Japan’s garment and accessories imports surged by 24.8 per cent Y-o-Y to ¥233,597 million in June.

As per the provisional trade statistics released by Japan’s Ministry of Finance, the apparel and accessories import was 2.3 percent of the total import of ¥10,013,136 million during the month under review.

According to the latest data, the country imported ¥109,056 million worth of textile yarn and fabrics in June 2022, which was 34% higher than the same period last year. The import was 1.1 percent of the total import of Japan.

While Japan’s export of textile yarn and fabrics surge by 19% year-on-year and earned ¥70,249 million. The textile yarn and fabrics export was 0.8 percent of the total export of ¥8614,670 million from Japan during June 2022.

Also, Japan exported textile machinery worth ¥20,075 million and contributed 0.2 percent to total export.

The apparel market in Japan is huge as the country is one of the world’s major apparel consumption markets, with retail sales totaling $100bn in 2021, only after the USA ($476bn) and China ($411bn).

Japanese fashion apparel retailers and brands mainly source apparel from Asia. Data shows that Japanese fashion brands and retailers consistently imported more than 90% of clothing from the Asia region.

Japan’s top sourcing destinations include China and Vietnam.Bangladesh has notably grown really fast and the country’s apparel exports to Japan doubled in the last decade. Bangladesh’s RMG exports to Japan crossed the $1 billion mark in FY 2021-22 and witnessed a 16 per cent growth.

Eleven manufacturing industries in the US reported growth in July, with apparel, leather and allied products reporting the highest growth. As per the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business released by the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), textile mills reported the eighth highest growth among the eleven.

The new export orders index reading of 52.6 per cent grew by 1.9 percentage points compared to June's figure of 50.7 per cent. The imports index grew again in July, up by 3.7 percentage points to 54.4 per cent from 50.7 per cent in June. The new orders index registered 48 per cent—1.2 percentage points lower than the 49.2 per cent recorded in June.

The production index reading of 53.5 per cent is a 1.4-percentage point decrease compared to June's 54.9 per cent.

The prices index registered 60 per cent—down by 18.5 percentage points compared to the June figure of 78.5 per cent. This is the index's lowest reading since August 2020 (59.5 per cent).

The backlog of orders index registered 51.3 per cent, 1.9 percentage points below June’s 53.2 per cent.

The supplier deliveries index reading of 55.2 per cent is 2.1 percentage points lower than the June figure of 57.3 per cent. The inventories index registered 57.3 per cent, 1.3 percentage points higher than the June reading of 56 per cent.

Vietnam expects to earn $45.7 billion from garment-textile exports this year amid good results recorded since the beginning of this year and positive market developments.

As per the General Department of Vietnam Customs, as of mid-July, garment-textile was one of the four sectors posting the highest export revenue, with a record growth of 19.7 per cent totaling $20.4 billion.

Garment-textile was also among the six groups whose export value increased by over $1 billion USD, according to the authority.

Some 14,000 businesses are operating in the sector, with combined capital of over 1.1 quadrillion VND (46 billion USD) and net profits, nearly 1 quadrillion VND. They are employing about 200,000 laborers.

Vietnamese garment-textile products were shipped to 55 countries and territories worldwide, including 17 markets with a turnover of more than 100 million USD each.

The US, Japan, the Republic of Korea (RoK), Canada, China, Germany and Cambodia were major buyers of the Vietnamese products.

Representatives of KraigBiocraft Laboratories, Inc’s apparel brand SpydaSilk attended Vietnam's premiere textile and garment industry exhibition, SaigonTex.

The SpydaSilk team attended the Expo as part of its efforts to grow its network of suppliers. The team is working quickly to identify and partner with industry leaders capable of creating one-of-a-kind customer yarns and fabrics built upon Kraig Labs' recombinant spider silk technologies. These new exclusive yarns and fabrics will be the foundation of SpydaSilk's brand identity.

Since 1990, SaigonTex has brought together the largest collection of producers, suppliers, and buyers from Europe and Asia in the textile, fabric, and garment industry. Last week's exhibition marked the event's first return since 2019 after two years of COVID-19-related cancellations.

The company expects to release the second video in its behind-the-scenes series taking viewers inside its spider silk production facilities next week. This episode will bring you inside the R&D labs at Kraig and Prodigy as the team works to create tomorrow's super materials and monitors the performance and quality of current Dragon Silk production.

India’s largest farm-to-fashion natural fibre digital ecosystemReshaMandi is foraying into the global markets. The company offers a wide range of natural fabrics while adhering to sustainability, fair trade and ethical sourcing norms. ReshaMandi’s vision is to build a new world of textiles and transform the industry by providing accessibility, availability, and affordability for businesses and consumers looking for sustainable solutions.

ReshaMandi has provided more than 10 million meters of fabric in natural fibres to 500-plus domestic producers of fabric, apparel and home furnishings. Among, over 200 are exporters providing products to well-known brands across geographies. As fabric serves as the basic material for clothing and home furnishings, ReshaMandi currently supplies a variety of these essential goods to both the domestic and global markets. These include silk, cotton, viscose, bamboo, hemp and other natural fibres. ReshaMandi also sells textiles produced from materials like milk, soy, and other such natural sources.

According to the third annual Material Change Index from theglobal non-profit Textile Exchange, fashion brands are now using 50 per cent preferred materials — up from 44 per cent last year — curbing greenhouse gas emissions by 5 per cent and saving 1.9 million tons of COշ equivalent emissions.

