The Texworld New York s being designed with a heightened focus on regional buyers from the tri-state area, which is currently exempt from New York’s quarantine requirements. Buyers are welcome from other locations for the January edition, but they will need to adhere to restrictions in place at the time of the show.

As a solution for mills that cannot travel to New York, Texworld is debuting a new Pop-Up Sourcing Showcase concept that will enable them to ship product for display at the Javits Center. This area of the show floor will be curated by New York-based trend agency The Doneger Group. Attendees will have guided access to on-site textile experts as they explore the fabrics. All of the products will include QR codes, which buyers can scan to easily connect with mills via the show’s virtual platform. Using personal devices or show-provided tablets and computers, attendees can chat live with suppliers in the networking lounge or set up an online meeting.

Building on the successful digital Texworld USA event held in July, the January edition of Texworld NYC will also have a virtual platform for companies that cannot attend the physical show. Participants can take advantage of artificial intelligence-powered networking and chat via text or video with contacts.

The show will take a multichannel approach to its education platform, with some sessions held solely online or in person. Texworld’s core educational content, including the Lenzing Seminar Series, Textile Talks and the Texworld Trend, will also be recorded and accessible to the virtual audience.

Texworld NYC’s localization move is aimed at navigating Covid-era restrictions, but this also comes as companies are ramping up their domestic sourcing. In a McKinsey survey conducted with Sourcing Journal earlier this year, 46 percent of fashion sourcing executives said they expect the nearshoring trend to rise.

The US recently issued a Withhold Release Order on cotton and apparel imports from specific producers in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR) which may escalate global trade tensions.

The US imported $7.35 billion of apparel products from China during January-July 2020, while China exported around 20 per cent of its overall apparel exports to the US in first quarter of this fiscal, said an India Ratings and Research report.

On the other hand, China depends on the US for raw cotton. China may retaliate by cutting down on cotton procurement from the US, leading to favourable supplies from Brazil and India, both of which are likely to have high inventories. While demand from the US could impact the overall cotton demand in China, the value-addition could gradually move out of China to other geographies.

Indian yarn companies’ dependence on China had reduced to about 20 per cent in the June quarter due to growing competition from Vietnam and Pakistan. India Ratings and Research believes Pakistan and Brazil have a pole position compared with India due to their preferential status. India’s cotton yarn exports declined 28 per cent y-o-y in FY20 to ₹19,600 crore due to a 53 per cent fall in demand from China.

Moreover, severing of ties by global retail brands such as H&M and Lacoste with China on account of labour issues, along with the ongoing US-China trade war, have benefited Indian ready-made garments exporters in the form of additional orders. The agency believes that the vacuum space created would be a positive for Indian garment exporters and help them tide over the impact of pandemic. Furthermore, the home textile segment has reported increased inquiries from the US for sourcing diversification.

The government has extended Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) scheme upto March 2021. The move will bring positive sentiments among garment and made-ups exporters, who were reeling under cash crunch, said analysts. The RoSCTL scheme has been the backbone of policy support for the industry and will surely restore not just the competitiveness of the industry, but also positive sentiments for achieving higher export targets. The scheme rebates embedded taxes including central excise duty on fuel used in transportation, embedded CGST paid on inputs, purchases from unregistered dealers, inputs for transport sector and embedded CGST and compensation cess on coal used in the production of electricity.

According to the government, the move will bring positive sentiments among garment and made-ups exporters, who were reeling under cash crunch, said analysts. This scheme has been the backbone of policy support for the industry and will surely restore not just the competitiveness of the industry, but also positive sentiments for achieving higher export targets.

As per reports Clean Clothes Campaign network has started a campaign urging brands to take responsibility for their workers who make clothes and ensure that they are paid for their work. The Clean Clothes Campaign urged apparel brands and retailers to commit to a wage assurance: a public commitment to ensure that the workers in their supply chains are paid what they are owed and to enter into negotiations to establish a fund that will make sure workers can no longer be left jobless without their legally owed severance. It launched the Pay your Workers campaign which focuses on H&M, Primark, and Nike - three of the brands that most frequently appeared in reports from workers about worker rights violations during the pandemic

This campaign targets some of the wealthiest apparel supply chains in the world. These brands have made profits for decades on the basis of poverty wages and outsourced responsibility without contributing to any form of social protection in garment producing countries. The campaign aims to reclaim funds for the workers, by convincing brands to take responsibility for the people who enabled great profits through their underpaid labor.

Indonesia’s Safeguards Committee’s has launched a probe to ascertain how apparels from Bangladesh negatively affected exports to the Southeast Asian country. The committee initiated the investigation following an application from the Indonesia Textile Association.

The next round of negotiations is scheduled to be held in October 21-22. The two countries are scheduled to hold meeting on the rules of origin issue for the PTA. The latest development may affect negotiation process as well as Bangladesh’s export to the country if Indonesia finally imposes any safeguard duty after the investigation is completed.

Evaluating the application of the association, Indonesia in its notification said that there was sufficient evidence to justify the initiation of a safeguard investigation. The products that fall under the investigation include overcoats, suits, shirts, blouses, T-shirts, singlets and other vests, jerseys, pullovers, cardigans, babies’ garments and clothing accessories, other made up clothing or parts of garments, jackets, blazers, trousers and some other items.

As pr A Sakthivel, Chairman, AEPC, the government's decision to remove export curbs on N-95 masks will open up global markets for Indian players engaged in the sector. It will increase India's exports by Rs 1,000 crore annually. The country will be able to bag export orders worth crore of rupees. Annual export of all PPE kits including N-95 masks could reach around Rs 3,000 crore to Rs 4,000 crore.

