INTERNATIONAL
Spun yarn imports from India have rebounded in the past month in China, reveals the latest “ YnFx – Fibre and yarn Exports – India Report. Yarn export to China was extremely sluggish since May 2014 falling year on year and saw some rebound in May 2015. In June 2015, exports jumped 105 per cent in volume and 80 per cent in value. The sudden rise in can be attributed to relatively higher domestic prices compared to imported goods. The other factors include firm cotton prices and the prevailing State cotton reserve policy. In case of Indian prices, the FOB unit price averaged US$2.71 a kg for all type of cotton yarns in June as against US$3.52 per kg a year ago. In similar comparison, cotton yarn prices in Shengze for 32s cotton were at US$3.30-3.37 per kg as against US$3.90 a kg a year ago. From India, all kinds of spun yarn exports rebounded significantly in June although overall merchandise export declined for the seventh consecutive week. Yarn export grew sharply in volume terms while the rise in value term was close to double digit. The growth particularly emerged from the doubling of imports by China from India. However, unit value realization continued to decline year on year but has been lingering in the range of US$2.90-3.00 per kg on an average.
In June, 83 countries imported spun yarn from India with China topping and accounting for 40 per cent in the total. Shipment to China Shipment to China doubled in terms of volume and up 82 per cent in terms of value YoY. Bangladesh, the second largest importer of spun yarns, ac-counted for 11 per cent of all spun yarn exported from India. However, export to Bangladesh declined 1 per cent in volumes and 10 per cent in value. Egypt continued to be the third largest importer of spun yarns, with volume and value both down YoY. These three top importers together accounted for more than half of spun yarn exported from India in June.
India did not export any yarn to Cambodia, Bulgaria, Eritrea, Slovakia, Mauritania, Hungary and Zimbabwe in June, but acquired four new markets including Honduras, Paraguay, Singapore and Kuwait. They together imported US$1.90 million worth of spun yarns. Romania, Norway, Philippines, Argentina, Malawi, New Zealand and Hong Kong were among the fastest growing markets in June, by more than doubling their import from India. However, they together accounted for only 3.6 per cent of total exports. Uruguay, Venezuela, Tanzania, Czech Republic and Virgin Islands (US) almost halved their imports from India compared to their levels a year ago.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Panipat, known for manufacturing textile products and textile machinery, would soon get a boost in this sector as the Union government has given its nod to set up a common facility centre here for industrialists associated with this sector. Manufacturers of textile machinery and parts welcomed this step and hope to export their products to Middle-East countries. At present, they export machinery to Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal and other countries. It would be a common place for industrialists to get training, knowledge and technology about the manufacturing of textile machinery. It would help them upgrade their skills with advanced technologies, said Vijay Kumar, director, MSME Development Institute (Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises), Karnal. The government would establish this centre at Sector-25-II at a cost of around Rs 19 crore, out of which the Union government would provide Rs 12 crore, while the state government would contribute Rs 6 crore and rest of the amount would be paid by manufacturers of textile machinery, he added. The director said with the establishing of this centre, the new era of technological advancement would flow in this industry. Welcoming the step, Panipat Small Engineering Workshop Association president Sukhbir Singh Malik said with this new initiative, they would have new and upgraded technology and would be able to manufacture new machines and export to Middle-East countries, leading to profit. Malik said there were around 200 manufacturers of textile machinery and parts besides thousands of textile units in Panipat.
