The Taiwan Excellence Functional Fabric Online Press Conference showcased the latest technologies in functional fibers and eco-friendly solutions. Hosted by the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), the event featured presentations from five of Taiwan’s leading functional fabrics companies – including Singtex Industrial Co, Sun Own Industrial Co (ATUNAS), Asiatic Fiber Corporation, Toung Loong Textile MFG and BenQ Materials Corporation.

The winners of the Taiwan Excellence Award demonstrates excellence in R&D, design, quality, and marketing. The symbol of Taiwan Excellence was established in 1992 by Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Taiwan Excellence Selection was launched the following year. The selection is based on the specific criteria of R&D, quality, design, and marketing. Products that have been selected for the Taiwan Excellence Awards serve as exemplars of domestic industries and are promoted by the government in the international market in an effort to shape the creative image of Taiwanese businesses. This year marks the 28th selection, making the Taiwan Excellence symbol a prestigious distinction for enterprises in Taiwan to strive for and be recognized by, as it is highly thought of around the world.

Retail-led mixed-use assets developer and operator The Phoenix Mills plans to acquire at least three malls in the next 9-12 months including a large Greenfield project in Kolkata, discussions for which had already started prior to the pandemic. Last week, the company raised Rs 1,100 crore through a Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) taking its cash position to Rs 1,920 crore.

These acquisitions--both new or brownfield projects--are expected to be in the range of 7 lakh to 1.2 million sq ft each and will be driven by the company’s stated strategy to emerge as a dominant consumption center in the market.

Currently, the company has a total 7 million sq ft gross leasable area across 9 operational malls in 6 cities including Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru and Chennai. Except Chennai, all other malls of the company have started operations post lifting of lockdown by various state governments. In addition to this, around 5 million sq ft gross leasable area is under development that will take its portfolio to 12 million sq ft by 2023-24.

Known for its large format retail malls, Phoenix Mills is looking at markets including Hyderabad, Chandigarh and Gurgaon for these acquisitions apart from a few micro markets in Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Bengaluru.

Orta has designed its Here4Good collection with an interactive, collaborative “kit” packed with the information and tools to interact with ORTA’s eco-innovation advancements and “built to last” vision.

Designed to engage Orta’s denim brand partners with the eco-smart concepts, the kit is digitally integrated for a seamless online and offline experience that delivers a heightened sense of touch—emotional, social and physical—in today’s extraordinary business climate and contactless social interactions. The kit also introduces ORTA’s new members-only website, where partners can access inspirational trends, innovation insights, environmental impact assessment and high-definition visual assets for the Here4Good collection.

The kit is created in a modular form consisting of six different boxes, one for each concept: Immortalist (with resilient tech and durability); Gen H (with eco-goodness of hemp); Stretch Spectrum (extreme performance); Blu Narratives (renewed modernity of Orta’s vintage); Bio Awake (next evolution of biodesign); and the overall Here4Good narrative.

Itematech is exhibiting at CINTE Techtextil China from September 02-04 at the Shanghai New International Expo Center, Shanghai. Itematech is the brand-new technical division exclusively dedicated to producing weaving machines for the benefit of technical fabrics weavers launched in 2019 by Itema, the Italian leading global provider of advanced weaving solutions, including best-in-class weaving machines, spare parts and integrated services.

During CINTE Techtextil, the Itematech team will concentrate in showcasing the company’s strong offering for technical fabrics weavers. Itema says it is uniquely positioned to offer technical textile manufacturers the top three weft insertion technologies – positive and negative rapier, airjet and projectile, in what is the most comprehensive portfolio on the market today for technical applications.

Apparel retailer Gap reported a surprise 13 per cent rise in quarterly comparable sales as consumers stuck at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic bought more of its Old Navy and Athleta clothing online.

Its same-store sales rose by 13 per cent, compared with analysts’ forecast of a 20.97 per cent fall, according to IBES data from Refinitiv - Gap Inc. People working or studying from home have been stocking up on comfortable “stay at home” clothes including fleece and activewear, boosting demand for the company’s budget-friendly Old Navy brand, athleisure label Athleta as well as Gap clothing.

The San Francisco-based retailer oubled its e-commerce business for the quarter ended Aug. 1, with about 50 per cent online penetration, and added about 3.5 million new customers.

While the company expects demand for the two brands to fuel sales, it plans to close over 225 unprofitable Gap and Banana Republic stores globally as a part of its restructuring plan.

The back-to-school season, one of the busiest periods for the company, could extend longer and Gap is ready with the “right assortment” for kids whether they are learning at home or in a classroom.

Ongoing travel restrictions around the globe have led the organizers of denim trade show Kingpins to cancel its 2020 China City Tour show in Guangzhou and Hangzhou. The show was originally slated to be held from September 2 to 4, 2020. Other than for the cancelled Kingpins Amsterdam and New York editions earlier this year no other Kingpins24 digital event has been planned for the Chinese market this time.

The Chinese market is interesting to Kingpins and the global denim market. However, the organizers don’t have the technology or capacity to produce a digital event for China just yet, said Vivian Wang, Managing Director and Head -Global Sales. The organizer is exploring the same not just for China but also for the whole word.

