Bangladesh is unlikely to achieve its apparel export targets for the fiscal year 2022-2023.

For one, demand for apparel has decreased in the major markets, including European Union and the United States, due to the high trend of inflation. Global buyers are placing a decreasing volume of orders due to inflation. Readymade garment exports in October 2022 are expected to have fallen by nearly 20 per cent compared to that of the same month last year.

Export earnings from readymade garment exports in fiscal year 2021-2022 were 21 per cent higher than the target for that year. Also there is a shortage of energy in the country.The ongoing crisis of gas and electricity has pushed the production cost high as manufacturers have been trying to continue their production through diesel-run generators. Generators in factories are also being crippled due to their frequent use. So factory owners have been forced to negotiate orders with low prices in order to pay workers’ wages as the flow of orders has decreased in recent months.

The newly opened Center for Innovation, Efficiency and OSH is expected to help Bangladesh's garment sector transform its challenges into opportunities. A reduction of the export tax is also expected to help and there is a call for this.

Some American sports and athleisure brands have been served legal notices for using a chemical beyond safe limits in their clothes.

The chemical is called BPA and the brands include Athleta, Nike, Fila, New Balance, and Reebok. BPA can emulate hormones like oestrogen and block other hormone receptors, altering the concentration of hormones in our body and resulting in negative health effects.Even low levels of exposure during pregnancy have been associated with a variety of health problems in offspring. These problems include abnormal development of the mammary glands and ovaries that can increase the likelihood of developing breast or ovarian cancer later in life. These effects occur even at low levels of exposure. BPA has been found in polyester-based clothing with spandex, including socks made for infants. BPA can be absorbed through skin and end up in the bloodstream after handling paper for seconds. Since sports bras and athletic shirts are worn for hours at a time,high levels of BPA in clothing are a matter of concern.

Toxic chemicals can cause a range of diseases that include cancer, diseases of the heart and lungs, and reproductive impairment. Prevention of these impacts is most effectively achieved by phasing out the use of toxic chemicals.

Workers in more than a dozen countries say Adidas indulges in unfair practices.

Workers who make Adidas products are demanding an end to pervasive wage theft and union-busting.In Myanmar, striking workers called on Adidas supplier Pou Chen, which dismissed 26 union members, to stop retaliating against their union and agree to a wage increase.

Demonstrations in Germany brought together activists in dance flash mobs. In Italy a public poster campaign raised awareness about Adidas' responsibility to the workers who make its products. Garment worker unions have been demonstrating for months to bring attention to the brand’s long history of wage theft and anti-union repression in its apparel and footwear supply chains.

Workers in Cambodia have been fighting for years for the compensation they’re owed. They say Adidas refuses to end wage theft in its supply chain, prioritizing profits over people. Garment workers are calling on consumers to make this wave of activism just the beginning of holding Adidas to account.

On the other hand Adidas, one of the largest sports apparel companies in the world, severed ties with Kanye West in response to West’s controversial behavior, including making anti-semitic comments, and said it does not tolerate anti-semitism and any other sort of hate speech.

The Cotton Association of India (CAI) wants the period for duty-free cotton imports to be extended to November 30, 2022.

Recent disruptions in the global supply chain have delayed the India-bound cotton imports from Australia and the US. Shipments are expected to reach Indian ports after a delay of about four weeks.

Extension in the period of duty-free import, says CAI, will facilitate importers to receive the natural fiber and will also mitigate the sufferings of Indian importers. Acute shortage of containers has also added to the problems of importers.

India had decided to waive the import duty on cotton till September 30, 2022, when the new season began, and the period was later extended till October 31. Now, the Cotton Association of India has urged that the period be extended for another month.However, cotton prices have dropped by around 44 per cent. So it will be very difficult to decide when the peak arrival season will begin in India. Cotton prices are expected to further drop when arrivals increase in the weeks to come. The cotton textile industry contributed significantly to achieving last year’s merchandise export targets. India’s cotton production in the 2022/2023 season is likely to be up 12 per cent from a year ago.

Bangladesh and South Korea have a partnership in the apparel and textile sector. They have identified innovation, diversification and technological upgradation as the key strategic priorities for their future growth.

The collaboration also seeks to promote direct or joint venture investments from South Korea to Bangladesh in high-end garment items, non-cotton textiles, woven textiles and garments, and skills development and innovation.

South Korea is one of the emerging markets for Bangladesh, which aims at hiking apparel exports to South Korea. South Korea currently sources 34 per cent of its apparel items from China, but due to rising costs, apparel production is increasingly moving out of China, and Bangladesh’s entrepreneurs now have an opportunity to capture the South Korean market. Bangladesh’s apparel shipments to South Korea have experienced a positive growth over the past five years despite the pandemic-led slowdown. But a big push will be taken this year to capture a bigger share of the South Korean marketwith diversified items such as underwear, denims, shirts, jackets and pullovers as South Korea has a great demand for high-value winter clothing and denim. Other potential products that have good demand in the country include non-leather footwear, home textiles, jute and jute products etc.

