India’s trade deficit narrowed to a 17-month low of $9.6 billion in February as merchandise imports fell on the back of lower crude oil prices. The trade deficit had stood at $9 billion in September 2017. Exports growth was relatively tepid at 2.44% in February, while imports contracted 5.41% in dollar terms, according to data released by the commerce ministry on Friday. In rupee terms, however, exports and imports expanded at 13.34% and 4.66% respectively, mostly because of depreciation in the rupee. So far this year, the rupee has weakened 2.07%, the worst performer among Asian currencies. Cumulatively, during the first 11 months of the fiscal year 2019 (April-February), exports and imports grew at 8.85% and 9.75%, respectively, while the trade deficit expanded to $165.5 billion from $148.6 billion during the same period a year ago. Exports have done well despite increasing protectionism, tough global conditions, and constraints on the domestic front, said Ganesh Kumar Gupta, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations. “Economies across Asia, especially China and the South-East Asian nations, have been showing signs of sluggishness with contraction in manufacturing due to the slowdown in the global trade and a fragile world economy," he said. China’s exports contracted 20.7% in February, the largest decline in three years, while imports fell 5.2%, stirring fears of a trade recession. In February, exports of Indian pharmaceuticals (16.1%), chemicals (4.1%), engineering goods (1.7%), and ready-made garments (7.2%) rose, while shipments of gems and jewellery (-2.1%) and petroleum products (-7.7%) contracted. Growth in non-oil, non-gems and jewellery imports, an indicator of the state of economic activity in the country, contracted 3.7% in February, led by transport equipment (-19.6%), electronic goods (-6.5%) and plastic (-1.9%). Import of crude oil slipped by 8% as global Brent price decreased by 1.97% in February. Gold imports contracted by 10.8%, reflecting a trouble in the gems and jewellery sector. Other macro-indicators including factory output and the gross domestic product (GDP) also point toward a slowdown in overall economic activity. The index of industrial production grew 1.7% in January, while gross domestic product in the December quarter slowed to a five-quarter low at 6.6%.The World Trade Organization (WTO) had last month projected that trade growth is expected to slow from 3.9% in 2018 to 3.7% in 2019, cautioning that these estimates could be revised downward if trade conditions continue to deteriorate. “This sustained loss of momentum highlights the urgency of reducing trade tensions, which together with continued political risks and financial volatility could foreshadow a broader economic downturn," the World Trade Organization said. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in January had said risks to global growth tilt to the downside, and revised 2019 growth projection downwards by 20 basis points to 3.5% on the back of sustained trade tensions between the US and China. However, the International Monetary Fund said India’s economy is poised to pick up from 7% a year ago to 7.5% in 2019-20, benefiting from lower oil prices and a slower pace of monetary tightening than previously expected, as inflation pressures ease.
Source: Live Mint
Two-day conference on Engaging Rising China begins at MG University. While four decades of reform and opening up catapulted China into the second largest economy and the second largest defence spender , the country’s appetite changed from the low profile guidelines of Deng Xiaoping’s to that of ‘accomplish something’ under Xi Jinping, Srikanth Kondapalli, Chairman, Centre for East Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU)’, has said. He was delivering the keynote address at the two-day international conference on ‘Engaging Rising China: Strategic Options for Emerging India’, which began at the Mahatma Gandhi University (MGU) campus here on Friday. Noting that the rise of China necessitated India to re-adjust its policies with engagement policies as a dominant theme towards China, he also said that India, however, had been lukewarm to Beijing’s suggestions for a free trade area or a Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership in the face of a mounting trade deficit against it. Speaking on the occasion, Bertel Heurlin, Jean Monnet Professor and Director of China Security Studies, University of Copenhagen, noted that India was also taking serious regional responsibility and increasing global responsibility while being a growing military power. The event is being organised by the Institute for Contemporary Chinese Studies, MGU in collaboration with the School of International Relations and Politics and the Institute of Parliamentary Affairs, government of Kerala. Scholars from various international universities, including the Sun Yat-Sen University and Wuhan University in China and Centre for Policy Studies, Nepal, made presentations in different panels. Sabu Thomas, Vice Chancellor in charge of MGU inaugurated the Conference. Swaran Singh, professor of International Studies, JNU will deliver the valedictory address at 2 PM on Saturday.
