The government on Wednesday elaborated the testing and certification process for personal protective equipment (PPE) body coveralls manufactured in India. As per the revised norms, testing labs can now accept the samples of the submission of the notarised affidavit with details of the company manufacturing it and description of the type of fabric. “With a view to streamline the process of testing and ensure that the quality of PPE coveralls are maintained, it is proposed to further elaborate the test and certification procedures,” textiles ministry said. The earlier guidelines had made it mandatory for the manufacturers to mark their products with a unique code and tamper-proof stickers. Unique Certification Code (UCC) will apply to PPE garments and fabric which pass the laboratory tests. “The UCC should now form the basis for placement of orders by HLL Lifecare for PPR coveralls,” it said. The existing UCCs will be valid for a certain period and fresh UCC would be valid from the new date. The UCC may have a validity period of six months only from the date of issue, it said.
Source: Economic Times
The Union government on Wednesday clarified that companies would be penalised only for negligence or cognisance in case their employees tested positive for the novel coronavirus (Covid-19), a day after India Inc raised concerns over the official guidelines to restart economic activity. “The MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) guidelines misinterpreted. Penalties under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, applicable if an offence occurs with consent, cognisance or negligence of the employer," a home ministry spokesperson said on Twitter. Industry had flagged the issue once again on Wednesday to Union Labour and Employment Secretary Heera Lal Samariya, who promised to take up the matter at “the highest level”. “Companies should follow the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) guidelines…The most important (element) is that there should not be any criminality (clause) and I fully agree with you. (I) will take it up at the highest level,” Samariya said during an interaction with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry via videoconferencing. Samariya stressed that the government was expected to soon receive a report from the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Code on Industrial Relations and the Code on Social Security, which were tabled in the Lok Sabha. “Labour law reforms will be the government’s top priority,” he said, adding that the government was looking to provide a slew of relief measures to industry, including a reduction in contributory rates towards the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) scheme to lessen their financial burden. According to sources, after his meeting with Ficci executives, Samariya attended a meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to discuss the challenges faced by industry. Most industry representatives raised concerns over the inability to pay the wages of employees during the lockdown period and suggested ways by which the government could help them. However, the secretary dismissed the demand for utilising the ESIC corpus to give out wages. “The ESI money belongs to the insured worker… Let’s not give this idea that this money can be diverted to provide for wages of employees. It’s the poor man’s money and let it be with them,” Samariya said. The labour ministry has also compiled the data of 2.2 million migrant workers living in shelter camps, employers' premises or residential clusters, and a mapping exercise will begin soon to deploy them to nearby units. The secretary said the wage assistance for the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and “other industries so that they survive” will be taken up “at the highest level”. “If something is done, it will be great,” Samariya said. “A proposal to increase the wage threshold of workers to be covered under ESIC is on the table,” a senior government official said, requesting anonymity. Another alternative being explored by the government is to provide medical insurance to workers through the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, which provides a cover of up to Rs 500,000 a family every year. This proposal will lead to a financial outgo from the government.
Source: Business Standard
Three days after the lockdown was partially lifted, companies across sectors — automobile, steel, FMCG, textiles, consumer electronics and durables — are finding it hard to get their operations back on track. However, business at non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) and construction work in infrastructure projects is slowly coming back on track. Auto clusters in the NCR region (Gurgaon and Greater Noida), Tamil Nadu (Sriperumbudur), and Maharashtra (Chakan-Talegaon-Ranjangaon) are yet to resume operations as the lockdown continues in the regions. Consumer goods and steel companies are functioning with scaled down capacities, while supply chain disruptions continue. The company continues to face local or state restrictions in the movement of its people working in the essential goods supply chain. “We have moved to larger order sizes and direct shipping from factories to compensate, but this is far from efficient,” a spokesperson at HUL said. The government has clarified that penal action against the companies will be taken only if negligence is proven in terms of safety precautions to prevent spread of Covid-19 at workplaces. However, the industry, which is still limping back to normalcy, is less than satisfied. Sunil Kataria, CEO (India & SAARC), Godrej Consumer Products said that the scale up of operations is gradual considering strict