India received the highest ever Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for the first five months of a financial year during April-August 2020. The total FDI inflow into India in the first five months was $35.73 billion, according to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. It is also 13 per cent higher than that in the same period last fiscal. The FDI equity inflow received during April- August 2020 stood at$27.10 billion, which is also the highest ever for the first 5 months of a financial year and 16 per cent more than the same period last year. Indian received a significant amount of foreign investments in the months when the global economic conditions were fragile and investors were concerned about the mounting uncertainties due to the coronavirus pandemic. The ministry said that the measures taken by the government on the fronts of FDI policy reforms, investment facilitation, and ease of doing business have resulted in increased FDI inflows into the country. FDI is a major driver of economic growth and an important source of non-debt finance for the economic development of India. It has been the endeavor of the government to put in place an enabling and investor-friendly FDI policy by removing the policy bottlenecks that have been hindering the investment inflows into the country, the government said. The steps taken in this direction during the last six years have borne fruit as is evident from the ever-increasing volumes of FDI inflows being received into the country, it added. Meanwhile, the government has carried out FDI reforms in the last few years which has led FDI on the path of liberalization and simplification. The total FDI inflow grew by 55 per cent, from $231.37 billion during 2008-14 to $358.29 billion during 2014-20. Also, the FDI equity inflow also increased by 57per cent from $160.46 billion during 2008-14 to $252.42 billion during 2014-20.
Source: Financial Express
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday indicated that the government might unveil another round of economic stimulus at an appropriate time this fiscal. She also hinted that the strategic sectors identified for a near-comprehensive privatisation policy would be made public soon. “I have not closed the option to come out with another stimulus,” she said responding to a question at an event in Delhi. “Every time we have announced one, it’s been after a lot of consultations…then we sit and work it out within the ministry, with the PMO and then, take a final call,” the minister said. Batting for more fiscal spending, chief economic adviser Krishnamurthy V Subramanian last week said a boost to the infrastructure and employment-related programmes like the creation of an urban job guarantee programme would help pep-up consumption demand. The Covid-ravaged economy will likely shrink by a record 9.5% in the current fiscal, Subramanian said, as he agreed with the central bank’s latest assessment of the magnitude of growth slump. “We have only now started doing some kind of an assessment (on GDP) because we waited for the commencement of the second half (H2FY21), which is just started…..we will have to come up with a statement (on GDP growth/contraction for FY21),” Sitharaman said after she released “Portraits of Power” a book, authored by 15th Finance Commission chairman N K Singh. According to the privatisation policy announced by Sitharaman recently, at least one enterprise in a ‘strategic sector’ will remain in the public sector, but the private sector will also be allowed. To minimise wasteful administrative costs, the number of enterprises in strategic sectors will ordinarily be only one to four, others will be privatised or merged or brought under holding companies. While the Modi-government has already initiated strategic disinvestment, the new policy will give a comprehensive framework and provide the ground for a road-map of privatization for years to come. On October 12, Sitharaman sought to create additional demand of `1 lakh crore in the economy in the current financial year, through a clutch of steps that may involve less than `40,000 crore or a tenth of the amount to be saved via expenditure controls already announced, as a budgetary cost to the Centre. The stimuli announced earlier had an estimated budgetary cost of around `3 lakh crore. The spending curbs on departments for the April-December period is estimated to result in savings of nearly `4 lakh crore. Given that even the stimulus cost would actually be lower than the estimate and considering the possibility of an extension of spending curbs to Q4, the government still has considerable room for unveiling another round/s of stimulus, without altering the estimated budget size for the year or the enhanced gross borrowing limit of `12 lakh crore. With net tax revenues declining 30% on year in April-August (the budgeted growth was 21% in FY21 over the actual of FY20), some analysts see fiscal deficit even doubling from the budgeted target of `8 lakh crore. The April-August fiscal deficit already touched 109% of the full-year target.