Source: The Hindu
Azerbaijan, located in the south Caucasus region of Eurasia, is keen to establish trade and investment exchanges with West Bengal. Ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ashraf Shikhaliyev, said the dynamics has shifted all of the sudden to the eastern coast of India starting from West Bengal. Though a small country, Azerbaijan has a huge potential, he said at a session organised by BNCCI here on Friday. The envoy said language would not be a hurdle as English was spoken in Azerbaijan to some extent. Some of the sectors which had good potential for exchanges were information and communication, transport, petrochemical and chemicals, hospitality, tourism, agriculture and food processing. Shikhaliyev said Azerbaijan would also be a suitable destination for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, Exhibitions) tourism for Indian companies as it had the potential to bring it back to India. Filming in Azerbaijan was also a feasible area as cost of shooting was much lower than Europe and the country was blessed with mountains, forests and the sea. Direct flight from Baku, capital do Azerbaijan, to New Delhi would start shortly, he said.
Source: Business Standard
US move to withdraw privileges provides an opportunity for India to introspect on the general state of its exports. The recent decision of the US to give notice of its intention to rescind India’s export privileges under the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) has refocused attention on the state of Indian exports. Under the GSP programme, the US provides duty-free access to 4,800 different goods from 129 designated countries. The immediate loss for India is preferential access at zero or minimal tariffs to the US market for around 1,900 products, which is over half of all Indian products. The ministry of commerce has reacted to the news by asserting that the losses from the GSP withdrawal are going to be minimal. This assertion is based on the fact that the actual tariff advantage that India was getting from the programme was a meagre USD 190 million, which is just 0.4 per cent of the USD 50 billion over all Indian exports to the US. The government’s argument, unfortunately, misses the point that India is competing for market share in the US with a host of other low-income countries, including Mexico. In industries where margins are small, a very small increase in the market price can cause a large fall in the quantity exported. A potential fall in quantity exported will, of course, imply a much larger cost of losing GSP access. If exporters absorb the tariff increase, then their profit margins will fall, potentially inducing some of them to exit this market completely. The tariff benefit that India currently enjoys is low simply because average tariffs in the US are low. It cannot be used as an indicator of the potential cost to India of losing its GSP privilege. The GSP development, though, provides a good opportunity for India to introspect on the general state of Indian exports. The raw fact of the matter is that India’s share of world exports has been stuck at around 2 per cent for some time now. Essentially, our exports have been growing at the same rate as the rest of the world. For a country that has consistently been one of the fastest growing economies in the world, India’s exports should be growing much faster. This is what one saw with China and the other East Asian economies over the last 30 years, and with Japan earlier. Clearly, something isn’t working in India. Despite the overwhelming attention that Indian service sector exports receive, around 63 per cent of total Indian exports are still of goods. It is true that the Indian service sector’s share of world services exports rose sharply from 0.5 per cent in 1990 to 3.7 per cent in 2017. But this performance is hardly earth-shattering. The much less discussed Chinese service sector’s share of world service sector exports more than tripled from 0.9 per cent in 1992 to 3.8 per cent in 2017. The big disparity between China and India is goods exports. India’s share of world goods exports rose from 0.5 per cent in 1990 to 1.7 per cent in 2017 while China’s rose from 1.8 per cent to 12.8 per cent during the same period. Indeed, this has been one of the key vehicles for the rapid Chinese growth take-off. Rapid growth of the large-scale, low-tech, labour intensive merchandise goods export sector created a simultaneous increase in demand for relatively unskilled Chinese labour as well as an increase in demand for the rapid infrastructure rollout that China invested in. The labour demand soaked up the labour being released from agriculture while the infrastructure demand implied that the infrastructure investment was cost-effective. The Indian export portrait, however, looks very different from the Chinese export landscape. Merchandise exports in India are concentrated in eight industries which collectively account for 85 per cent of India’s merchandise exports. Amongst these top-8 industries are textiles, chemicals, machinery, vehicles and parts etc. Factories in these industries are mostly