adherence to safety and social distancing norms. “We are also in the process of seeking permissions to run more factories in line with the new guidelines and are hopeful that this will help in the production ramp up and improve the supply of essential items over the next few weeks,” Kataria said. Textile major Arvind said that it is awaiting permissions to resume work in Gujarat plants, while its factory in Bengaluru is currently making personal protective equipments (PPE) for the healthcare workers. According to Punit Lalbhai, executive director, Arvind Ltd, the company has had to re-develop supply chain from domestic sources as majority of supply chain for raw materials for PPEs is based in China and there was difficulty in importing from there due to shortage of materials. Mobile phone manufacturing units are also yet to start operations as they are awaiting permission from local authorities, while consumer durables will wait till full supply chain is resumed. According to Indian Cellular & Electronics Association (ICEA) chairman Pankaj Mohindroo, it will take time to gear up, but the mobile phone companies will restart manufacturing once necessary permissions come in. Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA) president Kamal Nandi said most brands had enough stocks in their warehouses as well as with trade partners, so and he does not think manufacturing activity will start in a big way. Meanwhile, Ashok Leyland has got permission to run its plants in Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Maharashtra. NV Balachandar, president (HR, communication and CSR), Ashok Leyland, said, “The Ashok Leyland plants at Alwar, Bhandara and Pantnagar have received permission from the relevant government authorities to resume operations. We are currently working out the supply chain readiness post which we will resume operations and commence production in line with demand.” However, in sectors like NBFCs there has been slight uptick in business activity. Umesh Revankar, managing director and CEO, Shriram Transport Finance, said that customers’ visits to branches for services had slowly increased. “Our customers feedback has been positive and we hope to get back to normalcy very soon,” Revankar said. Similarly, construction work has begun in a limited manner on some metro and power transmission projects. KEC International managing director & CEO Vimal Kejriwal said transmission and distribution projects have started at various places in India, while railway electrification work has also started in Maharashtra between Tuesday and Wednesday. “We are doing four metro projects, the one in Kochi has got approval for starting the construction activity, but the three projects in Delhi are stuck due to complete lockdown,” Kejriwal said.
Source: Financial Express
The unprecedented situation created by Covid–19 pandemic and lockdown announced by both the Union and state governments from March 24 has led to severe disruptions affecting the economy and impacting people at large and the MSME spinning mills. Hit hard by the ongoing lockdown due to Covid-19, the MSME spinning industries has sought some immediate relief measures from the Tamil Nadu government, including sanctioning six equal installments for payment of electricity bills, collecting minimum electricity charges for the recorded (actual) demand among others. The unprecedented situation created by Covid–19 pandemic and lockdown announced by both the Union and state governments from March 24 has led to severe disruptions affecting the economy and impacting people at large and the MSME spinning mills in particular in the state, said N Murugesan, president, Southern India Spinners’ Association (SISPA). “At this juncture, we at SISPA, representing MSME spinning industries in Tamil Nadu is requesting immediate remedial measures, including sanctioning six equal instalments for payment of electricity bills for March 2020, irrespective of the consumers (LT, LTCT and HT) without levying belated payment surcharge (BPSC)/any other additional surcharges or otherwise it may be deducted from the additional current consumption deposit (ACCD). MSME industries are using power only for security and lighting purposes and were not consuming entire sanctioned demand. Therefore, we request the state government to advice TANGEDCO to collect the minimum electricity charges for the recorded (actual) demand and not for the sanctioned demand during the lockdown period,” the president said. He further said that since availability of workforce, salability of finished product is uncertain after the lockdown period, SISPA requests to adopt the same procedure for at least six months to overcome the financial crisis after the lockdown period. The 40 days nationwide lockdown, closing of borders between districts and states has affected the highly labour, capital- intensive textile spinning sector and has affected the revenue of the entire textile value chain. Hence, the association is seeking support at this critical moment to safeguard the industries and the millions of the workers in the nation, he added.
Source: Financial Express
NEW DELHI: Shipments worth US$3 billion are at stake for India's apparel exporters, following order cancellations and payment delays amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to a survey. The key findings of the poll, by Rajesh Bheda Consulting (RBC), are that the combined value of orders cancelled and on hold is US$1.49 million per factory, which is the equivalent of US$4.17 billion nationwide. It concluded that the pandemic was posing the Indian apparel export community with unprecedented liquidity challenges, putting the livelihood of 12.9 million garment workers at risk.