Source: Financial Express
Mumbai: Aggregate sales of private sector manufacturing companies recorded a sharp contraction of 41.1 per cent year-on-year in the rst quarter of 2020-21, reecting the impact of the pandemic induced lockdown, said an RBI analysis on Tuesday. The data on the performance of the private corporate sector during the rst quarter of 2020-21 has been drawn from abridged quarterly nancial results of 2,5361 listed non-government non-nancial (NGNF) companies, the RBI said. "Aggregate sales of 1,619 manufacturing companies recorded a sharp contraction of 41.1 per cent (Y-o-Y) in Q1:2020-21 following 15.6 per cent decline in Q4:2019-20 reecting the impact of the pandemic induced lockdown," it said. The contraction was broad-based and varied across industries - only pharmaceutical companies recorded higher sales on both annual and sequential (Q-o-Q) basis. Non-IT services companies also registered a sharp contraction of 41 per cent in their nominal sales. The contraction was across services except for telecommunication companies, the RBI said. On the other hand, the sales growth of IT sector companies remained in positive terrain but moderated to 3.2 per cent in the April-June quarter of the scal on annual basis. It further said lower business operations led to decline in the operating prots of manufacturing and non-IT services companies, while operating prots of IT companies, on the other hand, increased 9.4 per cent during the rst quarter. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the Securities and Exchange Board of India had extended the deadline for submission of nancial results for Q1:2020-21 by listed companies to September 15, 2020. Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank has also released the results of the 2019-20 round of the Survey of Foreign Liabilities and Assets of the Mutual Fund (MF) Companies. Foreign liabilities of MF companies declined by 15.7 per cent during 2019-20 and stood at USD 9.6 billion in March 2020, mainly consisting of units issued to non-residents. Their overseas assets were much lower at USD 0.8 billion "The UAE, the UK and the USA accounted for 38 per cent of the total MF units held by non-residents," it said and added overseas equity investments of MF companies were largely concentrated in Luxembourg and the USA. In the case of Asset Management Companies (AMCs), the foreign liabilities stood at USD 4.4 billion in March 2020 as compared to their foreign assets of USD 0.1 billion. Non-residents in the UK and Japan together held nearly 89 per cent FDI in the AMCs.
Source: Economic Times
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's message to keep up the safety precautions against COVID-19 is a critical reminder to every Indian as controlling the virus can enable a strong bounce back in the economy, India Inc said on Tuesday. With the onset of the festival season, the prime minister on Tuesday said this is not the time to be careless as the novel coronavirus is still around and even a small negligence can dampen the festive spirit. In his seventh address to the nation following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Modi said many videos have surfaced in recent times that show people have stopped taking precautions. "This is not the right thing to do so," he said. "If you are careless and moving around without mask, you are putting yourself, children and the elderly at risk," the prime minister said. He added that it must be kept in mind that lockdown may have ended but the virus is still there. The prime minister said the government is making all efforts to ensure that a vaccine, whenever it is launched, reaches every Indian. "The prime minister's message comes at an appropriate time as he appeals to all to celebrate with caution. While India shows sn improvement in the COVID-19 numbers, controlling the virus can really enable a strong bounce back in the economy," CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee said. Assocham Secretary General Deepak Sood said Modi's passionate call to keep up the safety guards against coronavirus is a critical reminder to each and every Indian not to squander away the painstaking gains in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: Economic Times
Nikita Rana The ET-ILC roundtable discussion held in collaboration with International Business Division (IBD), Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI), as part of the Economic Times Global Business Summit 3.0, focused on how India can reform trade policies and existing business relationships to recalibrate growth strategies especially in relation to ASEAN. The panel included top leaders of India Inc and Singapore and members of the Indian government. As per a McKinsey survey published in September, 40% respondents consider the scenario of the global economy’s growth rate being -11% when seen against Q4 2019 growth rates, as most probable. And countries like Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines are likely to see a more severe impact (approx -13%). In developing Asia, subdued demand and low oil prices will neutralize the supply disruptions. The September forecast from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) estimates a regional ination of 2.9% in 2020 and 2.3% in 2021. According to ADB, GDP will decline by 0.7% this year, the rst reduction in 60 years. However, looking at the quick and frequent revisions in GDP and growth estimates over the past six months, it is possible that these numbers will change along with consumer sentiment and recovery from Covid-19. ASEAN trade became concentrated in a few extra-regional markets between 2010 and 2018, while less was done to expand intra-regional trade. Now may be the time for ASEAN to look at strengthening intraregional relationships. “This forum is critical to build insight into the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead of us. Close ASEAN partnership can accelerate an inclusive and sustainable trajectory towards growth for the region. This is an opportune time for members to reap technology transfer gains from participation