Retailers like Marks & Spencer and Primark are taking steps to stop sourcing from Myanmar.

Marks & Spencer will cease sourcing from Myanmar by March 2023. Apart from Marks & Spencer, at least 32 global fashion brands and retailers have manufacturing links to Myanmar, including Adidas, Inditex, Fast Retailing, H&M, Next, Matalan and Primark. H&M ceased production in Myanmar in March 2021 in response to two protesters being shot by police. Primark has decided to exit Myanmar saying there are significant challenges to its ability to ensure the standards it requires protecting the safety and rights of the people who make its clothes and products.Retailers are having to decide whether their customers think that it is ethical for them to be buying from Myanmar. The Rohingya persecution issue has caught the imagination of large parts of the UK customer base. On the other hand organisations campaigning for the rights of garment workers have urged retailers exiting Myanmar to ensure that what they think is a responsible exit actually has a beneficial impact on the workers that they are leaving behind. Campaigners say the threat to workers’ quality of life by brands leaving is very real and financial compensation is the only way to prevent workers falling into destitution.So brands have been called on to set up a fund to provide garment workers with a basic income over the next year.

Japan's textile and apparel imports in August 2022 were up 15 per cent year-on-year and 25 per cent month-on-month.

The import volume from China increased by 13 per cent year-on-year and 29 per cent month-on-month.From January to August, Japan’s textile and apparel imports increased three per cent year-on-year and a decrease of 0.5 per cent over the same period in 2019.The growth rate of apparel imports exceeded 30 per cent for four consecutive months.

In recent years, the proportion of import volume and value of Japan's textile and apparel imported from China in total imports had a certain seasonal rule, accounting for the largest share in September or October every year, then gradually falling back to a relatively low level in April or May of the next year, and then fluctuating. Japan's textile and apparel imports growth hit a new-2022 high because of the low base in the same period of 2020.

Japan is a sophisticated market, leaning towards small-lot and short cycle delivery of supply. Consumption is diversified and quality expectations are very high. High quality and expensive Indian garments are gaining popularity in Japan. Customers like selecting garments that have a different character when compared with dresses and kimono worn at such occasions as weddings and parties.

Hanes Brands has formed a partnership with the University of California, Berkeley.

According to the agreement, Hanes Brands will design, manufacture and distribute an expansive collection of men’s, women’s, unisex, youth, infant and toddler fan apparel. In addition, it will create special activations and enhanced retail presentations.The ten-year strategic agreement gives Hanes Brands exclusive rights to design, manufacture and distribute high-quality, on-trend fanwear across mass and campus/local.The deal broadens the university’s retail footprint and includes the company’s iconic Champion and Hanes brands, the eco-forward Alternative Apparel brand and the garment dyed Comfort Wash brand.

Hanes Brands is the world’s largest supplier of collegiate fan apparel and one of the world’s most ethical companies. Its commitment to responsible, transparent manufacturing is ingrained in everything it does, as is the focus on continuous improvement of its environmental performance. The brand is unique in the apparel industry because it owns the significant majority of its manufacturing and supply chain operations and is known for transparency, managing emissions, implementing best practices and taking coordinated action on climate-change issues.

With over 68,000 worldwide employees, the company embraces environmental stewardship and the conservation of natural resources. Since 2007, the company has reduced energy intensity by nearly 21 per cent.

Invista has opened the Asia Innovation Center in China. The center will serve as a key capability within Invista’s global R&D network and is the company’s first R&D center for nylon 6,6 application development in Asia.

The AIC is positioned to broaden the possibilities for application development in engineering polymers and provide superior innovative solutions for customers in Asia.The lab is equipped with melt processing capabilities and a wide range of aging and mechanical testing equipment to determine key engineering polymer properties such as tensile and impact strength, hydrolysis resistance and flammability, as well as thermal transitions in polymer, including melting point temperature and crystallization temperature.

To accelerate innovative outcomes, the center has also established capability in CAD/CAE to simulate the behavior of nylon polymer under stress in real part dimensions. Located near Invista’s integrated nylon 6,6 facilities, the AIC contributes to Invista’s nylon 6.6 value chain.

With the pursuit of safer and more energy-saving applications in downstream fields, notably automobiles, manufacturers are seeking advanced nylon 6,6 solutions to improve application performance at reduced costs. Staying close to customers’ needs, Invista will provide cutting edge equipment and professional support to establish local expertise in engineering polymer formulations, applications, design, and testing.

Bangladesh’s exports of denim apparels to the US in the first eight months of 2022 rose by 46 per cent. So Bangladesh's denim shipments to the United States continue to be on a roll even when the North American country is slowing down sourcing amid falling consumer demand caused by runaway inflation.

Bangladesh has been an attractive destination for sourcing denim garments mainly because of shorter lead backed by a strong backward linkage and availability of products at competitive prices. US buyers are still coming to Bangladesh because they can buy denim garments at comfortable prices, which is helping the country maintain its leading position in that market.

But things do not look rosy when it comes to denim shipments to Europe, another major market for Bangladesh. Europe is grappling with depressed consumer demand for clothing amid soaring inflation fuelled by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Denim producers in Bangladesh have had to halve their production owing to a drop in demand from European customers. During an economic crisis, people are not willing to buy apparels instead of food and medicines and other essentials. The European denim market has been seriously affected by the war.A number of buyers are asking for delayed shipments and some are going slow in placing new orders.

