The smart garment market is growing at 45 per cent a year. This growth is outpacing other categories in the domain of wearable technologies. Although current developments of such clothing are based more on performance wear and the winter sports category, very soon they will encompass the whole gamut of the wearable segment.

As garments are becoming smarter, the differentiating line between a traditional garment and a garment with a gadget is getting blurred. The message is clear: If the garment industry does not start dabbling in technology, technology companies will start dabbling in garment making. Digitalisation is another trend emerging faster than ever in the global apparel industry with more and more retail brands as well as apparel manufacturers embracing it.

Tech and fashion are merging together to create smart textiles without sacrificing style, comfort and practicality. Smart textiles are used in healthcare and sports and fitness applications to communicate the wearer’s location, heart rate, blood pressure and temperature. This data collection may also be useful for dementia patients, to refresh memory and alert caregivers of health status changes. Miniaturization of electronics is expected to significantly fuel market growth further. Reducing form factors may facilitate increased integration, making sensors compatible with fabric and ensuring optimum comfort and wearability.

Trade in goods and services between India and the US has grown 12.6 per cent. US companies raised concerns about India’s draft e-commerce policy and issues related with mandatory data localisation requirements. They feel the draft e-commerce policy favors domestic players and does not provide a level-playing field for US firms such as Amazon and Walmart. India on the other hand has raised the issue of high import duties imposed by the US on certain steel and aluminium products. Besides, India also wants the US to relax visa provisions for Indian IT professionals and companies. The countries are locked in a tariff dispute with the US deciding to end preferential trade treatment to Indian exports, while India proposes to impose retaliatory duties on American goods. Other matters include the US concerns on medical devices, the personal data protection bill of India.

But both India and the US have agreed to engage regularly at various levels to resolve outstanding trade issues by exploring mutually beneficial and suitable solutions. The countries have agreed to deepen economic cooperation and bilateral trade by ensuring greater cooperation among stakeholders, including governments, businesses and entrepreneurs. They will explore suitable solutions, which are mutually beneficial and promote economic development and prosperity in both countries.

Hugo Boss sales in Asia rose four per cent in the first quarter. Worldwide sales also rose four per cent, a rate tempered by an eight per cent decline in currency-adjusted terms in the US market. First-quarter operating profit fell 22 per cent. Double-digit growth in Mainland China overshadowed a tougher market environment in Hong Kong and Macau.

While the German fashion company’s share price slumped by 19 per cent over the past year, its performance has been impacted by reorganisation costs, a higher marketing spend and the strength of the dollar. The revamp of key stores is expected to boost the company’s performance with New York and Tokyo flagships already performing well since their reopening and renovations of others in Paris and Chicago soon to be completed.

A shift in focus to a younger target demographic is also paying dividends for Hugo Boss. Sales of its Hugo brand of casual wear rose in the double digits, compensating for flat sales of the core Boss brand and a marginal decline in business apparel. First quarter online sales rose by 26 per cent and the company plans to continue to invest in digitalization. After a string of profit warnings, Hugo Boss slashed prices in China to bring them closer to European and US levels.

The pace of sustainability progress in the fashion industry has slowed by a third in the past year and is not moving fast enough to counterbalance the harmful impact of the fashion industry’s rapid growth. So says Pulse of the Fashion Industry, an annual assessment of the fashion industry’s environmental and social performance.

Though the fashion industry has made some progress toward better social and environmental performance over the past year, the rate has been slower than in previous years. The improvement was due mainly to rapid progress among brands that are in the early stages of their sustainability journey and have put in place foundational measures in strategy, governance and target setting. Meanwhile, progress has slowed among larger companies that must figure out how to scale disruptive business models and harness innovative technologies. Sustainability is still far from being a key consideration in purchasing decisions. Therefore it is up to fashion leaders to drive large-scale impact and influence consumer perceptions.

By 2030, the global apparel and footwear industry will have grown by 81 per cent, exerting an unprecedented strain on planetary resources. If the industry remains on its current trajectory, the harmful consequences of increased production will become even more challenging to overcome.

In the January to March period of 2019, Turkey’s textile exports declined by seven per cent in value and increased 3.9 per cent in quantity. The export unit value of the ready-to-wear industry declined by 10.1 per cent. The share of textiles and raw materials in Turkey’s total exports decreased to 5.6 per cent from 6.3 per cent compared to the same period of last year. Woven fabrics are the most important export product group of Turkey’s textile industry. In the first quarter of the year, woven fabrics were 23 per cent of Turkey’s total textile exports.

Turkey’s total exports increased by 3.3 per cent over January to March 2019 in which textile exports have declined, while apparel exports made no headway. The EU is the biggest market for Turkey’s exports. However in the first three months of this year Turkish textile and apparel exports to the EU fell by 10.9 per cent. Similarly exports to the Middle East fell by 10.4 per cent. But exports to Asia and Oceania in the January to March period increased by 5.5 per cent. And Turkey’s exports to the former Eastern Bloc countries increased by one per cent. Textile exports to the US decreased by 3.6 per cent while exports to Bulgaria decreased by 19.6 per cent.

Egypt’s readymade garment exports increased two per cent in the first quarter of 2019 compared to the same period of 2018.