As per latest released statistics from Japan’s Ministry of Finance, the country’s textile and apparel (T&A) exports declined by 13 per cent on Y-o-Y basis to $3.29 billion during the January-June’20 (H1) period. Textile exports declined to $3.05 billion while apparel products declined by 8 per cent to $229.80 million. Of all textile products, the export of textile fibers declined 5 per cent to $400.60 million. On the other hand, exports of rayon staple fibers surged significantly by 123 per cent to $96.29 million. Export of polyester staple fiber decreased by 13 per cent to $18.30 million and that of acrylic staple fiber declined by 23 per cent to $203.40 million

The value of Japan’s yarn exports also dropped 19 per cent to $386.39 million. Of this, the value of Rayon filament yarn dropped by 28 per cent to $54.74 million while that of nylon filament yarn declined by 32 per cent to $62.62 million and polyester filament yarn export declined by 14 per cent to $42 million.

Furthermore, Japan’s fabric exports also dropped by 23 per cent to $1.05 billion. Of this, exports of nonwoven and coated fabrics plunged by 4 per cent and 22 per cent, respectively, to $361.64 million and $179.60 million.

On the contrary, the volume of nonwoven fabric exports increased by 16 per cent on Y-o-Y basis in H1 ’20.

French government’s ban on resumption of events of more than 5,000 people until after October 31 has led to Première Vision shifting its physical show scheduled from September 14-15 to a digital platform. It will now hold Première Vision Paris – The Digital Show on the Première Vision Marketplace website from September 15-16, 2020. The Digital Show will feature 1,588 e-shops, over 20,000 listed products and 8 product universes including fabrics, leather, accessories, yarns, denim, smart creation, designs and manufacturing. An additional feature on the Marketplace will be ‘The Futures of Fashion.’ a program of 20 digital events that will analyze and decode both the season and the industry’s coming challenges with fashion seminars, conferences and webinars.

Première Vision will reopen the season of physical fashion trade fairs with Made in France Première Vision, a show dedicated to French manufacturing, which will be held at the Carreau du Temple from September 01-02, presenting some 100 exhibitors.

From January to July this year, Uzbekistan’s textile and garment exports increased 112 per cent to $1 billion. This was due to its opening of new markets and developing new products. During the period, Uzbekistan exported textile and garment products to 57 countries and regions around the world. The main destinations were: Russia which formed 39 per cent of the total exports from Uzbekistan, China which received 18 per cent of exports from Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan which accounted for 13 per cent of the exports and Turkey which received 12 per cent of the exports from Uzbekistan. In addition to traditional markets, Uzbekistan also exported to Hungary, Slovakia and Greece. With the support of the Uzbekistan Embassy in Kuwait, Uzbekistan realized exports to Kuwait for the first time this year.

Uzbekistan also optimized the export commodity structure of its industry by increasing the proportion of value-added finished products such as knitwear and ready-made garments to 51 per cent. It also started exporting new products such as protective masks and protective clothing. Uzbekistan textile companies currently produce 6 million masks and 10,000 sets of protective clothing per day, and export them to Russia, Kuwait, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia and other countries.

COVID-19 has led to a fall in global exports and the suspension of many businesses and production units across the world. Statistics from Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry indicate, the country’s yarn exports declined 20.9 per cent from January to July 2020. Fabric exports decreased 40 per cent while export of processed textiles dropped 12.1 per cent.

Vinatex expects Vietnamese textile exports to further decline by 14 per cent to reach $32.75 billion in the second half of 2020. The country has hardly received any new orders for high-value-added products while orders for masks and protective clothing have dropped sharply due to sufficient international supplies.　

Bangladesh cotton imports to increase on demand revival

Data from Bangladesh Textile Mills Association indicates, for the first time in over a decade, Bangladesh's cotton imports declined by 13.4 per cent in FY 2019/20 reaching 7.1 million bales. After lockdown eased on May 30, Bangadeshi textile mills survived on the cotton stocks that had piled up pre-lockdown. A revival in downstream demand has led to large scale consumption of this inventory spurring further demand for country in the country.

Capacity of apparel mills in the country has recovered to about 75 per cent. As per the Bangladesh Textile Manufacturers Association, the country hopes to complete 75 per cent of its annual cloth orders by September and finish them all by end-2020.

Cambodia expects 20 per cent stable cloth orders in Q4

The dual pressure of epidemic and abolition of EBA has led to the closure of 250 textile and apparel companies in Cambodia. The abolition of EBA tariff preferential measures led to an exponential increase in the prices of Cambodian apparel exports to the EU and a subsequent decline in orders. GMAC expects only 20 per cent member companies' orders to remain stable in the fourth quarter.

Myanmar seeks new development path

By June 21, almost 100 garment and textile companies in Myanmar closed, and over 4,000 workers lost their jobs. Now, 101 companies have resumed production and over 15,000 workers have returned to work.

The epidemic has dealt a major blow to the apparel industry in Myanmar. Most apparel companies in the country are seeking new development paths, such as the production of masks and other epidemic prevention materials.

Stable look for Indonesian textile and garment industry

Coronavirus did not have a serious impact on Indonesian economy with many textile and apparel mills bagging new domestic and international orders. Textile and apparel company PT PanBrothers’ growth rate in the second and third quarters increased by 20 per cent. The company registered an additional 15 per cent increase in orders from local apparel mills that produce garments for global brands.

Laos faces acute order shortage.

Apparel industry in Laos is highly dependent on imports, and the closure of ports due to the epidemic has had a significant impact on the supply of feedstock for the industry. This has led to an acute shortage of orders and increase in pressure for future development.

Thailand's textile and apparel mills cut output

As per National Textile Industry Federation of Thailand, insufficient orders have led to most Thailand textile and apparel mills reducing production, and some operating only four days a week. Some mills are also diverting to antibacterial products and exporting them to Japan