Forever 21 is planning a major comeback. The company had filed for bankruptcy in 2019 and was heavily leaning on e-commerce for the past few years. The move is the latest attempt by Forever 21 to reinvent itself after falling out of favor with some younger shoppers.

The retailer’s failure to attract Gen Z shoppers began during the late 2010s, and was solidified by its bankruptcy woes. Forever 21 fell out of favor with Gen Z and millennials who began gravitating toward thrifting, resale and shopping sustainable brands. Forever 21 has shifted its focus to rebuilding its presence throughout the US, while turning to collaborations, influencers and a better-curated assortment to drum up excitement for its brand once again.

The company will open new stores across the country. The majority of the new stores will be located at outlets or outdoor malls. Despite announcing plans to close nearly 200 stores at the start of 2000 the company currently has 572 freestanding locations globally — and will soon add another dozen.This year, Forever 21 has largely focused on brand collaborations to drive hype.Forever 21 has already begun advertising the new set of stores, working with local influencers to showcase the new layouts and assortments.

China was the top supplier of home textiles to Germany in the first half of 2022. Among exporters of home textiles to Germany, China had a 27 per cent share even as its share declined by 38 per cent from the first half of 2021.Turkey’s exports of home textiles to Germany from January 2022 to June 2022 amounted to ten per cent of the latter’s imports. Turkey’s supply increased by 14 per cent year-on-year.Poland accounted for eight per cent of Germany’s home textile imports. But the supply declined by 12 per cent from the first half of 2021.Germany’s imports of home textiles from Netherlands in the first half of this year wereeight per cent of its total imports. But they decreased by 31 per cent from January 2021 to June 2021.Pakistan’s shipment of home textiles to the European country rose by 21 per cent in the first half of 2022 compared to the first half of 2021.

As for the share of other countries in Germany’s home textile imports, India had a five per cent share, Czech Republic four per cent, Belgium two per cent, Austria two per cent and Vietnam one per cent.

Victoria’s Secret revenues for the second quarter fell by six per cent. This has been attributed to decelerated customer traffic trends across the retail environment throughout the quarter.

Among the brand’s aims are to grow market share in the key categories of bras, intimates and beauty, while being more inclusive and attract a broader customer base with more compelling storytelling in stores and on digital platforms, build a global footprint, add new brands, and build a modern, high-performing organization to deliver efficiencies and invest in people and culture. Expectations are to generate a significant cash flow to invest in growth and also return value to shareholders through a capital allocation strategy.

Third-quarter operating income and earnings per share are expected to fall at the high-end of its previously announced guidance, despite a high single-digit sale dip. The lingerie giant now estimates third-quarter operating income to be towards the high end of its previously communicated guidance range and earnings are estimated to be towards the high end of the previously communicated guidance range. The updated operating income and earnings per diluted share guidance is based on a net sales decline in the high single digit range compared to last year, which is consistent with the company’s previously communicated guidance.

Bangladesh’s export-oriented apparel sector has been hit by a power crisis. Production in many readymade garment factories has dropped by at least 40 per cent after the gas and electricity supply situation deteriorated sharply in recent weeks.

Exporters are facing trouble producing the existing orders due to the shortage of electricity. They fear that if Bangladesh cannot produce and deliver the current orders on time, the confidence of international buyers will also decline amid a falling demand for textile products in the global market.

Bangladesh’s garment exports fell seven per cent in September 2022 for the first time in 13 months. In the midst of the slide in foreign currency reserves, both export earnings and remittance inflows decreased significantly in September 2022.

Demand for diesel is increasing in the readymade garment sector as factory owners are forced to use generators to keep production uninterrupted in their units amid frequent and prolonged power cuts.

Production in spinning and dying mills has decreased by more than 50 per cent, which has created a shortage of fabric for the knitwear sector. Earnings of workers have decreased as the energy shortage has squeezed the scope for overtime duty. Bangladesh exporters fear that if the shortage of gas and electricity in the industry continues, Bangladesh will lose its share of orders being diverted from China.

US imports of garments from January 2022 to August 2022 increased by 37 per cent. Import values in August were 11 per cent higher than imports done in July 2022.August also proved to be the best month for US apparel buyers in 2021.

Most big retailers in the US are holding back new inventories and are not placing fresh orders in their partner factories located worldwide. On the other hand, because of the fast-approaching holiday season in the US, buyers don’t want to see bottlenecks in supplies due to logistics issues.

In the eight-month period, the top Asian countries – China (up 37 per cent), Vietnam (up 33 per cent), Bangladesh (up 53 per cent), India (up 56 per cent) and Indonesia (up 56 per cent) –all upped their respective shipments to the US on a yearly basis.In the first seven months of 2022,imports of textiles and apparel by the US rose by 29 per cent. US textile and apparel imports consist of cotton products, manmade fiber products, wool and silk products, and products from silk and vegetable fibers.Apparel constituted the bulk of textiles and garments imported by the US in January 2022 to July 2022.