SURAT: Exporters from the country's largest man-made fabric (MMF) hub in Surat have stopped exports of fabrics to Pakistan in the aftermath of dastardly attack by a terrorist group on a CRPF convoy in Jammu & Kashmir's Pulwama district a few days ago. Two biggest fabric markets in Pakistan - Azam cloth market in Lahore and Lucknow market in Karachi- depend on polyester fabrics, saris, lenghas and dupattas imported from Surat. Many shops in these markets have signboards that say they sell saris and dress material imported from Surat, reported India media. Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry's (SGCCI) textile committee chairman Devkishan Manghani said, "A delegation from Surat had visited Azam and Lucknow markets in Karachi and Lahore last year. Majority of traders import cheap saris, lenghas and other fabrics from Surat and sell them after value addition. Small traders there will be finished if our exporters don't supply raw material to them." Even foreign companies dealing with textile companies in Surat have taken a tough stand against Pakistan after the terror attack in Pulwama. Laxmipati Group Managing Director Sanjay Saraogi told TOI, "Our company uses fibre manufactured by American company. The American company shut down its Pakistan sales office two days ago." Lucky Gondalia, owner of Gondalia Textile Exports, said, "After the dastardly attack on our soldiers in Pulwama, we have severed business links with Pakistani traders. Earlier, we used to export saris, dress material, lenghas, bemberges and bleech fabrics to the tune of over Rs4 crore per annum to them." Srikant Mundra, owner of Sudarshan Textile Private Limited, said, "We can't sell dresses to women of Pakistan many of whose husbands, brothers and relatives are killing our soldiers and civilians. Two days ago, we winded up our Karachi office. Earlier, we were supplying more than Rs10 crore worth of textile fabrics to Lahore and Karachi." Before 2014, the MMF exports from Surat to Pakistan stood at Rs2,400 crore. The exports of MMF fabrics from Surat to Pakistan was predicted to touch Rs3,000 crore by 2018. However, latest figures of Synthetic and Rayon Textile Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC) suggest that exports between Surat and Pakistan have fallen sharply in the last couple of years and that they were less than Rs1,000 crore per annum now. SRTEPC chairman Narain Aggarwal said, "Textile trade between Pakistan and India, Surat in particular has come to an end after Pulwama terror attack. India's textile sector stands firmly behind our martyred soldiers. We believe no Indian textile businessman should deal with Pakistan."
Source: International News
Asserting that the valley is famous for exquisite high-quality hand-knotted woolen and silk carpets which are symbolic of quality and finesse, Union Minister for Textiles Smriti Zubin Irani has assured full support to the Kashmir carpet industry for its growth and promotion. Mrs Irani said this while e-inaugurating Srinagar office of Carpet Export Promotion Council (CEPC) in the premises of IICT Srinagar through video conferencing facility on Saturday, an official spokesperson said here on Sunday. The Union Minister expressed hope that CEPC’s Srinagar office will be beneficial for all the stake holders and will lead to enhance exports and open new avenues for more employment opportunities in the region. She said that Indian Handmade carpet is an age-old industry and has made significant strides in the recent past. She said the industry is highly labour intensive and provides employment to over two Million workers. “Kashmir is famous for exquisite high-quality hand-knotted woolen and silk carpets which are symbolic of quality and finesse,” she added. Mrs Irani informed that 90,000 applications have been received for the registration under Pehchan initiative and 60,000 Pehchan ID Cards have been distributed to the artisans so far. She also assured full support to the Kashmir carpet industry for its growth and promotion. Meanwhile, it was given out that Textile Committee in partnership with Development Commissioner Handicrafts (DCH) and CEPC will provide special lab testing facilities at IICT in Srinagar. Further, Wool Bank will be opened in collaboration with Wool Development Board to ensure availability of sufficient raw wool through the follow up of the office of the DCH, the spokesperson said. He said that for reduction of GST on Pashmina Shawls a suitable proposal of the industry will be recommended to the Ministry of Finance from Ministry of Textiles. “CEPC will work closely with JKTPO to help the marketing and branding requirement of the manufacturers and traders from J&K at trade shows within India and across the globe,” he added. Meanwhile, the Chairman CEPC said that Council will also run awareness campaign to educate members of the J&K region about no applicability of GST on weavers of Pashmina shawls and Silk carpets, who make less than 40 lakh per annum.
Source: Brighter Kashmir
As many as 3.67 lakh recorded MSMEs contribute towards 50 per cent of the GDP and 45 per cent exports of Odisha, informed MSME Additional Chief Secretary LN Gupta at a CII meeting at Jajpur on Sunday. Gupta further informed that the State has 17 lakh farm and nonfarm enterprises, including trading business. He said the focus sectors in the State for MSMEs are food processing, chemicals and petrochemicals, textile, electronics, ancillary and downstream. He also proposed if there could a MSME park at Kalinganagar and every large industry support at least 10 MSMEs. The conference, called ‘Connect2Indutries’ held by the CII North Odisha Zonal Councilat Jajpur focused on connecting MSMEs and startups to mega industries. The conference provided a platform for the MSMEs to interact and understand the requirements of the large industries. Council Chairman SS Upadhyay mentioned that MSMEs are the backbone of a developing economy and they are the India’s the biggest employer. NINL VC and MD SS Mohanty stated that the Kalinganagar Industrial Complex, home to six large industries, is one of the largest Industrial complexes in the country. He opined that Kalinganar should be able to produce 30 per cent of steel produced in India. VISA Steel director Manoj Kumar proposed a vote of thanks. Procurement heads from the Tata Steel, VISA Steel, Balasore Alloys Ltd, Jindal Stainless Ltd and Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd gave their respective presentations and invited MSMES and start ups to explore opportunities with them.