in the global value chain and focus on innovation driven improvement within its markets. Dialogue sessions like this make it possible for industry leaders to examine the situation more closely” says Prasoon Mukherjee, Chairman, IBD, Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce (SICCI) As India works to balance its self-reliance (atmanirbharta) with increased business collaboration with ASEAN, there is scope to improve its ranking on FDI restrictiveness, which currently stands at 0.21 as per OECD ( 0 being open and 1 being a closed economy). “Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines could be the potential new markets for India. The International Trade Center estimates India's untapped export potential to be around $201 Bn. Increased collaboration is essential to identify the non-trade barriers and harness the full potential of FTAs. It is recommended that these discussions must be pursued by the government at various bilateral and multilateral forums such as this,” says V. Vijayasai Reddy, Member of Parliament -Andhra Pradesh, Chairman - Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce, National General Secretary - YSR Congress Party. India currently has Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with Japan and South Korea but not with many other developed countries in the ASEAN region. India can improve and then leverage its supply chain to attract more investments from Japan, which does a large amount of business with China. While all countries are looking at diversifying their supply chains, this doesn’t necessarily mean that they are looking to relocate from China. Either way, trade experts agree that India is a worthy contender as an FDI destination and as a large and growing market for international products. India’s untapped export potential is indicated by the Export Preparedness Index (EPI), currently 39 out of 100, which shows the tremendous transformation that India can make in this area. “There is tremendous potential for India and Japan to collaborate in the areas of Digital Transformation (DX), such as mobility, AI and healthcare under Japan India Digital Partnership. India is a promising partner especially if it further modernizes its logistics and infrastructure,” says, Yasuyuki Murahashi, Chief Director-General, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO). Digital commerce, trade policy and investment, skilled labour, mechanized manufacturing, agricultural exports, streamlining of compliances, modernizing of infrastructure - all these need to be focus areas for India if it needs to realize its export and trade capacity. Just like agriculture, even the chemical industry oers tremendous opportunities for growth as manufacturing costs are lower when compared to other nations. The food and beverage industry contributes a major chunk of the ASEAN GDP. Thus, if India can implement all necessary safety measures, and ensure that power, water and transport requirements of businesses are met, this area oers immense growth potential. The central government has already approved the setting up of Empowered Group of Secretaries (EGoS) and Project Development Cells (PDCs) to achieve its vision of $5 trillion economy by 2024-2025 which will help with speedy clearances and aid facilitation of key projects. The ASEAN region has been less aected by the pandemic when compared to the rest of the world and is among the topmost investment destinations for European and American investors. While some sectors like aviation may not recover till 2023, if India works on developing its trade relationships with ASEAN especially through a digitization push, it will be able to build resilience and handle any unpredictable future shocks. In addition to Prasoon Mukherjee, Chairman, International Business Division(IBD), Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce (SICCI) and V. Vijayasai Reddy; ,Member of Parliament -Andhra Pradesh, Chairman - Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce ,National General Secretary - YSR Congress Party, other panel members of the roundtable included Yasuyuki Murahashi, Chief Director-General, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO); Arun Kumar Jagatramka, Chairman & Managing Director, GNRE Infra; Himanshu Jain, President APAC, Diversey; Jai Shankar Krishnan, Vice President - High Growth Markets, Danaher Corporation; KV Rao, Managing Director, NABCONS; Maulik Mehta, Chief Executive Oicer & Executive Director, Deepak Nitrite; Nitin Vyas, Managing Director, Beumer Group; Mr Rajan Navani, Vice Chairman & Managing Director, Jetsynthesys; Dr. S. Nasim, Executive Chairman, Meinhardt Group, Singapore; Sanjiv Navangul, Managing Director, Bharat Serum and Vaccines; Sridhar Dharmarajan, Executive Vice President & Managing Director, Hexagon|MSC Software, Vikram Gupta, Founder & Managing Partner, Ivycap Ventures.
Source: Economic Times
The rupee opened on a flat note and inched 2 paise higher to 73.35 against the US dollar in early trade on Tuesday, even as the domestic equity market was trading with gains. At the interbank forex market, the domestic currency was trading in a narrow range. It opened at 73.36 against the greenback, gained some ground and touched 73.35, up 2 paise from its previous close. On Monday, the rupee settled at 73.37 against the US dollar. "Rising COVID-19 cases, impasse over the US stimulus spending and uncertainty surrounding the US elections are keeping investors away," Reliance Securities said in a research note. Further, most of the Asian currencies have started marginally weak against the US dollar this morning and could weigh on sentiments, it added. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.03 per cent to 93.39. On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex was trading 116.04 points higher at 40,547.64, and the broader NSE Nifty rose 35.15 points to 11,908.20. Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 1,656.78 crore on a net basis on Monday, according to exchange data. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.84 per cent to USD 42.26 per barrel.