small, employing 100 or fewer workers. The productivity levels in these manufacturing establishments are also low. Though exporters tend to be larger and more productive than non-exporters, these are low by international standards. The problem with the Indian export sector appears to be two-fold. The first is the general malaise afflicting the manufacturing sector. Existing labour and land laws make growing in scale a difficult proposition for firms. In addition, the infrastructure support that is needed to sustain production and distribution at scale is often missing. These include transport connectivity and reliable power supply. Firms find it optimal to stay small and operate with old technologies. Fixing this requires concerted action on multiple fronts. Addressing just a subset of these constraints is unlikely to work. The second important issue is the trade regime. India has to send out unequivocal signals that it is a reliable trade partner that wants to become part of the global supply chain. To achieve this, India has to avoid falling back on discredited policies such as raising import tariffs under various guises like furthering the Make In India initiative or addressing current account imbalances. The withdrawal of GPS by the US is partly a response to these kinds of protectionist moves that have begun to again rear their heads over the last few years. Bad ideas, like bad smells, tend to hang around long enough to drive away customers. They need to be strenuously kept away from the policy levers. Lastly, the EU is a bigger entity than even the US. Negotiations on a free trade agreement with the EU have been ongoing since 2007. The textile industry in Bangladesh has benefited at India’s expense over the last decade due to the absence of such a trade agreement. It is high time we conclude an agreement with the EU. This article first appeared in the print edition on March 16, 2019, with the title ‘At a standstill’. The writer is Director, Centre for Advanced Financial Research and Learning, Mumbai and Professor of Economics at the University of British Columbia.
Source: Indian Express
HGH Trade Show to be held in July in Mumbai to showcase city-made products. Consumer demand for home products in India is increasing at a rate of 20-25 per cent. And experts say Hyderabad is registering a growth which is above the national average with about 30-35 per cent year-on-year. Retail buying in the city has seen a significant surge in the last couple of years. HGH India managing director Arun Roongta told Telangana Today, “Hyderabad’s unique blend of tradition and modernity will take the city’s home market growth story forward. Hyderabad is becoming the hub for home textiles, decorative accessories and houseware. With the co-existence of these components in the home market, the city has seen an influx of large number of national and international branded home stores.” He added, “With rising per capita income and growing affluence of customers, the demand for more innovative, time-saving and convenience-oriented home products in Hyderabad is bound to grow. With Hyderabad attracting investments in both manufacturing and services sector, migration of people from other States has reached an all-time high. This is leading to demand for more houses along with the allied products associated with setting up of new homes.” For consecutive years, Hyderabad has ranked on top in the ‘Quality of Life Index’ in India and the people here have developed a taste for a mix of unconventional and modern choices when it comes to home décor and product designs, particularly in the carpet and upholstery market. Hyderabad-based Darpan Furnishings managing director Suleman Hirani, said, “With the growth in IT, life sciences and banking sectors, home buying has picked up in Hyderabad. Home category has seen a huge transformation in the last few years.” He added, “We are constantly working on making innovative products and designs from newer sources. Aspirations of customers are changing and it’s a good sign for home products segment. We have created six stores in Hyderabad alone.”
HGH Trade Show
Roongta says, “At our annual HGH India trade show that we will be hosting in Mumbai between July 2 and 4 this year, we have decided to bring the home products of Hyderabad. Both home retailers and manufacturers from Hyderabad can showcase their creations in textiles, décor and houseware in the expo.” The trade show will connect the buyers of home products with retailers, artisans and micro enterprises. Specality stores, luxury stores, boutiques, department stores, hyper markets, institutional buyers, interior designers, franchisees will attend the event besides importers and distributors. Last year the trade show attracted 600 exhibitors from 30 countries and 35,000 retailers and buyers from 480 cities and towns from across India. This year over 40,000 retailers and buyers are likely to participate in the trade show. Home products market is growing fast. Home textiles segment alone is going to cross Rs 36,000 crore this year. Wallpaper and mattress segments are growing at a rate of 100-150 per cent.
