During January 2015 over 35 million kg of filament yarns (all types) were exported to 87 countries. These include polyester, nylon, polypropylene and viscose filament yarns. Close to 95 per cent of all filament yarns was of polyester, of which, DTYs were the largest at 76 per cent. During the month, 34 million kg of polyester filament yarns were exported worth US$58 million. Turkey and Brazil were the major importers of Indian polyester filament yarns, followed by South Korea. They together accounted for 45 per cent of polyester filament yarn exports. Turkey was also major importer of polyester FDYs and POYs while Brazil was the only importer of polyester DTYs. South Africa was the sole importer of polyester industrial yarns in January.
In nylons, USA was the major importer of nylon filament yarn, although the volume was only 52,000 kg worth US$0.32 million. During January, a total of 189,600 kg of nylon filament yarns was exported valued at US$1.20 million. About 35 per cent were in form of nylon DTYs. Another 43,000 kgs were mono filament yarns and 13,000 kg of nylon tire yarn. 16 countries imported 259,000 kg of polypropylene filament yarns from India in January. Mex-ico was the top importer of these yarns largely the multi-filament yarns. USA and Spain were the other major importers of polypropylene filament yarns. Viscose filament yarns were exported to 25 countries in January 2014. During the month, 1.02 million kg of VFYs were exported, Japan was the major imported of VFYs during the month, followed by Czech Republic, Turkey and Iran. The average unit value realization of VFY was US$4.38 a kg
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
The fall in FOB per unit export price of spun yarns is apparently arrested in January. The month saw close to 115 million kg of all kinds of spun yarns exported from India worth Rs 2,470 crore or US$398 million, implying per unit realisation of US$2.98 per kg. This was US cents 3 higher than the realisation in December 2014. However, it was US cents 38 lower from January 2014. Compared to last year, shipments were down 13 per cent while earnings in US$ term fell 23 per cent implying a 11 per cent fall in unit price realization, as the Rupee depreciated 0.6 per cent against the US$ in the comparable months.
During the month, 89 countries imported spun yarns from India with China continuing on the top. It accounted for 31 per cent of India’s total spun yarn exported in January. However, this was 29 per cent lower than the value of export last year while shipment volumes declined 19 per cent YoY. Bangladesh remains as the second largest importer of Indian yarn, accounting for 13 per cent of all spun yarn exported from India. It has also reduced imports from India by 11 per cent in value and 3 per cent in terms of volumes. Egypt also remained the third largest importer of spun yarns in January, pushing down Turkey and South Korea which have reduced imports from India.
Chile, Yemen, Uganda, Australia and Venezuela were the fastest growing markets in January for Indian spun yarn exports. However, they together accounted for only 1.2 per cent of total exports. Among losers, Oman, Botswana, Denmark, Slovakia and Serbia & Montenegro did not import any yarns from India while Hungary, France, Russia, Djibouti and Ukraine have reduced their imports from India considerably in January this year compared to their levels last year. Honduras, Cuba, El Salvador, Panama and Paraguay were the major new destinations for Indian spun yarns, together importing US$1.13 million worth of spun yarns in January.
China has again reduced its imports of cotton yarn from India in January after showing strong urge in December. In January, although China was the largest importer of India cotton yarn, export to that country fell 29 per cent in terms of value and 19 per cents in volume shipment. Only 39.5 million kg of cotton yarn was exported to China worth US$105 million at an average price realization of US$2.67 on an average. Totally, cotton yarn worth US$280 million (Rs.1,750 crore) was exported to 75 countries with volumes totaling 113 million kgs. The average unit price realization was US$2.99 a kg, up US cents 3 from previous month and US cents 43 down from the same month a year ago. China and Bangladesh together accounted for 51 per cent with combined volume at 52 million kg worth US$145 million.
Venezuela, Lithuania, Romania, Kenya, Chile, Ecuador, Lebanon, Algeria, Finland and Norway were the fastest growing markets of Indian cotton yarn in January. Their imports from India more than doubled from previous year. However, they formed just one per cent of total cotton yarn export value. In January, man-made fibre spun yarn exports inched was up both in terms of volume and value. During the month, a total of 6.87 million kg of man-made spun yarn were exported, comprising 2.24 million kg of viscose yarn, 2.41 million kg of polyester yarn and 1.74 million kg of acrylic yarn. Polyester yarn exports were up 2.9 per cent in value while viscose yarn export was down 7.4 per cent during the month. Unit price realization was down US cents 18 for viscose and US cents 23 for polyester from a year ago. Acrylic yarn export jumped 53 per cent to US$6.35 million kg, while unit price realization jumped US cents 38 to US$3.65 per kg.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
India still continues to be a tough place to do business, according to Richard Verma, the new US Ambassador to India. He was speaking on `India and the United States: Building Strong and Sustainable Economies for Our People,’ at the Indian School of Business (ISB) here on Monday. The investor confidence was still shaky and intellectual property protection and legal delays in India were among other concerns, he said. “A hotelier told me that it takes 80 permits to build a single hotel in India as against only six in Singapore... There are 30-40 million pending cases in Indian courts,” he said.