SOURCE: The Tribune India
In a significant move, a group of textile sector entrepreneurs are joining hands to promote ‘Tirupur brands’ in foreign markets through e-commerce route, thanks to a coordinated step taken by Tirupur Thozhil Pathukappu Kuzhu (TTPK) and Sripuram Trust, the two textile entrepreneurs’ forums. “Till now, awareness about marketing own brands in global market has been lacking as the knitwear exporters here were simply relying on the orders from foreign buyers and only executing the same though many of the same manufacturers have their own brands for the domestic market,” T.R. Vijayakumar, coordinator of TTPK, told The Hindu. According to him, this needs to change and hence, the immense marketing opportunities available through e-commerce portals for marketing such brands into foreign markets too need to be tapped. Both the TTPK and the Sripuram Trust have started reaching out to major e-commerce portals like Amazon.com for organising interfaces with the exporters here so as to explain the businessmen the benefits of using the e-platforms since the electronic mode of trading is still in a relatively nascent stage in the cluster even in the case of domestic sale of the brands. TTPK and Sripuram Trust coordinators pointed out that the marketing of the Tirupur brands through e-commerce routes would have its own economical advantages apart from putting the brands in global market. “Manufacturers will get good margins as intermediaries in the trade can be avoided and they need not have to spend huge amounts on marketing the brand by visiting the foreign countries,” said Mr. Vijayakumar said. A major advantage which the trade consultants see if the manufacturers try to market their brands through e-commerce route, is that they would be able to easily reach out with their brands even to potential buyers in non-traditional export markets.
SOURCE: The Hindu
Changing corporate mindset in the country moving from formal dresses to casual wears at workplaces, is offering immense potential for the manufacturers of T-shirts and other casual wears and denim products from Tirupur region to increase the business volumes. Projections by research organisations indicate that the Indian casual wear market would rise from Rs. 2,48,250 crore registered in 2014 to touch Rs. 3,94,450 crore in the next five years (ie 2019). “Growth will be mainly triggered by increasing usage of casual wear in offices due to the relaxation of dress codes by some of the major software giants and Indian wings of multinational companies along with the emergence of more fashion conscious young working population,” pointed out Prabhu Damodaran, secretary of Indian Texpreneuers Federation formed of textile sector stakeholders.
Among the casual wears, denim products will be holding a significant share in the future with the men’s denim market projected to grow by 13 per cent and the women’s denim market in the country to grow by 18 per cent in the next five years. “Denim wear sales are now picking up at a fast pace mainly as it is comfortable to wear and need not have to be washed frequently especially in the case of people doing jobs sitting in air-conditioned offices,” said Srihari, a denim products manufacturer. A.C. Eswaran, president of South Indian Hosiery Manufacturers Association, is of the opinion that the immense potential now arisen in the casual wear market could be capitalised by the manufacturers in Tirupur and its hinterland if the government ensures that the entire cotton, the main raw material for apparels, produced in the country should be made available for apparel production here. “Availability of cotton and its prices will be a significant factor to thwart threat extended due to the duty-free access given to textile products from Bangladesh,” he said. Apparel manufacturers here feel that apart from the casual wear segment, the kids wear segment would be another area where entrepreneurs from here can excel.
SOURCE: The Hindu
MSME minister of state Giriraj Singh has told the Rajya Sabha that the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has filed an invalidation action against all three Community Trade Marks (CTMs) that have been registered between 2010 to 2014 in the European Union with the brand name Khadi, according to an official statement. KVIC has engaged an expert legal agency for deregistration of these three Community Trade Marks, he said. In order to brand and sell Khadi all over the world, KVIC has taken the initiative for the registration of Khadi as Brand under World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) to promote KVI products worldwide. It has also taken steps for marketing of KVI products online domestically and internationally, the statement said.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unveil "India Handloom" brand for better market positioning of quality handloom products on August 7 -- the day Swadeshi Movement was launched in 1905 -- at a mega event to mark the first-ever National Handloom Day in Chennai. "The first National Handloom Day will be launched by the Prime Minister in Chennai on August 7. This day has been chosen to honour the Swadeshi Andolan. PM wanted that the event be organised at a place which has more people associated with Indian Handloom, therefore we chose Chennai," Union Textiles Minister Santosh Gangwar told reporters here. "We are organising an exhibition to showcase initiatives taken in textiles sector during the last one year, which will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister. The India Handloom Brand will also be launched on the occasion, which will provide quality assurance to buyers," he added.