Source: Telangana Today
Manufacturing sector in the country is in the grip of a slowdown. Key industries have registered lower growth in recent months. The overall industrial growth declined to 1.7 per cent in January, 2019. It was 2.06 per cent in December and 0.3 per cent in November last year. Production in twelve of the 23 industrial segments was on decline. Textiles, motor vehicles, leather and allied products, rubber and plastic products, etc recorded lower production. Capital goods, an indicator of business confidence, too contracted. The latest numbers are provisional, subject to revision afterwards. However, these paint a none-too-happy picture of the industrial sector which remains key to job-creation. With the real estate sector still to recover from the regulatory clamps meant to discipline its wayward behavior and haphazard growth, the employment scene will take time to pick up. The forthcoming election is further likely to slow down business decisions for growth and investment. Even though the nation-wide elections will inject a lot of money into the economy providing boost to poll-related production and jobs, what follows the elections would hold the key to further direction of the economy. Several sectors require structural changes to get back on the growth path. For instance, even though consumer price inflation registered a four-month high of 2.57 per cent in February, farmers still were denied equitable prices for their produce. Thus, vegetables, fruits and pulses registered negative rates of inflation in the latest survey. This may be good for the consumers but for the farmers it was a cause of concern, who in any case get in hand a small fraction of the retail price at which the farm produce is sold. Even the overall economic growth has been contracting. In the quarter ending December 2018 GDP grew at 6.6 per cent. The overall growth for 2018-19 is unlikely to be much above seven per cent. The government might blame the legacy issues such as a mountain of bad bank loans and over-capacities in key sectors such as real estate and even power, but after five years the economy should have been back on rails for it to be able to grow at a decent seven-plus percentage. Unfortunately, the global economy now shows signs of a slowdown while the crude oil prices are moving upwards. This could be worrying for the bounce-back of the Indian economy. In this scenario, after elections it is important to have a stable government led by a known and experienced leader who can steer the economy on the growth path. Urgent steps will be required to boost overall economic growth once the electoral business is behind us.
Source: Free Press Journal
More than 31 ministers from 21 African countries and business delegates from 37 countries will participate in the three-day 14th CII-EXIM Bank Conclave on India-Africa Project Partnerships beginning here on March 17. The event being organised by Ministry of Commerce and Industry in association with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and EXIM Bank of India will mark deepening of India-Africa economic and business ties. It will pave the way for a whole range of cross-border project partnerships, said an official statement issued by the government on Friday. Echoing key areas identified for conclave, the discussion will revolve around two key themes: digital infrastructure and digital skills. Ghana's Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, Guinea's Prime Minister Ibrahima Kassory Fofana and Lesotho's Deputy Prime Minister Monyane Moleleki will be present at the conclave along with Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Suresh Prabhu, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry C R Chaudhary and Secretary at the Department of Commerce Anup Wadhawan. The India-Africa partnership assumes critical importance for the global economy that is facing a slowdown, moderating trade and investment flows, growing trade protectionism and tightening financing conditions. Africa's economic growth in 2018 will continue in 2019 in sub-Saharan Africa, averaging 3.6 per cent over the next two years, as per World Bank estimates. India-Africa bilateral trade volume at 62.66 billion dollars during 2017-18 was about 22 per cent higher compared to the previous year. The new dynamism of African economies has contributed to the region emerging as one of the highly attractive global investment destinations. While Africa's acute physical infrastructure financing deficit estimated at about 170 billion dollars has created private investment opportunities in roads, highways, ports and airports, railroads, power generation, transmission and distribution, among other segments, the accelerated domestic economic growth has also increased demand for manufactured goods and services. Over the years, Indian companies have invested in Africa across diverse sectors like agriculture, agro-processing, oil, gas, mining, minerals, education, healthcare, drugs and pharmaceuticals. The joint CII-EIF (Enhanced Integrated Framework) session during the conclave will focus on how to seize new opportunities, address key challenges and boost cooperation between Indian businesses and African least developed countries to benefit more fully from inclusive economic development. Over the last two decades, India has directed focused attention on capacity building initiatives supporting African countries while providing more than one billion dollars in technical assistance and training to personnel under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme. India has committed 7.5 billion dollars to Africa's infrastructure development, covering 137 projects in more than 40 countries. India has also offered duty-free market access to Africa's least developed countries. Besides, Exim Bank of India has extended concessional lines of credit for critical projects in Africa. India has a heavy dependence on fossil fuel imports to meet its burgeoning energy demand. Africa has become a major source of crude oil imports for India, with Nigeria and Angola being the two main geographical sources. At the same time, Indian energy majors are playing an instrumental role in large oil and gas exploration and production projects in Africa.
