The country's textiles sector, which currently employs over 45 million people, will require 17 million additional workforce by 2022, the government said Thursday. The textiles ministry said in the last four years, 8.58 lakh persons have been trained in partnership with 58 government and industry partners to meet the sector's need for a skilled workforce. The ministry said its strategy to boost exports involves diversification of markets, positioning India in value chain and promoting collaborative exports. Towards diversification of textiles exports, 12 markets in Vietnam, Indonesia, South Korea, Australia, Egypt, turkey, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Brazil, Chile, Columbia and Peru have been identified. The ministry said it also plans to pursue strategic engagement with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on the Fabric-Forward Policy.
Source: Economic Times
The Goods and Services Tax Council on Saturday cut the tax rates on 23 commonly used items, including TV screens, movie tickets and power banks, but deferred a tax cut on cement owing to its huge revenue implication. The move was in line with the policy of reducing the tax rates to boost compliance and consumption and giving a leg-up to industries hamstrung by high input costs. The rate cuts would be effective from January 1, 2019. The revenue impact of the latest rate cuts, the fifth round of rate rationalisation undertaken by the council since the GST’s July 2017 launch, is estimated to be Rs 5,500 crore a year. It is not immediately clear whether and how much of the relief would be passed on to the consumers by the manufacturers, but analysts said given a slowdown in consumption, many of the items that saw tax cuts could become cheaper. The council also decided to review the taxation of the real estate sector and consider if small services industries could be brought under the benign tax composition scheme. The rate reductions are also seen to be driven by political considerations. The election-bound Narendra Modi government is keen to pander to the small industries, which have borne the brunt of GST and demonetisation. The council trimmed the 28% slab by bringing down the tax rate on seven items in the highest tax bracket, thereby leaving only 28 items, mostly “luxury and sin goods”, in the slab. The rates of 16 other items have been cut from 18% to 12% or 5%.The 28% slab originally consisted of 230 items. “The 28% bracket is gradually moving to sunset… The next target will be rate rationalisation in cement as and when affordability improves,” finance minister Arun Jaitley said. Apart from cement, certain auto parts also continue to attract 28% rate. The government has made it clear that its objective is to move towards a simpler two-slab GST structure of standard and merit rates, although a senior former government functionary said recently this could materialise only in the fifth year from now. A report by the country’s largest bank, State Bank of India, estimated that federal and state governments could face a shortfall of about Rs 90,000 crore in GST tax collections in the current fiscal year against the target of Rs 12.9 lakh crore. Despite the GST revenue shortfall, Jaitley reiterated the Centre’s fiscal deficit target of 3.3% of GDP for the current fiscal would be met. “At the stage, when we are looking at the (revenue) target, indirect tax is a little behind the scheduled direct tax, the direct tax is ahead of schedule. Our non-tax revenue also seems to be moving ahead fairly well. At the moment, the government is quite optimistic that we will be able to meet fiscal deficit target,” Jaitley said. As per the latest data, the fiscal deficit in the April-October period stood at 103.9% of budget estimates. Dispelling feaRs of a major impact on revenue collection, revenue secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said the loss of Rs 5,500 crore is for the entire fiscal, so for the three months it would be one-fourth of this. This shortfall would be more than met by measures to improve tax compliance through various means, he added. According to Jaitley, tepid growth in revenue from service sector was the main reason for the lower-than-expected revenue GST collection in the first eight months of the fiscal. He said competition in the telecom and aviation sector had an adverse e impact on GST collection from these sectors. “However, the government cannot do much about this,” Jaitley said. The minister added that absence of a composition scheme for small service providers was keeping these entities out of the GST net for fear of 18% tax. The council constituted a committee of state finance ministers to study if composition scheme could be extended to these entities. Further, a separate committee was constituted to study the taxation in the real estate sector where houses under construction are covered under a 12% GST, but the transfer of owned hip of built houses was outside the tax’s purview. The tax differential, according to Jaitley, was responsible for buyeRs ’ reservations in such houses leading to a slowdown in real estate sector. The GST council, in its January meeting, would consider the committee’s report. The report of another ministeRs ’ committee formed earlier on providing relief to micro, small and medium enterprises as well as examine the feasibility of cess for funding natural disasteRs would also be taken up in the next meeting. Moreover, the council constituted a seven-member ministeRs ’ panel to study the revenue trend, including analysing the reasons for structural patterns affecting the revenue collection in some of the states. The study would include the underlying reasons for deviation from the revenue collection targets vis-a-vis original assumptions discussed during the design of GST system, its implementation and related structural issues. Further, the council also approved simplication in the return-filing process. It approved a single cash ledger for each tax head as against at least 20 or so currently, Pandey said. He said the new simplified return-filing system would be launched on trial basis from April 1. To alleviate the problems of exporters in getting refund, the council decided to launch a pilot scheme for constituting a single authority for disbursing refunds, Pandey said.