Source: Eco Textiles
The magnitude and speed of collapse in economic activity that India has seen over the last few weeks is unprecedented and there is tremendous uncertainty about what the future holds for businesses. Almost 72 per cent of respondents in a recent industry survey have reported that COVID-19 is having a 'high to very high' level of impact on their businesses. Further, a substantial majority of the respondents do not foresee a positive demand outlook for their business in this fiscal, with 70 per cent of the surveyed firms expecting a de-growth in sales in fiscal 2020-21, according to the survey, jointly conducted by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and tax consultancy Dhruva Advisors. A vast majority also foresee a reduction in their business cash flows and company's order book. The survey clearly highlights that unless a substantive economic package is announced by the government immediately, India could witness a permanent impairment of a large section of industry, which may lose the opportunity to come back to life again. Jobs are also at risk over the coming months as nearly three fourths of the surveyed firms said that they may look at some reduction in manpower in their respective companies. The survey, which covered 380 companies from various sectors, showed 61 per cent of the respondents expect to defer approved expansion plans for up to 6 or 12 months, while 33 per cent expect to defer such plans for more than 12 months. Further, while 60 per cent have deferred their fundraising plans for the next 6-12 months, nearly a quarter of the firms have shelved the same. With domestic demand plummeting to record low levels, companies were hoping that exports may provide an outlet for them to energise growth. While 43 per cent of the respondents reported that they do not foresee an impact on exports, nearly 34 per cent said exports would take a hit by more than 10 per cent. Cost optimisation measures being considered by firms include manpower and salary rationalisation, deferral of appraisals, increments and bonuses, reduction in discretionary expenses and freezing recruitment. Sixty nine per cent of the respondents believe additional measures and packages should be announced by the government. The key expectations are tax reliefs and incentives, ease of compliances and demand creation. FICCI and Dhruva Advisors will repeat this survey in another four weeks to assess how the situation is changing.
Source: Fibre2fashion
Being one of the oldest established industry, India’s textile and apparel industry contributes 2.3% of the total GDP and is the second largest employer encompassing 45 million people. This sector is highly diversified and caters to a wide array of segments ranging from traditional handloom products to cotton, wool and silk products. In terms of world export, India is the third largest exporter of textiles & apparel and contributes to 12% of the export earnings. Due to availability of raw materials such as cotton, wool, silk and jute, India has a competitive advantage. This has led the Government, under the Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks(SITP) and Technology upgradation fund scheme (TUFS) to make huge investments, which is going to attract more private equity ,training workforce and make it technology intensive. By the above means the government had taken a proactive measures alongside announcing special packages to boost exports, create job opportunities and attract investments. The recent policies allowed 100% Foreign direct investment and free trade with ASEAN to increase the exports. To further the policy support, the ministry of textile was expected to release New Textile policy 2020. Before the impact of Covid 19 the expected CAGR for the sector was 28% and leading to 10 million more jobs by end of 2020. The onset of the Covid19 pandemic has severely damaged the Indian exports market. The nationwide lockdown has led to a closure of factories and lay-offs have already begun among low wage workers. The pandemic has affected the majority of India’s export market (the US and EU together constitute for approximately, 60% of the total apparel exports from India), causing order cancellations and deferrals leading to build-up of unsold inventory and expectation of slower realization of export receivables leading to higher working capital requirements. Due to the same, India’s apparel industry stands to lose shipments worth more than $3 billion as of the moment. Further, in March 2020, exports fell 32.2% compared with the same period last year. Apparel exports, which were about $16.1 billion in 2018-19, fell almost 4% to $15.4 billion, with the March exports alone dropping almost 35% compared with the same month last year. The potential loss in revenues is estimated to amount US $8-10 billion. At present, the companies are grappled with muted growth, sharp decline in yarn exports, unavailability of cheaper imports, profitability issues, currency fluctuations, order cancellations, deferring shipments, inventory piles, increase in working capital and wage payments. Global economy is itself under pressure and the global lockdowns, as much as needed, worsens the situation. Deep discounts are not affecting the consumers, spending on storages and payments of interest on inventory pile are making the promotors desperate forcing them to take drastic measures such as closures. The overseas customers voided their existing contractual obligations by invoking force majeure, leading to cancellations or at best, postponement. Despite forwards contracts, the contracts have become unenforceable, leading the exporter textile houses in an unchartered territory. To support the sector, the government should extend tax compliances, interest rate reductions and announce special packages to mitigate the crisis faced by the capital- and labour-intensive industry. Initiatives like direct subsidies based on past sales and subsidies for maintaining employment can help to avoid severe disruptions. The banking industry should support the exporters by relaxing and extending the credit payment schedules. Additional financing at lower rates should be provided in order to procure raw materials.Guaranteeing exchange rate at a marginal premium can be made available to avert a crisis. Government and RBI are required to step in the similar manner to the 2008 crisis, a capitalistic economy turns socialist in approach by absorbing losses and infusing capital. To protect this sector from both liquidity and solvency risk, Government intervention is the need of the hour, as the pace of recovery post lockdown will depend on these policies.