Source: Business Standard
With the surge in foreign fund inflows, Indian currency Rupee extended rally on Friday after it reached its seven-month high against the US Dollar on Thursday. According to Bloomberg index Rupee was trading at Rs 69.15 against the US Dollar after it opened at Rs 69.33 on Friday. It rose by 20 paise against the US Dollar and closed at Rs 69.34 on Thursday. Indian Rupee on 7-month high against the US dollar at 69.15. RBI to infuse long-term liquidity of bln via dollar rupee swap arrangement on Mar 26 to contain the rallyWith the surge in foreign fund inflows, Indian currency Rupee extended rally on Friday after it reached its seven month high against the US Dollar on Thursday. According to Bloomberg index Rupee was trading at Rs 69.15 against the US Dollar after it opened at Rs 69.33 on Friday. It rose by 20 paise against the US Dollar and closed at Rs 69.34 on Thursday. The Reserve Bank of India said Thursday it would infuse $5 billion dollar through long-term foreign exchange Buy/Sell swap auction in terms of its extant liquidity management framework on March 26 for a tenor of three years. FII’s poured in a net amount of Rs 1,482.99 crore on Thursday. Speaking about the development, Murthy Nagarajan, Head-Fixed Income, Tata Mutual Fund told Financial Express Online that RBI has taken the above measure to control the currency appreciation. Dollar inflows has increased as global economy is showing signs of slowdown and perception of a stable government at the centre. According to the new arrangement of India’s apex bank, banks can offer to swap dollars for rupees with the RBI at a premium decided by the auction process, which will potentially lower the hedging cost for the lenders, Reuters report said quoting traders on Thursday. “If you look at capital flows, between equity and debt, we have already seen 2.8 billion dollar this month. So, we are seeing much stronger inflow as a result of which there has been a pressure on rupee to appreciate. However, RBI has been buying in the market to contain the extant of runaway appreciation,” Shubda Rao, Chief Economist with Yes Bank told Financial Express Online.
