With higher tariffs, US consumers have to pay more for sports footwear and apparel. Sports equipment, headgear and components are also tagged for new tariffs.

The sports and fitness industry in the US, comprising more than 1000 sporting goods and fitness brands, manufacturers, retailers and marketers, wants to discourage the US from increasing import duties on Chinese products, as China plays a crucial role for many American manufacturers. For the US sports and fitness industry, China has become one of the most important production source countries, with companies from every sector selling goods to the US market. The booming sports and fitness industry in the United States employs more than 3,75,000 people and generates $150 billion of revenue in the domestic wholesale business.

The new 10 per cent tariffs are set to take effect in two stages this year, September 1 and December 15. This will be the fourth round of tariffs to be imposed by the US on Chinese-made products. Footwear majors in the US are disappointed by the tariffs on Chinese imports. Since higher tariffs will raise the cost of shoes, they would like footwear to be removed from the proposed list of Chinese imports with higher tariffs. Almost 70 per cent of shoes sold in the US come from China. Duties of over 67 per cent apply on footwear imported from China.

Amid pressure from US businesses and concerns about effects of trade war’s on the economy, the Trump administration has decided to shorten the list of items on which it plans to levy additional 10 percent tariffs. USTR will soon publish in the newly amended list of tariff lines in the Federal Register. For the Chinese products that aren’t removed from the list altogether, the tariffs would be delayed from the proposed September 1 date to December 15, 2019. Products in this group include cell phones, laptop computers, video game consoles, certain toys, computer monitors, and certain items of footwear and clothing.

According to USTR, tariffs on some products will still go into effect on September 1 as planned. While news of the tariff delay may be somewhat welcome, the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) have urged the US administration to use this time to reach a trade resolution with China before the Dec. 15 deadline hits and new taxes hit everyday consumer products and family budgets.

Pakistan’s move to stop import of products from India or of Indian origin is not expected to have much of an impact on the Indian textile industry. While direct exports to Pakistan of cotton have stopped, indirect exports might continue. India exported only four lakh bales of cotton to Pakistan this year as Indian cotton prices were relatively higher. Pakistan purchased mainly from the US this year.

Pakistan imports mainly yarn and cotton from India. However, in recent years, Indian exporters have slowed down their supply to Pakistan. The annual yarn exports to Pakistan are about $100 million and it is mostly the low count yarns.

India’s exports to Pakistan dropped 20.5 per cent in the first quarter of this fiscal. Exports to Pakistan were only 0.6 per cent of India’s outbound shipments during this period. Purchases from Pakistan, too, collapsed 93.3 per cent in the first quarter of this fiscal. This was due to India’s imposition of a 200 per cent duty on purchases from Pakistan. While India’s exports of cotton crashed 71.4 per cent in the April-June period of this fiscal, that of plastics dropped 24.6 per cent. India granted the MFN status to Pakistan in 1996. But Pakistan hasn’t granted the MFN status to India.

Data released by CONAB shows, Brazilian cotton output may increase by 32.9 per cent to reach 2.665 million tonne by in July, 2018/19. Exports may increase by 60.3 per cent to 1.5 million tonne. Domestic consumption is likely to rise by 2.9 per cent to 0.7 million tonne. Therefore, ending stocks may rise by 70.7 per cent to 1.135 million tons, for the first time to be above 1 million tons since 2011.

The large increase of cotton output makes the supply glut more obvious. Compared with the data released in June, the consumption and exports are revised lower somewhat, leading to higher ending stocks. In early Aug, global stock and commodity market turns bearish, and CONAB is likely to revise lower the consumption and exports in Aug. Under the continual weakness of global cotton textile industrial chain, the supply glut of Brazilian cotton is more obvious with higher cotton output.

In details, cotton areas in Brazil rose by 36.2 per cent year on year, and in the major cotton producing areas, Mato Grosso and Minas Gerais, areas increased by 38.3 per cent and 68 per cent respectively. For yield, the average level moved lower slightly by 2.5 per cent to 1665 kg per hectare, but the higher areas stimulated the higher cotton output.

Currently, it is still the harvest period for Brazilian cotton, and US cotton crop is setting bolls. China will start the picking in Sep in earliest, and the harvests will be around Nov in India. For the largest four cotton producers in the world, Brazilian new cotton supply is quite ample at present.

In the first half of this year, the Council for the Development of Cambodia approved 153 investment projects worth around $5.2 billion, an increase of 48 from the same period last year. Leading Taiwan-based curtain manufacturer and seller Nien Made Enterprise Co plans to expand in Cambodia to avoid the fallout from the Sino-US trade war.

The firm will expand its production line in Southeast Asia and will shift orders for finished products from China to Cambodia to avoid the risk of US tariffs. Currently, about one-third of the company’s ready-made products, such as blinds, are made in China, but it plans to gradually shift the bulk of its operations to Cambodia over the next few years.

