Bangladesh garment exporters want the 0.3 per cent tax at source on exports of readymade clothing to be retained. Bangladeshi apparels are seen to be losing their competitive edge as the currency has strengthened against the US dollars. In such a situation, exporters feel the one per cent tax at source on total export value will lower competitiveness of the garment industry. So they want the tax at source to be maintained at 0.3 per cent.
They also want withdrawal of one per cent duty on capital machinery import, extension of the tax rebate for apparel sector by five more years, waiver of outstanding VAT on service sector and suspension of bonded warehouse audit. They fear the violence and political unrest will cause the country to miss its export targets. Overseas buyers of Bangladeshi garments are hesitant to place orders.
Bangladesh exported clothes worth $22.9 billion this financial year against the target of $27 billion for the entire year. The export figure is expected to reach $25 billion. Entrepreneurs in the apparel sector have been urged to relocate their industries from the capital to the garment village at Baushia in Munshiganj.
Bangladesh’s readymade garment exports to non-traditional markets recorded a marginal growth in 2014-15. Total export earnings from readymade garment sector also recorded the poorest performance in six years with a 4.08 per cent rise in the just-concluded fiscal while the country’s overall export growth recorded a 13-year low. Knitwear exports were up 3.13 per cent compared to previous fiscal. Woven products saw a five per cent growth.
The country is losing its edge to competitors like Vietnam, Cambodia, India and Pakistan. Buyers are cutting back orders because of political unrest, safety and other compliance issues. Apparel exports to non-traditional markets registered a growth of 8.60 per cent. In fact, growth was 20.99 per cent in 2013-14 and 28.75 per cent in 2012-13. Bangladesh is exploring business opportunities in markets like Mexico, Brazil and Argentina.
The non-traditional market’s contribution increased to 15.33 per cent in the last fiscal which was 14.69 per cent in the previous fiscal while the EU and the US accounted for 60.28 per cent and 20.74 per cent respectively. Apparel exports grew by 37.05 per cent in South Africa, 26.33 per cent in China, 23.88 per cent in Australia and 14.02 per cent in Japan while it declined by 21.57 per cent in Turkey.
A MoU has been signed between Kumaraguru College of Technology (KCT), Coimbatore, and Indian Textile Accessories & Machinery Manufacturer's Association (ITAMMA), Mumbai to establish a common facility centre for textile engineering at the KCT campus. This will be done under the Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP) of Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).
Through the MOU, both will establish testing and quality control facility for engineering and plastics design corner for product design and development training for manpower capability development, knowledge corner, data centre and library technology/product development for the benefit of the textile accessories and machinery manufacturing industry situated in and around Coimbatore.
KCT is an autonomous institution affiliated to Anna University Chennai offering 13 undergraduate (BE, BTech.) and 14 post-graduate (ME, MTech, MCA, MBA) programs of study. All eligible UG programs have also been accredited by the National Board of Accreditation (NBA). Nine of the 13 academic departments have been recognised as research centres by Anna University for doing research leading to PhD Degree.
www.itamma.org
The textile and commerce ministries in Pakistan won’t be merged. Instead there will soon be a minister to handle only textiles. The absence of a textile minister and the proposed merger of textile and commerce ministries had created uncertainty and affected the export-oriented textile industry. Textiles contribute 55 per cent to the country’s total exports. The sector has become important especially after the grant of GSP Plus status by EU as 75 per cent products incentivised under the package relate to this sector.
Currently, Pakistan’s textile industry comprises cotton spinning (yarn), cotton weaving (cloth), cotton fabric, fabric processing, home textiles, towels, hosiery and knitwear and apparels. These are manufactured both on a large scale as well as by small and medium cottage units.
Pakistan’s exporters feel since regional competitors, including India, China and Bangladesh, have a separate and dedicated ministry of textiles, Pakistan must follow suit.
There is immense pressure from textile industry stakeholders, including value-added and spinning, to go forward in this direction. They say a full time textile minister is vital keeping in view the strategic importance of the sector. Only then will it get the required attention to enhance performance and increase exports.
Vietnam's textile exports have grown nine per cent since the beginning of the year. But this is the lowest growth recorded for the last three years, and well below the 19 per cent recorded for the same period last year. Exports have reached $12 million but only 27.5 per cent of this was from domestic firms. Foreign-invested firms account for the vast majority.
The textile industry has faced many difficulties this year, with smaller orders coming from regular markets such as Japan and the EU. Orders are still being placed but most are still small. And the situation is likely to continue. When Vietnam’s textiles to the EU and Japan reach consumers their prices are much higher and fail to sell. Although the US market is showing some positive signs it cannot compensate for declining orders from Japan and the EU.
The reasons behind smaller orders include an increase in exchange rate as well the economic crisis in Greece, which is affecting the EU economy. Textiles are a major export of Vietnam. The textile and clothing industry represents a key source of industrial employment, especially for women, and is a leading industry for overall growth and industrialization.