Source: Financial Express
A Regional Yarn Production and Innovation Centre (RYPIC) was recently set up in Miagao, Iloilo, in the Philippines at a cost of PHP 41.57 million. Conceptualized in 2015 and funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), it will revive the textile sector in Western Visayas taking into account social, economic, ecological and sustainability considerations. An agreement was signed by DOST, DOST-Philippine Textile Research Institute (PTRI), Greatwomen Philippines Corporation (GWPhC), and the municipality of Miagao for establishment of the centre. PTRI will first train people who will operate the facility, which is hosted by the Iloilo Science and Technology University (ISAT U) through its Miagao campus. ISAT U will later partner with the GreatWomen Philippines that will run the operations at the end of the two-year project, according to a news agency report. A second phase of the project is possible, said DOST-PTRI director Celia Elumba. The centre now is equipped with 15 machines, nine for spinning and six for pre-treatment. (DS)
Source: Fibre2fashion
UK fashion retailers are the best at persuading online visitors to buy, says a global study of e-commerce in fashion by Nosto, the e-commerce personalisation and retail artificial intelligence (AI) platform. But British shoppers spend less on each order than the global average—around 27 per cent less on orders via mobile and 32 per cent less on desktop orders. UK fashion e-commerce sites have conversion rates of 1.6 per cent on mobile and 2.9 per cent on desktop, which are higher than corresponding global rates of 1.3 per cent and 2.4 per cent respectively, the data suggest. However, the UK average order value, which is $75 on mobile and $82 on desktop, is substantially lower than the global average of $103 on mobile and $120 on desktop. This is despite the UK’s average basket size being slightly higher, according to a press release from Nosto. “UK fashion retailers are clearly winning when it comes to converting traffic into sales,” said James White, head of UK & Ireland, at Nosto. “One of their big current challenges now is how to encourage shoppers to increase their order values by buying higher value items,” he said. This is a complex issue, influenced by general fashion shopping habits and pricing trends in a country as well as shoppers’ confidence and trust in individual retail brands and their merchandise according to White. It could also be affected by how quickly and easily customers can return items if they don’t meet expectations. Nosto’s study also highlights some interesting differences in fashion shopping habits in different regions. For example, French shoppers seem to love using their phones for digital window shopping. At 186 seconds, they have the longest visit times on mobile, more than 20 seconds longer than the global average of 164 seconds. The average visit time on desktop in France is 253 seconds, compared with 143 seconds globally. In the DACH countries (Germany, Austria and Switzerland), consumers appear to be highly ‘committed shoppers’; if they add something to the online cart, they are more likely than those in any of the other countries analysed to go through with making a purchase. These countries have the lowest cart abandonment rates on both mobile and desktop. Nosto’s research is based on an analysis of 1.2 billion visits to fashion e-commerce websites globally, including over 150 million visits to UK sites in 2018. (DS)
Source: Fibre2fashion
The 8th EU-Sri Lanka investor dialogue was held at the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade recently. Many of the earlier outstanding matters had been resolved through dialogue and the joint efforts of the Sri Lanka and European Union authorities. "We are making an effort on our side to clear all issues," Malik Samarawickrama Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade who chaired sessions and led the Sri Lanka delegation said thanking the Ambassadors for their support and cooperation. "I am very pleased that we have made considerable progress in resolving outstanding issues and building up our relations with the European Union on a solid foundation".The Minister added that Sri Lanka has a new budget that is very liberal and also pro-trade and pro-investment. "The budget includes many reforms that cover all segments of the Sri Lanka's population including the lower income groups, public officials, armed forces." Tun Lai Margue, Ambassador of the European Union agreed with the Minister that they have managed to resolve many of the issues that existed between Sri Lanka and European Union. "Among the matters which were discussed was the need to always ensure transparency when it comes to tendering procedures. In addition, we would like to see a more liberal approach with regards to the shipping sector. This is important in the light of Sri Lanka's effort to become a major shipping hub," he said. Minister Samarawickrema informed the EU delegation that Sri Lanka was looking at liberalizing the shipping sector. "In the first stage foreigners will be permitted to own 60% of the shipping companies. This was very important to build up confidence in the European Union for Sri Lanka. It is also a factor that impacts significantly on the attraction of FDI inflows to a country," he notedMinister Samarawickrama was assisted by Nalin Bandara, Deputy Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade, S T Kodikara, Secretary Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade, Champika