Source: Financial Express
ONE of India's biggest and international acclaimed textile firms Shreejikrupa Spinners is considering investing over $40 million towards setting up a plant in Bulawayo soon. Industry and Commerce Deputy Minister Raj Modi told Sunday News Business that the Indian had shown interest in setting up a polyester manufacturing plant in Bulawayo. This comes after his successful business tour of the Asian country two weeks ago. "I can confirm that Shreejikrupa Spinners has indicated intention to come and set up a polyester plant here in Bulawayo whereby the company will come with the latest technology of recycling plastic into polyester," he said. A number of textile players in most developed countries have resorted to recycling plastic bottles into soft polyester thread to make eco-friendly clothing. Plastic bottles are made of polyethylene (PET), a form of polyester that is mostly associated with a fabric used in clothing and interiors. However, both are actually polymers, a derivative of fossil fuels. The fabric made out of the PET fibre is basically polypropylene and it is ten times stronger than a normal polyester fabric. "The company officials expressed interest to come for feasibility studies as early as next month thus they are only waiting for us to give us the nod to visit the country. If they are satisfied with the prospects of recouping their investment they are likely to pour in as much as over $40 million into the project," said Dep Minister Modi. He said the project was expected to play a massive impact in the revival of Bulawayo's industry and contribute immensely to the country's economic turnaround efforts. "The project will obviously benefit Bulawayo immensely in terms of employment creation, not only from it but downstream industries as well. It will obviously fill the massive void of unemployment, which has been accelerated by the effects of de-industrialisation. On the other hand the investor we are talking about has big capacity to fulfil the local demand for polyester because at the moment we are relying on imports," said Dep Minister Modi. Prospects of Shreejikrupa Spinners setting up a plant in Bulawayo are high in light of the fact that the Government has designated the city as the beef and leather value chain and textiles and clothing Special Economic Zone (SEZ). By their nature SEZs are attractive to foreign investors as they cover a broad range of economic activities, such as free trade zones, export-processing zones, industrial parks, economic and technology development zones, high-tech zones, science and innovation parks, free ports, enterprise zones, and others. The country's textile industry has over the past two decades been at its lowest ebb. Zimbabwe Clothing Manufacturers Association chairperson Mr Jeremy Youmans said the country's textile sector was still reeling under a myriad of challenges with the revival of most of the companies uncertain. "The textile sector continues to struggle with no end in sight of the revival of David Whitehead and Kadoma Textiles constrained in its range of goods and quantity it can supply. The clothing sector can take all of this output many times over, but has to import the 90 percent of fabrics required which are not made in Zimbabwe. There is hope that Merlin in Bulawayo will succeed in getting up and running and they are intending to make poly cotton fabrics, which will fill a big gap in the market. As a (clothing) sector, we continue to support the textile mills as best as we can," said Mr Youmans. Shreejikrupa Spinners is a fast growing company headquartered in Rajpipla with a textile division, producing a range of products, and a global trading. Established in 2011 as a textile spinning plant with 28 000 spindles in Amletha Village, Rajpipla, Shreejikrupa has grown from strength to strength from its humble beginnings, with steady growth in its textile division and a constant outlook of diversifying its operation. The company offers a wide assortment of products that includes surgical cotton, sewing thread, slub yarn, citra yarn, knitting yarn, mélange yarn, weaving yarn and multifilament twisted yarn.