Essentials is H&M’s attempt at slow fashion. The collection is antithetical to the fast fashion agenda and has a tightly-edited, season-less line of wardrobe staples.

The idea is to slow down. Instead of creating wastefully, H&M has made garments that are designed to stand the test of time. Every style in the collection is individually numbered, and the brand plans to never feature more than 20 at a time. These are classic men’s wear pieces like T-shirts, jeans, shirts, coats, jackets etc and considerable development and fabric research have gone into creating these garments. This means, for instance, adding a smidge of stretch to jeans to ensure comfort or getting fit details like the lengths on T-shirts just right.

Fast fashion leaves a large environmental footprint. So this is Swedish giant H&M’s attempt at making some concerted steps towards righting some wrongs. The growing issue of ethical fashion has thrown a spotlight on the sustainability of fast fashion and in turn guided the fashion industry down a road toward a more sustainable fiber use.

Fast fashion is a term coined to the quick turnaround times between runway, manufacture and retail which can be as short as ten days.The average fashion designer now creates anything between 18 to 25 collections a year.

A conference on Protech (Protective Textiles) will be held in New Delhi, November 16, 2022.

Protective textiles are a segment of technical textiles. The conclave will provide a platform for buyers and sellers to interact and come up with an action plan to benefit from the ongoing demand for protective textiles. Personnel from defence, paramilitary, fire brigade forces, oil industry, steel, aluminium industry, security sector, entrepreneurs and professionals from the technical textiles industry especially Protech, technical officers, R&D personnel, machinery manufacturers and faculty from well-known textile institutes will also take part in the conclave.

To benefit the participants and keep them abreast of the latest technologies and innovative products, an exhibition will be arranged along with the conclave in which around 30 companies/agencies will participate and will showcase the innovative products in the field of protech. So the exhibition will provide an opportunity for manufacturers to showcase their developments and innovations.

The National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM) and Production Linked Incentive schemes are a few of the major steps taken in India to promote the technical textile industry. Market development, market promotion, international technical collaborations, investment promotions and the Make in India initiative are also there to promote this industry. Metakey: protech, trade show, technical textiles, The National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM), conference, exhibition

Japan’s imports of clothing and accessories increased by 29 per cent during April 2022 to September 2022.

These imports were three per cent of total imports during the first six months of this year. Imports of textile yarn and fabrics from April 2022 to September 2022 were 30 per cent higher than the same period of last year.These imports were one per cent of the total imports by Japan.

The country’s exports of textile yarn and fabrics during the first half of fiscal 2022 increased by 17 per cent year on year. These exports were 0.8 per cent of total exports from Japan during April 2022 to September 2022.Japan’s exports of textile machinery were 20 per cent higher than in April 2021 to September 2021 and contributed 0.3 per cent to total exports.

During September 2022, Japan’s imports of clothing and accessories increased by 40 per cent year on year. Clothing imports accounted for three per cent of the country’s total imports during the month under review. Imports of textile yarn and fabrics in September 2022 were 33 per cent higher than in the same month of last year.Japan’s exports of textile yarn and fabrics increased by 21 per cent year on year.

Ana Andjelic is chief brand officer of Esprit.

Based in the fashion brand’s New York office, she will be tasked with redefining the brand’s new identity and leading the global creative and design hub in New York. Andjelic joins Esprit from Gap-owned Banana Republic, where she served as chief brand officer.

She was tasked with leading the the rebranding venture, overseeing the marketing, creative, and product design functions, and was responsible for setting the new brand strategy, creative and editorial directions. She also participated in the planning of the brand’s omnichannel marketing execution. Prior to Banana Republic, Andjelic was chief marketing officer at Mansur Gavriel and chief brand officer at Rebecca Minkoff.

Lifestyle fashion brand Esprit based in Hong Kong is in the process of transforming into a global company with creative minds and processes in key cities enabling consumers to be connected to the brand on a multi-dimensional level. This will enable Esprit to adapt to major challenges in fashion and the macro environment in order to propel it into the future.In addition, Hong Kong will continue to be the worldwide administrative headquarters for finance, sourcing, and operations.Esprit has opened hubs in London and New York.

Countries like Turkey and China are said to employ slave or forced labor in garment production.

The chances of goods produced using forced labour entering supply chains are worsening. Syrian migrants, including children, are said to work in Turkey within the garment industry and the agricultural sector.

China is rated extreme risk due to reports of human rights violations in Xinjiang. Modern slavery has been known to exist for years. About 50 million people are trapped in modern slavery globally. So, organisations need to work harder to keep goods tainted by forced labour out of their supply chain.

Poverty has long been a key determining factor in the prevalence of modern slavery. Households lacking economic security are more likely to become dependent on employment agents within the informal economy, which can lead to exploitation. More than 15 of the 24 extreme risk countries are low and lower-middle income economies. This group includes Myanmar and Pakistan, two leading exporters of goods including clothing and cotton fabric.

Rising inflation and fears of a global recession suggest the world is headed for a period of prolonged economic instability which will leave millions more people vulnerable to exploitation.The European Commission has unveiled a plan to ban products made with forced labour from entering the EU market.