Bilateral treaties
If India wanted the best in technology and innovation it will also require best intellectual property protection, Verma said. A bilateral trade treaty between the two nations, he said, could address some of these issues. The increasing economic connect between the US and India will be good for ordinary people. The cooperation could be mainly in the areas of financial inclusion, skill training/education and clean energy, he added.
The combined growth of the US and Indian economies will also augur well for the global economy, the envoy said. Later, while responding to questions from the students, Verma said better collaboration could also happen in cyber security, counter-terrorism and space. “Our economy is on a rebound and there is enormous opportunity for collaboration in all sectors,” he added.
SOURCE: The Hindu Business Line
The international crude oil price of Indian Basket as computed/published today by Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas was US$ 57.39 per barrel (bbl) on 23.02.2015. This was lower than the price of US$ 59.90 per bbl on previous publishing day of 20.02.2015.
In rupee terms, the price of Indian Basket decreased to Rs 3568.51 per bbl on 23.02.2015 as compared to Rs 3729.37 per bbl on 20.02.2015. Rupee closed stronger at Rs 62.18 per US$ on 23.02.2015 as against Rs 62.26 per US$ on 20.02.2015.
The table below gives details in this regard:
|
Particulars |
Unit |
Price on Feb 23, 2015 (Previous trading day i.e. 20.02.2015) |
Pricing Fortnight for 16.02.2015 |
|
Crude Oil (Indian Basket) |
($/bbl) |
57.39 (59.90) |
52.70 |
|
(Rs/bbl |
3568.51 (3729.37) |
3258.97 |
|
|
Exchange Rate |
(Rs/$) |
62.18 (62.26) |
61.84 |
MJPS/Rk/Daily Crude oil price- 24.02.2015
SOURCE: PIB
A major fixture of the Istanbul economy, the suitcase trade consists of Istanbul-based textile retailers and manufacturers and a customer base from Russia and other former Soviet republics. The trade began with buyers filling up a suitcase or two with textiles to sell for a profit in their home countries, although it has grown into a multibillion-dollar industry based in certain areas of Istanbul such as Laleli, Osmanbey and the Istanbul Textile Traders' Market (İMÇ) in Unkapanı.
However, central bank figures indicate that the trade seriously lost steam in the last several months of 2014. Balance of payments charts show the trade bringing in just under $1 billion during the month of August while September figures dipped to $881 million. Sales continued to decline later in the year, falling to $699 million in October while dipping even further in December of 2014 to $505 million, barely reaching half of the August balance of payments figure. Players in the trade have recently complained about the poor state of business in some of its major hubs, according to a report in the Dünya daily. Stores are closing down in Laleli, while Syrian businessmen are taking over failing shops in the İMÇ, a testament to the decline in Russian and Ukrainian customers due to the political and economic crises in those countries. They are being replaced with Arab customers, according to the report.
Istanbul’s leather clothing sector -- which overlaps with the suitcase trade due to common locations and customers -- has been hit hard by regional factors, and as a consequence 150,000 people have been left unemployed, according to Turkish Leather Manufacturers' Association board member and 25-year leather sector veteran Zeynel Bayrak. “The crisis actually started with Ukraine. There were indications as early as April. By October the crisis had come full circle. Beginning in November and continuing up to the present, firms that work with such brands as Burberry have ceased production. In the past few months shops have not been able to open for business, and some have begun to close down. The production of goods targeting middle-class buyers is switching from Turkey to India and Pakistan,” Bayrak told Dünya.
In the neighborhood of Laleli, which has traditionally been one of the busiest centers in the suitcase trade, business leaders are hoping that their Russian customers will return. “[The crisis in] Russia, as one of our primary markets, has affected us greatly. In the last few weeks we have observed a slight improvement. If the trouble is resolved, we can get over this slump without any problems. Of course, there are firms that are closing down. In these times such developments are normal. Our expectations for the first half of 2015 were not that high anyway, but we are expecting a turnaround by the end of the year,” said Laleli Industrialists and Businessmen's Association (LASİAD) Chairman Giyasettin Eyyüpkoca, speaking to Dünya.
