidize energy needs for textile exporting sector in Punjab to make it competitive to the regional exporters. The intent is right; but the execution is messy. The Punjab industry till September 2018 was getting 22 percent of its gas from Sui system while the remaining 78 percent was allocated from imported RLNG – the system gas is at substantially low rates to imported RLNG. The industry norm was to use system gas for peak hours charge of grid electricity and use grid power for non-peak hours (majority of 24-hours). By this mechanism, the average cost of energy was approximately Rs10.5 per unit. In an effort to reduce the effective rate, the ECC decided in Oct18, to allocate 300 mmcfd of gas to the industry with 50:50 ratio of system gas and RLNG. The industry was happy and they started using as much gas as they can by running captive power plants. The industry prefers captive power plants over grid electricity as for latter there are breakages – on average, the grid system gets interrupted once or twice a day which causes unnecessary delays and costs. It is best to have the industry on the grid to dilute the impact of additional capacity payment for new plants. The ideal solution is to immediately work on fixing grid transmission issues in clusters where industry operates in Punjab. While the industry is still using grid power for non-peak hours and is already taking brunt of grid breakages. This column criticized the decision of supplying gas to the industry on the premise that there is a case of excess capacity at grid and government (in turn consumers) has to pay for capacity charge irrespective of usage of power. Thus, especially in winters, when the grid load is low and gas requirement is high, it is best to have Punjab textile industry on grid electricity. For details read “Gas or grid power to the exporters” published on 16th Oct 2018. The idea is to not use inefficient captive power plants on gas and then subsidize them on top; rather a better mechanism could be to give system electricity at subsidized rates to the industry. Somehow, the recommendation was partially heard by a committee comprising of SNGPL and couple of ministry representatives. Earlier this week, the committee notified that the industry will get 185 mmcfd of gas with no allowance for operating captive power plants. However, the petroleum ministry or other relevant key government representatives have no clue of what is the rationale behind the committee thought process. What is the rationale for 185 mmcfd? The gas is either used to run power for spinning and weaving and for producing steam in value addition. According to industry sources, the processed gas use is mere 45 mmcfd. And even for that, most of the companies are using combined cycle plants which are best to operate either only on gas or solely on system power. A very few firms have independent steamers which can be used on gas while the rest of production can rely on system electricity. Hence, if the gas is not allowed to be used for captive power generation, for most of the industry, the gas is of no use for dying and other processes. Meanwhile the textile players, based on ECC decision, stopped using grid power and were totally relying on gas, if they could. But to add to their misery, the gas in October was billed solely based on RLNG i.e. Rs17.5 per unit on prevailing market rates. This is a comedy of errors, where not only industry but the government is worse off too in the process. The industry does not know what to do – whether to use gas or grid power or a combination of both. The government officials have nothing concrete to say as there is an ECC decision notified by OGRA which is not implemented and then there is a committee notification which cannot overrule the ECC decision. This is of lack of technical capacity in key government departments and more importantly, it is due to poor coordination amongst various government departments. The need of building capacity in energy chain and the need to have one power regulator cannot be overemphasized.
Source: Brecorded
Arvind, one of India’s biggest conglomerates, is engaged in businesses across verticals such as textiles (fabric and garment manufacturing cum sale), branded apparel retailing, engineering, advanced materials (home textiles for infra, healthcare, energy, aviation and automotive clients) and water treatment. Recently, the NCLT (National Company Law Tribunal) allowed Arvind to demerge the branded retail and engineering divisions into Arvind Fashions and Anup Engineering, respectively. The effective date of demerger and record date for allotment of shares is likely to be November 29. The demerged companies (Arvind Fashions, Anup Engineering) are likely to be listed on the bourses in February next year.
Source: Money Control
Version 2.0 of the ‘GOTS Monitor’ software tool allows firms to measure water and energy usage. The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) has released the latest version of its ‘Monitor’ software which allows its licensees to evaluate the consumption of water and energy during the manufacture of certified organic textiles. GOTS requires companies that certify to its standard provide data on energy and water resources and their consumption per kg of textile output, – along with target goals and procedures to reduce energy and water use. The certifier also says the new Central Database System (CDS) will be ready for pilot trials in January 2019. This new chain of custody platform is a joint development of GOTS and Textile Exchange and will integrate scope certificates, transaction certificates, and volume reconciliation across all supply chain stakeholders and certification bodies.