Besides, Sant Kabir awards and National awards will be presented to distinguished handloom workers for the years 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively at the function. "Observance of National Handloom Day would generate awareness about the importance of handloom industry as a part of our rich heritage and culture, promote handloom products and lead to increase in income of weavers as well as enhance their confidence and pride," the Textiles Ministry stated. However, asked about the Textiles Ministry's pact inked last year with e-retailing major Flipkart to provide an online marketing platform to handloom weavers across the country, Textiles Secretary S K Panda admitted that the arrangement did not bear the desired outcome. "There are some constraints in selling high-value branded products through Internet. Due to lack of quality assurance, our arrangement with Flipkart did not give desired results. In between, we have given request for quotation (RFQ) to many entities barring Flipkart," he informed.
Elaborating on the India Handloom Brand, Panda said it will be given to entrepreneurs who promise quality of yarn, purity of design and abide by zero defect, zero effect. "The first three people will be presented the India Handloom Brand by PM Modi on August 7. Thereafter, interested entrepreneurs may apply for the brand. "A Textile Committee will decide on the application, after which we will give a registration certificate to the person if he/she meets the criteria. If there is violation of the terms and conditions we will cancel the registration". Panda said the Textiles Ministry aims to establish showrooms in all state capitals to promote products under the India Handloom Brand, on land provided by state governments. Besides, he said, the government is trying to develop some villages which have weavers, etc. associated with handloom and handicraft as tourism destinations. Asked when the new National Textiles Policy, which aims to achieve USD 300 billion exports by 2024-25 and envisages creation of additional 35 million jobs, will be unveiled, Gangwar said the Textiles Ministry is yet to receive comments from all states, after which the policy will be finalised and presented to the Union Cabinet for approval. Besides, he said that during the next 1 to 1.5 years, Textiles Ministry will train around 15 lakh persons under Integrated Skill Development Scheme.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Textile major Raymond Ltd on Friday reported a consolidated net loss of Rs. 13.7 crore for first quarter of fiscal 2015-16, reducing its loss 58 percent from Rs.32.9 crore in same period of 2014-15. In a regulatory filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the city-based branded fabric and fashion retailer said consolidated total income, however, remained flat (2.2 percent) at Rs.1,145 crore in quarter (Q1) under review as against Rs.1,120 crore year ago. On standalone basis, net loss declined a whopping 76 percent to Rs.8.2 crore from Rs.33.7 crore year ago though income was up 5.5 percent to Rs.572 crore from Rs.542 crore year ago.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
Kohlberg Kravis & Roberts (KKR), one of the top-tier alternative investment asset managers in the world, has entered into a definitive agreement to invest $150 million (Rs 962 crore) in Mumbai-based listed polyester maker JBF Industries Ltd and its overseas arm, according to a press statement. The firm will acquire 20 per cent stake in JBF Industries and will also invest in zero-coupon compulsorily convertible preference shares with 14.5 per cent voting rights in its Singapore-based wholly owned subsidiary JBF Global Pte Ltd. Of the total, KKR will invest Rs 491 crore to buy the stake in the listed firm at Rs 290 a share through a preferential allotment. The balance will be invested to buy 12.2 million convertible preference shares of JBF Global.
KKR, which specialises in leveraged buyouts globally, will primarily make its investment from the KKR Special Situations Fund II. This is the first investment in India from this new fund. "The funding provided by KKR will help JBF complete our ongoing projects. KKR's support will better enable JBF to grow its international presence and support the Make in India campaign," said Bhagirath Arya, founder and executive chairman of JBF. JBF Industries was founded in 1982 by Arya as a yarn texturing company and went public in 1986. It manufactures polyester products ranging from polyester chips, polyester yarn and films which are used in fast-moving consumer goods, textile and packaging industries. The company has six manufacturing facilities across India, Bahrain, Belgium and the United Arab Emirates. "This type of investment into a world-class company such as JBF is a great example of how KKR can support Indian manufacturing companies providing value to global customers,” Sanjay Nayar, member and CEO of KKR India, said.