SOURCE: Today’s Zaman
MEG prices grew in Asia in the last week ending Feb 20 due to gains in upstream and downstream product prices in the region. In SE Asia, average prices rose by US$ 15/ton or 1.88 per cent and were quoted at US$ 815/ton last week, as compared to its previous week.
In India, average prices went up by US$ 15/ton and were assessed at US$ 815/ton last week, up 1.88 per cent from its previous week. In China also, average prices mounted by US$ 20/ton and were offered at US$ 810/ton last week as compared its previous week, an increase of 2.53 per cent.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
Improved downstream market sentiments led to Asian PTA prices climbing in the last week ending Feb 20. In FE Asia, average prices rose by US$ 10/ton or 1.69 per cent and were assessed at US$ 600/ton last week, as compared to its previous week.
In SE Asia, average prices grew by US$ 5/ton and were quoted at US$ 620/ton last week, up 0.81 per cent from its previous week. In India also, average prices expanded by US$ 5/ton and were offered at US$ 625/ton last week as against its previous week, an increase of 0.81 per cent. In China, average prices too mounted by US$ 10/ton or 1.71 per cent from its previous week and were spotted at US$ 595/ton last week.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
The completion of a long-awaited Pacific trade deal may still be a ways off, international officials say, so long as U.S. legislators continue to delay key trade legislation that would make the deal possible. Chief negotiators from nations on both sides of the Pacific are set to meet the second week of March in Hawaii to hash out details on the proposed free trade agreement that now includes 11 countries and roughly one-third of global trade.
Australia’s trade minister has said he hopes to see to an agreement by mid-March and officials in Mexico have said their amenable to the timeline. But Japan’s Economy Minister Akira Amari said last week that reaching an agreement was “becoming difficult” as nations wait for the U.S. to pass key trade legislation, according to Reuters. The major stumbling block stateside has been a debate over trade promotion authority, a negotiating “fast track” that would streamline trade talks: giving Congress a simple yes-or-no vote on trade deals, while vesting the primary negotiating powers in the hands of the president.
Since 2012, the Obama administration has been seeking to renew that authority that would give the president the power to negotiate international agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. That partnership, and the fast-track legislation that could make it possible, has broad support among Republican members of Congress as well as groups from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to the National Retail Federation.
Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, Republican chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, has said he plans on introducing legislation this month to streamline the passage of trade deals through Congress. He has also called for a hearing before his committee Thursday to discuss the U.S. trade agenda and priorities. But it’s been members of the president’s own party that have been reluctant to “jump on the bandwagon,” in the words of Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. Reid, the Senate’s top Democrat, has said he will not even consider trade promotion authority legislation until there are certain guarantees it will benefit the middle class.
The finance committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, has agreed with Reid and said last week that he believes a hearing would be premature. “There is no agreement on trade promotion authority, or other aspects of the legislative trade agenda more broadly," Wyden spokesman Keith Chu said in a statement. "Sen. Wyden is continuing to fight for more transparency, more oversight and provisions to ensure American workers come first in our trade policy," Chu said.
Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan, Hatch’s counterpart on the House Ways and Means Committee, told reporters late last month that Republicans are dedicated to seeking bipartisan support for “fast track” legislation. Ryan praised the White House’s recent efforts to drum up Democratic votes and said he remains adamant trade promotion authority pass with bipartisan support. “These are enormous issues that speak to the future of our country,” Ryan told reporters. “I do believe it’s good for the political system that we deliver some common ground and we get some things done.”
It’s been almost eight years since trade promotion authority was last in effect. Before that, the president was granted the authority between 1975 and 1994 and again from 2002 through 2007. Although the authority expired without renewal in 2007, it continued to apply to trade agreements already under negotiation until 2011. The Obama administration has been seeking renewed authority since 2012.
SOURCE: The Journal of Commerce
French machinery manufacturers seeking strategic partners will exhibit at the Techtextil Frankfurt, a leading trade fair for technical textiles and nonwovens, which takes place from 4-7 May, according to the UCMTF, French Textile Machinery Manufacturers Association.
They will showcase machines or part of machines, bringing in the experts their customers need to find and implement new solutions.
“We have the knowledge and international organization to support our customers, to bring them the expertise they need to strengthen their businesses, increase their own sales with good added value and look forward with optimism. The quality of our client relationships stems also from the high stability of our teams, allowing them to go well beyond the purely technical,” commented Evelyne CHOLET, the Secretary General, UCMTF.