Taiwan-based Eclat Textile Co, a sportswear supplier to Nike Inc and Lululemon Athletica Inc, is also slated to invest in more facilities in Southeast Asian countries – including Cambodia – as it plans to “move beyond Vietnam” amid heightened risks of US tariffs.

The apparel industry in the US supports maintaining strong trading ties with China and voices opposition to the escalating tariffs by the US. For instance, China remains a top supplier to the US. More than 40 per cent of all apparel, 72 per cent of all footwear, and 84 per cent of all accessories imported to the US comes from China. This support for strong and uninterrupted US-China business and trade relationships is a result of the supply chains the US has built up with China. The feeling is that any disruption of this is not good for business -- not good for business in America, not good for business in China. The Asian giant is seen as having a positive impact on sustainability, quality control, workers’ rights and product safety.

The opinion is that tariffs are damaging the very industry they are meant to protect, causing trouble for the US economy and causing trouble globally. Retail in America is already reeling and the trade war may deliver the coup de grace. In 2017, the US had more bankruptcies than in the financial crisis of 2008. In 2018, 100 million square foot of retail space was lost, and in the first quarter of 2019, the US more announced store closings than in all of 2018.

Pakistan’s move to stop import of products from India or of Indian origin is not expected to have much of an impact on the Indian textile industry. While direct exports to Pakistan of cotton have stopped, indirect exports might continue. India exported only four lakh bales of cotton to Pakistan this year as Indian cotton prices were relatively higher. Pakistan purchased mainly from the US this year.

Pakistan imports mainly yarn and cotton from India. However, in recent years, Indian exporters have slowed down their supply to Pakistan. The annual yarn exports to Pakistan are about $100 million and it is mostly the low count yarns.

India’s exports to Pakistan dropped 20.5 per cent in the first quarter of this fiscal. Exports to Pakistan were only 0.6 per cent of India’s outbound shipments during this period. Purchases from Pakistan, too, collapsed 93.3 per cent in the first quarter of this fiscal. This was due to India’s imposition of a 200 per cent duty on purchases from Pakistan. While India’s exports of cotton crashed 71.4 per cent in the April-June period of this fiscal, that of plastics dropped 24.6 per cent. India granted the MFN status to Pakistan in 1996. But Pakistan hasn’t granted the MFN status to India.

Uganda has developed a new strategy for its cotton, textiles and apparels sectors that could generate 50,000 new jobs and $650 million in additional export revenues over the next eight years. The strategy, which is also supposed to feed into the third edition of the National Development Plan NDPIII, will increase fiber cotton production, scale up domestic value addition and also create new employment.

Besides addressing structural and policy bottlenecks that currently hamper development of the cotton value chain, the strategy will propose the establishment of five new vertically integrated textile mills. The strategy proposes to revive the cotton production value chain and investment in export-oriented apparel as well as garment production factories that would initially rely on imported fabric.

It also aims to attract targeted FDI into the sector while supporting existing industrial players to develop into integrated value chains that export full value apparel products. As per the strategy, the proportion of processed lint would be progressively raised to 75 per cent of production or 20,000 tonne annually based on current output.

Intellectual Property Rights are gaining importance in global fashion industry. Fashion designers frequently complain about their designs being pirated or copied. Plagiarism is a plague and needs to be curbed. Fashion patents provide the creators the sole legal right for their creation, be it a product, a design, or process related to the fashion business. Hence by obtaining a patent on a novel creation, a company/creator can protect its right to its own intellectual property.

Copyright is the protection for an original literary or artistic work. It includes the creative element of fashion design and cannot include the physical functionality. While the article of clothing itself cannot be copyrighted the design of the products can be copyrighted, such as print pattern. Trademarks cover signs, logos, quotes and symbols, and, in the fashion industry, brands. Brands are incredibly important in the field of fashion, and since fashion patents are harder to get fashion companies will go to great lengths to protect their unique brands. For this many fashion companies use trademark protection instead. Trademarks are cheaper and convenient to get as compared to patents and generally take less time to obtain. But unfortunately trademarks cannot protect the entire article/product and can only protect the logo or symbol on that product.

The German government will launch the Grüner Knopt certification in September 2019 which would support all textile articles that follow certain social and environmental criteria. The certification will define the concept of eco-fashion. The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) will be in charge of this certification and will evaluate companies and its products. For now, starting next month, a pilot test will be executed up until the end of 2020.

This certification counts with 26 requisites in terms of social and environmental responsibility. Companies that want to add this seal will have to prove its performance in terms of human rights like the ones established by the UN and the Ocde. One the criterion for example is the payment of a fair salary.

The certification will be applicable to all the companies that manufacture and commercialise any type of textile item, including suppliers and retailers.