Source: Eco Textiles
Suppliers in the textile industry experience increasingly more financial pressure from their customers, says a recent report. The results also show that there are significant regional differences in purchasing practices, with North American retailers forecasting the way orders are spread more consistently than their European counterparts. About 55.4 per cent of suppliers had been affected by high-pressure cost negotiation strategies, as per the second Better Buying Purchasing Practices Index (BBPPI), supported by C&A Foundation and Humanity United. The use of negotiation strategies is increased since the last report. Some of the negotiation strategies include not paying for samples (61.4 per cent), not paying in time (only 64.5 per cent of retailers and brands paid bulk order invoices on time) or not paying the full price as indicated in a purchase order (27.3 per cent). Over 20 per cent of suppliers indicated that fewer than 80 per cent of the orders received from retailers or brands were priced to cover the cost of social, environmental, quality, and other compliance requirements. All in all, the report concludes that the more pressure brands or retailers place on cost negotiations, the more likely the price does not cover all the cost. This shows the need for retailers and brands to ensure their negotiation processes promote fair and sustainable partnerships. Two of the categories measured by the index are Planning and Forecasting, and Sourcing and Order Placement, which captures data related to the supplier’s ability to properly allocate human resources, develop accurate costs, and deliver goods on time. These tasks depend heavily on the accuracy of retailers and brands to forecast the way orders are spread throughout the year. Interestingly, the index shows a significant difference between European and North American practices. The report states that North American retailers forecast more consistently and accurately than European retailers, which enhances the ability of suppliers to plan its productions. Considering these discrepancies, the report shows that industry-wide transformation of purchasing practices demands action, said Better Buying in a press release. “From these actionable insights, retailers and brands can work to streamline their operations, create stronger partnerships with suppliers and monitor their efforts over time. In fact, a few brands have informed us that they have set up internal improvement projects based on the BBPPI results. Similarly, suppliers can better evaluate current and potential customers and business partners and understand how to allocate resources more efficiently. Suppliers that rate their customers help provide retailers and brands with critical information needed to drive purchasing practices improvements over time,” said Marsha Dickson, Ph.D., Better Buying co-founder. The index includes ratings from 319 suppliers across 38 countries and measures the performance of 67 retailers and brands. This is up sharply from the last index, which saw participation from 156 suppliers across 24 countries and included 65 retailers and brands. Buyer performance is measured against seven key categories of purchasing practices: Planning and Forecasting, Design and Development, Cost and Cost Negotiation, Sourcing and Order Placement, Payment and Terms, Management of the Purchasing Process, and Win-Win Sustainable Partnership (formerly CSR Harmonisation). The BBPPI’s next ratings cycle begins in November 2018. Better Buying is the first initiative to focus on empowering suppliers and amplifying their voices. The platform tracks and releases performance scores and analysis about purchasing practices, allowing trends to be uncovered. The index uses data submitted anonymously by suppliers through its online platform to rate the purchasing practices of buyers within the apparel, footwear, and household textiles industries globally.
Source: Fibre2fashion
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1371.27 |
USD/Ton |
-0.58% |
11/8/2018 |
|
VSF |
2108.53 |
USD/Ton |
-0.34% |
11/8/2018 |
|
ASF |
3025.60 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
Polyester POY |
1335.89 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
Nylon FDY |
3336.10 |
USD/Ton |
-0.86% |
11/8/2018 |
|
40D Spandex |
4823.63 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
Nylon POY |
1501.97 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
3509.41 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
Polyester FDY |
5466.30 |
USD/Ton |
0.13% |
11/8/2018 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1617.50 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
3090.59 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
Polyester DTY |
3177.24 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2830.63 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
2057.99 |
USD/Ton |
-0.35% |
11/8/2018 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2960.61 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2238.51 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2527.35 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
3133.91 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2686.21 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.34 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.82 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.15 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.66 |
USD/Meter |
-0.22% |
11/8/2018 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.70 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/8/2018 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14442 USD dtd. 08/11/2018). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
German textile and fashion sector is looking towards Bahrain to improve their access to the Gulf market, according to a German trade delegation that arrived in Bahrain. The first-ever trade delegation comprises five companies and arrived here from Riyadh. Members of the delegation told Tribune that Bahrain is an attractive market and also one that they envision as a hub for the GCC. “We are here to represent the Germany textile and fashion industry and also to find opportunities on how we can collaborate with companies from Bahrain and form a fruitful partnership. Bahrain is a good market in the region, we want to cover Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and other countries in the region. We are here to explore the market here and participate in this market,” head of the delegation, Sven Eriskat told Tribune. “We understand that many companies are using Bahrain to reach other countries in the Gulf. It would be a great way to reach the markets in the Gulf,” he said. “We have had many German delegations that have come here before but this is the first time a German delegation is here representing the textile and fashion industry. This being the first mission, it will be a learning process. “This is the first ignition and if we find out that there is an opportunity then we will surely come back and we will come back with a bigger delegation with specialties like medical textiles, medical textiles, technical textiles, and many others. This is going to help the Bahraini side as well, it will be a win-win situation.”