Source: Business World
At present, sectors like warehousing, trucking, and last-mile delivery, are facing several challenges. Labour shortage has turned out to be the biggest one, across segments. A longer turnaround time in case of ports, demand shock impacting volumes, and supply chain disruption impacting last-mile delivery, are other challenges. “Factoring in the demand shock and supply chain disruptions, we are cutting FY21E and FY22E volume growth for Adani Ports to -2 per cent and 11 per cent, and for Gujarat Pipavav Ports to -3 per cent and 11 per cent (earlier 10 per cent each), respectively,” said Edelweiss Research in its report. In the December quarter, Gujarat Pipavav took a hit in operating profit (sequentially), as its revenue declined alongside, while Adani Ports witnessed a jump in both parameters during the period under review. “In our view, bigger and multi-cargo ports are better off during a downtrend. Most ports of Adani are multi-cargo and bigger, which give it better control on traffic by offering discounts. Hence, we expect it to continue to outgrow the industry,” said Edelweiss. Cargo-wise, India’s rapidly growing container trade (25 per cent mix) is likely to take a bigger knock on account of strong global inter-linkages in container movement. Gujarat Pipavav’s volumes are likely to take a hit, with 85 per cent of its volumes being container-led. Nevertheless, its debt-free balance sheet and 8 per cent dividend yield lend comfort, said the Edelweiss report. The virus outbreak has stalled the continuous growth of cargo volumes, which registered positive growth from December 2019 to February 2020, and negative year-on-year growth of 2.01 per cent in March 2020 — dragged by a significant drop in container and liquid cargo volumes, said a CARE Ratings report. In FY20, cargo handling at major ports grew a meagre 0.82 per cent, against 2.9 per cent achieved in the previous financial year. Container traffic is likely to face a slowdown from the automotive industry, and other container cargoes like white goods imports and granite exports segments in FY21, due to weak demand, said CARE Ratings. In the logistics sector, rail freight services are on, but partial permanent demand loss is expected, given bookings are likely to reduce in April, said the latest Dolat Capital report. Road freight operations, on the other hand, will see permanent demand loss on account of the disruption, it said. Players such as Mahindra Logistics, Allcargo, Future Supply Chain, and Rivigo have witnessed no cargo movement except for essentials and the segment is expected to take a revenue hit during this time period.
Source: Business Standard
The Indian rupee today edged closer to 77 a dollar and some analysts say that the Indian currency may hit 80 a dollar over next few months. Today, the rupee hit 76.91 at day's low before closing at 76.67. Though the rupee has significantly outperformed other emerging market currencies in this coronavirus-related market mayhem, selling pressure from outflows from Indian will weigh on the Indian currency, say analysts. But the pace of decline of rupee could be slow as compared to other emerging market currencies due to the sharp fall in global oil prices, say analysts. "Selloff in equities is a major threat for rupee going forward. FPIs own $378 billion ( ₹2,900,000 crore) of Indian equities," said Abhishek Goenka, Founder and CEO, IFA Global. Year to date, the rupee is down over 7% against the US dollar after foreign investors withdrew a record sum of over ₹1 lakh crore from Indian capital markets in March, though the selling has slowed this month. "If coronavirus induced disruptions exacerbate, amid fiscal concerns we may see another 3-4% follow-up move in USD-INR to new all-time highs," IFA Global said in a recent note. "Lower crude prices should provide some respite to the rupee but during times of extreme risk aversion it is often the capital market outflows that tend to have a predominant and more pronounced impact," the forex advisory said. "The current account deficit is likely to narrow significantly as imports would fall more than exports. The RBI has done a reasonable job of containing the rupee so far. A spike in volatility could lead to further acceleration in capital market outflows. Hence, the RBI reaction function would also be extremely crucial," it added. The rupee may drop another 4.7% to 80.6 per dollar by June end amid capital outflows, according to Bloomberg Economics. The US dollar has also strengthened against other currencies as investors fled riskier assets for the world's most liquid currency. “Given the uncertainty surrounding the potential duration of the outbreak and the lockdown, we believe the RBI is unlikely to attempt a hard intervention that would risk quick depletion of its reserves," said Abhishek Gupta, India economist at Bloomberg. ICICI Securities said: "We believe this resilience of the rupee may continue due to improving macros in India. Also, as the RBI has been quite active and announced measures to curb rupee depreciation, the pace of rupee depreciation would remain quite slow."