Source: Daily pioneer
After Donald Trump took over the rein of governance in the US, it has started imposing higher import duty on imports coming from the rest of the world. Other countries have also followed the suit and are increasing import tariffs. In this manner, a trade war has started in the world. According to the recent report of the United Nations, India is among some select countries which are going to benefit greatly from the current trade war. The report says that although this trade war will lead to a significant reduction in global trade, India’s exports may grow by 3.5 percent. Although foreign trade remained almost free during the early period of history, i.e. the tariffs or other restrictions on imports coming from other countries were minimal. But later on Governments started imposing heavy import duties coming from other countries and sometimes it took the shape of competitive exercise. Basic idea of imposing tariffs on goods coming from other countries used to be protection of domestic industry from foreign competition. In the meantime, foreign trade theories propounded an understanding developed between economists that if all the nations of the world remove tariffs and non tariff barriers and walk on the path of free trade, then all the countries will benefit because people will get cheaper goods. Countries will achieve the efficiencies in production according to their comparative advantage. Though, there was no flaw in these theories per se, if followed honestly, however problem started when the theory was used by the benefit of a few against interests of many others. For instance, by using this argument of free trade, British Government was able to impose cheaper machine made goods, against the interests of our small artisans and industries. Our industry decayed and dependence on agriculture increased. Economists named it de-industrialization. We can say that the industrialization of India ended due to free trade. Under the pressure of nationalist leaders in the freedom struggle, the foreign Government was forced to impose tariff on goods coming from England, what was termed as discriminatory tariff, and that was the time when modern textile, sugar, cement and paper industries started getting established. In the era of globalization in the last 28 years, protectionism has not only become a history, it is considered to be a curse rather. This period witnessed elimination of all types of tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade between countries, especially after World Trade Organization (WTO) came into being. In the name of rule based trading system under WTO agreements, now countries were bound by the agreements, to carry on trade based on the principle of free trade. In the initial years of the WTO, due to dismantling of barriers of trade, global market started expanding. Generally balance of trade of member countries didn’t disturb much. But after the entry of China in the World Trade Organization, circumstances changed and today we see that more than 130 countries trading with China are facing trade deficit with China, that is, imports of these countries from China are more than their exports to China. In such a situation, industries of these countries are getting destroyed and unemployment is increasing. However, simultaneously, some countries, mostly having partnership with China have been specialising in some products. For instance, production base for components used in electronics, telecom products, cars etc was established in number of countries. Due to free trade, supply chain of these components has become global, which is being called ‘Global Supply Chain’. Protectionist stance of the United States has caused a panic in the world economy in general and China and its supplier countries in particular. Those who believed that growth in international trade is the only way to spur growth in the world economy have started feeling that this is an end to world’s economic growth. Though, it’s true that as overseas demand increases, it leads to greater production at home, therefore growth in international trade provides an opportunity for expanding production. However, after US’s protectionism, global export demand has started contracting, impacting production. However, we understand that whether it is protectionism or free trade, it’s never one sided. After increase in tariff by the US, other countries are also forced to change their foreign trade policy and they too have started adopting protectionist stance. In such a situation, the question arises, where this game will end? Blind supporters of free trade have started arguing that this will block the path of development of the world. Prices will increase and the welfare of the consumers will get severely affected. Due to the global supply chain being interrupted, industries in different countries will be in huge danger now and unemployment will also increase, supporters of free trade argue.
India may in fact gain
Due to fast increase in imports from China, not only trade deficit has grown out of proportion, there has also been a huge crisis of foreign payments in these countries. Today, while the United States and some other countries are hiking import tariffs on their imports, countries like India are getting an opportunity to revive their industries which were forced to close down due to cheap imports. Significantly, India could not become any significant part of the global supply chain. It is well known that parts of electronics and telecom equipment are mostly not made in India. The biggest losers on the Global Supply Chain by the US blocking of China’s goods will be South-East Asian countries. In India, the companies producing automobiles, telecom, electronics, consumer goods etc, mostly import their components from other countries. Any disruption in the global supply chain may prove to be a boon for Indian manufacturing. Due to the increase in import duties by the government in the last one year, imports have started falling. This has helped India in halting the depreciation of rupee. And now this latest UN report is again confirming that India stands to gain from trade war is seemingly on the same lines. It is true that increase in the import duties causes increase in prices of these commodities, impacting middle class. However, it would also encourage the production of these items in the country and if in this manner the ‘Make in India’ gets a boost then short-term losses to the middle class could be more than compensated by increasing production and employment in the country. We have to understand that in the past 25 years, free trade has not done good to our industries and agriculture, therefore protectionism should not always be seen as a bad policy. If our trade partners are adopting protectionism, one-sided free trade can be harmful to us. Need of the hour is to take advantage of increasing protectionism in the world, by protecting our industries and move forward to increase both manufacturing and employment in our country.