Fortune Financial & Equities Services Pvt Ltd acted as the exclusive financial advisor to JBF Group. This is the second time JBF has inked a PE deal with a similar structuring. In 2005, it had roped in Citigroup Venture Capital International (CVCI) as a shareholder and two years later CVCI committed additional money to the Singapore-based holding arm of its international operations. CVCI, now owned by The Rohatyn Group, had exited JBF in 2010-11. It sold shares in both JBF and the Singapore arm, making a profitable exit in the process. It offloaded the shares of the listed firm in the secondary market while JBF bought back CVCI's stake in the overseas arm. JBF's consolidated revenues have risen by 37 per cent between FY11 and FY15 but its net profit declined sharply during the period. For the year ended March 31, 2015, JBF reported net revenues of Rs 8,879 crore with net profit of Rs 31 crore. High cost of servicing debt had been eating into its margins. The company's share price has doubled since last November. For KKR, which recently marked its debut exit from India by selling its stake in Bharti Infratel, this is the third recent deal in India after it invested in NBFC Magma Fincorp and backed power solutions firm Enzen Global, according to VCCEdge, the data research platform of VCCircle. This is also its biggest new investment in India after it bet around $200 million in Gland Pharma a little over a year ago.
SOURCE: The VCCircle
India's fiscal deficit for the first three months of FY16 stood at Rs 2.87 lakh cr, or 51.6 per cent of the full year budgeted estimate of Rs 5.56 lakh cr. In the corresponding period last year, fiscal deficit stood at 56.1 per cent of the 2014-15 target. Total revenue receipts for April-June 2015 stood at Rs 1.41 lakh cr, or 12.4 per cent of the full-year target of Rs 11.41 lakh cr, compared to 9.6 per cent for the corresponding period last year. Tax revenues were Rs 1.02 lakh cr in April-June, 11.1 per cent of the full year budgeted estimates, compared to 10.1 per cent in the corresponding period last year. Non-tax revenues, at Rs 39,519 cr, were 17.8 per cent of the budgeted estimates, against 7.2 per cent a year ago.
Non-plan expenditure for April-June was Rs 3.16 lakh cr, 24.1 per cent of the full-year estimates of Rs 13.12 lakh cr, compared to 24.7 per cent for the comparable period from 2014-15. Plan spending for the quarter under review was Rs 1.15 lakh cr, or 24.7 per cent of the full-year budgeted estimates of Rs 4.65 lakh cr, compared to 19.4 per cent in the year-ago quarter. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday sought the approval of Parliament to authorise gross additional expenditure of Rs 40,822 cr through supplementary demand for grants. This included Rs 12,000 cr for recapitalising state-owned banks. Speaking to reporters, minister of state for finance Jayant Sinha said the financial situation was healthy enough for additional spending. "The fiscal-deficit situation looks good. We have room for the additional spending, which we asked through the supplementary demand for grants today," said Sinha.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
The government is working on internal processes to ratify WTO's trade facilitation agreement (TFA), which looks to ease Customs procedures to boost trade, a senior commerce ministry official today said. "India is fully committed to honouring its international obligations and is working on its notification commitments as well as internal processes for ratifying the agreement," the official said. Last year, India had decided not to join the consensus at WTO on TFA implementation till its concerns on implementation of public stockholding for the food security purpose were addressed. Once this was done through a decision of WTO's General Council, the highest decision-making body of the organisation, India joined the consensus on implementing TFA. TFA aims at simplifying Customs rules, increasing transparency and reducing transaction costs for traders. The official also said India is working with other WTO members to ensure a balanced and positive outcome at the Nairobi ministerial meeting, including the food security issue. The Nairobi meeting is slated to be held on December 15-18.