Source: Live Mint
The Sikkim Government has recommended indefinite postponement of Indo-China border trade between Sikkim and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China via Nathu La Pass in Sikkim in view of the COVID-19 outbreak. The trading window is scheduled to open from the first Monday of May. Sikkim Minister for Commerce and Industries B S Panth informed AIR that the State Government has decided to postpone the border trade for an uncertain period for this session and the decision has been conveyed to the Union Commerce and Industries Ministry.The trading window of six months each year opens on the first Monday of May and ends on the last Thursday of November or 30th November. During the 2019 trading session, Indian traders exported materials worth of 39.73 crore rupees while imports were worth around 3.16 crore rupees. Indian traders largely import carpets, readymade garments, blankets, shoes, jackets and quilts and export vegetable oil, rice, processed and canned food, textiles and copper items.
Source: All India Radio
Textiles major Welspun India on Wednesday said it has resumed partial operations at its manufacturing facilities at Vapi and Anjar in Gujarat following receipt of permission from district authorities. On March 24, the company had decided to temporarily close its manufacturing operations at the two units with immediate effect till further notice following announcement of nationwide lockdown to curb spread of coronavirus pandemic. "In continuation of our earlier disclosure dated March 24, 2020, we hereby inform that we have received permissions from administrative authorities of Valsad District and Kutch District in the state of Gujarat to start operations with effect from April 21, 2020 and the company has resumed partial operations," it said in a regulatory filing. Under new guidelines for the extended lockdown till May 3, the home ministry had allowed industrial units in rural areas or outside municipal limits to resume partial operations after April 20 under strict hygiene and safety conditions.
Source: Economic Times
In a major relief to all industrial and commercial institutions during COVID-19 lockdown, the Uttar Pradesh government has decided to exempt interest on the amount payable by these establishments under all heads from March 22 till June 30, 2020. The lockdown implemented for the prevention of coronavirus pandemic has resulted in the temporary closure of industrial, commercial and institutional units located all over the world, India and the state. This has a resulted in drastic slowing down of economic activities, Minister for Industrial Development of the State, Satish Mahana, said in a press note. In view of the financial crisis faced by these units and to spur the economic activity in Uttar Pradesh, the state government has allowed restarting of operations by certain industrial units, and has also decided to allow exemption in interest on dues of industrial and commercial institutions of the state for three months, the minister said. He expressed hope that the said exemption would provide some relief to the industries and enterprises of the state during the current crisis and they would be able to resume operations of their units by following the guidelines issued by the central and state government. In this regard, directives were issued to all major industrial development authorities of the state by the infrastructure and industrial development department on Tuesday, the press note said. Principal Secretary for infrastructure and industrial development, Alok Kumar has issued a circular to Noida, Greater Noida, Yamuna Expressway, UP State Industrial Development, Gorakhpur Industrial Development Authority, Satharia Industrial Development Authority and the Integrated Industrial Township Greater Noida on Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor to exempt interest on late payment of all types of dues to be paid by the industrial, commercial and institutional units during the period from 22 March to 30 June, 2020, from 30 June, 2020. This exemption will be available to units that pay their dues by 30 June, 2020, the press note added.
