The sudden surge in policy rates to 12.25 per cent by the State Bank of Pakistan may cause a decline in its Pakistan’s value-added textile sector, says Shahzad Azam Khan, Central Chairman, Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers & Exporters Association (PHMEA). It would also have disastrous effects on the economy, industry and exports, he adds. The enhancement in Export Finance Schemes rates to 5.5 per cent will impact exporters’ efficiency and increase liquidity pressures, he adds.

Already troubled by liquidity crisis and other financial challenges, the domestic industry will be devastated by the sudden increase in policy rates, feels Khan. He has urged Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and his economic and financial team to take heed to the demands of the business community and reverse the policy discount and EFS rates. Khan has also urged the new government to stick to the “Charter of Economy” for the country’s future development.

The removal of import duty on cotton has encouraged many spinning mills in Tiruppur to place work orders in the US and Australia though few mills would prefer to monitor the price decline before placing their orders. MP Muthurathinam, President, Tiruppur Exporters and Manufacturer Association says, the decision may lead to drop in cotton yarn prices by Rs 10-20 a kg, encouraging garment mills to sign deals with foreign buyers.

N Thirukumaran, Managing Director, Ess Tee Exports explains, the Centre’s decision will help cool yarn prices and stabilize the cotton market. It would also enhance India’s competitiveness with other Asian countries, adds Velmurugan Shanmugham, Managing Director, Jayalakshmi Textiles. K Venkatachalam, Special Advisor, Tamil Nadu Spinning Mills Association (TNSMA) opines, the removal would help imports to stabilize cotton prices at around Rs 88,000 in a few weeks.

T Rajkumar, Chairman, Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), and Ravi Sam, Chairman, Southern India Mills' Association (SIMA), hope, the removal of import duty on cotton would help stabilize yarn prices from May. This year, India is estimated to have produced around 340 lakh cotton bales. However, spinners are expected to receive around 325 lakh only, say Rajkumar and Sam. They also fear production has declined by 45 lakh bales from previous year due to cancellation of export orders.

India's share in US bedlinen exports is estimated to have dropped from an average of 55 per cent in 2021 to 44.85 per cent in the month of January 2022 only. Meanwhile, Pakistan's share increased to 25.71 per cent while China’s surged to 19.37 per cent during the same period. This led to the industry demanding removal of import duty on cotton. Industry leaders are also encouraging farmers in other states including Tamil Nadu to cultivate extra-long staple cotton of 36 mm.

To be introduced from January 15, 2023, the Mexican Standard NOM-004-SE-2021 will standardize all commercial information required for labeling and apply it to textile products and items, clothing, accessories and household linen having textile composition equal to or greater than 50 per cent in relation to its mass. All products within the territory of the United Mexican States will be covered by the new standard even if they contain plastics or other materials. This new standard will replace the old NOM-0040SCFI-2006. It was published in the official Gazette of the Federation on January 14, 2022 by the Ministry of Economy.

The standard mandates, garments, their accessories and household linens must display trademark, description of materials, size of garments and accessories, care instructions, country of origin and name of the person responsible for the product on one or more permanent labels placed at the bottom of the neck or waist. For textile products, the standard mandates all commercial information should be presented in Spanish. It needs to be truthful and not mislead customers about the nature and characteristics of the product, adds SGS said on its website.

Further, product’s packaging must indicate its name and the quantity of products contained. While describing materials, industry leaders should use generic fibre names in accordance with Mexican Standards NMX-A-2076-INNTEX-2013 and NMX-A-6938-INNTEX-2013.. Any fibre present in a percentage of less than 5 per cent of the total may be designated as ‘others”; or ‘other fibres’ by the standard.

On its 25th anniversary, textile manufacturer, Gimatex has expanded by opening two new manufacturing facilities, namely the 10 TPD Open End Unit at Wani and the 25 TPD Spinning Unit at its Hinganghat Integrated Textile Park. The Mohota Group company also launched a premium e-commerce apparel brand ‘Minus One’ at the event during the occasion.

The new Open End Unit at Wani manufactures recycled fibre based fabrics while the spinning facility at the Hinganghat Integrated Textile Park adds 32,000 spindles to the existing capacity of 1,68,000 spindles. Combined, these new units create additional employment for 500 people.

Gimatex’s new apparel brand Minus One Gimatex adds tremendous value to the cotton lifecycle. The brand uses only Vidharbha cotton in its products to support local farmers and alleviate their difficulties. It has committed to contribute Rs 25 per piece of its sale of the Minus One Apparel to the welfare of the cotton community.