Source: Daily
Although the leaders of Bangladesh and India have similar goals, the difference in the country's development models is making for an interesting experiment. There’s an old theory that as an organism develops, it progresses through the same evolutionary stages travelled by its ancestors. Traditionally, economic development has worked in a similar way. When a country first shifts from agrarian poverty to industrialization, it tends to start out in light manufacturing, especially textiles. Later it masters more complex manufactured products, and finally, it progresses to inventing its own cutting-edge technology. Thus, each country’s development tends to look a bit that of nations that already went through the process. That certainly seems to describe the experience of South Korea and Taiwan, which reached developed-country status relatively recently. It’s also the path being followed by China. As these countries got richer and their wages rose, low-tech labour-intensive manufacturing industries tended to migrate to countries with cheaper workers. Recently, one of the biggest beneficiaries of this process has been Bangladesh. The garment industry accounts for more than 80 per cent of the South Asian nation’s export revenue, and about a fifth of its gross domestic product. In 2017, Bangladesh was the world’s second-largest apparel supplier after China, with 6.5 per cent of the market, outpacing neighbouring India despite the latter’s much larger economy. This economic development path has no doubt come at a real human and social cost -- Bangladesh's workers suffer harsh working conditions and many industrial accidents, including a horrific factory collapse in 2013 that killed more than a thousand people. But overall, the tried-and-true industrialization strategy seems to be working. Real GDP per capita has doubled since the turn of the century, and Bangladesh appears to be on a similar exponential growth path as its neighbour India: India, meanwhile, has generally underperformed in manufacturing. The country does have a few bright spots -- for example, it’s now the world’s sixth-biggest auto manufacturer, with an immense factory cluster in Gujarat, and has been increasing its production of smartphones. But overall, manufacturing has declined as a share of the economy: This isn't to say that India’s leaders have ignored manufacturing -- indeed, they have long called for a big effort to industrialize. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has courted foreign manufacturers, but so far the effect has been limited. Most observers agree that a lack of infrastructure and an excess of regulatory red tape are the reason India remains a difficult place to make things. Despite its struggles in manufacturing, however, India is growing rapidly -- even faster than Bangladesh, in most years. The reason has been growth in service industries. India’s famous outsourcing companies are just the tip of the iceberg -- software, finance, online services, tourism, logistics, media, health care, and other services have been the biggest driver of India’s impressive growth. Some have suggested that India has discovered a development model that could leapfrog manufacturing entirely, going straight from agrarian poverty to a post-industrial economy. Others are more skeptical. This all leads to a very important question. Will Bangladesh, with its traditional approach to growth, catch up and overtake India? Or has India stumbled upon a new development model that cuts out the need for a country to do a stint as the workshop of the world? This is a crucial question because as technology advances, there’s a concern that the traditional path out of poverty might be closing. Automation is making textile manufacturing less labour-intensive. For one thing, that means that poor countries might no longer be able to create mass urban employment in the garment industry. But even more troubling, it might cause the industry to migrate back to rich countries like the US, where labour is expensive but capital is relatively cheap. Some of this reverse migration might already be happening. In other words, the developing world is at risk of premature deindustrialization. If Bangladesh fails due to competition from rich-world robots, it will bode ill for countries such as Ethiopia that are looking to hop on the escalator to prosperity. That would leave India’s service-centric development model as the only feasible path. Some economists argue that automation hasn’t closed off the traditional path, and that there is still plenty of work for industrious people in poor countries. Bangladesh, meanwhile, is scrambling to diversify into more valuable manufacturing industries such as autos and electronics. So although the leaders of Bangladesh and India have similar goals, the difference in the country’s development models is making for an interesting experiment. Countries in Africa hoping to follow these two South Asian giants’ growth trajectories should be watching keenly. If Bangladesh grows faster, it will suggest that manufacturing, starting with textiles, is still the ticket to industrialization; but if Bangladesh falters and India sustains its growth, it will imply that poor countries should look to services first.
Source: Bloomberg
India's positive macro-economic fundamentals remain a key anchor against any volatility that might flare-up in the country's equity indices due to the upcoming general elections and current geo-political dynamics, says the top executive of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). "India's growth story is undeniable, but the noise around it may vary from time to time. However, the growth story is here to stay for the next 40 years," Ashishkumar Chauhan, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of BSE, told IANS in an exclusive interview. "For long-term investors in a growing India, short-term volatility is not a major factor," he said. According to Chauhan, the current period might seem to be particularly volatile due to upcoming elections, but factors like demographic advantage guarantees sustained economic growth which will also enhance equities' returns. "This is a particularly volatile time for India due to the upcoming elections, geo-political issues with neighbours, the fact that both US and China are slowing down and have severe trade disputes and Brexit." "There are uncertainties, but they were there earlier and it is a fact that India has done better in uncertain times. It is characteristic of India, that it does well when people don't expect it to, it bounces back." Besides, Chauhan feels that capital markets regulator SEBI's proposal to fix circuit filters or price bands on futures & options (F&O) scrips will aid to curb excessive volatility. "India has demographic advantage... and is well equipped to fully utilise the information revolution with tech savvy young population." Accordingly, Chauhan asserted that as India grows economically, so will the partnership formed through equities and that the asset class remains as the best performing long-term asset class. On the growth prospects of BSE, Chauhan pointed out that BSE was now focused on growth of new products such as MF distribution and agri-based contracts. "Revenue-wise, if you see Star MF has really done well and all the MFs have started paying (fees) back to the BSE. It will be the revenue lead going forward," Chauhan said. Presently, BSE operates India's largest MF distributor platform with over 20,000 distributors. In the current fiscal, till January 31, 2019, the platform processed nearly 2.87 crore transactions amounting to Rs 126 lakh crore. It added 1.56 lakh new SIPs amounting to Rs 45.98 crore last month. "India INX is already touching $1 bn turnover daily and we don't charge there but with the new regulator coming in and if competition allows, the platform might be another revenue earner for us," Chauhan said. Additionally, BSE has expanded in agri-commodities portfolio by launching cotton, Guar seed futures contract on the exchange. "On a daily basis, we have captured 35-40 per cent business in Gaur seeds and around 35 per cent in cotton seeds. Soon, from March 2019, many online platforms will offer these BSE contracts to brokers and investors who will join our ecosystem." The stock exchange major has emerged as the largest market for bond distribution, IPOs, Offer to Buy, Offer to Sale and other instruments related to equities.