Source: Economic Times
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
843.44 |
USD/Ton |
-3.55% |
24-04-2020 |
|
VSF |
1285.65 |
USD/Ton |
0.11% |
24-04-2020 |
|
ASF |
1761.76 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
Polyester POY |
656.95 |
USD/Ton |
-1.06% |
24-04-2020 |
|
Nylon FDY |
1935.54 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
40D Spandex |
4026.48 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
Nylon POY |
5199.10 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
932.45 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
Polyester FDY |
1977.92 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
Nylon DTY |
2006.18 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
847.68 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
Polyester DTY |
2401.76 |
USD/Ton |
-5.56% |
24-04-2020 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
1787.19 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1384.54 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2175.71 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
1977.92 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
1737.74 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
1596.46 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2062.69 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.16 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.65 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
0.94 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.50 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.64 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
24-04-2020 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14128 USD dtd. 24/04/2020). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
According to the Việt Nam National Brand (Vietnam Value) Programme for 2020-30, the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Trade Promotion Agency will set up plans to build an image of Việt Nam as a prestigious country with high-quality goods and services. It will also take measures to prevent any activities from having a negative impact on the national brand. Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Đỗ Thắng Hải speaks to local media about these issues. What are the specific targets of this programme from 2020-30 to promote the development of the national brand? The development of Việt Nam's national brand is a long-term programme through promoting individual product brands. Last year, the Prime Minister issued regulations on building and managing the national brand, and implementing the Việt Nam National Brand Programme. The PM also approved plans for this programme for 2020-30. The programme aims to build an image of Việt Nam as a prestigious country with high-quality goods and services, thus increasing the attractiveness of the country, promoting the development of foreign trade and improving national competitiveness. To reach these targets, these plans must be implemented efficiently. The implementation must also match the country’s import-export strategy, targeting to lift the export turnover of national brands to higher than the average export value. During that period, the programme expects to promote images of over 1,000 products as national brands. It also targets a 10 per cent rise in the number of the most valuable brands listed by the world’s major ratings agencies. Meanwhile, 90 per cent of enterprises nationwide will be made aware of a brand’s importance to their production, business and investment activities. All products that obtain national brand recognition will be promoted in the domestic and key export markets. According to global rating agencies, this programme has contributed to increasing the value of Việt Nam's national brand by 20 per cent annually on average. What is the ministry doing to hit these targets from 2020-30? To achieve these goals, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has been assigned to manage the programme and will coordinate with other ministries, sectors, localities and relevant organisations to help local businesses to develop products according to Việt Nam's national brand criteria. We will support businesses in building, developing and protecting their brands. At the same time, we will also promote communications activities for this programme at home and abroad according to the regulations on building, managing and implementing the Việt Nam National Brand Programme. We will raise awareness among local enterprises about the role of brands in production, business and investment. The programme will also help enterprises improve their ability to build, develop and protect brands. Meanwhile, other ministries and sectors will collect proposals on the development and protection of brands from localities, organisations and enterprises and will then coordinate with the MoIT to implement the programme. The building, protection and promotion of a national brand will be a joint effort by all ministries and sectors. New national brands will be selected every two years according to strict regulations to ensure fairness and transparency. Enterprises that are awarded a national brand will be allowed to use Vietnam Value, the national brand logo, and the national brand identity system. The ministry will coordinate with relevant agencies to manage and inspect the use of the national brand to prevent activities that have a bad impact on the prestige and image of the national brand at home and abroad. The ministry believes that renovations to the national brand programme will create sustainable development for the programme and improve brand value on the global market. During the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, what has the ministry done to help businesses to build and promote brands in domestic and foreign markets under the national brand programme? The COVID-19 pandemic has hit many countries and territories, having negative impacts on the global economy, including Việt Nam. Many local businesses lack input materials for production and are unable to find consumers for their products, forcing them to cut production, especially the textile, garment, footwear, agricultural, tourism and retail sectors. Of which, demand for some farming and food products has reduced due to the pandemic in key export markets such as China, South Korea, and some European and American countries. Besides that, some countries have applied strict measures to restrict the transport of goods. Therefore, Việt Nam's export activities have faced many obstacles. In this situation, ministries and localities have formed specific programmes to support local enterprises, but they also need to find solutions to overcome these difficulties. During the pandemic, the ministry has directed Việt Nam’s trade officials overseas to organise events and promote Vietnamese products in foreign markets. The ministry has offered indirect supports and online consultancy services for local businesses to improve product design and brand development. It has also cooperated with localities to build trade promotion programmes for products with geographical indicators, collective trademarks and national brands on the global market via e-commerce platforms and trade promotion and diplomatic events overseas. On the other hand, the ministry has cooperated with foreign trade promotion organisations to carry out market research and find new export markets for products with competitive advantages. It has strengthened activities connecting local businesses with major distributors in the domestic market to boost local consumption. These solutions will create favourable conditions for local businesses to resume production quickly and meet the higher demand for goods after the pandemic ends. Meanwhile, enterprises need to reorganise production and restructure their markets. Enterprises also need to diversify their sources of input materials and increase the added value of their products. They should hold trade promotions to help Vietnamese goods enter distribution chains, such as large supermarkets. The State has encouraged enterprises to improve the quality of product preservation and processing to meet market demand.