Spurred by strong demand for luxury accessories, first quarter sales of Birkin bag maker Hermes grew 27 per cent to € 2.8 billion. All divisions of the brand clocked double-digit growth, notes Luca Solca, Analyst, Bernstein. The leather goods and saddlery division reported a 15.8 per cent rise in sales while sales at ready-to-wear and accessories grew by 44 per cent and at Watches division rose by 62 per cent.

Hermes’ sales in China grew till the beginning of March when it had to close a few stores due to the restrictions to curb COVID spread, says Eric du Holgouet, Vice President-Finance. The group continues to support its 60 employees in Russia by paying their salaries and providing training sessions and psychological support.

Last month, Hermes closed three stores in Moscow and deferred plan to open a new one in St Petersburg on hold. It has also halted all exports to the country, including perfumes and beauty products. The brand is stopping sale of products to oligarchs on sanctions lists.

In its Q4 FY2022, Alok Industries’ net loss surged 29.633 per cent to Rs -26.76 crore as against Rs -0.09 crore in the Q3 FY22 ended December 31, 2021. As per an Equity bulls income declined 5.18 per cent to Rs. 2,031.44 crore during the period ended March 31, 2022 compared to Rs 2,142.47 crore during the period ended December 31, 2021.

Alok Industries’ net loss increased by 94.65 per cent to Rs.-26.76 crores for the period ended March 31, 2022 as against net loss of Rs.-500.11 crore for the period ended March 31, 2021. On the other hand, net income increased 37.39 per cent to Rs 2,031.44 crore during the period ended March 31, 2022 as compared to Rs.1,478.63 crore during the period ended March 31, 2021.

Designer Paul Smith has launched a mentorship program via an capsule collection with London-based menswear brand Ahluwalia, founded by PriyaAhluwalia.

Supported by the Paul Smith Foundation, the program offers an authentic approach to creative partnerships with emerging and untapped talent, in a mentorship programs that nurture next generation designers.

Building on a long-standing friendship between Priya and Paul, the Ahluwalia&Paul Smith collection is an 11-piece limited-edition collection where two distinct creative minds meet.

The collection is a fashionable encounter of Smith’s bold check fabrics mixed with Ahluwalia’s seaming and paneling techniques. Collage creations that echoed the bright hues of imagery India and Nigeria, culled from Priya’s personal photo archive. While Paul’s love of sport is represented by references to vintage cycling paraphernalia. All mashed up with art from Studio One Records, images by graphic designer Ikko Tanaka and works by multidisciplinary artist Ernesto Cánovas.

Channeling sustainability, the collection utilizes surplus fabrics found in the Paul Smith archive, and new sustainable alternatives – 100 per cent organic cotton and yarns, biodegradable Lenzing Ecovero viscose and surplus jersey.

Textiles emerged as the highest imported commodity by Nigeria despite the prevailing forex restriction for import goods by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), shows latest statistics from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In 2019 the CBNimposed forex restriction on its importation, including woven fabrics and clothes to encourage local production and create jobs. However, the restrictions do not seem to be yielding positive results as the latest NBS reveals, textile materials accounted for the country’s highest imports in 2021.

The value of Nigeria’s textile imports grew by 17.32 per cent in 2020 to N19.89trillion, as per the NBS. The all-commodity group import index on average increased by 0.47 per cent. The highest increase was recorded by textile and textile articles, followed by boilers, machinery and appliances, parts thereof and wood and articles of wood, wood charcoal and articles, it adds.

The apex statistics body also showed that trade is reversing in the country as exemplified by all products’ terms of trade (TOT) index which also showed a 0.25 per cent drop.

The manufacturing site of the Lycra Company in Maydown, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, has completed its third-party verified Higg Facility Social & Labor Module (Higg FSLM).

As per a Knitting Industry report, the Maydown site scored an 83 on the assessment. The assessment included over 300 questions, providing a comprehensive review of a company’s social and labor policies and practices. The independent verifier reviewed original source material and interviewed 20 employees, individually, or part of a group, as part of the verification process.

Located in County Londonderry, the Maydown plant first opened in 1957. The manufacturing site produces Lycra fibre for apparel and Lycra HyFitfibre for personal care products and employs about 350 people. In addition, 13 unique Lycra fibre types made at Maydown are Gold Level Material Health certified by the Cradle-to-Cradle Products Innovation Institute.

Higg FSLM is part of a suite of tools developed by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, a global, non-profit alliance of over 270 stakeholders in the fashion industry.