Source: SME Times
Vietnam is India's fourth largest trading partner in Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN)- the first three being Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. The India-Vietnam trade has been consistently growing- clocking double-digit rates. It has grown almost 80 per cent over the last five years. India is among Vietnam's top ten trading partners. Data from the Indian Department of Commerce shows that trade between India and Vietnam grew 11.5 per cent to USD 14.2 billion in 2018 compared with a year ago. The two countries targeted bilateral trade to hit USD 20 billion by 2020 in 2015. This now seems a little bit of a stretch considering the compounded annual rate of growth since 2013 was 12 per cent and for this to happen, it will have to grow at around 19 per cent per year in the next two years. It should not be a surprise that Vietnam and India currently enjoy strong diplomatic and trade relations. The strong ties date as far back as to the cold war days of the 1950s. India not only supported Vietnam's independence from France, it also objected to the US involvement in Vietnam in the 1960s and was one of the first countries to recognise a united Vietnam in 1975 after the war with the US. Today, India sees Vietnam as a pivotal state in its "Act East" policy, the same way that China sees Pakistan as a strategic counter-balance to India. Vietnam and India share the same apprehension of China's growing power and influence in the region. To this effect, India is leveraging Vietnam and other ASEAN states to protect its interest in the resource-rich South China Sea which China has been aggressively growing its assertiveness. This is reflected in its build-up of weapons systems on the artificial islands it has constructed in the area. It is with this background of common security interests that bilateral trade between the two states have strengthened in recent years. The partners established extensive economic ties since 1992, starting with cooperation in oil exploration, agriculture and manufacturing. Trade took a giant leap forward after both nations liberalised their economies and Vietnam following up by backing India for a more prominent role in ASEAN. Today, Vietnam's main exports to India include electronics and electrical products, textiles, handicrafts, cashew nuts, coffee, tea, mate, spices, canned food, building material, pharmaceutical products, precious metals, copper and rubber. In return, India top exports to Vietnam are agriculture and farm products, meats and seafood, cotton and pharmaceutical products. In terms of investments in each other countries, India is the 26th ranked investor in Vietnam with almost 210 projects worth around USD 880 million. These projects are in telecommunications, information technology, energy, mining, pharmaceuticals and electrical appliances. Vietnam's direct investments in India is negligible. That there is interest in improving trade between the countries at a faster clip is not in doubt. Vietnam had a strong presence in last week's ASEAN-India expo in New Delhi. The event is co-organised by the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and the ASEAN-India Business Council. More than 20 Vietnamese firms representing industries as diverse as farm produce, transportation services, tourism to handicrafts were present.
How can India and Vietnam work towards meeting the 2020 target?
Tourism could very well be the "low hanging fruit". There is a mutual visa-on-arrival programmes already in place for each other's citizens. Increasing the number of flights as well as joint promotion of each other's destinations would go a long way towards enticing the growing middle class in both countries to visit. Secondly, both countries have significant pharmaceutical industries and cooperation in this field would improve efficiencies and enhance the industry's growth in both countries. In the longer term, Vietnam can increase its investments in India by taking advantage of the Indian government's loosening up of foreign direct investment (FDI) quota for foods and beverage sector as well as the 100 per cent allowance of FDI in the in e-commerce and foods manufacturing industries. Increasing trade between India and Vietnam is not without challenges. There is a significant cultural, custom and language gap between people from both countries. Furthermore, the two countries are geographically far apart with flight time between most major cities around seven hours. This not only affects tourism but also impacts the import and export of goods and business exchanges.
Source: ANI Asia
The time for an independent debt management office may have come, Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar said at an event organised by Niti Aayog. Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar on February 22 made a strong case for setting up an independent debt management office, and also pitched for segregating different aspects of Reserve Bank's responsibilities. Kumar further said that India's gross domestic product (GDP) will be growing at over 7 percent in the coming years. The time for an independent debt management office may have come, he said at an event organised by Niti Aayog. Kumar said, very often, there have been conversations on whether the central bank should not only have a role as monetary policymaker or supervisor, but also as a government debt manager. "In 2014, the finance minister... had announced (setting up of independent debt management office), but it has not happened," he said. In his February 2015 budget speech, finance minister Arun Jaitley had proposed to set up a Public Debt Management Agency (PDMA) within the finance ministry. The idea behind setting up of PDMA was to resolve issues relating to conflict of interest as the RBI decides on the key interest rates as well as undertakes buying and selling of government bonds. Kumar also noted that there was a need to deliberate on how to segregate different aspects of the Reserve Bank of India's responsibilities. In this context, he said the government has been very courageous in giving the Reserve Bank the statutory authority of inflation targeting. "Therefore, who then looks after growth, employment, debt and other legal things etc in the country? I think those are the things that need to be discussed," Kumar said. The Niti Aayog vice chairman also noted that the RBI and the finance ministry have been working together in tough times without any single causality. At present, the government debt, including market borrowing, is managed by the Reserve Bank of India.
Source: Money Control
Indian economy appears to be less attractive to foreign investors . The Indian economy appears to be losing attractiveness to foreign investors. This is the most reasonable conclusion from figures released recently by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPITT). The figures show that, between April and December of 2018, foreign direct investment (FDI) in India fell to $33.5 billion, as compared to nearly $36 billion over the equivalent quarters of 2017. These figures have been released with a long and mysterious delay, in spite of the fact that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has regularly been passing along the required data to the ...
Source: Business Standard
The biggest gains have been reducing time lags along the chain and freeing up working capital. For most branded textile players, sourcing and supply chain management are key cogs in the wheel. As locations and capacities for manufacturing multiply, more companies are moving away from focusing their efforts on plant-level production planning and are adopting a demand-driven approach — to try and manage demand more efficiently. Aligning production, delivery and the entire sales channel with that mindset has become make or break. And time is of the essence in all this. . Textile major and fashion retailer, Raymond Group is reorganising its supply chain to meet these new ...