The US imports nearly all of its clothing. In 2014, the US clothing import market reached a record high in terms of both monetary value and volume of clothing and textiles produced. The average price of US clothes imports fell for the third year in a row. China remains the biggest clothing supplier to the US. However, the US is now looking to diversify clothing imports. China is still one of the world’s top producers of cotton, so unlike its rival such as Vietnam it does not have to worry about sourcing cotton for its garment producing industries. Yet, production costs in the region are rising.
Bangladesh, another garment-producing country, offers lower wages for its workers than China. But since the 2013 Rana Plaza factory collapse and with political tensions within the region, there has been a drop in investment in the Bangladeshi garment export industry. Africa is being cited as the new horizon from which garments can be sourced. Countries such as Ethiopia and Kenya have successfully integrated their industries along the textile supply chain, creating textile and garment market opportunities at every stage in the production process.
But for now demand for better wages and living conditions in developing countries may have an impact on the cheap clothing market in the US.
Euratex will take place on November 18, 2015, in Italy in conjunction with the ITMA textile technology fair. Euratex promotes competitiveness and sustainable growth of European textile and clothing industry. The convention is designed to launch a debate on tomorrow’s challenges for the industry. To retain their competitive edge, European companies are increasingly investing in innovation and introducing latest technologies.
This is a convention devoted to sustainable innovation in the textile and clothing industry. Thought leaders from industry and technology will discuss if the European Union textile and apparel sector has found enduring competitive advantages in its focus on quality, innovation, sustainability and high value added. During the round table discussion, textile and clothing manufacturers will share their practical experiences and promising textile technologies and markets.
Sustainable production has become an integral part of companies’ business strategy. This includes technological innovation of production process, resource efficiency, recycling and use of sustainable textile materials as well as exploring new business models.
Euratex’s goal for the years to come is to concentrate on a few priority areas, namely, genuine industrial policy, free and fair trade, support for innovation and research and sustainable production.
www.euratex.eu/
Coats is launching a fusible thread which helps secure buttons and other decorative applications such as sequins and beads. Its enhanced fixing security is of particular benefit for buttons used in children’s wear. Coats is the world’s leading maker of industrial thread and consumer textile crafts. Bonding properties of the thread are heat activated, by steam or iron, which forms a durable bond between the stitches. This helps increase security by preventing the stitch from unraveling and also provides a cleaner finished appearance to the final garment than standard sewing threads as loose ends can be sealed using the same method.
The thread is called Secura. Secura is a polyester core spun thread which resists abrasion and ensures excellent sewability. The thread is impregnated with a compound, creating a fusible fiber matrix. The bonding properties of the thread are activated by steam or normal iron and ensure increased button security because of the added cohesion.
Buttons attached with Coats Secura achieve a higher button pull through strength. The thread gives a clean appearance due to the sealing of any loose ends. Secura has been developed in response to feedback from customers looking for ways to reduce returns of garments due to buttons, beads or sequins coming loose. Using Secura helps increase their confidence that buttons and decorative attachments will remain in place.
Wearing a linen clothes has become a status symbol in India. It's probably right to say the wrinkles add to linen’s flavor and appeal. Some 6,000 flax growers in France supply 60 per cent of the raw material for the world’s linen, the fabric of wrinkly bed sheets and summer suits. This spring, French farmers sowed the most flax in a decade as expanding demand for linen in India has helped prices recover from a slump.
Europe and the US remain the biggest markets for linen but two decades of economic expansion have swelled India’s middle class. India’s linen market was practically non-existent five years ago and is now growing at 20 per cent a year. Linen’s ability to absorb sweat and keep the body cool makes it a perfect fabric for India’s climate.
Besides the comeback of knitted linen, demand is also being pushed with the use of the fiber in composites for tennis rackets and automotive parts, a market that makes up six per cent of demand. Despite everything, global linen market is minuscule compared to cotton and wool, making up less than one per cent of the textile market.
Chinese cotton imports decreased by around 26 percent in June compared to last year owing to relatively high international prices and a lack of quotas for shipments that impacted overseas purchases. The world's top consumer of the fibre imported just 161,800 tonnes in June, showcasing that the total for the first six months of the year plunged 33 percent from the same period in 2014 to 933,900 tonnes.
After lifting its cotton stockpiling policy, Beijing has been trying to boost consumption of locally-grown cotton, with industry insiders saying that the government issued 894,000 just tons of import quotas this year, the minimum required under WTO commitments. "The price differential between domestic and international prices kept narrowing; even for mills with quota availability, imported cotton didn't look so attractive anymore," said Switzerland-based trading firm Reinhart in its weekly market report.
Chinese prices are under pressure from significant leftover commercial stocks as well as sales of state reserve cotton, which kicked off last week, adding supply to the market. Zhengzhou futures also fell sharply following last week's stock market failure. At the same time, purchasing by India's government-backed Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) has propped up the prices of Indian fibre, while US cotton has been already sold out.
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