Source: Vietnam News
The organizations are Ethical trading Initiative, Fair Labor Association, Fair Wear, amfori, ethical trade Norway, Better Buying, the Sustainable Trade Initiative, Partnership for Sustainable Textile, Solidaridad and IRBC, Agreements (Dutch Agreement on Sustainable Garment and Textile) International rights groups working for improved labour conditions in apparel sector have urged brands and governments for measures to protect the livelihoods of apparel workers hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic. The organizations are Ethical trading Initiative, Fair Labor Association, Fair Wear, amfori, ethical trade Norway, Better Buying, the Sustainable Trade Initiative, Partnership for Sustainable Textile, Solidaridad and IRBC, Agreements (Dutch Agreement on Sustainable Garment and Textile. On Tuesday, they issued a joint statement in this regard, calling the garment buyers and respective government to protect the interests of apparel workers during this trying time. “We have come together as a group of organizations working on responsible business conduct in the garment industry to collaborate in these unprecedented times. Together we represent close to 2,000 garment brands and retailers committed to improving working conditions,” said the group in the joint statement. Protecting worker income and health and Future-proofing supply chains were most import issues, said the statement. The Covid-19 magnified existing inequalities, systemic vulnerabilities, and challenges in global garment supply chains, while health and livelihoods of millions of garment workers and their families – who often could not rely on savings, loans, or public safety nets – were at risk, said the rights groups. The majority of garment workers were women, often concentrated in low-pay, low-power positions, underrepresented in unions and with additional unpaid child, elderly and sick care duties, it added. “We call upon brands, retailers, suppliers, governments, trade unions, industry associations, civil society and multilateral organizations to work together to enable factories to maintain employment relationships and make changes in the workplace in order to protect the health of garment workers,” reads the statement. “On the other hand, factories must ensure on-time payment of salaries to workers who remain actively employed. If facilities have to close temporarily, it should be a top priority of all stakeholders to support workers directly or in accessing finances to bridge this period that they cannot work. “When worker retrenchment could not be avoided due to long-term factory closure or bankruptcy, all workers should receive their full legal entitlements, including wages, benefits, and severance pay, it added.
Urges for government relief
The joint statement called upon governments to coordinate with multilateral institutions to provide relief funds directly to garment workers and prioritize employment when providing relief to companies. “We call on governments to financially support a collaborative, coordinated approach to create and strengthen these social protection floors in producing countries,” the statement said further. The statement urged the buyers to maintain frequent and transparent dialogue with all supply chain partners on sourcing decisions. In safeguarding factory working conditions, it urged to listen to the voices of workers through their trade unions, mechanisms or elected worker representatives.
Source: The Dhaka Tribune
The COVID-19 crisis is having a devastating effect on workers and employers in all sectors. Workers in essential services such as health and frontline emergency response are at high risk of infection. Grocery workers, flight attendants and autoworkers, are among those who have seen both their health and livelihoods threatened by the pandemic. In a series of briefs the ILO has captured the impact of the crisis on several social and economic sectors, including public emergency services (PES), health services, education, food retail, automotive, tourism, civil aviation, agriculture, maritime shipping and fishing, and the textiles, clothing, leather and footwear (TCLF) industries. The briefs reveal a picture of courage shown by the public emergency and health workers that fight the pandemic, and by the teachers, seafarers, shop keepers and other essential workers that keep our societies functioning. They also reveal massive losses, both of output and jobs across all sectors. Developing countries will be hit hardest, and poverty is on the rise. The analysis also outlines the drastic measures taken by governments, employers and workers to contain the virus and limit the damage to enterprises, livelihoods and the wider economy. These measures have focused on four immediate goals: Protecting workers in the workplace; supporting enterprises, jobs and incomes; stimulating the economy and employment; and relying on social dialogue based on international labour standards to ensure that countries and sectors recover quickly and better. “Many of our member States are taking unprecedented measures to protect frontline workers and to lessen the impact on businesses, livelihoods and the most vulnerable members of society,” said Alette van Leur, Director of the Sectoral Policies Department of the ILO. “We must increase investment in safe and decent working conditions for frontline workers and ensure that this pandemic does not leave long-lasting scars on economies, people and jobs.”