Source: Business Standard
GUWAHATI: Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday said that the upcoming multi-modal logistics park (MMLP) will generate 20 lakh direct and indirect employment once completed. The minister made the remarks while laying the foundation stone of the Rs 694 crore facility under Bharatmala Project at Jogighopa in Bongaigaon district virtually.
Source: Economic Times
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
885.45 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
VSF |
1552.54 |
USD/Ton |
0.29% |
21-10-2020 |
|
ASF |
1851.38 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
Polyester POY |
815.16 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
Nylon FDY |
2041.63 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
40D Spandex |
4636.67 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
Nylon POY |
2019.20 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
972.21 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
Polyester FDY |
2333.29 |
USD/Ton |
0.65% |
21-10-2020 |
|
Nylon DTY |
5384.52 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
1046.99 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
Polyester DTY |
1929.45 |
USD/Ton |
0.78% |
21-10-2020 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2101.46 |
USD/Ton |
0.36% |
21-10-2020 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1600.40 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2452.95 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2243.55 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2004.24 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
1794.84 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2288.42 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.21 |
USD/Meter |
1.25% |
21-10-2020 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.71 |
USD/Meter |
2.82% |
21-10-2020 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.01 |
USD/Meter |
1.96% |
21-10-2020 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.51 |
USD/Meter |
2.72% |
21-10-2020 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.67 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
21-10-2020 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14957USD dtd. 21/10/2020). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
US President Donald Trump has predicted that the American economy will soon recover from the coronavirus-induced economic slowdown and that the next year will be the greatest economic year in the country’s history. Republican incumbent Trump faces a stiff challenge from the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee, Joe biden, in the November 3 elections. The handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic condition and racial tensions have emerged as the main poll topics.“Next year will be the greatest economic year in the history of our country, that’s what’s going to happen,” Trump said at an election rally in Arizona, a battleground state, on Monday. The coronavirus has claimed 220,119 lives with over 8.2 million confirmed infections in the US. The pandemic has also resulted in one of the greatest recessions and job losses in the country’s history. Of the 22 million jobs that were lost in early spring, 11 million jobs have been recovered. The budget deficit is at an all-time high of $3.1 trillion. Acknowledging that the country was reeling from the impact of the coronavirus, Trump promised his supporters that the country will soon get back to normal life. “That’s what we want, just a normal. Just seven months ago (is where) we want to get back (to) and we will be better than that very soon, we build a foundation that (is) so strong and you see what’s happening, (the) stock market (is going) through the roof,” he said. “We saved millions of lives by doing what we did and we built it (the economy) back up and it’s a choice between the American dream or a socialist nightmare,” Trump said as he continued with his criticism of Biden and his running mate Senator Kamala Harris. “That’s what it is. Biden will postpone the vaccine, prolong the pandemic, close your schools, and shut down our country and we are opening and we are opening rapidly and we’ve got a V (victory) shape. It may be a super V. It looks like it’s a super V which nobody ever even heard of before,” he said. The president alleged that a Biden administration would massively raise taxes. “You will be buried in regulations. You know we cut regulations, it would take 18 to 21 years to get a highway approved, we have it down to one year and you know what from two to one very shortly to be exact,” he asserted. The Biden administration, he said, will bring all of those regulations back. “They want to dismantle your police departments,” he said. Trump alleged that Harris is a left liberal. “Biden even chose as his running mate the most liberal senator in America. Senator Kamala Harris is a sponsor of the socialist Green New Deal and legislation to strip away the private health plans of 180 million Americans,” he said. The Green New Deal is a Congressional resolution which aims to tackle factors contributing to global warming. “Harris also urged her supporters to donate to a fund that build out the rioters, the ones that knocked out your towns, your cities, not in Republican areas, by the way, all in Democrat areas,” Trump alleged, referring to the race protests after George Floyd’s death in police custody. “Joe Biden is a servant of the left-wing globalists and lobbyists, the wealthy donors, the Washington vultures who got rich bleeding America dry. You know, they (Democrats) raise a lot of money. You know why? Because they make deals. They make deals,” he alleged. Trump said, if he wants, he can raise money for his campaign pretty soon and with ease. “I would be the greatest fundraiser in history if I wanted to call Wall Street. I know them all. ‘I want $10 million for my campaign.’ – ‘Yes, sir.’ All I have to say is I want $10 million, I want $15 million, I want $25 million. I would set every record,” he said. “In 2016, you voted to fire this corrupt and decrepit political establishment and you elected an outsider as president, who is finally putting America first. About time. It’s about time. It’s about time. Joe Biden is always and always has been a corrupt politician. Joe Biden is a corrupt politician. And you know what? You knew that, a lot of people knew it for a long time,” he said. “And as far as I’m concerned, the Biden family is a criminal enterprise. And that’s what it is. It’s a criminal enterprise,” Trump said alleging that the mainstream media and the Big tech companies were trying to hide the entire corruption.
