To encourage and boost the textile industry in Tamil Nadu, the state government will organise an international textile fair at Codissia Trade Fair Complex, Coimbatore this year. This was announced by chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami. The government would spend Rs 2 crore in organising this event. Tiruppur Exporters’ Association (TEA) president Raja M Shanmugham stated that Tamil Nadu is a major player in the country’s textile value chain, so organizing the international textile fair would largely help in promotion of the industry, including exports.

He further added the fair will help in increasing exports as the textile industry in Tamil Nadu is exporting about Rs 45,000 crore worth of goods annually. The textile industry will get an opportunity to showcase quality products and penetrate new markets and also get new buyers.

China Cotton Association, is all set to boost cotton imports by issuing additional import quotas to mills, a move seen by the market as another step toward meeting the demands of top exporters. The association, which lobbies the government on behalf of cotton farmers and processors, said the soon-to-be-released additional quotas were one of the measures the government was taking to help ease recent market volatility. It is also workable to maintain a steady cotton supply by issuing additional import quota.

China’s domestic cotton futures have rallied nearly 18 per cent since early April, fueled in part by worries over crop damage from heavy rains, as well as by heavy speculation. Given a sharp increase in 2017 production, CCA estimate 2017/18 cotton production at 6.05 mil tons, up 22.5 per cent. Due to previous stagnancy in cotton sales, new crop supplies are still abundant in the market channel. China’s commercial cotton stock is estimated at 2.87 mil tons, an increase of one mil tons from a year ago.

As reserve stock declines, relevant department has made initial plans at the beginning of the year to increase cotton import once demand strengthens or severe price movement occurs. Given the current situation, CCA learned from relative department that government will issue additional quota for textile mills in the near term.

The China National Cotton Reserves Corporation, which manages China’s state cotton stockpiles, has stated earlier that it would restrict purchasing at its daily auctions to textile manufacturers. Auction can be extended to the end of September as long as there is demand

China has decided to retaliate if the United States publishes an additional list of tariffs on Chinese goods. The trade dispute has put markets and US businesses on edge. They fear a tariff battle will lead to price inflation and consumer debt, ingredients for an economic slowdown. Escalation of the trade war between the US and its major trading partners is seen as negative for US multinationals and the US labor market.

China’s rising demand for US products, such as food and energy, may also help some US regions that were previously negatively affected by globalization. A trade war may put US multinationals in danger, because multinationals account for one-fifth of total employment in the US. As the trade deficit is at the core of bilateral trade relations, US companies actually may have sold more to China than Chinese firms did to the US. The bilateral trade balance may be misleading because it does not capture the sales of goods and services by foreign firms' local subsidiaries. Countries such as Japan and South Korea have large businesses in China that export to the US.

Combining trade and foreign direct investment, the US actually ran a surplus against China. The US aggregate sales balance turned into a surplus against China in 2016 and 2017.

As per Statista, a global market research company, the underwear market in the US is expected to grow annually by 2.3 per cent (CAGR 2018-2021). The market witnessed a growth of 1.22 per cent on year-on-year basis in 2018. The total value of imports was $1133.30 million. However, quantity of these imports declined by 2.91 per cent.

In terms of exports to the US, China posted a decline of 1.82 per cent to earn $239.82 million. Vietnam posted a strong growth of 11.44 per cent as the country exported underwear worth $185.39 million to the US, pacing up to match China’s shipment value. India surpassed Sri Lanka in the first four months of 2018 generating $104.54 million from underwear export. On the yearly basis, India grew 7.94 per cent whereas exports from Sri Lanka declined drastically by 8.64 per cent. The country shipped $90.77 million worth of underwear to the US during the period.

Italian fashion group Benetton reported a €180 million loss in 2017. Now, the group has formulated a new strategy to make a comeback which is expected to show results in 2019. As per the new strategy, Luciano Benetton, Founder of the group, will lead this comeback. Despite making way for non-family managers to take control of the group in 2006, Benetton assumed the office of executive chairman of his struggling namesake in January this year. This month he delivered his biggest revision yet of the group’s governance and organisational structure.