The United States tops importing countries of Egyptian readymade garments. Apparel created within the Egyptian Qualified Industrial Zone (QIZ) is duty free to the US. Goods made in Egyptian QIZs can use fabrics imported from third countries and remain eligible for duty-free entry into the US market, provided 35 per cent of their value is added in Egypt, including a minimum of 10.5 per cent of Israeli content. Costs incurred in the US also count towards the 35 per cent threshold. Egypt’s readymade garment exports to the UAE were up 334 per cent in the first quarter. Exports to Canada were up 84 per cent.

Egypt’s textiles and clothing sector is the most integrated on the African continent. The apparel sector is the country’s most important industrial sector; it represents 6.5 per cent of total non-petroleum. Apparel exports in 2018 rose ten per cent compared to 2017. Fifty 50 per cent of the country’s apparel production goes to the US and 30 per cent to Europe. Egypt also enjoys duty-free market access to the EU. With its fabric base and sourcing proximity to Turkey, exports to the EU are likely to increase.

Coats has opened innovation hubs in Turkey, China and the US. These dedicated centers at key locations around the world enable Coats to collaborate with a range of innovation partners including customers, brands, suppliers, universities and start-ups. They will develop pioneering new products and processes in apparel and footwear and hi-tech products for end uses in automotive, oil and gas, protective wear and telecommunications by providing creative and inspiring spaces where an innovative idea can be developed collaboratively and rapidly worked up into a prototype design which is then manufactured in a standalone pilot factory.

Coats is the world’s leading industrial thread company. Each of the hubs has a distinct areas of focus. The location of the hubs has been specifically chosen. The hub in Turkey is at the center of the automotive industry in Turkey and will drive development into that sector through its focus on composite design and engineering as well as across all Coats’ technologies. It will be key to developing an innovative range of products taking personal protection garments to the next level in terms of comfort, fit, look and safety. China is a leading hub for apparel and footwear and the hub there will have a focus on creating a sustainable product portfolio.

Genderless clothing for babies and children under the age of 12 has caught on in the US. Millennial parents appear to be more open-minded when it comes to gender and prefer to give their children more clothing options in different colors and styles, without being constrained by their gender.

Primary, founded in 2015, is a gender-neutral children’s wear brand. The brand uses its Instagram page, where it has 66,400 followers, to showcase all of its styles and colors, modeled on both boys and girls. Primary also encourages customers to post photos of their children wearing Primary and to tag them with #yesprimary for a chance to be featured on the brand’s page or in future marketing efforts. So far this year, the brand has been racking up major waitlists for new items. Around Valentine’s Day, there was a 6,000-plus waitlist for Primary’s rainbow heart pajamas, and this spring it saw a 4,000-plus waitlist for its raincoat. A big part of Primary’s success in the gender-neutral space comes from the fact that it’s been selling customers on genderless clothes since launch. Contemporary fashion brand Cos launched a line of children’s clothing for the first time, which came with a collection of genderless baby clothing. Children’s retailer Nununu has partnered with Céline Dion to create a gender-neutral line.

Cambodia’s exports to Europe could see a huge decline if the European Union suspends Everything But Arms (EBA) trade preferences for the country. If EBA is withdrawn, tariffs on garment, footwear, and bicycle products will increase 12 per cent, 16 per cent and ten per cent respectively. The EU has already imposed tariffs on Cambodia’s milled rice.

The EU is a major trading partner for Cambodia, particularly for garments and footwear. As a least developed country, all of Cambodia’s exports to the EU, except arms and ammunition, have faced zero per cent tariff since 2001. Cambodia’s exports to the EU account for more than one-third of Cambodia’s total exports. In any case Cambodia has already taken measures to counteract the possible withdrawal of the EBA. The measures include cutting production and export costs to support local manufacturers and exporters. The measures are aimed at reducing operating costs for producers and exporters by about 400 million dollars a year.

The garment and footwear industry is one of the pillars of Cambodia’s economy. The sector has helped improve labor standards and workers’ living conditions, reduce poverty and promote sustainable growth. Cambodia’s garment sector employs some 7,00,000 workers, whose jobs could be in question if EBA is pulled.

Unitech Texmech is a market leader in spinning rings. Unitech rings are finely designed products designed to spin yarn from any kind of fibers like cotton, polyester, acrylic, wool, flex, blends, etc. Unitech offers a wide range of rings to cater to the varied needs of the industry and offer a lifetime of three to eight years depending on the count, speed and fiber characteristics. The K1 ring has excellent wear resistant properties and is tougher than coated rings. It is ideal for spinning fine and super fine counts, compact yarns, dyed yarns as well as yarns made from highly abrasive fibers. The QC ring is an economically priced product with the salient features of coated rings. The ring is suitable for spinning yarns from all types of fibers and is a true value for money black ring. The Ultima ring is a product with a unique surface coating, especially suitable for machines running at very high speeds, elite and compact spinning systems. A very hard and thin microfilm of atomic coating is given, to ensure superior gliding and wear resisting properties at high speeds.

Set up in 1976, this Indian company is engaged in the design, development and manufacture of precision components and systems for the textile, engineering and automobile sectors. Unitech will exhibit at ITMA 2019.