Source: Financial Express
Turkey’s September export estimates this year have been all-time high – $16.01 billion – revealed recently by the Turkish Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan. She said that exports grew in September by 4.8 percent per year and by 28.5 percent weekly. In the third quarter of this year, Turkey’s exports have risen by 34.5% relative to the previous year. These export statistics indicate that Turkey’s pandemic recovery and normalization continue effectively, underlined Pekcan. In the meantime, imports totaled $20.89 billion in September, with an incredible 89.3% made up of raw and capital products. In the first nine months of this year, Turkey’s exports totaled $118.35 billion and import $156.24 billion, the trade minister added. In September, the export/import covering ratio — excluding gold imports — was around 90.9%, and it was 84.4% in the first nine months, she noted. “The purchase and sale of gold should be evaluated differently from goods trade. “Through gold imports, gold — which has a capital value — is brought to the country in exchange for foreign currency,” she stressed. In September, the gold imports were $3.4 billion, she added. Apparel exports posted a 15% rise to reach $1.6 billion in September, while textile rose by 12.8% to $1.1 billion, chemicals by 19.4% to $1.1 billion and machinery by 4.8% to $2.1 billion, she said. The minister also noted that the automotive sector posted an increase for the first time during the pandemic period by 0.5% to $2.2 billion. The country’s exports to France rose by 12.8%, while Germany (10.6%), the UK (3.2%), and Spain (2.3%) followed it in September, the minister stressed. Italy and the Netherlands posted drops by 7.2% and 5.9%, respectively, she added. Exports to the EU increased by 5.6%, to America by 22%, to Asia by 6.8%, and to Africa by 1.7% in September, she said. Pekcan said Turkey has achieved substantial export outcomes due to a pandemic that has reduced the global economy at an alarming pace and reduced demand in critical markets such as the EU. Touching on Turkey’s supports for exporters, she said the country’s Eximbank in the first nine months raised its supports by 7% to $30.4 billion. She also said the country organized 24 trade delegations, covering 40 countries this year and made 4,200 business meetings. Pekcan highlighted that the number of Turkish exporters increased by 6.8% year-on-year in September.
Source: Textile Focus
Despite having enormous opportunity in the domestic market, the Bangladesh government has discarded its plan to produce viscose from jute to reduce dependency on imports. Due to the rising demands of manmade fiber products, the uses of viscose are increasing very fast in the global fashion industry. As the second largest exporters of apparel goods, Bangladeshi spin producers are moving towards this as the global buyers are asking for products made of manmade fiber. Considering the demands on rise and to reduce dependence on import of yarns, Bangladesh Government has announced that it will make viscose fiber from jute in 2018. However, the project had been left as the research finding suggested that it is not viable to produce viscose from jute and it would not be commercially profitable. Saikat Chnadra Halder, Public Relations Officer, Ministry of Textiles & Jute confirmed the Textile Today about the project discard. However, Halder could not explain why it was discarded. The Bangladesh government wanted to make viscose fibre from jute with the help of Chinese technology to make yarn in the state-owned jute mills. To this end, Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) and China Textile Industrial Corporation for Foreign Economy and Technical Co-operation signed an agreement. “Government has assigned a foreign research farm to study the prospects and possibility of viscose production and it did so. As per the findings of the study, the production of viscose is not commercially viable,” said another high official of the Textile Ministry, who preferred not to be named. In producing viscose, it needs 40% jute and rest 60% ingredient should come from bamboo or woods, which is not cost effective. As a result, the government decided to discard the projects, he added.