Malalgoda, Director General of the BOI, Indira Malwatte, Director General of the Export Development Board and Mangala Yapa, Technical Advisor to the Ministry. The Sri Lanka institutions present were the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka, the Department of Public Finance, Ministry of Digital Infrastructure, Sri Lanka Customs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Ports & Shipping, Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka, Inland Revenue Department, Department of Fiscal Policy and the Department of Emigration and Immigration. Ambassador to the European Union Tun Lai Margue was assisted by senior officials of the European Union and their respective missions. A number of important decisions were taken at the Dialogue. It was decided by the Minister that a high level meeting with the EU side and the Minister of Ports Shipping, Finance and International and representative of Maersk would discuss the bidding process for the East Terminal. The EU would monitor the implementation of the decision by Sri Lanka to allow 60% ownership of shipping line in Sri Lanka. The question of VAT reimbursement for 2018 will be taken up with the Department of Inland Revenue. The Sri Lankan side will raise the issue of customs duties payment relating to blocked containers with the Finance Ministry. Other areas of agreements covered the payment of dues, the effect of noise pollution, VAT an imports for exports and the fast track facility accorded to a company. At a macroeconomic and strategic level the European Union represents an important source of investment for Sri Lanka. In the period 2005 - 2016, EU enterprises operating under BOI invested an estimated US$2.5 billion in Sri Lanka. The bulk sectors for investment were manufacturing (other than textile and apparel) valued at US$ 557 million; textile and apparel manufacture (US$ 327 million); telecommunications (US$ 617 million): Airline services (US$ 325 million); and power generation (US$ 255 million). The leading European Union countries in terms of FDI to Sri Lanka are the United Kingdom with 90 projects under BOI (of which 54 exporters), Germany (42 projects, 31 exporters), the Netherlands (29 projects, 14 exporters), Sweden (20 projects, 13 exporters) Italy (18 projects, 14 exporters, France (13 projects, 10 exporters) and Belgium (10 projects of which 6 exporters). The EU-Sri Lanka dialogue is therefore a vital forum that offers considerable opportunities for attracting European investment to Sri Lanka.
Source: Colombo Page
Today, the textile industry of Uzbekistan is part of the intangible cultural heritage, which has preserved the traditionsof ancestors in the production of textile products - the manufacture of fabrics, clothing, carpet weaving. Uzbekistan attaches priority importance to further strengthening the strategic partnership with China. Expanding cooperation between the two countries in all areas is based on the principles of mutual benefit, consideration of interests and equality. The delegation of the Association "Uztextileprom" and domestic manufacturers of the textile, garment and knitwear industry take part in the International Exhibition of Textile Fiber, Yarn Expo Spring 2019 in Shanghai (China), the press service of the Association Uztextileprom reports. The Uzbek delegation visited an exhibition in order to expand export deliveries to the countries of Southeast Asia, as well as to establish direct contacts with potential consumers and to conclude export contracts with them, on March 12-14. Yarn Expo is an important sourcing platform where suppliers from Asian and European countries showcase their latest collections of fiber and yarn, including natural (cotton, wool, silk, linen, ramie), artificial, blended, reconstituted, as well as speciality products. For foreign suppliers, it is an opportunity to strengthen trade relations in the region and increase its presence in the Chinese market. Such companies as Textile Technologies Group Surxon Teks and Global Textile Solutions, as well as a number of domestic companies in the industry, took part in the exhibition. During the exhibition, meetings and negotiations with potential investors were organized and the parties discussed issues of further expanding cooperation in the textile and garment and knitwear industry. In parallel with Yarn Expo Spring 2019, four more exhibitions will take place: the leading exhibition of apparel fabrics and accessories Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics," the exhibition of home textiles InterTextile Shanghai Home Textiles," the exhibition of knitted clothing and knitwear PH Value" and the fashion exhibition CHIC, in which delegation of the Association Uztextileprom will participate. These exhibitions are an ideal opportunity to gain access to the leading suppliers of textile raw materials in China. They help to strengthen the trade relations of domestic manufacturers of the textile and garment and knitwear industry in the region and increase their presence in the Chinese market. Diplomatic relations between Uzbekistan and China were established on January 2, 1992. The trade turnover between the two countries totalled $ 6.43 billion in 2018. Of this amount, $ 2.869 billion is Uzbek exports, as many as $ 3.559 billion is imports. China received $ 2.1 billion due to an increase in construction in Uzbekistan. With this money, Uzbekistan has acquired special construction equipment from China.