Sector Snapshots
The travel and tourism sector – which prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, was expected to make up 11.5 per cent of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) – has been particularly hard hit. The European Union’s tourism industry is estimated to be losing around €1 billion in revenue per month as a result of the outbreak. The impact on employment in the shipping sector, which has two million seafarers, is substantial. The cruise sector, with 250,000 seafarers, has been particularly badly affected, as some countries have advised against travel by cruise ship and major cruise companies have suspended operations. The automotive industry is also struggling with an abrupt and widespread stoppage in economic activity, as workers are told to stay at home, supply chains grind to a halt and factories close. In 2017 direct employment in the industry was estimated at nearly 14 million workers, globally. Due to the severity of travel restrictions and the expected global recession, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates that industry passenger revenues could plummet by US$252 billion, 44 per cent below the 2019 figure. In the textiles, clothing, leather and footwear (TCLF) industries, quarantine measures have suppressed consumer demand. In Bangladesh order cancellations have led to lost revenue of around US$3 billion, affecting some 2.17 million workers. Agriculture and food security has also been badly affected. For example, the recent temporary suspension of one of the world’s largest tea auctions in Mombasa, Kenya, where tea from many eastern African countries is traded, could have a devastating effect on local, national and regional economies if it is prolonged.
Responses
In response, countries have taken steps to bolster key sectors and lessen the socioeconomic impact of the pandemic. Measures include economic assistance packages, tax moratoriums, extended deadlines, social security contributions, as well as wage subsidies, loans and guarantees for workers. Spain has extended a credit line of €400 million to cover all Spanish business enterprises and self-employed workers in the passenger transport, hospitality and restaurant industries. In Namibia, the Economic Stimulus and Relief Package includes Namibian dollars (NAD) 200 million of guarantees for low-interest loans for farmers and agricultural businesses, including cash flow-constrained farmers and agricultural SMEs that have experienced a significant loss of revenue. A one-time Emergency Income Grant of NAD 750 will be provided to all formal and informal workers who have lost their jobs. In Japan, the government, working with the Japan Automotive Manufacturers Association (JAMA), has set up the Novel Coronavirus Countermeasures Examination Automobile Council, to share information between car manufacturers, auto part and component suppliers. In addition to increasing spending on health, some countries are also allocating more resources to police forces to help implement mitigation measures. For example, in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, police forces have been strengthened to help them implement pandemic mitigation measures, including through training and the supply of personal protective equipment (PPE). In Argentina an agreement between the federation of health workers’ associations and the Government provides a guarantee that all health-care workers will continue to earn full salaries while in quarantine, and will be eligible for free transport during the pandemic, subsidized by the Government. Textile factories in some regions of Sri Lanka have temporarily shut down under government directives, with workers entitled to paid leave. In Cambodia, suspended workers can receive 40 per cent of their salary from their employer and an additional 20 per cent from the government. Cambodia also suspended National Social Security Fund contributions for garment and textile factories who have been affected by a shortage of raw materials because of COVID-19. In all the affected sectors the ILO has urged governments to extend social protection to all and is advising on measures to promote employment retention, short-time work, paid leave and other subsidies, to ensure that the economies, labour markets and industries will become stronger, more resilient and more sustainable when the pandemic resides.
Source: Modern Diplomacy
Asian Development Bank (ADB) president Masatsugu Asakawa and Bangladesh finance minister and ADB governor AHM Mustafa Kamal recently discussed the bank’s support to Bangladesh in its fight against COVID-19. ADB is working hard to respond to Dhaka’s $600-million emergency assistance request to help it effectively implement its response measures, Asakawa said. Asakawa appreciated the Bangladesh government’s decisive efforts to control the spread of the disease and manage its impact on health, welfare, and the economy. These efforts include the recent incentives and stimulus package of $11.3 billion for widening social safety net coverage, salary support to workers at export-oriented industries, low-interest loans to affected industries and farmers, and increasing monetary supply, according to an ADB press release. The widespread economic slowdown caused by the pandemic is disrupting Bangladesh’s export and manufacturing supply chains, as well as other economic activities. On April 13, ADB tripled the size of its initial response to COVID-19 to $20 billion and approved measures to streamline its operations for quicker and more flexible delivery of assistance to help its developing member countries counter the severe macroeconomic and health impacts caused by the pandemic.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