Source: Business Standard
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1318.95 |
USD/Ton |
-0.17% |
2/24/2019 |
|
VSF |
2001.89 |
USD/Ton |
-0.07% |
2/24/2019 |
|
ASF |
2399.58 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
Polyester POY |
1260.12 |
USD/Ton |
-0.12% |
2/24/2019 |
|
Nylon FDY |
2859.84 |
USD/Ton |
1.05% |
2/24/2019 |
|
40D Spandex |
4721.72 |
USD/Ton |
-0.94% |
2/24/2019 |
|
Nylon POY |
1549.08 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
2666.21 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
Polyester FDY |
2547.05 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1474.61 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
3098.16 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
Polyester DTY |
5630.31 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2740.68 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
2018.27 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2874.74 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
3038.58 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2532.15 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
2159.78 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2547.05 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.37 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.83 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.12 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.66 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.71 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
2/24/2019 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14895 USD dtd. 24/02/2019). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
LAHORE: The state planners need to realise that industrialisation, in most of the countries, in the last 60 years, started from textiles. Barring Pakistan, textiles helped these economies mature, which then shifted to different sectors of engineering. England’s economy flourished on textiles before graduating to other more productive industries. In Asia, Japan and Malaysia went into auto and electronics. Korea went into ship building, auto and electronics, India went into defence, auto, IT, pharmaceutical, gems and jewellery and consumer goods. China went into auto, consumer goods and some electronics and now high-tech artificial intelligence, Taiwan went into auto parts, moulds and dies, computers etc. The underlying strength developed by of all of these countries was capital goods and machinery manufacturing. All these are knowledge-based economies now, and their driver is the engineering sector. Their capability is to design and manufacture cost-effective machinery, using appropriate technologies. Textile industry did grow everywhere on government support, but for a decade or two. After that the growth was subjected to efficiency, innovation and constant improvement in technology. In recent decades, Bangladesh and now Vietnam surged ahead in textiles on same lines and their governments are gradually withdrawing undue support and subsidies. The planners in Pakistan should take cue from competitors and think beyond textiles. Instead of keeping the inefficient industries afloat through government subsidies, they should be encouraged to go for value-addition and technology upgrade. At the same time they should make the engineering sector as the corner stone of their industrial policy. It is unfortunate that in Pakistan the industry grew in the 60s under bonus vouchers and high protection tariffs regime. The 70s and 80s was the time when a lot of expansion took place. Unfortunately, most of the projects were over-invoiced and people made lots of money on government sponsored loans. Survival of these industries, despite milking of money through over-invoicing was possible because the industry was heavily protected. Even the most incompetent entrepreneurs that could not survive handed their assets to the banks as they already had taken back all their investment or even more through over-invoicing. In late eighties, the tariff was brought to zero for textile sector and export duty was levied on cotton. A lot of junk was imported during this period, while farmers were dependent on local millers for disposal of their cotton at dirt cheap rate. At that time, huge difference that existed between official currency rates and the market rates helped inefficient textile producers. The expansion of credit helped, and billions were made. Now that cotton is available on world prices, and machines are expensive, money is being made from far smarter means. Taxpayers money is being diverted to this sector, as government support and lower interest rates. An interesting point to note is that textile machines we have are capable of manufacturing high-end textiles, but we position ourselves as the least cost producers of low-grade textiles. Pakistan focuses on grey and low-quality textiles and garments. Pakistan is not visible in industrial textiles, medical textiles, special purpose textiles like fire retardant etc. We have no capacity for non-woven textiles and other value-added textiles. No wonder we are sick. Textile value is added through design and development or marketing and branding. We lack all these virtues. The textile industries are sick, because they are either inefficient, have bad management, don't have balanced facilities or are unviable due to heavy debts. They will eat the subsidies and still go down the tube if they do not reform. If taxpayer money is to be spent, it must be spent on skill development, institutions of learning, technology acquisition, centres for machinery development and manufacture, and acquiring brand names etc. The money spent will be far less than the money being doled out now with far greater impact to the economy. Subsidising textiles is a futile exercise. If machines are imported from Switzerland, Germany and Japan, raw material is at the same price as the world, and electricity is expensive, automation negates any benefit from cheap labour. Thus, our cost of production would not be less than the production price of competing economies. One way out of the current dilemma faced by our textile sector is to reduce the investments required by the industry for upgrade, so that Return on Investments is improved, and debt burden is reduced. China and India have done just that and indigenised machinery and equipment for the sector, reduced their investments and have taken over the global markets.