Source: News of Bahrain
Chinese Ambassador to Uzbekistan Jiang Yan got acquainted with the project of the joint venture Uzwoolentex, which is being implemented on the basis of the complex “Narimteks” in the Fergana region of Uzbekistan, Uzbek media reported. The project is being implemented with the participation of Chinese capital, and the project’s the total value is $8 million. The Narimteks LLC was opened in 2008 and was engaged in the tailoring of women’s clothing at ordinary sewing machines. In 2012-2015, together with Chinese partners, the production process was modernized. Modern sewing, weaving and finishing machines were delivered and installed. As a result, the company mastered the production of coats, jackets, suits and took a firm place in the consumer market, new jobs were created.
Source: Azer News
The US has taken a well-thought-out decision to exempt India from sanctions regarding the development of the strategically-located Chabahar port in Iran. The construction of the railway line connecting Afghanistan with Iran will also remain exempt from Washington's punitive sanctions. This significant decision by the Donald Trump administration is a clear vindication of the role India has been playing in developing Chabahar, and its strategic value for Afghan reconstruction and development. Trump's decision will undeniably go a long way in safeguarding both Indian and American interests in Afghanistan. According to a US state department spokesman, "(T)he president's South Asia strategy underscores our ongoing support of Afghanistan's economic growth and development as well as our close partnership with India... This exception relates to reconstruction assistance and economic development for Afghanistan. These activities are vital for the ongoing support of Afghanistan’s growth and humanitarian relief." This is certainly welcome news for India that has already committed significant political and diplomatic resources to the Chabahar project. Kabul, New Delhi and Tehran have been making concerted efforts to improve energy security and regional connectivity by developing the Chabahar port on the Gulf of Oman. It may be recalled that in 2003, New Delhi signed a deal with Tehran to renew the Chabahar port project. Pakistan was denying India access to Afghanistan, including the ability to send supplies to Kabul. India responded by building a road from Zaranj, on the Afghanistan–Iran border, to Delaram, getting vital access to Kabul from the southwest. After a long set of discussions, India, Iran and Afghanistan signed a pact in May 2016 that entailed the establishment of a transit and transport corridor among the three countries using Chabahar port as one of the regional hubs. The first trilateral meeting reviewing the implementation was held last month in Tehran. It is also hoped that once fully operational, the Chabahar port will be able to counter Pakistan's Gwadar port, which is backed by China. India is anxious about the Gwadar port as it gives Pakistan and China the ability to threaten Indian naval activity and maritime interests in the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea. The Pakistanis view Chabahar emerging as a road-and-rail transit hub to serve Afghanistan and the landlocked Central Asian states, which threatens the commercial prospects of Gwadar. Tehran seeks to benefit the most from the Chabahar port as it will be able to connect Iran with international community and recover from the crippling sanctions that have been re-imposed upon it. Afghanistan is keen to renew ties with India, besides becoming less dependent on Pakistan in terms of trade. Pakistan sees its relations with Afghanistan through the prism of its relations with India. Its military seeks a veto on Afghanistan’s relations with India — something Kabul does not accept. Changing this dynamic requires getting rid of Pakistan’s stranglehold on Afghan politics and economy. As Pakistan continues to refuse Indian goods access to travel overland to Afghanistan, the Chabahar port ensures that Pakistan has no role to play in India's access to Afghanistan, Central Asia and then Russia. India’s first major shipment of 1,30,000 tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan through Chabahar Port was dispatched from the western seaport of Kandla in October 2017, launching a trade route bypassing Pakistan. India's external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj had termed the shipment as "a gift from the people of India to our Afghan brethren" as well as the "the starting point of our journey to realise the full spectrum of connectivity from culture to commerce, from traditions to technology, from investments to information technology, from services to strategy and from people to politics".India was therefore involved in intense negotiations with the Trump administration as it tried to secure a waiver for the Chabahar project. When the defence and foreign ministers of India and the US held talks under the two-plus-two format, Chabahar was one of the topmost agendas. That the US was favourably inclined towards India’s request had became obvious when US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of South and Central Asia Region Alice Wells mentioned India's positive role in Afghanistan with particular reference to Chabahar. When asked about the impact of the American sanctions on the Chabahar project, Wells said, "We very much appreciate what India has done to provide both assistance to Afghanistan, including through