Source: 24 News
New Delhi: The Public Accounts Committee has pulled up the textiles ministry for not taking "immediate necessary" measures in a case where undue benefit was given to a private party by Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC). According to the PAC report tabled in the Lok Sabha Wednesday, the Executive Committee of AEPC had extended unfair benefits in letting out office space at Bhikaji Cama Place to Teesta Urja Limited (TUL) in 2007, which resulted in a loss of Rs 17.42 crore to the Council. " the Ministry of Textiles had not taken immediate necessary measures to resolve the aforesaid discrepancy highlighted by audit," the PAC report said. The report further said that the textiles ministry remained a "mute spectator" instead of taking the officials of AEPC to task. The panel observed that while the AEPC had purchased the office out of the export promotion fund and fashion design cum office building reserve fund in 1991, with the grant from the government of India, the Executive Committee of AEPC has "miserably failed" in enforcing relevant financial rules. The committee sought to know whether responsibility has been fixed against officials responsible for the lapses in discharging fiduciary duties and appropriate action taken against the officials. Noting that an application is pending with the NCLT with regard to the management and functioning of AEPC, the panel sought to be apprised of the arrangements made by the textiles ministry to oversee the functioning of the council, before a decision on the matter is taken by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). The ministry in 2016 had asked the Corporate Affairs Ministry to appoint a government administrator and supersede the executive body of the council. The Corporate Affairs Ministry has filed an interlocutory application before the NCLT.
Source: Economic Times
Maharashtra is capitalising on the problems faced by textile chains in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, by inviting them to invest in its domain. Textile units have been reeling under the impact of power cuts and frequent queries from the pollution control boards in the two southern states. Maharashtra's textile minister Subhash Deskmukh urged units to invest in the state, to enable the state government to make Solapur a uniform and textile hub. In order to intensify the appeal, the state government is organizing a three-day Uniform, Garment and Fabric Manufacturers Fair in Bengaluru between January 8 and 10, 2019. Since its launch nearly three years ago, nearly 400 textile units have been set up in the Solapur textile hub, which the government of Maharashtra plans to raise to 2,000 by 2022. “Our move is to give an equal opportunity to all stakeholders from the textiles industry to become part of it. All types of uniforms; be it school, industrial, hospital, work wear or hotel staff wear, will be made available under one roof at the venue. The fair will see brands, retailers, dealers, manufacturers, wholesalers, retail chains, semi wholesalers, traders, distributors, e-commerce agents, retail chains participating in the Fair in large numbers. Solapur has the unique distinction of being the country’s centre for the high-quality uniforms and allied garments,” said Deshmukh. In its new textile policy, the Maharashtra government announced a power tariff of Rs 3 per unit for co-operative cotton mills and Rs 2 per unit for power looms, cloth processing, and garment and hosiery units in the state. In an initiative to promote processing of cotton, silk and other raw material used in traditional and man-made textiles, Maharashtra intends to invest as much as Rs 46.49 billion between 2018 and 23, under various schemes to be implemented under its “Fibre to Fashion” mission. The state aims to generate 1 million jobs by 2023.
Source: Business Standard
India needs to open up its dredging market to boost trade by its major ports which at present cannot handle very large vessels in absence of proper draft depth, government think tank Niti Aayog has said. More competition mainly from global players in dredging activities would help increase and maintain draft depth at ports and attract large vessels, enabling them to become hub ports, the Aayog mentioned. At present, the Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) and a limited set of private vendors serve the Indian dredging market, limiting competition. “The government needs to open up the dredging market to attract more players, particularly international players, in dredging activities to increase and maintain draft depth at ports to attract large vessels and enable them to become hub ports,” Niti Aayog has said. Foreign players will be attracted to the market if the government takes measures such as consolidating dredging contracts across cohorts of ports and withdrawing, at least temporarily, the right to first refusal given to Indian vendors, it said. To enable major ports to handle large vessels, the government has already made an action plan to increase the draft depth of ports. Most major ports have already achieved a draft depth of 14 metres or more except Kolkata Port, where deeper draft has not been feasible because of the riverine nature of the port. Some major ports are striving to achieve deeper drafts up to 18 metres. The outer harbour in Visakhapatnam has very deep draft of more than 18 metres. Work is in progress to create a draft of more than 18 metres in Mormugao and Kamarajar Port. The Union Cabinet last month approved strategic sale of government stake in Dredging Corporation of India to consortium of four ports namely Vishakhapatnam Port Trust, Paradeep Port Trust, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and Kandla Port Trust. The government currently holds 73.44 per cent in Dredging Corporation of India Ltd (DCIL). The approval is aimed at facilitating the linkage of dredging activities with the ports, keeping in view the role of the DCIL in expansion of dredging activity in the country as well as potential diversification of ports into third party dredging. India has 12 major ports — Kandla, Mumbai, JNPT, Marmugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Ennore, V O Chidambarnar, Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia) which handle approximately 61 per cent of the country’s total cargo traffic.