Source: International News
Pro-business environment, excellent infrastructure, diversified economy and political stability among nation's key factors. Given how uncertain and volatile the global economic and political landscape currently is, with market uncertainty pervasive and investor confidence deteriorating, global private equity firms are on the lookout for stable, new markets where they can be certain not just of promising returns on investment but also an investor-friendly regime. As a result, the UAE, with its pro-business environment, excellent infrastructure, relatively diversified economy and political stability, is quickly emerging as a preferred investment destination, renowned international investors Laurence Fink and Henry Kravis said at a panel discussion hosted at the Majlis Mohamed bin Zayed. The discussion, entitled Adnoc as a catalyst for foreign direct investment: a global investment perspective, was held at Abu Dhabi's Al Bateen Palace on Sunday and was attended by Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chief of the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Court, as well as other dignitaries. Fink and Kravis' remarks were extremely topical considering that just hours earlier, their respective firms, BlackRock and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Company (KKR), had signed a landmark pipeline infrastructure investment agreement with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc). The agreement is set to unlock $4 billion in value from Abu Dhabi's crude oil pipelines and marks the first infrastructure partnership between leading global institutional investors and a national oil company in the Middle East. It is certain to pave the way for further significant foreign direct investment (FDI) into Abu Dhabi and the UAE. Kravis, co-founder, co-chairman and co-CEO of KKR, kicked off the panel discussion by saying he was delighted to take part in this discussion of Adnoc's "capital modernisation" agenda and the "vision for economic transformation" of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. Kravis, who co-founded KKR in 1976 and is known as one of the pioneers of the private equity industry, said Sunday's landmark deal "sets an important precedent in the market that can demonstrate the potential for value-add foreign investment across UAE".With approximately $200 billion in assets under its management, KKR invests capital across the world with the aim of being a partner in supporting economic development, growing companies and meeting the needs of its clients. Fink, the founder, chairman and CEO of BlackRock, said it was "a privilege to be asked to be part of the Majlis", adding that "information exchanges such as this bring investors and countries together and create a closer community." Fink is one of the most respected investors and business leaders in the world. He founded BlackRock in 1988 with seven partners, and under his leadership, the firm has grown into a global powerhouse in investment management. Today, BlackRock manages more money than any other investment firm in the world, with around $6 trillion in assets under management. Kravis and Fink, whose firms are at the forefront of global infrastructure investing, went on to discuss global investment trends and opportunities for partnership in Abu Dhabi and the UAE and the importance of FDI in the country. FDI in the UAE has increased by 21 per cent between 2015 and 2017 to reach $10.4 billion. The United Kingdom, India and Saudi Arabia are the main investors in the country, with the bulk of the funds concentrated in the trade, real estate, energy, finance and insurance, manufacturing and construction sectors, the Majlis heard. During the course of the discussion, Kravis and Fink covered key trends that affect the global and Middle East investment landscape. Drawing on their experience in investing across American, European, and Asian markets, the international investors discussed the potential for FDI and how their firms approach emerging foreign investment destinations like the UAE. The Majlis also heard why BlackRock and KKR decided to invest in UAE infrastructure assets, and why they feel it is becoming an increasingly attractive global investment destination. Earlier in the day, Kravis and Fink joined Dr Sultan bin Ahmad Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and Adnoc Group CEO, to sign a pioneering, multi-billion dollar investment partnership agreement between Adnoc, KKR and BlackRock. Under the terms of the innovative agreement, the investors will pay around $4 billion for a 23-year lease in the 18 pipelines that carry crude and condensate. Sovereignty of the infrastructure and the management of the pipeline operations will remain with Adnoc. The partnership "paves the way for further significant foreign direct investment in the UAE", Dr Al Jaber said. "Adnoc has been undergoing a significant business transformation, underpinned by innovative partnerships and investments that are key to unlocking and maximising value across our full portfolio." Following the wise guidance of the UAE leadership, Adnoc has been transforming into a more commercially-focused and performance-driven organisation and has hit significant milestones regularly over the last three years. Today's deal with BlackRock and KKR represents the next major step in the delivery of this smart growth strategy, demonstrating its expanded partnership model and more proactive management of its assets and capital. The Abu Dhabi government-owned oil giant received an AA long-term credit rating, the region's highest, from Fitch Ratings last week.
Source: Khaleej Times
The Chinese delegation is scheduled to leave for Beijing on Monday, according to a person familiar with their itineraries. and Chinese negotiators met for over seven hours on Saturday to resolve their trade dispute and avoid an escalation of the tit-for-tat tariffs that have already disrupted global commerce, slowed the world economy and roiled financial markets. The two sides will meet again on Sunday morning as they race to seal an agreement before a March 1 deadline imposed by US President Donald Trump, who has threatened to dramatically hike tariffs on Chinese goods unless there is a deal. Saturday marked the fifth straight day of the negotiations between the world's two biggest economies. Talks were extended through the weekend after both sides reported progress in narrowing their differences. The Chinese delegation is scheduled to leave for Beijing on Monday, according to a person familiar with their itinerary. This is the fourth round of negotiations since Washington and Beijing agreed to a ceasefire in their trade war. Trump, who has embraced an "America First" policy aimed at rebalancing global trade in favour of the United States, said on Friday there was "a very good chance" a deal would be struck, and that he was inclined to extend his March 1 tariff deadline and meet soon with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Extending the deadline would mean putting on hold a scheduled increase in tariffs to 25 percent from 10 percent on $200 billion of Chinese imports into the United States. Trump and U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said U.S. and Chinese officials had reached an agreement on currency issues, but did not give details. U.S. officials have long argued that China's yuan is undervalued, giving it a trade advantage and partly offsetting U.S. tariffs. China has also committed to buy an additional 10 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans.
ENFORCEMENT MECHANISM
Reuters reported exclusively on Wednesday that both sides were drafting memorandums of understanding (MOUs) on cyber theft, intellectual property rights, services, agriculture and non-tariff barriers to trade, including subsidies. On Friday, Trump said he did not like MOUs because they are short-term in nature, and he wanted a long-term deal. An industry source briefed on the talks said both sides have narrowed their differences on intellectual property rights, market access and narrowing a nearly $400 billion U.S. trade deficit with China. But bigger differences remain on changes to China's treatment of state-owned enterprises, subsidies, forced technology transfers and cyber theft. There is no agreement on the enforcement mechanism, either. The United States wants a strong mechanism to ensure the Chinese reform commitments are followed through, while Beijing insists upon what it calls a "fair and objective" process. "Enforcement is a difficult puzzle," said the source, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the talks. "You need objective arbitrators to make a decision." It was not clear whether Saturday's talks managed to iron out those differences. Neither side shared the details of the day's discussions. Trump said the biggest decisions could be reached when he meets with Xi, probably in Florida next month, and that they may extend beyond trade to encompass Chinese telecommunications companies Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corp.