Demands of viscose on rise
With the rapid change in fashion trend, the demands of viscose is increasing very fast as the brands and buyers are gradually moving towards apparel goods made of artificial fibre. According to Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), in the last five year import of MMFs such as polyester staple, viscose and tencel has seen a 48% rise to 156,784 tons in 2019, which was 105,946 tons in 2015. Import of viscose has seen the highest rise among the MMFs. In 2019, Bangladesh imported 53,289 tons, up by 32.30%, which was 40,278 tons in the previous year. During January –September period of 2020, import of viscose stood at 53,474 tons, which means the demands are rising very sharply. The number of textile mills using manmade fibre also increased. As per the data, some 70 mills imported viscose staple fibre, 15 mills tencel fibre and 55 mills polyester fibre last year. “The demands of artificial fiber especially made of viscose are increasing as the global buyers are moving towards trendy fashion items. As a result, manufacturers are importing viscose to meet the demands,” said Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) Secretary Mansur Ahmed. On the other hand, the number of mils using viscose is also increasing, he added. Industry people think as there is less scope to grow in cotton based products, they are going for products with the artificial fiber to grow further. “Bangladesh has already performed well in cotton-based products and the growth is very significant. Right now there is huge scope for Bangladesh to grow in products, which are made of manmade fiber,” said BTMA President Md Ali Khokon. In the present context and global fashion trend, it is high time to move to produce non-cotton products, said Khokon. However, the textile industry needs more investment for establishing such a modern technology based textile mill, said the business leader. He also said joint venture and foreign direct investment could be great tool in this regards.
Source:Textile Today
As many as 40 members of the Geneva-based World Trade Organization (WTO) have discussed a proposal submitted by India and South Africa for relaxing certain provisions in intellectual property (IP) agreement with a view to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this month, India and South Africa have submitted a proposal suggesting a waiver for all WTO members on the implementation, application and enforcement of certain provisions of the TRIPS Agreement in relation to the prevention, containment or treatment of COVID-19. The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights or TRIPS Agreement came into effect in January 1995. It is a multilateral agreement on intellectual property rights such as copyright, industrial designs, patents and protection of undisclosed information or trade secrets. According to the WTO statement issued on Tuesday, the proponents of the proposal argued the relaxations would avoid barriers to the timely access to affordable medical products, including vaccines and medicines, or to scaling-up of research, development, manufacturing and supply of essential medical products. “At the meeting of the Council for TRIPS on October 15-16, 2020, WTO members discussed how best to use the global IP system to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic,” it said. It added that some 40 members engaged in a substantive discussion on a proposal submitted by India and South Africa for a temporary waiver of certain TRIPS obligations. The statement also said that while a number of developing and least-developed country members welcomed the proposal as a contribution to the discussion, many were still studying it in their capitals and asked for clarification on certain points, particularly regarding its practical implementation and the possible economic and legal impact of the waiver at national level. “A number of developing and developed country members opposed the waiver proposal, noting that there is no indication that intellectual property rights (IPRs) have been a genuine barrier to accessing COVID-19 related medicines and technologies,” it said. Those who are opposing have opined that the suspension of IPRs, even for a limited period of time, was not only “unnecessary” but it would also “undermine” the collaborative efforts to fight the pandemic that are already underway. The waiver, proposed by the two countries, would cover obligations in four sections of Part II of the TRIPS Agreement – Section 1 ( copyright and related rights), Section 4 (industrial designs), Section 5 (patents) and Section 7 (protection of undisclosed information). It would last for a specific number of years, as agreed by the General Council, and until widespread vaccination is in place globally and the majority of the world’s population is immune. Members would review the waiver annually until its termination. “According to the proponents, an effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic requires rapid access to affordable medical products such as diagnostic kits, medical masks, other personal protective equipment and ventilators as well as vaccines and medicines,” it said. It added that as new diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines for COVID-19 are developed, there were significant concerns about how these will be made available promptly in sufficient quantities and at affordable prices to meet global demand. The Council chair, Ambassador Xolelwa Mlumbi-Peter of South Africa, said the matter would remain suspended as members continue to consider the proposal. The council would meet again on the issue.
Source: Financial Express
GENEVA - The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) has launched a new campaign to raise awareness of the need to source natural fibres, such as viscose, acetate and lyocell, from sustainably managed forests. The international non-profit, which promotes sustainable forest management through independent third party certification, says it wants to reduce the enviornmental impact of the fashion industry. The campaign, entitled ‘Fashions Change, Forests Stay’, argues that forest fibres have a huge potential to help the fashion industry on its sustainability journey, but must be sourced responsibly.
Source: Eco Textile