The WTO's General Council had accepted India's demand for extending the peace clause till a permanent solution is found on food stockpiling. This has enabled India to continue procurement and stocking of foodgrain for distribution to the poor under its food security programme without attracting any kind of action from WTO members even if it breaches the 10 per cent subsidy cap as prescribed by the multilateral trade body. For a permanent solution, India had proposed either amending the formula to calculate the food subsidy cap of 10 per cent, which is based on the reference price of 1986-88, or allowing such schemes outside the purview of subsidy caps. If no solution is found by the agreed deadline of December 31, the peace clause will continue till the time a solution is found.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Bangladesh's central bank will set up $500 million of funding for the country's manufacturers, the funds will be divided into two parts. One for manufacturing in general and the second at textiles, including export oriented ready made garment factories. This will be an effort to stimulate economic growth, the head of the bank said. Garments are a key foreign-exchange earner for Bangladesh. The country's low wages and duty-free access to Western markets have helped make it the world's second-largest apparel exporter after China. Central bank Governor Atiur Rahman said that two new support windows will be opened. The first is a $300 million World Bank-funded lending window in foreign exchange for manufacturing units and the second is a Bangladesh Bank funded $200 million window for refinancing in foreign exchange to export-oriented manufacturing units in the textiles, apparels and leather sectors. Atiur said that the funds were aimed at helping the Bangladesh economy grow seven per cent this fiscal year, which ends June 2016. The economy grew 6.5 per cent last fiscal year. Credit from the domestic banking system for the current fiscal year grew only 10.4 per cent up to May 2015, Atiur said, compared with a projection of 17.4 percent for the entire fiscal year. He blamed inadequate infrastructure, tepid global output growth and political turmoil. Growth performance would clearly have been better had the economy not faced the disruptions from political unrest. Political conflict early in 2015 left more than 120 people dead, mostly from petrol-bomb attacks on vehicles. The unrest eased in April. Some analysts say setting high targets for credit expansion is needed to stimulate the economy. Others say pumping in liquidity without repairing infrastructure and addressing other impediments to investment would stoke inflation and encourage unproductive speculation. Atiur said that they have therefore been taking care in adopting a cautious, restrained monetary stance ensuring adequacy of credit growth but at the same time avoiding undue excessive expansion. This stance is serving their economy well in maintaining inflation moderation and stability on a sustained basis.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Negotiations wrap up Friday in the latest round of the five-year-old Trans-Pacific Partner negotiations, with final sticking points remaining over sugar, dairy, state-owned enterprises and the exclusivity period granted to the makers of certain types of drugs. Ministers from the U.S., Japan, Canada and nine other countries are negotiating in private at a resort on the Hawaiian island of Maui to hash out the agreement’s final details.“As anyone who has been in trade negotiations knows, those final decisions are always the most difficult,” Michael Froman, the U.S. Trade Representative, said earlier this week.
Outside the negotiation rooms, official advisers, congressional staff, trade groups, lobbyists and nonprofit advocates roam the resorts’ lobby, using every spare plug to charge phone and laptops, meeting among themselves and hoping to catch a moment with the delegates, either through official briefings or unguarded moments in the elevator or hotel restaurants.“I’ve adopted the Starbucks strategy,” says James Love with Knowledge Ecology International, a nonprofit organization that focuses on intellectual property issues. “When I see someone come up to get a coffee, and I see a blue [identification] badge, I know they’re a delegate.”He asks them how the negotiations are going, what areas they’re working on and offers up his perspective on drug monopolies and other issues.“It’s a bit like that guy who hits on every woman in the bar,” Love admits. “A lot of people don’t like to do it because they feel like they’re being a jerk or it’s a little bit annoying, but I’m willing to do that.”He’s chosen three issues to focus on as the trade enters its final stages of negotiation, based on where he thinks he can have the most impact. At this point, he says it’s too late for the long shots and focusing on the low-hanging fruit isn’t a good use of time.“Balance is the key term or catch phrase,” says a weary Auggie Tantillo, president of the National Council of Textile Organizations, who’s also prioritizing limited issues as negotiations wind down. He’s accepted that markets will open and has chosen to focus instead on what provisions might be put in place to ease the transition, such as eliminating tariffs gradually over time.These agreements are “never done until they’re done,” he says.