Source: Reuters
Officials said 23 trucks carrying 57 tonnes of dried fruits, textiles, carpets and mineral products were dispatched from western Afghan city of Zaranj to Iran's Chabahar port. Afghanistan began exports to India through an Iranian port on Sunday, official said, as the landlocked, war-torn nation turns to overseas markets to improve its economy. Officials said 23 trucks carrying 57 tonnes of dried fruits, textiles, carpets and mineral products were dispatched from western Afghan city of Zaranj to Iran’s Chabahar port. The consignment will be shipped to the Indian city of Mumbai. At the inauguration of the new export route, President Ashraf Ghani said Afghanistan was slowly improving its exports in a bid to reduce its trade deficit. “Chabahar port is the result of healthy cooperation between India, Iran and Afghanistan this will ensure economic growth,” he said. The Iranian port provides easy access to the sea to Afghanistan and India has helped developed this route to allow both countries to engage in trade bypassing Pakistan. Last year the U.S. government granted an exception to certain U.S. sanctions that allowed development of Chabahar port as part of a new transportation corridor designed to boost Afghanistan’s economy and meet their needs of non-sanctionable goods such as food and medicines. India has sent 1.1 million tonnes of wheat and 2,000 tonnes of lentils to Afghanistan through Chabahar. Both countries established an air corridor in 2017. Afghan exports to India stood at $740 million in 2018, making it the largest export destination, officials said.
Source: Reuters
Export of home textiles from the country is facing difficulties and with the passage of time things are becoming increasingly difficult for the local manufacturers and exporters to ride out the crisis. The very fact that export of home textiles comprising mainly terry towels and bed sheets is in a bad shape is evidenced from the abundance of these products in street shops sold at throwaway prices. Bundles of terry towels have lodged on the shoulders of hawkers at busy road intersections of the capital and elsewhere instead of being packaged to be cotainerised for export to North America and the EU countries. Home textiles include mainly terry towels, bed sheets, linen, curtains and pillow covers. Terry towel, the most important segment, is experiencing the shock most of all. Terry towel export declined 4.40 per cent year-on-year to $42.35 million in the last fiscal year, according to the Export Promotion Bureau data. The sector's growth started to witness a decline from January 2014, when the European Union (EU) allowed zero-duty benefit to Pakistan under its GSP-Plus scheme on export of home textiles and some other products. As a result, the impact is too severe for the local manufacturers and exporters. Around a dozen small and medium factories have reportedly been shut down. Currently, ninety factories are in operation and most are staying in business in the hope that they might find alternative markets elsewhere. A relatively new item in the country's export basket, terry towel demonstrated great promise due mainly to the easier production process and market access made easy by the EU's EBA (Everything but Arms) scheme allowing duty free facility to all LDC exports, except arms. Coupled with it, there is the preferential duty facility under the EU GSP scheme meant only for LDCs like Bangladesh. The scheme has been revised a few years ago and dubbed GSP-plus with a major shift in its eligibility criterion. The GSP-plus scheme is an extension of the GSP system, in that it includes developing countries also as eligible to avail the benefits of preferential duty -- provided they have proved their commitment to sustainable development and good governance. Most duty rates are 'zero' under this scheme. So, it is clearly the erosion of competitive advantage that Bangladesh has been enjoying as an LDC for so long. Extension of the facility to exporters of developing countries like Pakistan and Sri Lanka, among others, has exposed Bangladeshi exporters to fierce competition from these countries, especially Pakistan which as a traditional home textile producing country is now in a more advantageous position to increase its products-particularly terry towels. There is apparently no option but to be increasingly competitive for the Bangladeshi terry towel producers to stay in business. Sector insiders are of the opinion that facilitation in respect of cotton procurement might lower the present production cost. Also, exploring the market segments in overseas markets could result in finding better avenues for export. The government in consultation with the sector people may consider taking some facilitating steps as well.
Source: Financial Express
BEIJING - Over 60 Chinese delegates have confirmed their participation in the second edition of Texpo scheduled to be held in Lahore from April 11-14 to promote Pakistani textile industry. “We are expecting the largest international delegation from China as so far over 60 companies have got themselves registered at the Texpo,” Commercial Counselor, Pakistan Embassy, Beijing, Badar u Zaman told APP here on Sunday. Textile importers, international purchasers and global brands have been invited to participate in the event being organized by Pakistan Trade Development Authority and the Ministry of Commerce, which will be an ideal demonstration of Pakistan’s textile strength. According to official sources, the momentum and interest for the second edition of Texpo are picking up as the local textile industry is showing great interest in the event. The TDAP has already sold out more than 80% of the available space. Leading textile brands like Sapphire, Chen One, Siddique Sons, Rajby will be exhibiting their top quality products. Texpo has seen unprecedented interest from the textile sector as more than 170 exhibitors representing the entire value chain have already confirmed their space in the event. The TDAP and Pakistan Fashion Design Council have also signed a memorandum of cooperation for holding a fashion show on the sidelines of the Texpo. The TDAP has made reservations in leading hotels of Lahore for the stay of the international buyers. On the opening day, an inauguration ceremony is being planned inside the majestic Lahore Fort for international buyers which would be a combination of cultural ethos and eastern values. The Ministry of Commerce is making all-out marketing efforts to attract international buying houses, chains and retail stores for this event. All trade officers have been given special tasks and directions for bringing the best possible buyers for Texpo. The first edition took place in 2016 at Expo Center Karachi and drew in 450 international delegates chosen from 50 countries across the globe. It is expected that Texpo, 2019 will give a boost to the textile exports of Pakistan which accounts for nearly 60 per cent of Pakistan’s total exports.
