FW
Many global apparel buyers, including Hermes Otto, Newlook, Colveta, Near East Manufacturing and Varnern, plan to increase their orders from Turkey by about 20 per cent. Apparel exports of $17 billion from the country would increase to $18 billion this year, reaching around $25 billion in five years.
For example, Colveta plans to purchase products worth €40 million from Turkey every year and increase the figure to €65 million within five years. Similarly Newlook Turkey plans to increase purchases by 20 per cent while Hermes Otto aims to increase to over €100 million in 2018 , registering a 7 per cent growth. Verner, one of the major buyers, would also increase its apparel order from Turkey, currently €55 million, by 5 to 10 per cent this year. Near East Manufacturing, on the other hand, is planning to increase its $100 million order by 10 per cent.
The Uster Tensojet 5 is acknowledged not only as the industry’s ultimate Tensile tester but also a key element in the growth of a spinning mill’s profitability. With the launch of Uster Tensojet 5, the concept of Tensile testing is extended to provide a total package: precise measurement of a yarn’s strength, combined with reliable protection against quality claims based on accurate forecasts of performance in later processes.
For yarn producers both quality and performance are essential if they are to meet the continually rising demands of their customers in the weaving and knitting mills. Yarns must have the look, feel and functionality to satisfy these requirements.
Uster is committed to meeting the industry’s need for increasingly effective and accurate Tensile testing. For decades, Uster laboratory instruments have set the global standards for strength and elongation measurement of staple as well as filament, yarns. In 2018, a new generation has been launched. The Uster Tensorapid 5, the go-to tensile tester providing precise data, was introduced in March.
Minimum strength and elongation properties are needed to prevent a yarn breaking or being damaged in downstream operations as well as avoiding blemishes on end-products in weaving. Therefore, accurate Tensile-strength values are important, particularly for warp yarns, which are placed under tremendous stress.
Since the third quarter of last year, foreign investments in Vietnam’s textile and apparel sector have increased due to domestic textile-garment enterprises’ high-quality products and short delivery times. Vietnam’s apparel sector has attracted a large volume of FDI. Some 137 projects were approved in 2014 with a total registered capital of nearly $1.75 billion.
Early last year, when the United States, the largest buyer of Vietnam's textiles and garments, withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, FDI capital injected into the local textile-garment sector dipped and tended to flow to other markets with a lower-cost workforce and lower import duties, such as Cambodia, Myanmar and Bangladesh. Vietnam has inked 16 bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements, including CPTPP and EVFTA, which will take effect in the near future, creating numerous opportunities for local textile-garment producers.
Import duties of the European Union, Vietnam’s second largest importer, currently ranging from ten per cent to 12 per cent, will be cut to zero when EVFTA comes into force. South Korea may overtake Taiwan to become the largest investor in Vietnam’s textile-garment sector in the near future as this country has clinched a two-way FTA with Vietnam and a cooperation agreement with the European Union.
After increasing tariffs on US imports, China has contracted to import 500,000 bales of cotton from India. As a result, the overall cotton export in India is likely to rise by 21 per cent to seven million bales for the cotton year ending this September, from 5.8 mn bales the previous year.
The price of the benchmark Shankar-6 variety of cotton has risen by 6.5 per cent in June so far, to Rs 13,160 a quintal from Rs 12,373 a qtl. The price has increased 12 per cent, in the course of a month.
There has been an increase in orders for Indian cotton from China, along with yarn, following a build-up in its trade war with the US. China has imposed 25 per cent duty on import of cotton from the US and is meeting its demand by sourcing more from India, in a repay in kind measure.
Earth Alive Clean Technologies, a leading Canadian clean-tech company, developer and manufacturer of state-of-the-art microbial technology-based products for sustainable agriculture and mining, is launching the Clean Fiber Initiative, a collaborative research project to improve the production of natural fiber crops in Canada and around the world.
The company is currently conducting trials on hemps with conventional and organic growers in Canada, as well as the US. Similarly, cotton trials are underway in Peru and Burkina Faso. Earth Alive is calling for more producers to join the initiative. The company is currently exploring hemp seed and oil production. Additionally, one of its sites will monitor the changes in cannabidiol (“CBD”) levels in the plants; with legislative changes underway CBD extraction derived from hemp is expected to increase significantly in the future.
Participants will establish Clean Fiber Initiative trial sites on their commercial plantations and the company’s technical staff will monitor and evaluate the plots throughout the initiative.
Bangladesh has extended the deadline for completing remediation work in garment factories up to December 2018. But factories failing to complete the job by December might face closure. The previous deadline was April 30 last.
Accord and Alliance, two platforms of western buyers, have been strict regarding remediation work. Many factories have faced closure due to non-compliance with the criteria. At the same time, factory owners have sought extension of time ranging from three months to one year. After the collapse of Rana Plaza, western buyers formed Accord and Alliance to improve workplace safety in the readymade garment sector.
They inspected structural, fire and electrical integrity in 2395 garment factories in the country. About 85 per cent and 89 per cent of factories affiliated with Accord and Alliance respectively have completed remediation work. On the other hand, 1549 garment units were inspected under the national initiative. Of these, 755 factories are currently in business while 573 others were closed down for various reasons. Some 79 factories moved out of rented buildings, 12 are located in export processing zones and 123 got enlisted with Accord and seven with Alliance.