Luciano Benetton has established a new corporate vehicle, Benetton SRL, to direct and co-ordinate the two operating subsidiaries of the apparel textile sector: Benetton Group SRL (commercial activity) and Olimpias Group Srl (productive activity).

The board of directors of Benetton SRL is chaired by Luciano Benetton as executive chairman and composed of Christian Benetton, Franca Bertagnin Benetton, Sabrina Benetton, Marco Patuano, Christian Coco and Fabio Buttignon

Under Armour, known for its hoodies, crewneck sweatshirts, jackets, and other items, wants to move from being a performance brand to lifestyle label. The company’s aims to get as big as rivals Nike and Adidas but it’s facing big obstacle in its way: those brands may, like Under Armor, be rooted in sports, but they’re also lifestyle labels. Under Armour is trying to bust out of the gym and get people to wear its brand on the streets. Under Armour’s Palm Angels collection has recovery technology. This is a patterned bioceramic lining. The pattern includes special bioceramic particles that absorb infrared wavelengths emitted by the body and reflect back infrared energy, helping the body recover faster while promoting better sleep.

Chasing the hype of streetwear feels practically obligatory today. Streetwear has become one of fashion’s most powerful forces and brands such as Nike have collaborated with streetwear-affiliated designers. Another big move is to create a sneaker with a pop star. Adidas has Kanye West. Puma has Rihanna (and now Jay-Z as a top figure at Puma Basketball). And soon Under Armour will have A$AP Rocky.

Under Armour expects weakness in its North American wholesale business to continue well into the next year.

Cotton yarn imports into China have slowed down dramatically. In the first quarter of 2018, volumes declined 13 per cent and values fell 11 per cent. Vietnam, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and Uzbekistan account for 90 per cent of the cotton yarn imported by China. Vietnam has now become the largest supplier of cotton yarn to China. Vietnam accounts for 36 per cent of the total cotton yarn imported by China up from 31 per cent in the same quarter of 2017. But India’s share declined from 31 per cent in 2017 to 19 per cent in 2018. India remains the second largest supplier of cotton yarn to China.

Price-wise, Vietnam is the costliest, followed by Indonesia, India, Uzbekistan and Pakistan. The fact that Vietnam is the costliest supplier of cotton yarn is intriguing since most spinning capacities in Vietnam have come from Chinese investments due to low labor costs and trade agreements. So the high priced yarn implies higher margins which flow back into China.

Looking ahead China will meet its yarn demand from domestic production and from Vietnam and slowly reduce imports from other suppliers. In fact China has expanded its domestic spinning capacity. In 2017, China’s cotton import volumes were marginally up 0.6 per cent compared to a year ago while value rose 6.5 per cent.

Asos has published an updated animal welfare policy that outlaws the use of animal-derived materials. The list covers fur, including angora; anything from vulnerable, endangered, exotic or wild-caught species; feather and down, bone, horn, shell (including mother of pearl), mohair, cashmere, and surprisingly, silk. The new guidelines will come into effect by January 2019.

Angora became a poster child for cruel fashion after PETA disseminated horrific footage of the rabbits being skinned alive in Chinese factories, prompting brands including H&M to halt production of angora products in 2013. In March 2018, H&M and Zara discontinued the use of Mohair after a PETA campaign revealed animal cruelty at facilities in South Africa.

Many more fashion fans are anti-fur than they are anti-leather. Stella McCartney leads the way for producing collections that are authentically in line with her ethics and values. As a vegan, she has outlawed leather completely from her supply chain and produces beautiful PVC-free alternatives.

To capitalise on various business opportunities in the alpaca fiber market, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (Mincetur) in Peru has launched a luxury fashion brand ‘Alpaca del Perú’ for the sale of high-quality alpaca fiber garments and accessories. The Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation (MINAGRI), recently stated that Peru is the largest alpaca fiber producer with around 3.8 million alpacas in the country – which is 87 per cent of the world’s alpaca population. Annual production of alpaca fiber in Peru stands at over 4,501 ton and Peruvian alpaca fiber exports surpassed U$68 million by the end of 2017.

Mincetur stated that the country’s alpaca exports increased by over 110 per cent in 2017 within a span of one year, with the rise of over 14 per cent average per kilogram in the export price.