SOURCE: The Market Place
Twenty years after the US and Viet Nam established diplomatic relations, bilateral trade turnover has risen 80-fold, and is expected to boom after the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement, currently under negotiations, takes effect. In 1995, bilateral trade volume was reported at US$500 million, and this year, it is estimated that it would be $40 billion. Within ten years, it could reach $50 or $60 billion. And when negotiations on the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement conclude, the trade figures could climb even higher. Besides the US and Viet Nam, the trade agreement includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru and Singapore, representing 40 per cent of the global GDP. Rena Bitter, general US consul general to HCM City, who spoke at a conference yesterday organised by the Viet Nam – US Association in HCM City on trade relations, said that 20 years ago the two countries could not have imagined the achievements of today. She cited a recent Pew Global Attitudes survey that said 78 per cent of Vietnamese expressed a favorable view of the US. The percentage was much higher for Vietnamese under 30 years of age, she said. The US, with a market valued at $20 trillion, is now the No 1 market for Vietnamese exports. Luong Van Tu, of the Viet Nam – US BTA Joint Committee, said that with TPP membership Viet Nam would improve management skills and have more access to capital and technology. More importantly, it would have a large market for consumer goods. He said that US – Viet Nam bilateral trade revenue would rise quickly over the next 20 years under the TPP.
Le Phuoc Vu, chairman of Hoa Sen Group, a large steel company, said with closer ties and increasing bilateral trade, Viet Nam could become the No. 1 exporter of industrial goods to the US. "The US market has a lot of potential. With TPP, our exports to US could increase several times over," Vu said. "If an American looks down at the label on his or her shoes, there's a 1-in-10 chance it will read Made in Viet Nam. Same for the shirt on his or her back," he said. Clothing tops the list of Vietnamese export to the US. Viet Nam is now the second leading provider of clothes to the US after China. Le Quoc An, consultant for the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association, said last year Viet Nam exported $10 billion of fabric and clothes to the US market, which represents a 9.2 percent import market share in the country. Apparel and textile exports were only $1 billion in 2002 when the US – Viet Nam Bilateral Trade Agreement took effect. Over the last 10 years, Vietnamese clothes exported to the US increased 398 per cent with an annual growth of 15 per cent, he said. During the next 10 years, the US market share for Vietnamese garments is expected to double under the TPP agreement. An said that US billionaire Wibur Ross had decided to invest in the garment and textile industry in Viet Nam. The US is one of Viet Nam's biggest investors, along with Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore.
Embassy celebrates
The Viet Nam Embassy in the US celebrated the 20th anniversary of the two countries' diplomatic ties (July 12, 1995) with a ceremony in Washington D.C. on Thursday. Addressing the event, Vietnamese Ambassador Pham Quang Vinh thanked US officials, scholars and people for their support for the development of bilateral ties over the past 20 years. This year is a milestone in Viet Nam-US relations following General Secretary of the Communist Party of Viet Nam Nguyen Phu Trong's historic visit to the US and talks with President Barack Obama in early July.
During the visit, the two countries issued a joint vision statement to intensify their comprehensive partnership set up by Presidents Truong Tan Sang and Obama in 2013.Vinh said in the last two decades, Viet Nam and the US had made great strides across the board, and the US was now the fourth largest investor in Viet Nam.He added that they were also working closely with other partners within the framework of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, the East Asia Summit and the ASEAN Regional Forum for regional peace, security and prosperity, including maritime security and freedom in the East Sea, water resources and sustainable development in the lower Mekong River.At the ceremony, Senator John McCain – Chairman of the US Senate Committee on Armed Services – valued the current relations between the two countries and noted that their ties had grown beyond expectations in various aspects, including economics and education.He said the US Congress' granting of the Trade Promotion Authority that expands President Obama's power to move ahead on the TPP was a strategic signal of the US's strengthened commitment to Asia-Pacific and its partners in the region.However, the US and Viet Nam were facing new security challenges, McCain said, adding that amidst China's continued construction and militarisation in the East Sea, Washington sided with Viet Nam in opposing activities that changed the status quo in the waters.The Senator also called on the US to consider easing the ban on the sale of lethal weapons to Viet Nam.Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel underlined the substantial and comprehensive progress of Viet Nam-US relations over the last 20 years.The US was currently hosting 17,000 Vietnamese students and, about 85,000Vietnamese tourists visited the US last year. Educational co-operation and people-to-people exchanges were the highlights of their bonds, he said.