Source : Financial Express
NEW DELHI: Amitabh Kant on Tuesday said achieving double digit growth in the manufacturing sector on sustainable basis is a “doable challenge” but for that the country needs to integrate with global markets. Referring to the draft report of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) on making India a $5 trillion economy by 2025, he said the plan envisages an annual growth rate of 11.7 per cent. On sectoral basis, growth in the manufacturing gross value added has to be 14.6 per cent year after year, Kant said. “To my mind that‘s a challenge, but it is a doable challenge. We have to be extremely competitive and across chemicals, across automobile, across metals and that would require size and scale,” he said at a CII event attended by industrialists. He said that if manufacturing sector has to grow at 14.6 per cent, then “you have to be a very integral part of the global supply chain” and it cannot be done without looking at global markets. As per the Central Statistics Office (CSO), the growth in the Gross Value Added (GVA) at basic prices for 2017-18 from ‘manufacturing‘ sector was estimated to be 5.1 per cent as compared to growth of 7.9 per cent in 2016-17. “For too long, Indian manufacturing has been looking at domestic markets. One thing is very clear that all of us must realise is that the big bucks are out there in the global markets…therefore, penetrating global markets must be our challenge,” Kant said. He said that no country in the world, may it be Japan or China, has grown without penetrating global markets. Kant urged the industry to create “2-3 global champions” which will lead India into penetrating the global markets. The Niti Aayog official further said he was going through various schemes of textiles ministry. The ministry has a plethora of schemes which have grown over the years, he noted. “I think all of them need to go and we just need to have one simple scheme of creating plug and play world-class facility which will ensure that we make our industry competitive,” Kant said.
Source: Digital Global
NEW DELHI: Textile and apparel player Arvind Ltd Friday said it has inked a pact with JCB India to introduce ready-to-wear industrial uniforms. As per the partnership, the product range will be made available through Arvind and JCB India's distribution network and point-of-sale locations across the country. "Extending textile manufacturing beyond fashion and into areas like safety and protection is one of the areas we are focusing on," Arvind CEO - Advanced Materials Division Division and Arvind Envisol Ashish Kumar said in a statement. The partnership will leverage JCB India's market presence with Arvind's textile manufacturing capabilities to provide industrial wear that will meet the highest standards of safety and protection, he added. Arvind will complement JCB India's safety shoes business with its product basket, including coveralls, dungarees, rainwear, and balaclavas. These products are fire-resistant, chemical-resistant, and shock-resistant. "In India's rapidly growing occupational safety and health market, we look forward to working together to create a market presence for value-added protective wear and personal protective equipment," JCB India MD and CEO Vipin Sondhi said.