"Another successful edition of Pitti Uomo came to a close with 19,400 buyers and 30,000 total visitors visiting the show. It also witnessed increased country participation with Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, France, the US and Canada, Hong Kong and India being among them. While there was a slight decline of visitors from Japan, China and Switzerland, Italian buyers, after some seasons of decreasing traffic, are slowly returning to Florence."

Another successful edition of Pitti Uomo came to a close with 19,400 buyers and 30,000 total visitors visiting the show. It also witnessed increased country participation with Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, France, the US and Canada, Hong Kong and India being among them. While there was a slight decline of visitors from Japan, China and Switzerland, Italian buyers, after some seasons of decreasing traffic, are slowly returning to Florence.

Showcasing S/S ’19 designs, the fair presented highly energetic outdoor-inspired area hosting various under-the-radar apparel, footwear and accessory collections combining function and fashion. And Wander offered outdoor-meets-fashion semi-transparent protective parkas, micropattern functional sweats and shorts and innovative design nylon accessories. South2 West8, a Japanese fishing apparel brand, offered both a casual apparel line and a technical collection of jackets and tops characterised by cool camouflage patterns such as trout, duck and leaf prints. Special anti-mosquito nets are printed and employed for cool jackets. Woolrich Outdoor, a collection offering bright, colorful and ultra-functional materials pieces to be worn both in the open air and in the city, also debuted during the show.

Trending streetwear

Comfortable silhouettes and functional materials were the highlights of Roberto Cavalli’s new collection and Fumito Ganryu’s newly launched eponymous collection. His comfortable cool contemporary looks play with XXL hooded sweatshirts and anti-fit functional trousers. Siviglia, a Made In Italy men’s trouser specialist, presented its three most iconic trouser models–a five-pocket, a chino and a luxury denim style.

North Sails, an eco-conscious brand, gave a sneak peek into a series of capsules and product emphasising its connection with life at the sea and regattas. It has launched a total-look collection entirely made by recycling PET bottles. And Italian outer jacket 100 per cent animal friendly brand Save The Duck launched its new line of Ocean is My Home jackets made with Nety, a fabric made from 100 per cent recycled nylon fishing nets. In addition, part of what the company will earn from selling this line of jackets, will be donated to the Surfrider Foundation Europe, which cleans beaches and seas. Sease, an ‘outdoor sports meets urban life’ brand created by brothers Franco and Giacomo Loro Piana debuted this season. It employs eco-friendly fibres such as Fulgar, a bio-based yarn Evo from castor seeds, regenerated denim by Italdenim and thermore Ecodown.

It was all about colour trendy apparels this season. Colours such as orange, yellow, pink, red, green and blues made the entire show vibrant. Brands such as Blauer, Woolrich, K-Way and Ten C and Original Penguin, made them a part of their ensemble. Pony, the US historical sneaker brand, launched its new capsule collection Pony x Yong Baek Seok at Pitti. This collection’s signature is strong geometric colourful elements on both the upper and soles. This Korean designer has created important sneaker collections for Dolce & Gabbana, Diesel and Bally and is now head of design at the men’s sport division of Tod’s.

Harmont & Blaine, as a part of its Heritage Collection, launched ‘Camicia 8 Tessuti’, an iconic shirt model made with a patchwork of eight fabrics from past successful shirt models. Lotto is also celebrating its 45th anniversary and launched a series of new colorful running sneakers and a special model for Marco Cecchinato, the Italian tennis player who recently competed in the Roland-Garros semi-finals.

The launch pad

Giada, an Italian jeans manufacturer debuted the show by launching Hand Picked, a complete total-look collection 100 per cent accurately made in Italy, employing Japanese denims for jeans and Loro Piana fabrics for polo shirts. Replay has launched Replay Sportlab, a 25-piece capsule inspired by street and board sports and characterised by comfortable fits and made with functional fabrics that can be worn when playing sports. These include a special indigo material that looks like denim but is as soft and comfortable as a sweatshirt. Maurizio Donadi’s Atelier & Repair project focussed on upcycling old casual pieces into new items has launched a new brand – Produce Better. This new line only offers jackets and tops made with raw Candiani Denim Fabric’s Re-Gen, a newly launched 100 per cent regenerated denim treated with organic substances only.