using Chabahar for the delivery of wheat. We also very much appreciate what India has done to allow Afghanistan to diversify its trade relationships, and again Chabahar has played a role there. So those factors will certainly be taken under consideration." It was widely speculated that Trump’s ill-fated decision to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal would have far-reaching implications on both India and Afghanistan. Kabul's interests could have become vulnerable in the event of sanctions on Chabahar. It is important to understand the context. The Taliban has been historically considered by Tehran as one of its enemies. During its initial military campaign to take control of Afghanistan in the 1990s, the Taliban used to target the Afghan Shia population due to its religious affiliation. It may also be recalled that Iran had almost declared a war against the Taliban-ruled Afghanistan when 11 Iranian diplomats and a journalist were killed by the outfit in 1998. Iran was also a part of the regional grouping (that included India and Russia) that had supported the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance. Tehran has historical ties with the Shias and Hazaras of Afghanistan, which gives Tehran the capacity to act as a 'spoiler' in the US-led efforts aimed at ensuring peace and stability in Afghanistan. An important factor that seems to have motivated the Trump administration to grant a waiver to the Chabahar port is that if Afghanistan becomes a theatre of US-Iranian confrontation, any politically-negotiated settlement with the Afghan Taliban will become even more difficult. Facing severe security threats from both the Afghan Taliban and Islamic State-K, the Afghan government cannot afford to become another battlefield between the US and Iran. Clearly, it is in the interest of the US to prevent this worst-case scenario from happening. With terrorists doing all they can to underline the growing vulnerabilities of the Afghan State, the Ashraf Ghani government’s capacity is already under siege. If the US had not made the exemption on Chabahar, the impact of sanctions regime on Iran would have been visible on Afghanistan which needs Iran's continued support for the much-needed infrastructure development. Thinking strategically, the Trump administration has been wise in not imposing sanctions on the Chabahar port, as its successful operation would bring Afghanistan and India closer, theoretically curtailing the influence of Pakistan and China.
Source: The Economic Times
KARACHI: Agriculture and textile sectors are likely to be the primary beneficiaries if Pakistan’s exports to China get doubled under the renewed discussions between the two countries, a brokerage said on Thursday. Currently, the bilateral trade is immensely tilting in favour of China with Pakistan’s exports much below than the imports from the neighbouring country. Pakistan’s exports to China amounted to $1.75 billion in the fiscal year of 2017/18, while imports from China were recorded at $11.5 billion, resulting in trade deficit of $9.75 billion. In 2017, cotton and yarn exports to China fetched $940 million, followed by ores, slag and ash ($187m), copper and articles ($134m), cereals ($94m), raw hides and skins ($71m), articles of apparel and clothing accessories, knitted and non-knitted ($70m), fish and crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic invertebrates ($60m), edible fruit and nuts, peel of citrus fruit or melons ($39m), salt, sulphur, earths and stone, plastering materials, lime and cement ($38m), and mineral fuels, mineral oils and products of their distillation, bituminous substances ($31). Cotton and yarn exports account for 51 percent of total exports, followed by metals (17 percent). Other top commodities are cereals, leather, fisheries, fruits, construction and allied material and minerals. “We believe companies like Nishat Chunian, Nishat Mills, and Gul Ahmed would be beneficiaries as they are already exporting yarn to China,” Topline Research said in a report. “Also this would be opportunity for all the players to make entry into Chinese market.” Pakistan is currently exporting two billion dollars worth of rice to global markets, which can further be enhanced by exporting to China. Matco Foods and Habib ADM are likely to benefit from increase in rice exports to China. “Sugar sector can also benefit as the government already approved export of surplus sweetener. Government officials have already underlined rice, sugar, textile and agricultural commodities, like fruits, in a plan to increase exports to China. A Pakistani delegation recently concluded a four-day visit to China aimed at to garner support of the world’s second biggest economy for the country’s patchy economic growth. Chinese government agreed to widen market access to Pakistani exports, which are estimated to double from the existing level. The government has been stressing the need of renegotiation of free trade agreement signed between the two countries, while industry officials have been pointing at mispricing in cross-border trade for long. A business advocacy group emphasised standardisation and transparency in data collection. “There are great discrepancies between Pakistan’s and China’s reported data (particularly for Pakistan’s imports from China, where the discrepancy is $5.5 billion), due to possible under-invoicing, which would mean that severe revenue losses and tax evasion are taking place,” Pakistan Business Council said in a report.