YohanLawerence, Secretary General, JAAF urged authorizes to continue with the GSP plus preferences that enable sectors including apparels to help sustain the country’s level of exports and ensure that it has an uninterrupted inflow of foreign currency.

The apparel association forum has been warning Sri Lanka could lose its competitive edge and risk about US$580 million worth of exports if the GSP+ concessions are withdrawn. The GSP Plus trade concession scheme is offered by the EU to encourage development and good governance by offering tariff cuts to developing countries.

Accounting for approximately 6 per cet of Sri Lanka’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and almost half of all merchandise exports, the apparel sector serves as a bulwark of the nation’s economy.

While the sector continues to face significant limitations from continuing disruptions in energy supply and logistics, cumulative export earnings from the sector increased by 16 per cent Y-o-Y to $2.2 billion during May 2022.

Despite unprecedented domestic volatility, unstable global market conditions and escalating raw material and logistics costs, Sri Lanka’s apparel sector has provided extraordinary support to the national economy, including direct surrender of export proceeds to the Government.

Despite the ongoing crisis, the outlook for Sri Lankan apparel is still considered positive, as evidenced by the continuing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows to Sri Lanka which have mirrored upward trends in export performance, recording 17 per cent Y-o-Y growth up-to June 2022. At present, $73 million worth of investments have been committed for expansions in the apparel sector in 2022, out of a total apparel investment pipeline of $94 million.

House of Anita Dongre will soon open its first flagship store showcasing premium brands – AND, AND Girl, Globaldesi, Globaldesi Girl and the newly launched Itse.

As per an India Retailing report, situated in the InOrbit Mall, the store is spread across 4,056 sqft and offers an incredible range of stylish, comfortable and easy designs for women and girls in western and Indian wear

Redefining fashion since 1995, House of Anita Dongre (HOAD) has time and again set new standards in fashion. The brand has a workforce of over 2,800 associates. It is spearheaded by Anita Dongre, MeenaSehra and MukeshSawlani.

Giving appropriate attention to Indian craftsmanship, House of Anita Dongre creates exquisite ensembles and handcrafted jewelry. A versatile brand, HOAD offers its customer designs for every day and special occasions, which they will love and wear for many years.

MAS Holdings has launched a new venture by acquiring the assets of BAM Knitting, a leading fabric manufacturing and finishing operation in Sri Lanka. MAS Holdings takes the majority stake in the new venture, with BAM Knitting as its joint venture partner.

The new joint venturewill benefit from the technical resources and expertise of MAS, following the appointment of MAS specialists to key roles in the company, as well as MAS’ vast global experience in apparel and textile manufacturing. Significant synergies are expected from the acquisition, including production capacity enhancements and collaborations on new product developments.

SurenFernando, CEO, MAS Holdings, says, the acquisition enables MAS to increase the verticality of its Sri Lankan operations and mitigates the increasing volatility of global supply chains and costs of logistics while increasing the overall value added by MAS. It also highlights our continued confidence in Sri Lanka as a sustainable and competitive destination for apparel manufacturing, despite the ongoing economic challenges.

This new investment also serves as an endorsement of MAS’ continued confidence in the Sri Lankan apparel industry, especially at a time the island nation is undergoing many economic challenges,” Fernando adds

Amandha Fernando, CEO, BAM Knitting, who will be at the helm of the new organisation, adds, the acquisitionby MAS will undoubtedly elevate the capabilities that were developed at BAM, and MAS’ lean manufacturing processes, product development expertiseand the strong people-centric ethos will surely transform the existing operation into a truly world-class business.

Homeboy Industries has partnered with American clothing brand Guess to launch a new upcycled collection.

The new upcycled collection is being launched by Guess in collaboration with Homeboy Recycling, a social enterprise branch of Homeboy Industries.

By partnering with Guess, Homeboy Recycling has expanded from exclusively electronics recycling into the world of textiles and apparel.

According to both companies, the new collection will help both companies support environmental sustainability, facilitate creativity, create new jobs, and uplift the community.

No two pieces in the Upcycled collection are alike as transforming recycled clothing yields distinctly unique pieces. The collection features tote bags, patchwork denim, bustiers, and throw pillows among other things.

The Upcycled collection is designed with the hope that each piece can give purpose to a member of the community who can learn the skills needed to turn discarded merchandise into desirable, commodified items with an eye to the fashion set.

The 2021 Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Report by American sports brand Columbia Sportswear Company highlights the brand’s progress throughout 2021 in the three pillars of its corporate responsibility strategy — empowering people, sustaining places, and responsible practices.

The report highlights work accomplished by its four primary brands — Columbia, SOREL, Mountain Hardwear, and prAna. In 2021, Columbia Sportswear Company finalized one Carbon Leadership Project program and one Clean by Design programwith two cohorts of manufacturing partners at the Tier I and Tier II levels to help the partners reduce their environmental impact.

The company also introduced the Coalition of Asian & Pacific Islander Employee Resource Group, bringing the total number of employee resource groups to seven. Two new water towers in supply chain locations were also built to bring clean water to manufacturing partners and their employees with the Planet Water Foundation, bringing the total number of water towers built to 24. COVID-19 community vaccine clinics in Portland, Oregon were coordinated and an educational campaign encouraging all employees to get vaccinated was launched.

The company has also released a Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Index, which discloses the Company’s ESG efforts in accordance with SASB industry-specific standards.