Ties marked in Ha Noi
The Viet Nam Union of Friendship Organisations and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also held a banquet on Thursday to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the normalisation of Viet Nam-US diplomatic relations. Speaking at the event, Deputy Minister Ha Kim Ngoc highlighted the remarkable achievements made by the two countries over the past two decades, while expressing his gratitude for the efforts made by previous generations to establish and nurture relations. The two countries had moved towards co-operation in various fields, the Deputy Minister said, adding that through their comprehensive strategic partnership, Viet Nam and the US would contribute greatly to the maintenance of peace, sustainability and co-operation in the region. US Ambassador to Viet Nam Ted Osius said the two sides had addressed the consequences of the war and discussed measures to further collaboration since the establishment of diplomatic relations. The Ambassador said he was impressed by the growth in bilateral trade, which is currently valued at approximately US$40 billion per year, a 100-fold increase compared to 20 years ago. He highlighted that this figure was expected to rise even further once the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was signed.
SOURCE: The Vietnam News
Textile and clothing fair ColombiaModa 2015, dedicated to fashion, textile industry and clothing which began in the city of Medellin, to scout for new business attracted 11,000 national and international buyers from 36 countries attending the event, said ProColombia, a government agency in charge of promoting Colombian non-mining and energy exports, international tourism and country brand promotion. ProColombia’s Vice President of Exportation Promotion Ricardo Vallejo said that the aim is to help textile companies go global and position themselves successfully in other markets, attracting new customers. ProColombia is promoting the textile sector at ColombiaModa2015. Vallejo said that Colombia has the capacity to respond very quickly to small demands. It is not convenient for people to have high inventories, what they want is for the providers to respond quickly to their necessities. The major buyers from Spain who were attending the fashion fair include Corte Ingles and Inditex and an array of apparel brands including Zara, Pull and Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius, among others. Corte Ingles, participating for the first time at the fair, is looking for an exportable supply of women’s clothing, specifically jeans and bathing suits, while Inditex is interested in suppliers for the northern hemisphere zone. Connie Menne, Director of Production at Calvin Klein in New York, also came to ColombiaModa in search of new opportunities for the American fashion house, with a special focus on denim fabric is attending the Colombian fashion fair for the first time. Menne is surprised by the variety of products offered by the 670 exhibitors and appreciated the speedy delivery of the material. They did business in Colombia 10 years ago, it was a very good experience, but due to prices and different circumstances they had to stop, but now it is a different period, she said.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Vietnam has managed to attract nearly $9 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI), primarily to the textiles sector in a number of multi-million dollar projects in the first seven months of this year, announced the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment. Many experts believe that the progress in negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has made the textiles sector become more attractive in the eyes of foreign investors. It is clear that FDI flowing into the textiles sector in the first seven months is a new feature of FDI attraction this year. Vietnam textile sector becomes appealing. Most recently, the Polytex Far Eastern Co. from Taiwan invested $274 million in a project producing and processing yarn at the Bau Bang Industrial Park in southern Binh Duong province. Previously there were a series of other foreign investors pouring capital into the sector. Significantly, the Hyosung Vietnam Limited Company, a Turkish investor, invested $660 million in a project producing and processing yarn in industrial zones in southern Dong Nai province. Meanwhile, a British Virgin Islands investor, Worldon Vietnam Co., also invested $330 million in a project producing high-grade garments in Ho Chi Minh City. The appearance of several major textile projects helped the total FDI capital in the textiles sector to exceed $1 billion, with manufacturing seeing the most FDI and raising total foreign investment to nearly $9 billion in the first seven months.