Out of 755 factories, a total of 165 units are yet to start post-inspection flaw-fixing work while the progress rate of remediation in 192 units is below 20 per cent. Some 21 per cent to 30 per cent progress was recorded in 65 factories while 385 factories have completed 31 per cent to 99 per cent remediation work.
The second edition of Denimsandjeans will be held in Bangalore on August 1 to 2. The annual event enables supply chain companies including top mills, garment manufacturers, accessory and chemical suppliers to come together.
The first edition was a great success and witnessed phenomenal attendance. With over 1,800 visitors from all major brands, retailers, buying houses etc. in India and some from overseas, it was probably the best aggregation of the denim industry in India in a very long time. The second edition will focus on the growing trend of unisex denim collections. Apart from all major denim mills from India including Arvind, Raymond, Mafatlal, Nandan, Suryalaskhmi, Bhaskar, the show will host companies from Bangladesh, Turkey, Spain, Italy and many more.
Experts from the US and Europe will be holding denim sessions on recent developments and innovations. Various technologies including 3D printing, syncing denim with music, special software to help the global denim industry and more will be explored through presentations and seminars.
India is a hot favorite for international retailers seeking to strengthen their foothold in the booming apparel market. With several taxation changes and ease of doing business, the country is looking forward to sustained growth in apparel retail and with an increase in organized retail.
"While the Trump administration is slapping tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese imports, it has spared the clothing and footwear industry of China but the news is not a positive one. As per official statement, the actual shirts and shoes imported from China won’t get new tariffs, according to the full list of 1,102 product lines, and only some of the equipment used to make them, like textile rolling-machine parts and injection molders for shoes, were included in the final list. A host of other Chinese machinery used by American apparel companies that had been on a preliminary tariff list – like textile printing equipment, sewing machines and looms – are still in the safe zone."
While the Trump administration is slapping tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese imports, it has spared the clothing and footwear industry of China but the news is not a positive one. As per official statement, the actual shirts and shoes imported from China won’t get new tariffs, according to the full list of 1,102 product lines, and only some of the equipment used to make them, like textile rolling-machine parts and injection molders for shoes, were included in the final list. A host of other Chinese machinery used by American apparel companies that had been on a preliminary tariff list – like textile printing equipment, sewing machines and looms – are still in the safe zone.
Rick Helfenbein, President, American Apparel & Footwear Association, says the association applauds the decision to remove most of the equipment and machinery used in its domestic textile, apparel and footwear manufacturing that were proposed by the administration in April. Levying a tariff on these items would have increased costs for domestic manufacturers across the industry, leading to higher prices and lower sales.
On the other hand, the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) wants the tariff to be applied to
clothing, high-performance fabrics and home furnishings like carpet to slow the flow of Chinese imports that it claims have hurt the domestic industry. It would have a greater deterring effect, however, if more textile and apparel end products were included, said Auggie Tantillo, President, NCTO.
But the fear of retaliation is still looming large, as Helfenbein says. China previously identified almost $1 billion worth of American cotton exports to China as a target, which will hurt American farmers and US textile manufacturers, and add costs to their supply chains. Ramping up tariffs doesn’t help bilateral trade talks reach a successful conclusion, he added. Amid the fear, Trump pledged additional tariffs if the country follows through on the threats. The first set of tariffs will total $34 billion and take effect from July 6, with another $16 billion still to be reviewed, the US Trade Representative said.
A study from the National Retail Federation and the Consumer Technology Association found imposing tariffs of $50 billion on Chinese imports, coupled with retaliation, would reduce US GDP by nearly $3 billion and eliminate 134,000 American jobs annually. Tariffs are taxes on American consumers, plain and simple, Matthew Shay, CEO, NRF, said in a statement. These tariffs won’t reduce or eliminate China’s abusive trade practices, but they will strain the budgets of working families by raising consumer prices.
Japan’s apparel import value has dipped by 1.19 per cent as the country imported apparels worth $ 6.62 billion as against $6.70 billion in the corresponding period last year. Unit prices of imported apparels remained the same as compared to last year which was $3.98 per kg of apparel shipment. This falling quantity helped the country to keep the import value low further supported by the stability of the Japanese yen against the US dollar throughout the period.
Vietnam exports to Japan increased by 13.24 per cent in value terms, whereas India and Bangladesh too noted growth by 7.94 per cent and 4.73 per cent over the export values of prior year, respectively. Vietnam, India and Bangladesh exported apparels worth $907 million, $85.46 million and $266 million, respectively to Japan during the first three months of 2018. In volume terms, Vietnam surged by 16.72 per cent; India by 10.88 per cent and Bangladesh increased by 7.39 per cent on Y-o-Y basis.
India recently organised a conference, entitled “Textiles: India-Vietnam Cooperation, Partners in Progress”, in the Ho Chi Minh City with an aim to boost trade relations between the India and Vietnam in textiles. Vietnam being an important part of the Indian government’s Look East policy, the country has invested about $814 million through 176 projects in Vietnam, ranking 28th among 126 countries and territories investing in the country. Indian businesses exported textiles and garments worth $429 million to Vietnam in 2017, up 44 percent from 2016, and accounting for a small part of Vietnam’s textile and garment material import demand.
Also, many Indian textile and garment companies have invested in Vietnam, and Vietnamese textile and garment enterprises can develop ready-made garment production in India to meet the need of its 1.3 billion people. Under India’s “automatic route” policy, foreign investors can invest in India without seeking advance government approval. Vietnamese companies can take advantage of this policy and the market potential to produce yarns, fabrics and ready-made garments in India.