Source: The News
A tax stamp policy aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of local textile producers is to be rolled out on November 15, Trade Minister Alan Kwadwo Kyeremanten has told Parliament. “The introduction of tax stamps on textile prints will give buyers the confidence and assurance that they are buying genuine textile fabrics and that local designs have not been pirated,” he told Parliament on Wednesday when he appeared before the House to answer questions relating to his ministry. According to the minister, the tax stamp policy measure will also ensure that appropriate duties are paid on imported wax-prints. To this end, government has outlined six new policy measures to be introduced with effect from November 15, 2018. They include: introduction of tax stamps for locally manufactured as well as imported textiles; introduction of a single, dedicated entry corridor for imported textiles products -Tema Port. Others are: implementation of a textile import management system to coordinate all imports of textiles, including vetting designs and logos. There is also provision of support and incentives for local manufacturers to improve their competitiveness, and conducting market surveillance exercises by the textile task-force to monitor compliance with the new policy. Furthermore, he added, local manufacturing companies are not against the importation of textile prints as long as the appropriate duties are paid and there is no piracy of designs and logos. Establishment of the Ghana International Trade Commission (GITC), he noted, will among other things provide oversight in the textile sector to protect domestic manufacturers from unfair trade practices as stipulated under WTO rules. The ministry, through the Swiss Ghana Intellectual Property Project, is also training Police and Customs Officers in the enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights – which will contribute to finding appropriate solutions to some of the challenges confronting the textiles sector. He also reiterated government’s commitment to implementing these measures by working closely with relevant MDAs, particularly the Customs Division of Ghana Revenue Authority, National Security, Workers Unions, wholesale and retail traders to enhance competitiveness of the textiles sector.
Background
The textile manufacturing sector in Ghana has been confronted with very significant challenges over the last three decades, including piracy of indigenous designs and logos of wax-prints, as well as non-payment of duties and taxes on imported textile prints. As an illustration, the total revenue from duties on imported textiles recorded for 2016 was only GH¢1.7m against a projected revenue of over GH¢56m. This is based on the fact that the total local demand for wax-prints is estimated at 120m yards per annum, while total production from the existing three (3) local manufacturers is less than 40m yards – leaving a deficit of 80m yards imported annually. According to the minister, unfair trade practices in the textile sector have literally collapsed local manufacturing companies – leading to a significant reduction in the number of employees in the sector, from a record high of 30,000 in the early 90s to a current level of less than 5,000. He explained that it was against this background that the ministry on June 1st 2018, initiated a nationwide stakeholder consultation exercise in Accra, to develop a comprehensive and integrated reform programme to provide a sustainable solution to this canker. The consultation exercise involved all the major stakeholders including Management and Local Unions of the Local Textiles Manufacturers; Leadership of both the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU); and the Textiles, Garment and Leather Employees Union (TGLEU); Wholesalers and Retailers Associations; the Consumer Protection Agency and relevant Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs).
Source: Ghana Web
The Government of Ghana recently constituted a textile import management body to oversee textile imports, according to trade and industry minister Alan Kyerematen. Vetting of designs, management of quantities will be among its the responsibilities of the body and it will also act as a single sourcing agency for all imports of wax prints, he said. It will be mandatory for all importers to place their orders through this agency, the minister said at a town hall meeting with textile workers, who were sensitised on the implementation of the Textile Industry Reforms Programme. A Textiles Anti-piracy Taskforce has been formed to monitor markets and ensure due diligence, media reports in Ghana quoted the minister as saying. The steps are intended to protect the Ghanaian industry from fake imports, he clarified. Some policies in the pipeline to enhance the competitiveness of the local textiles industry include introduction of tax stamp for locally-manufactured and genuinely-imported textiles and starting a designated entry corridor.
Source: Fibre2fashion