Source: Economic Times
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1298.50 |
USD/Ton |
-0.33% |
12/23/2018 |
|
VSF |
1989.73 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
ASF |
2363.21 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
Polyester POY |
1258.69 |
USD/Ton |
-0.69% |
12/23/2018 |
|
Nylon FDY |
2721.49 |
USD/Ton |
-1.05% |
12/23/2018 |
|
40D Spandex |
4762.60 |
USD/Ton |
-0.30% |
12/23/2018 |
|
Nylon POY |
2475.40 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
1454.84 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
Polyester FDY |
3068.91 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
Nylon DTY |
5457.45 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
1519.98 |
USD/Ton |
-0.24% |
12/23/2018 |
|
Polyester DTY |
2591.20 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2678.06 |
USD/Ton |
-0.27% |
12/23/2018 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1954.26 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2880.72 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2504.35 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2099.02 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
2475.40 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2982.06 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.33 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.81 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.11 |
USD/Meter |
-1.28% |
12/23/2018 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.64 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.69 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
12/23/2018 |
Source : Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14476 USD dtd. 23/12/2018). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
Sri Lanka’s Export Development Board (EDB) recently organised an apparel promotion program in collaboration with the Sri Lankan embassy in France at the Apparel Sourcing Paris 2018 Fair for the second consecutive year. EDB promoted a new sector, ‘Sri Lanka fashion designing’, by promoting three fashion designers at the Sri Lanka catwalk held in parallel. The objective of participating in the show was to promote Sri Lanka apparel and other products, and to regain the lost opportunities and increase exports to the EU, through generalised system of preferences plus (GSP+), according to Sri Lankan media reports. Six Sri Lankan companies and two designers participated in the fair. Screenline Holdings (Pvt) Ltd, JIA Moda (Pvt) Ltd., Stylish Garments (Pvt) Ltd., Bernard Botheju Industries (Pvt) Ltd, EL Holdings (Pvt) Ltd, Kuga Holdings (Pvt) Ltd and designers Ajai Vir Singh and Darshi Keerthisena showcased their products at the show. An order worth $800,000 is in the process of being finalised, an EDB spokesman said. Following Sri Lanka’s participation in the fair last year, a buyer from Spain visited Sri Lanka and placed orders to the value of US $ 200,000 for three Spanish brands, the report added. (DS)
Source:Fibre2Fashion
China and the US “made new progress” on the issues of trade balance and intellectual property during a phone call between officials from the two countries, China’s commerce ministry said Sunday. Both sides are engaged in a bruising trade war but relations have thawed since Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump agreed to a 90-day truce earlier this month. “On December 21, China and the US conducted a phone conversation at a vice ministerial level, exchanging views on issues such as trade balance and strengthening intellectual property protection, and made new progress,” the Ministry of Commerce said in a short statement. This is the second such phone call phone call announced by the commerce ministry this week — on Wednesday, Beijing and Washington discussed “economic and trade issues”. China’s legislature on Sunday also announced that it is looking at a new law governing foreign investment that would prevent the forced transfer of technology and give foreign firms the same privileges as Chinese companies. US and EU officials have long complained of a lack of fair access for foreign companies in China, as well as rampant theft of intellectual property.
Source: Financial Express
A flagbearer aspirant of the National Democratic Congress and former CEO of NHIA, Sylvester Mensah has revealed that the textiles and garment industry can create millions of jobs for the youth of Ghana if government adequately invests in that sector through a public-private partnership using a venture capital model. Mr. Mensah said this when he was interacting with branch and constituency executives in the Eastern Region, on Wednesday, December 19, 2018. "When it comes to creating jobs for Ghanaians, there are several Innovative ways that can be done. There is a huge potential for jobs within the textiles and garment industry. China has taken advantage of that and I believe we can also do so. Because of the AGOA, Ghana has a competitive advantage over China in the production and exportation of textiles and garments. This industry can create about a million jobs in each of the ten Regions of this country. If you give me the mandate, I know how to make it happen." Mr. Mensah has observed that Akufo-Addo and the NPP are struggling to create the jobs they have promised because they do not have achievable ideas to implement. He appealed to delegates to put faith in him, give him the mandate so that he can implement the innovative ideas he has to create jobs in order to bring down unemployment drastically and save this country from the national security threat it portends. Mr. Mensah began his campaign tour of the Eastern Region last week and after touring twenty-six constituencies, postponed his meeting with the rest seven in order to submit his nomination forms. Having successfully submitted his forms on Monday, December 17, 2018, Mr. Mensah resumed his tour which took him to five out of the seven constituencies, on Wednesday. The first meeting for the day was held in Akwatia constituency, followed by Kade, Lower West Akim, upper West Akim and Nsawam Adoagyiri constituencies. Branch and constituency executives have expressed their satisfaction with Mr Mensah's message of ensuring unity in the NDC at all times, recognising and acknowledging sacrifices of executives at all levels, creating prosperity for all and giving power back to them. They have also praised Mr Mensah for embarking upon a clean campaign and promised to vote for him as flagbearer of the NDC.