Source: MENAFN
Vietnamese textile-garment export turnover reached $4.89 billion in the first two months of this year, up 19 per cent year-on-year, according to the ministry of industry and trade (MoIT). Products witnessing significant export growth included fabrics made from natural fibres at 14 per cent, fabrics from synthetic fibres at 14 per cent and apparel at 11 per cent. The positive performance was attributed to many firms receiving orders for the first six months of this year or even the entire year., according to a news agency report. Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Textile and Garment-Embroidery Association Pham Xuan Hong said the prospects of the domestic textile and garment industry seemed quite positive this year because of adequate external orders. The industry is projected to generate $40 billion from exports by the end of this year, up 10.8 per cent year-on-year, according to the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS). The industry’s trade surplus was expected to reach $20 billion this year. it said. In 2018, export turnover of garments and textile products reached more than $36 billion, marking a year-on-year rise of 16 per cent. (DS)
Source: Fibre2fashion
In a request letter (received February 22, 2019), the USTR stated that the United States and Korea have recently reached preliminary agreement on proposed modifications to the KORUS rules of origin for certain textile and apparel goods. The USTR stated that section 202(o)(2)(B)(i) of the Act authorizes the President, subject to the consultation and layover requirements of section 104 of the Act, to proclaim such modifications to the rules or origin for textiles and apparel goods as are necessary to implement an agreement with Korea pursuant to Article 4.2.5 of the U.S.-Korea FTA. The USTR also stated that one of the requirements set out in section 104(1) of the Act is that the President obtain advice regarding the proposed action from the Commission. In the request letter, the USTR requested that the Commission provide advice on the probable economic effect of the modifications on U.S. trade under KORUS, total U.S. trade, and on domestic producers of the affected articles. He further requested that the Commission provide its advice at the earliest possible date but no later than four months from receipt of the request, and that it issue, as soon as possible thereafter, a public version of its report with any confidential business information deleted. The proposed modifications to the KORUS rules of origin cover the following products: Certain cotton yarns (under HTS heading 5206) with viscose rayon staple fibers (under HTS subheadings 5504.10 or 5507.00), certain woven fabrics (under HTS heading 5408) with cuprammonium rayon yarns (under HTS heading 5403.39), and certain apparel (under HTS heading 6110), accessories and parts (under HTS heading 6117) of certain cashmere yarns (under HTS heading 5108). The request letter and the proposed modifications are available on the Commission's website at https://www.usitc.gov. As requested, the Commission will provide its advice to USTR no later than four months of receiving the request letter (by June 24, 2019). Written Submissions: No public hearing is planned. However, interested parties are invited to file written submissions. All written submissions should be addressed to the Secretary, and should be received no later than 5:15 p.m., March 29, 2019. All written submissions must conform with the provisions of section 201.8 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR 201.8). Section 201.8 and the Commission's Handbook on Filing Procedures require that interested parties file documents electronically on or before the filing deadline and submit eight (8) true paper copies by 12:00 p.m. eastern time on the next business day. In the event that confidential treatment of a document is requested, interested parties must file, at the same time as the eight paper copies, at least four (4) additional true paper copies in which the confidential information must be deleted (see the following paragraph for further information regarding confidential business information). Persons with questions regarding electronic filing should contact the Office of the Secretary, Docket Services Division (202-205-1802). Confidential Business Information: Any submissions that contain confidential business information (CBI) must also conform with the requirements of section 201.6 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (19 CFR 201.6). Section 201.6 of the rules requires that the cover of the document and the individual pages be clearly marked as to whether they are the “confidential” or “non-confidential” version, and that the confidential business information is clearly identified by means of brackets. All written submissions, except for those containing CBI, will be made available for inspection by interested parties. The Commission may include some or all of the CBI submitted in the course of the investigation in the report it sends to USTR. In addition, all information, including CBI, submitted in this investigation may be disclosed to and used: (i) By the Commission, its employees and Offices, and contract personnel (a) for developing or maintaining the records of this or a related proceeding, or (b) in internal investigations, audits, reviews, and evaluations relating to the programs, personnel, and operations of the Commission including under 5 U.S.C. Appendix 3; or (ii) by U.S. government employees and contract personnel for cybersecurity purposes. The Commission will not otherwise disclose any confidential business information in a manner that would reveal the operations of the firm supplying the information.
Source: USTR
