For the second quarter Gokaldas Exports’ revenue grew 30 per cent. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) jumped 63 per cent. Margins improved 250 basis points to 12 per cent from nine per cent in the year ago period. Net profit was up three-fold.

A strong order book, increased focus on augmenting capacity (up by around 30 per cent) while containing costs has helped deliver this growth. With a strong order book, the company has ensured a rapid expansion of its production capacity. It managed the production value chain well by increasing manpower availability, improving productivity and on-time shipments. The management continues to focus strengthening the order book position for the coming quarters as well.

Credit metrics and liquidity position witnessed a healthy improvement, primarily on the back of the equity infusion made in October 2021. A portion of the funds have been utilized towards reducing debt levels, with the surplus to be used to meet incremental working capital and capacity expansion requirements. Reduction in net debt levels, coupled with the growth in operating profits, is expected to result in key credit metrics including net debt to operating profits and PBDITA to interest and finance charges to be at around 1 times and 4.5 times, respectively, in fiscal2022.

Garment worker unions in Sri Lanka have signed a ground-breaking agreement with employer association Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) in which both parties reached an understanding about how to address vital workplace issues for garment workers, especially during the pandemic.

This historic agreement lays out and confirms joint support for fundamental steps towards improving working conditions during the Covid-19 pandemic and importantly towards respect for freedom of association in Sri Lanka’s garment industry.

A joint statement of the Sri Lankan signatory unions, Free Trade Zones & General Service Emplees Union, National Union of Seafarers Sri Lanka & National Union of Migrant Workers Sri Lanka, and Sri Lanka NidahasSewakaSangamaya said: “This is the first time an industrial sector is represented in a bi-partite agreement with worker representatives. This is also the first time both employer and employee representatives have agreed on workplace health management through bi-partite health committees.”

InekeZeldenrust, International Coordinator at Clean Clothes Campaign, said: “This agreement goes some way towards redressing the power imbalance between workers and employers. It gives joint support for the Bipartite Health Committees, and a Bipartite Dispute Resolution Mechanism, all of which have been key asks of the Sri Lankan trade unions to factory owners during the pandemic.”

In the last five decades, Bangladesh has become one of the fastest growing economies of the world. Its per capita income has reached $2,554, one of the highest in South Asia. Poverty rate declined to 20.5 per cent, both ways trade increased to $82 billion during the same time. Foreign exchange reserves have reached 45 billion.

Largest formal women employer

This success story has largely been woven by the ready-made garment (RMG) industry in the country, says Faruque Hassan, President, BGEMA. With 3,500 active clothing factories, the industry generates 81 per cent of Bangladesh’s export revenue. It is the world's second largest garment supplier, with its products going to 167 countries.

The RMG industry is also the largest formal employer for women in Bangladesh. The industry employs around 60 per cent of women, mostly within the age group of 18-30 years. This contributes to women’s empowerment and poverty reduction besides bringing about many positive changes like a drop in early marriage and early motherhood, increase in female literacy rates, etc.

Great strides in safety and sustainability

The industry itself has gone through a massive transformation since its inception. Its technology features, workplace safety, product quality and range, and environmental sustainability-- all have improved significantly. The sector has made great strides in safety and sustainability. Entrepreneurs have engaged with the government, ILO, local and international labour federations and brands through the initiatives titled 'Accord, 'Alliance' and 'National Action Plan'. Bangladesh made a joint declaration with ILO, EU, USA and Canada called the Sustainability Compact in 2013 to make it more sustainable.

World’s highest number of green factories

All factories in Bangladesh are compelled to go through a robust remediation program and install all the required safety equipment as per the standards. The country has the highest number of green garment factories in the world. US Green Building Council (USGBC) certified a total of 152 Bangladeshi factories as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), among them 44 are LEED platinum-rated and 94 are LEED gold-rated units. These factories are moving from semi-automatic to more automatic mode using sophisticated machines, technologies and software to prepare the industry for next phase of growth.

Bangladesh has also formed the RMG Sustainability Council (RSC) involving equal number of representatives from industry bodies, brands and unions in its governance.to build local capacity, It has entered into collaborative arrangement with a number of development partners and the government to train workers and mid-management officials on occupational safety and health and on social dialogue.

Explore the MMF sector

Bangladesh now aims to carve a niche in high-end garment products market. It aims to harness the potential of man-made fibre (MMF) market. Localization of MMF will enable it to explore the potential in active-wear, athleisure, suits and high-end formal-wear, outerwear, lingerie etc. To achieve the next phase of business sustainability, Bangladesh needs to make continuous efforts to cope up with the global fashion trends and realign its business strategies accordingly. It must strive to remodel its business from labor intensive to a value-added one through innovation, modern manufacturing, diversification, technology upgrading, up-skilling and re-skilling of our workforce.

Focus on human resources

To achieve its desired economic development, Bangladesh also needs to focus on its human resources. It needs to adopt a People Centric Approach while devising its strategies and policies.

The RMG industry will play a pivotal role in Bangladesh’s economic development. To achieve its target of $50 billion worth of exports, the government and the industry must continue to work together.