Changing environment
Technical textiles manufacturers face an array of challenges, according to the association. These include opening new markets, design of new products, reliable and cost effective production, and more. To navigate in a fast changing environment, French machinery manufacturers need partners such as providers of innovative industrial solutions and cutting-edge technologies, to combine their expertise in finding solutions for critical projects, whatever their scope, or geographic localization.
“We are part of the technical textiles community, we are committed to our customers for the long term, we are dedicated to understand and even anticipate their needs therefore the core of our business is not to sell off-the-shelves machines but to find new effective solutions for our customers, to offer them market-driven innovations,” commented Bruno Ameline, their association’s President.
On offer
NSC Fibre to Yarn will promote spinning lines for processing long staple fibres for technical applications. Leader in textile waste recycling lines, Laroche will show a full range of products made from its latest technologies. The company will also focus on its low cost process for the decortications of bast fibres, as well as on a tailor made post-consumer clothing recycling process for technical applications.
Stäubli will showcase two machines and a selection of technical fabrics that have been produced in conjunction with the company’s products, such as dobbies, Jacquard machines, warp drawing-in or tying equipment. Spoolex presents Calemard slitting-rewinding project, as well as its Decoup+ brand, the specialist of continuous ultrasonic cutting and sealing. Dollfus & Muller will present technical woven fabrics, such as exclusive dryer belts for textile dryers and non-woven dryers, as well as other specialized woven fabrics, such as fluidization fabrics for the transport of powders (alumina, cement, and plaster) and fruit filters.
SOURCE: The Innovation in Textiles
Most Japanese firms operating in China choose Bangladesh as the second best investment destination after India due to lower production costs here, according to a survey by Japan External Trade Organisation (Jetro). Due to sluggish operations and struggle for expansion of business in China, firms are expanding their operations mainly in Bangladesh, India, Vietnam and Thailand.
Some 71.7 percent Japanese-affiliated firms in China want to expand their operations in Bangladesh, with 78.2 percent favouring India, 66 percent Vietnam and 60.9 percent Thailand, according to the official trade and investment promotion agency of Japan. Jetro that has been conducting such surveys since 1987 took opinions of 10,078 firms from 20 countries. It also directly interviewed the chief executives of the firms between October and November last year to conduct the survey -- A survey of Japanese Affiliated Firms in Asia and Oceania for the Year 2014.
Bangladesh is offering the lowest worker wage levels among its competing countries. Workers' wages in the manufacturing sector in Bangladesh is $100 a month, while Cambodia has the second lowest wages at $113, according to the survey. Japanese investors also think that Bangladesh has the widest room for cost cutting, according to some 84 percent of the CEOs in the survey.In comparison to Japan, the cost of production in Bangladesh is less than half (48.7 percent), while it is 77 percent in China and 71 percent in Vietnam.
Japanese corporate heads feel that there are better trade opportunities in Bangladesh in 2015, as some 71 percent of the CEOs surveyed are expecting profits to rise in the country. Jetro's Dhaka office published the highlights of the survey on Sunday. The survey, however, stressed improving worker efficiency in the country by providing basic education and vocational training.
Among the countries surveyed, Bangladesh ranked the lowest in quality of employees. The average rate of workers' productivity in Bangladesh is 31.6 percent, while it is 77.8 percent in Sri Lanka, 68.4 percent in Pakistan, 44.4 percent in China and 42.1 percent in India, the study shows. The study suggested the Bangladesh government focus more on signing free trade agreements (FTA) with countries under the Asia and Oceania region, to boost regional trade.
The survey portrayed that the highest utilisation of FTA is made by firms engaged in the textiles trade. “FTA is the means to trade facilitation among the countries under the Asia and Oceania region, not only a generalised system of preference. In this context, it is high time that Bangladesh considers FTAs seriously,” it said. Japanese entrepreneurs have been shifting their investments to other countries since its government announced the 'China plus one' policy in 2008 to reduce over-dependence on China.
Investment from Japan rose three times to $94.37 million in 2013, compared to the previous year, according to Bangladesh Bank. The bilateral trade balance between the two countries is heavily tilted towards Japan, as Bangladesh imports vehicles, electronic goods and spare parts. On the other hand, Bangladesh mainly exports apparel items, leather and leather goods, and footwear to Japan.
In fiscal 2012-13, Bangladesh exported goods worth $750.27 million to Japan, against $600.52 million in the previous year, according to data from Export Promotion Bureau. In 2012-13, Bangladesh imported goods worth $1.19 billion from Japan against $1.45 billion in the previous year, according to BB. At present, more than 180 Japanese companies have operations in Bangladesh.
SOURCE: The Daily Star