The government removed export curbs on N-95 masks, which are in demand due to COVID-19 pandemic, with a view to promoting outbound shipments of the product. This will open up the global market for all items under PPE which has a total global market of more than $60 billion over the next five years, Sakthivel said. He further added this will strengthen domestic PPE manufacturers to compete at the international level. The industry is producing more than 50 lakh N-95 and 2/3 ply masks on a daily basis.

Ever since it pulled out of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, India has been pushing for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). The agreement would help India boost relations with EAEU members besides helping it counter China’s growing influence in the region. India is been supported by Russia in this initiative, reports Statecraft.

A Russia-led free-trade bloc boasting a population of 180 million and a GDP of $1.9 trillion, EAEU boasts of Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan as its member countries with Uzbekistan and Tajikistan also planning to enter the union.

India aims to build ties with Central Asian countries through the Connect Central Asia Policy to provide them with infrastructural support for setting up universities, hospitals, and telemedicine and IT centers; entering joint commercial ventures; and improving connectivity to facilitate joint scientific research, trade, and security partnerships. India aims to support projects on its non-disputed territories, like the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline project, the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), and the Chabahar Port project.

India aims to particularly form strategic partnerships with Russia and Kazakhstan. It has already built close ties with Russia in the fields of science and technology and now aims to strengthen ties in defense and nuclear energy. India has also signed treaties for strategic and military corporation with Kazakhstan and has military and educational interests in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Capturing entire Eurasia

To capture all of Eurasia, India needs to extend its influence to all of Eurasia, including the CIS countries by signing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the EAEU. Latest data from Indian Directorate General of Foreign Trade reveals, until now, India has exported goods worth $1,539,617 million to five EAEU member states while it has imported goods worth approximately $5.759 million. Since the formation of EAEU, India’s exports of non-basmati rice and oilseeds to Russia have increased multifold times and it has lately started exporting egg powder also.

CIS countries also eye an FTA with Indian pharma and textile companies. Such an FTA or CEPA would make Indian textiles more competitive besides enhancing its corporation in the fields of mining equipment and vehicles. In December last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced plans to outsource the construction of one of Russia's most advanced helicopters to India. This would speed up Russia’s and Eurasia’s supply of defense capabilities to India.

Countering the Chinese threat

One of the reasons, India pulled out of the RCEP was its skepticism over China’s role in the agreement. Indian companies feared that China might thwart Indian businesses by flooding the market with cheap Chinese goods. However, these traders do not expect the EAEU to disrupt the presence of Indian manufacturers in the domestic market.

Though China has emerged as a geopolitical force in the EAEU region, India’s presence would blunt its future expansion. India’s corporation with the EAEU can strengthen its involvement in Eurasia and improve economy, thus weakening the Chinese influence

Both as textile powerhouses, Pakistan and China are cooperating each other to increase business in the textile sector, said some traders who have had years of business dealings with Pakistan.

Pakistani-made coarse yarn delivers good value for money as its advantage in cotton fiber overcomes the weakness of coarse yarn production in China’s cotton mill, said Ke Jiangwei, General Manager of Xiamen Naseem Trade Co., a Pakistani company registered in China, which has imported yarn from Pakistan for many years.

Zheng Peipei, General Manager of Haian Jinhong Chemical Fiber Co says Pakistani buyers mainly purchase yarn, nylon, and polyester. Specifically, high-count yarns are used for making fabrics and socks; fishing lines are exported to Karachi for fishing nets; skeins are dyed and made into sewing threads before being sold to local factories for making shoes, bags, and suitcases.

As per an Indian Express report, the retail sector is yet to recover from the sales slump due to the pandemic. But as footfalls continue to remain low at shopping malls and complexes even after easing of restrictions, big fashion brands, including Levi’s Strauss, Pepe Jeans, Max Fashion, Forever New and Bata, are sending retail trucks and pop-up stores in residential colonies, in a bid to reach out to customers and boost sales.

After practically no sales for about three months, Pepe Jeans recovered around 30 per cent of its last year’s sales numbers in June. It went up 50 per cent in July. But people are hesitant to go out and shop, said Manish Kapoor, CEO, Pepe Jeans London. Although there has been an increase in online sales, it cannot deliver that “brand experience” to the consumer. The denim and casual wear brand has now started sending fashion trucks to residential colonies in Mumbai and Delhi-NCR this month.

Footwear brand Bata has set up mobile stores in over 40 cities and are witnessing a steady increase in sales. They have segmented consumers in three categories — digital natives, digital adopters and digital novices. For its digital novices, like the elderly, children and homemakers, who have not been stepping out of the house as much, it has launched Bata Store on Wheels, as it wanted to enable them to make hyperlocal purchases from the safety of their condominiums and apartments, said Sandeep Kataria, CEO, Bata India.

Asics has launched latest campaign ‘Her Heritage’ - the first female-focused release from ASICS SportStyle.

The models within this collection, deliberately sport dual-tones, powerful hues of White and Gold, representing the strength and beauty of a winner, overlaid with transparent and breathable mesh.

The motorsport inspired GEL-1090™ model returns for Autumn/Winter, alongside the GEL-NANDI™ shoe, another silhouette brought from the early 2000s and re-envisioned for a new audience.

The GEL-TARThe final sneaker within the capsule is the JAPAN S™ PF, a classic court silhouette with a thick platform for solid sole support.

The wide variety of styles within the new womenswear offering allows for the wearer to choose a silhouette that reflects and complements them in their endeavours to experiment with the world around them.

THER™ 180 is a unique new model that has been created by merging the upper of the original TARTHER™ 98 model with GEL-QUANTUM 180™ tooling which makes for a multi-faceted, memorable silhouette.