FIA also revealed that in the seven-month period the total of newly-registered capital and additional capital was $8.8 billion, a decline compared with the same period of last year. But the number of newly-registered capital reached $6.9 billion, an increase against last year’s $6.8 billion, with additional capital falling. In the seven months additional capital was just $1.8 billion, or approximately 70 per cent of the figure in the same period of 2014. It also indicated that the three sectors leading the way in attracting FDI in July were still processing and manufacturing, with $1.95 billion, real estate, with $1.23 billion, and wholesale, retail and repair, with about $18 million. They were also the leading sectors in the first seven months, with $6.1 billion, $1.7 billion, and $295 million, respectively. A change was seen in the ranking of countries and territories investing in Vietnam during the month of July. South Korea held on to its lead, with $1.91 billion investment, followed by the UK to second place, ousting Turkey, with total investment capital of $1.25 billion, while the British Virgin Islands was third, with total investment of $835 million. Experts have predicted that the number of large-scale projects in the sector would continue to increase. Because of the “yarn forward” rule in the TPP, which requires businesses operating in the textiles sector to use domestically-produced yarn or yarn from other members of the TPP, there are many investors investing in yarn production in Vietnam.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Despite a disappointing start to 2015 with -0.2 GDP change in the first quarter, economic analysts are confident that America's GDP growth will hover just over 3 per cent for the rest of the year, says the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). Jobs created in June reached 223,000 and the unemployment rate fell to the lowest point in seven years at 5.3 per cent. Unfortunately, the labor force participation rate dropped to 62.6 per cent, which shows the change in unemployment is due to Americans retiring or simply not looking for work, according to a CBI report on the US economy. Manufacturing growth exceeded expectations in June. The index of national factory activity rose to 53.5, the highest level since January according to the Institute for Supply Management. However, the industry continues to struggle with the lasting effects of dollar strength and lower energy prices. Oil prices declined across the US after two months of consistent increases. Regular grade petrol cost an average of $2.85 a gallon which is an impressive 86 cents lower than prices in June last year.
Consumer confidence increased significantly according to the Conference Board. The index of consumer attitudes rose to 101.4 in July from 94.6 in May. Experts attribute this to the decline in gas prices and the perception of a strong labor market. Appreciation in the housing market has gradually slowed since April. This will likely ease concerns about affordability and encourage first time buyers. The National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo Housing Market Index indicate Builder Confidence reached a yearly high in June. The housing market is expected to continue to improve as the labor market experiences wage growth.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
As China's economic slowdown sparks concerns at home and abroad, President Xi Jinping has conceded that the economy is facing "some problems" but insisted that it is functioning well in general, the media has reported. "China's economy is functioning well in general, with some problems remaining that require the wisdom of all and solid efforts," Xi has been quoted as saying by state-run Xinhua news agency. All regions and departments have made innovative efforts in strengthening macro control and reforms since the beginning of this year, leading to deeper structural adjustment, a generally normal employment situation and stable society, Xi said at a symposium held with non-Communist figures last week. The ten non-Communist figures, including members of other political parties or influential researchers and scholars, agreed with the central government's analysis and decisions on China's economic development, the Xinhua report said. To ensure that the economy can sustain a "reasonable" pace of growth, the Politburo reiterated the government's line that it would keep economic policies broadly stable, while increasing targeted adjustments.
The Communist Party of China pledged to take "effective measures" to nurture the steady growth of consumption, investment and exports, key engines driving the country's economic expansion. Chinese policymakers have in the past two years described any loosening in fiscal and monetary policy, including reductions in interest rates, as "targeted". Fiscal policy would be "pro-active" and liquidity kept at an "appropriate" level, state radio quoted the Politburo as saying. There was no reference to the rout in China's stock market which plunged 8 per cent on Monday after a recent meltdown that wiped out as much as a third of share value at the height of the selloff. Buffeted by a slowing property market, cooling investment growth and unsteady local and foreign demand, China's economy has stumbled in the past two years and is widely expected to clock its worst performance in a quarter of a century this year. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its recent forecast said China's economy will slow down to 6.8 per cent this year followed by 6.3 per cent in 2016 and six per cent for 2017.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