Source: Nation
NEWSROOM (ADV) – Industrial production, for the whole of 2018, fell by 0.5% to 2017 due to the decline in production of phosphate and derivatives, petroleum and mining products, despite the performance of agricultural and mechanical industries, it was Saturday learned from the National Institute of Statistics (NIS). According to figures from the NIS, the 8.6% drop in production in the chemical industries led to a major drop in the country’s industrial production, as a result of the 2.1% decline in phosphate production and non-mineral mining products. The petroleum refining sector experienced a significant productive deterioration of 11.3% in addition to non-energy mining derivatives, where the decline was 13.1%. For energy-generating mining derivatives, the decline is 2.7%.Phosphate production decreased from 4.422 thousand tons to 3.340.4 thousand tons respectively between 2017 and 2018. On the other hand, the balance sheet is positive for the agro-food industries, namely growth estimated at 4.5%, 1.6% for the metal trades and 1.2% for the textile and leather industries.
Source: African Daily
There’s an old theory that as an organism develops, it progresses through the same evolutionary stages traveled by its ancestors. Traditionally, economic development has worked in a similar way. When a country first shifts from agrarian poverty to industrialization, it tends to start out in light manufacturing, especially textiles. Later it masters more complex manufactured products, and finally it progresses to inventing its own cutting-edge technology. Thus, each country’s development tends to look a bit that of nations that already went through the process. That certainly seems to describe the experience of South Korea and Taiwan, which reached developed-country status relatively recently. It’s also the path being followed by China. As these countries got richer and their wages rose, low-tech labor-intensive manufacturing industries tended to migrate to countries with cheaper workers. Recently, one of the biggest beneficiaries of this process has been Bangladesh. The garment industry accounts for more than 80 percent of the South Asian nation’s export revenue, and about a fifth of its gross domestic product. In 2017, Bangladesh was the world’s second-largest apparel supplier after China, with 6.5 percent of the market, outpacing neighboring India despite the latter’s much larger economy. This economic development path has no doubt come at a real human and social cost -- Bangladesh's workers suffer harsh working conditions and many industrial accidents, including a horrific factory collapse in 2013 that killed more than a thousand people. But overall, the tried-and-true industrialization strategy seems to be working. Real GDP per capita has doubled since the turn of the century, and Bangladesh appears to be on a similar exponential growth path as its neighbor India: India, meanwhile, has generally underperformed in manufacturing. The country does have a few bright spots for example, it’s now the world’s sixth-biggest auto manufacturer, with an immense factory cluster in Gujarat, and has been increasing its production of smartphones. But overall, manufacturing has declined as a share of the economy. This isn't to say that India’s leaders have ignored manufacturing -- indeed, they have long called for a big effort to industrialize. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has courted foreign manufacturers, but so far the effect has been limited. Most observers agree that a lack of infrastructure and an excess of regulatory red tape are the reason India remains a difficult place to make things. Despite its struggles in manufacturing, however, India is growing rapidly even faster than Bangladesh, in most years. The reason has been growth in service industries. India’s famous outsourcing companies are just the tip of the iceberg -- software, finance, online services, tourism, logistics, media, health care, and other services have been the biggest driver of India’s impressive growth. Some have suggested that India has discovered a development model that could leapfrog manufacturing entirely, going straight from agrarian poverty to a post-industrial economy. Others are more skeptical. This all leads to a very important question. Will Bangladesh, with its traditional approach to growth, catch up and overtake India? Or has India stumbled upon a new development model that cuts out the need for a country to do a stint as the workshop of the world? This is a crucial question because as technology advances, there’s a concern that the traditional path out of poverty might be closing. Automation is making textile manufacturing less labor-intensive. For one thing, that means that poor countries might no longer be able to create mass urban employment in the garment industry. But even more troubling, it might cause the industry to migrate back to rich countries like the U.S., where labor is expensive but capital is relatively cheap. Some of this reverse migration might already be happening. In other words, the developing world is at risk of premature deindustrialization. If Bangladesh fails due to competition from rich-world robots, it will bode ill for countries such as Ethiopia that are looking to hop on the escalator to prosperity. That would leave India’s service-centric development model as the only feasible path. Some economists argue that automation hasn’t closed off the traditional path, and that there is still plenty of work for industrious people in poor countries. Bangladesh, meanwhile, is scrambling to diversify into more valuable manufacturing industries such as autos and electronics. So although the leaders of Bangladesh and India have similar goals, the difference in the country’s development models is making for an interesting experiment. Countries in Africa hoping to follow these two South Asian giants’ growth trajectories should be watching keenly. If Bangladesh grows faster, it will suggest that manufacturing, starting with textiles, is still the ticket to industrialization; but if Bangladesh falters and India sustains its growth, it will imply that poor countries should look to services first.
Source: Bloomberg
Though poor supporting industries have been traditionally considered by experts as the major reason hindering Vietnam’s path towards joining global supply chains, that no longer holds true for the textile and garment industry, thanks to policy measures and enterprises’ preparations for free trade agreements (FTAs), which set high requirements on product origin. Vietnam had to import four-fifths of input materials and accessories for domestic textile and garment production in the past. That figure has fallen to 30-40 per cent now, according to a report in a Vietnamese newspaper. According to Pham Tat Thang, a senior researcher at the ministry of industry and trade, the country’s supporting industries for the textile and garment sector had witnessed slow growth until two years ago, but have now invested in strengthening themselves based on commitments made in FTAs. The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), for example, sets the ‘yarn forward’ principle, and therefore, Vietnam has made bigger investments in yarn production projects to be eligible for preferential tariffs stipulated in the agreement. Ho Chi Minh City-based Hung Xuong Chemicals has obtained Bluesign, an European certificate on environment-friendly products and workplace safety, which is considered a solution for sustainable textile production. Vietnam has also developed fabric manufacturing projects to satisfy the ‘fabric forward’ principle stipulated in the Vietnam-EU FTA. Problems still remain in setting up weaving, dyeing and trimming units close to each other because of reluctance of local authorities to offer land because of pollution and in production optimization—the scale of production now is not big enough to cut production costs. (DS)
Source: Fibre2Fashion