A company encouraging the return of the textile production to the United States, the Denim Forward Inc (DenimFWD) has opened the world’s first ‘Urban Factory.’ As per a Textile World report, the plant is located in the City of Industry, Calif. And employs revolutionary technologies to transform the current textile production model into an on-demand, completely sustainable digital and automated model. Through this model DenimFWD aims to bring back 15 to 25 per cent of manufacturing production to the US.

The model allows 100 per cent sustainable on-demand production close to the consumer. It digitizes the entire production process besides improving saving time and speeding up time-to-markeet, says Carlos Arias, CEO, DenimFWD. The model will allow consumers to decide buy a product that will be finished and delivered to him the same, he adds. It will also reduce the number of garments ending up in landfills or being incinerated.

Eliminates 100 per cent pollution from jeans

A complete transformation of the denim operating model, Urban Factory is being developed by DenimFWD in partnership with Jeanologia, world leaders in sustainable and efficient technology development as expert technology partners. Enrique Silla, CEO, Jeanologia says, the new production model will help eliminate 100 per cent discharge and pollution from jeans in the world. It will mark the beginning of a new era in completely sustainable and digital production.

With minimum delivery times, DenimFWD’s Urban Factory produces up to 5,000 jeans and 4,000 T-shirts a day. Its operating model is sustainable and integrates Jeanologia hardware and software for advanced digital production. It offers five benefits to the industry, eco-friendliness, agility, scalability, digital and cost-effectiveness to designers, producers, and consumers.

Reduces operational costs and environmental impact

Through this model, DenimFWD offers the industry products that are in demand rather than those produced. This reduces the industry’s operational costs and environmental impact, guaranteeing zero discharge.

The model uses the following Jeanologia technologies: laser, G2 Ozone, e-Flow, SmartBox, ColorBox, EIM (software for measuring environmental impact) and H2Zero (the first water treatment and recycling system that produces zero discharge without extra costs). It has the first active Handman in the US and allows automated production through robots, making it more agile, clean and scalable. The eDesigner technology makes digital designing easier, faster, and more dynamic for designers.

A group of textile industry and trade associations in China have condemned the US’ ‘Xinjiang bill’ saying, it endangers the security of the global textile industry. The bill was signed by the US President Joe Biden this month as a part of the US initiative to curb forced labor. It aims to curb US funding amongst ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

The law instructs the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) under Section 3 of the Act to adopt a rebuttable presumption that goods mined, produced, or manufactured in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) or by certain entities are prohibited from being imported into the US.

Moreover, the bill instructs the government to guide importers on best practices/due diligence and on the type of evidence to demonstrate that goods are not made with forced labor. It also directs the government to develop a comprehensive enforcement strategy and a diplomatic strategy. However, the bill has been opposed by all leading Chinese textile industry and trade associations.

Suppresses domestic industry and violates WTO rules

The China Cotton Association says, the bill suppresses China's cotton textile industry in the name of human rights while the China National Textile and Apparel Council and 12 industry associations accuse it of setting a dangerous precedent to international economic and trade by presumption of guilt with regards to forced labor covering all Xinjiang products. It says, Xinjiang cotton is globally recognized as a high-quality natural raw material for fiber, and is vital to the sound and sustainable development of the Chinese and global textile industry. The US suppression of Xinjiang cotton and related products is bound to severely endanger the security of the global textile supply chain. The China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Textiles (CCCT) accuses the US of completely violating market principles and WTO rules. The bill severely harms the interests of both, the Chinese and the American textile and apparel companies and consumers and also

An important part of the global textile supply chain, Xinjiang cotton amounted to 5.13 million tons in 2021. It accounted for about 20 per cent of global cotton output, adds CCCT. However, since 2020, the US government has issued import bans on Xinjiang cotton restricting the import of cotton-related products from the region. This has damaged the reputation of the China’s cotton textile industry across the world.

A move doomed to fail

Through its crackdown, the US aims to curtail the development of new industries in Xinjiang, thus slowing its economic growth. However, such a move is doomed to fail, says Huo Jianguo, Vice Chairman, China Society for World Trade Organization Studies. The US imports of textiles and apparels from China grew 23.9 per cent year-on-year to $25.79 billion in the first ten months of 2021. This was a growth of 58.9 percentage points from the same period last year, accounting for 27.6 percent of the US' total textile and apparel imports during the same period, according to industry data.

Bill to aggravate US’ economic predicament

Thus, the suppression of imports from China by the US' will not only harm millions of cotton farmers and textile workers in Xinjiang, but also the interests of American textile and apparel consumers, retailers, distributors and importers, adds CCCT. The restrictions will end up harming American interest and aggravate its economic predicament, adds Jianguo.

Vietnam International Fashion Week 2021 saw Vietnamese fashion designers make a strong comeback after having postponed their new collections due to the pandemic. Thirteen Vietnamese designers and fashion brands introduced new collections of evening gowns, suits, street wear, and ao dai (Vietnamese traditional dresses) for adults and children during the event. Designs were made with high quality materials, including metallic fabrics, silk, organza, lace, and velvet with hand embroidered and printed patterns. Designer Adrian Anh Tuan’s collection featured designs for men and women, including evening gowns, suits, long coats, and retro-styled ao dai, along with colorful dresses.