Source: Ghana Web
HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam had become increasingly appealing to large foreign investor groups in the textile and garment industry who wanted to seize opportunities when the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) takes effect in January next year, according to analysts. German-based Amann Group, one of the world’s top three leading producers of high-quality sewing and embroidery thread, is expanding its network to Việt Nam with a new factory being constructed in Tam Thăng Industrial Park in the central province of Quảng Nam. The new facility will be added to Amann’s existing network of factories in various countries across Asia, including Bangladesh, China, India and Indonesia. At the new production site, the group will produce around 2,300 tonnes of sewing thread per year, mainly for the manufacture of apparel and shoes. The first phase of the project is scheduled to commence in late July next year. Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc, the US’ leading developer of spider silk-based yarn, is working with agricultural co-operatives in Quảng Nam to expand mulberry production and develop high-quality silk in Việt Nam. The firm plans to set up a centre for research and development (R&D) of silk, as well as grow about 2,500ha of mulberry to support spider silk in the country. According to Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Việt Nam had been chosen to scale up its spider silk commercialisation efforts as one of the firm’s strategic moves to expand. The domino effect created by FDI expansion in the textile and garment sector has also led to an increase in the number of foreign suppliers of machinery and equipment for the industry. In June, ILLIES Vietnam – a member of the German C. ILLIES & Co and also a leading distributor of industrial textiles machinery and equipment – announced it had expanded its portfolio in the spinning sector. It now provides machines and spare parts for short-staple yarn-spinning systems for the Rieter Group and the local textile market. In the first quarter of 2019, the company will open a repair centre for mechanical and electrical parts of Rieter machines. So far this year, the Việt Nam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) had welcomed many foreign textile and garment producers visiting to explore investment opportunities, said VITAS vice chairman Trương Văn Cẩm. More FDI projects would arrive in the country’s textiles sector in the coming years, Cẩm added. Once new-generation free trade agreements (FTA), like the CPTPP and the EU-Việt Nam FTA (EVFTA), entered into force, investment in the textile and garment industry will increase, offering a great opportunity for machinery suppliers like Rieter, said a representative from ILLIES Vietnam. Statistics from VITAS showed that a total of nearly US$15.9 billion in FDI had been injected into more than 2,090 textile and garment projects in Việt Nam by the end of last year. In the first half of 2018, the industry attracted another $2.8 billion in FDI.
$18 billion trade surplus
The country is now among the leading exporters of textile and garments in Asia. Việt Nam’s total textile and garment exports have experienced a 3.6-fold increase over the past decade, from $7.78 billion in 2007 to $31 billion in 2017. Last year’s figure represented 16 per cent of the nation’s total export revenue. The domestic textile and garment industry is expected to gain a trade surplus of $18 billion this year, according to an official report from VITAS. VITAS Chairman Vũ Đức Giang said the sector was estimated to earn $36 billion from exports this year, a year-on-year increase of about 16 per cent. Giang said that many enterprises had been working on completing a textile and garment supply chain. Next year, the textile and garment industry has set a target of $40 billion in export value, a year on year increase of 10.8 per cent, and a trade surplus of $20 billion. To reach the target of $40 billion, the association has recommended enterprises focus on investment, markets, human resources and the application of scientific and technological advances. The Government and relevant State agencies needed to continue administrative reforms and inspections while removing difficulties for enterprises in 2019, Giang said. The association needed to connect enterprises and markets at home and abroad by increasing trade promotions, he said. The State should only grant investment licences to projects with large investments, advanced technology and wastewater treatment systems to meet the requirements of free trade agreements such as CPTPP and EVFTA. The association has asked the National Assembly to adopt the Law on Association to allow foreign-owned enterprises to become association members so they can co-ordinate with local enterprises to set up supply chains and exchange experiences in production and business between local and foreign companies. — VNS
Source: Vietnam News