Handbags in leather and accessories were also included. Designer Nguyen Tien Truyen’s collection featured suits, dress suits, bodysuits, T-shirts and shirts in modern styles and forms, blending colors of black, blue, latte and pink to reflect the revival of the city. Minh Chau highlighted the beauty of ao dai in voile and embroidered with Vietnamese traditional patterns like a white lotus. Young designer Quy Cao showcased street wear in vivid colors and innovative designs inspired by ao dai.

The catwalk performance featured winners from Vietnamese beauty pageants, and top models. Vietnam International Fashion Week, first held in 2014, has become the leading fashion event in Southeast Asia and the fourth largest in Asia after Tokyo, Seoul, and Shanghai fashion weeks.

Uniform goods and services (GST) tax will be applied at 12 per cent on manmade fiber, yarn, fabrics and apparel. The aim is to address the inverted tax structure in the manmade fiber textile value chain and help the manmade fiber segment grow and emerge as a big job provider in the country.

Textile and apparel production in India is approximately $140 billion including $40 billion of textiles and apparel exports. The textile and apparel industry contributed two per cent to the overall GDP of India in 2019 and 11 per cent to total manufacturing. The industry has the capacity to generate around 70 jobs in garmenting and an average of 30 jobs overall for every Rs 1 crore invested as compared to 12 jobs created on an average in other industries. With direct and indirect employment of close to 105 million people, this industry is the second largest employment generator in the country, next only to agriculture. More significantly, women constitute 70 per cent of the workforce in garment manufacturing and about 73 per cent in handloom.

Also seven Pradhan Mantri Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel parks will offer the opportunity to create an integrated textile value chain.

India’s growth as a manufacturing hub for textiles will depend on the attractiveness of its domestic market and on investments in high-end textile machinery in emerging areas like technical textiles and manmade fiber. Various initiatives were taken in 2021 including approving the setting up of seven Pradhan Mantri Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel Parks (MITRA).

Under this scheme world-class industrial infrastructure is aimed at attracting cutting edge technology and foreign and local investment in the sector. The parks are aimed at generating around one lakh direct and two lakh indirect employment per park. A uniform goods and services tax rate at 12 per cent has been levied on manmade fiber, yarn, fabrics and apparel that has addressed the inverted tax structure in the manmade fiber textile value chain.

This is expected to help the manmade fiber segment grow and emerge as a big job provider in the country. The production linked incentive scheme for textiles is especially focused at high value and expanding manmade fiber and technical textile segments of the textile value chain. The textile and apparel industry in India contributed two per cent to the overall GDP of India in 2019 and 11 per cent to total manufacturing.

Bangladesh-based Far Chemical is merging with SF Textile. Far Chemical will take over all assets and liabilities of SF Textile, which is a 100 per cent export-oriented yarn spinning company that has been in operation since 2016. The production capacity of the company is 42,250 spindles of cotton, viscose, and CVC yarn spinning. Far Chemical is a concern of Far Group. The group was established in 1993 based on a 100 per cent export-oriented sweater industry. The group has two other firms, ML Dyeing and RN Spinning Mills.

Earlier, Far Chemical recommended a one per cent cash dividend for the year ending on June 30, 2021. Far Chemical Industries manufactures, exports and sells chemicals to export oriented textile and apparel industries in Bangladesh. Its products include softening, retarding, leveling, anti-foaming, scouring, fixing, and bleaching agents, as well as stabilizers. The company was founded in 2007. Far Chemical has decided to shift its factory to its land from the Export Processing Zone. The company hopes to complete processing within six months after which it will be shifted to the new location. The sponsors and directors jointly hold a 30.24 per cent share, institutions hold a 14.80 per cent share and the general public holds a 54.96 per cent share in the company.

The premiere of the trade show events to happen in Germany, January 18 to 20, 2022 is postponed. Due to fast changing Covid situation world-wide, it will only be possible for Frankfurt Fashion Week (January 17 to 21, 2022) to take place physically in parts. This means trade-visitor events, Neonyt, Premium, Seek, The Ground and Val:ue, will not take place in January instead will run for the first time in a physical form in July 2022.

Showcases, previews, installations and exhibitions will take place in January, though, and will continue to be held on a basis of 2G rules (admission only for participants with proof of vaccine or recovered status) and 2G-plus rules (all participants must be fully vaccinated or recently recovered and be able to present a negative antigen test on a daily basis).

Conferences, talks and panels will also partly go ahead in reduced, hybrid form. Messe Frankfurt is the organizer of the trade fair formats Neonyt and Val:ue. Premium Group organizes the trade shows Premium and Seek, the fashion festival The Ground and the Fashiontech Conference.

Nevertheless, the summer dates have already been announced: Frankfurt Fashion Week is scheduled to run from July 4 to 8, 2022, with trade shows taking place from July 5 to 7, 2022.