IMG Reliance has launched a fashion portal called Voice of Fashion. This will bring fashion news and trends to customers. The editorial viewpoints will be gender equal, inclusive and sensitive with an unbiased view of people and the world and thus as its microcosm the fashion and design industry.

Voice of Fashion aims to be a one stop platform for a representative overview of fashion-creation, curation and consumption and hopes to track and lead fashion conversations in India. While the initiative is not yet a full-blown fashion e-commerce platform for shoppers, Reliance may venture into the world of e-commerce via fashion.

With the Voice of Fashion application, users have access to fashion journalism via their mobile devices. In fact, the app has been designed specifically for mobile device users. The app introduces imaginative stories, profiles visionary stylists, talented designers, arts, handlooms, craftsmen, covering the latest trends in the world of fashion.

Users will be able to download it free of charge from the iTunes App Store. Users can share photos and news stories while receiving alerts regarding news in the world of fashion. Currently, almost half of apparel purchases are influenced by the mobile, and by 2022, almost two out of three apparel purchases, and more than 70 per cent of accessory purchases, will be influenced by the mobile.

Narinder Kumar and Ram Krishan have been re-elected president and chairman of Garments Machinery Manufacturers and Suppliers Association (GMMSA), Ludhiana, respectively. A prominent association of Ludhiana, GMMSA works for the growth of textile and apparel industry of Punjab. The election for the term 2018-20 was held under the supervision of the city’s leading apparel manufacturers including presiding officer Ajit Lakra, President, Ludhiana Knitters Association and observers Harbhajan Singh, Oster Group and Narinder Miglani, Knitwear Club.

Kumar and Krishan both assured members that no stone will be left unturned for the betterment of the association and the industry on the whole. Both of them also appreciated the efforts to hold the 3rd edition of the GMMSA Expo in February 2018 and vowed to organise the 4th edition of the event on a grandeur scale from January 25-28, 2019 at Ludhiana.

India has some reservations about joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The main objection is it would bring India into a free trade relationship with China and worsen the already large trade deficit India has with China. India also wants a slower and graduated elimination of tariffs in order to safeguard the interests of Indian domestic industry.

RCEP is a trans-Asia mega trade agreement which comprises the 10 Asean countries and their six summit partners India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Other developing countries in the RCEP, with economies much smaller than India’s, are willing to risk competition with China but India is not. One reason is that the Indian economy is not as competitive as they are. Lack of competitiveness is due to several factors but transaction costs of exports are as much as ten per cent of export value.

The average cost per container for Indian exports is more than double the rate in China. It takes 17 days on an average to deliver exports from India. For China it is five days. Exports will become even less competitive if India stays out of RCEP since members will enjoy preferential access. The question now is: Weather India is ready to take the plunge and commit itself to regional economic integration or if the risks to India’s economy are significant enough to warrant it to opt out.

Riri, based in Switzerland, makes zippers and buttons for the high-fashion, outdoor and denim markets. The collection is characterized by sophisticated and eclectic colors made of enigmatic violets and carefully reinforced reds disrupted by flashes of acid green and blue, but also by natural materials, evocative paints and original and innovative shapes.

Historical and elegant die-cast zinc zippers are back. The use of paints on pullers makes for an illusionary art where the borders between being and appearing are fuzzy. The painting with rubber effect, both shiny and matte, is complemented by processing with a velvet, leather and rust touch effect. Alongside historical and elegant zippers with zinc teeth die-cast directly on the tape are zippers with acetal resin teeth made with an injection process and spiral zippers ideal for apparel and leather goods.

Natural materials like olive wood, leather and real horn decorate buttons and pullers. The metal zip appears in three galvanic finishings, amber gold, clear gold and deep-colored aged gold. The Eloxal Monocolore is the traditional lightweight zip with aluminium teeth which can be colored using a new anodizing process which results in a bright and uniform color. Riri’s pullers are actual sliders characterised by a unique and refined design.

Turkey’s currency has lost almost 50 per cent of its value over 12-months. For Turkish apparel and textile exporters, there are short term benefits to a devalued currency. Apparel exports from Turkey increased 7.4 per cent in the first seven months of 2018. A similar increase, perhaps even greater, can be expected in the next half year.

The problem for exporters in Turkey is raw materials. Most mills source raw materials from international markets in denominations of euros or dollars. With raw materials making up more than half of fabric costs, the challenges for mill owners are obvious. Many mills will be locked in fixed price term contracts in Turkish lira, yet with raw material costs effectively increasing 30 per cent, their bottomlines are being affected as they absorb cost increases internally.

Turkish companies have borrowed heavily to benefit from a rapid growth in the construction industry. Now they will have to struggle to pay back loans as borrowing costs rise to 18 per cent a year. Inflation is also at dangerously high levels. Inflation goes hand in hand with a weakened currency, and is currently running at 18 per cent in Turkey. This can be stopped only by rising interest rates.

As wages in China continue to rise, global brands and retailers are looking for other countries to produce their products cheaply. In the era of fast fashion and a highly competitive marketplace, managing production costs is a key ingredient of success.

Wages in countries like Vietnam, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Ethiopia are low, and workers are compelled to put in long hours, often in unsafe conditions. Rarely do employees have the right to organize. Despite these and other chronic problems, the globalization of the world’s economy in places like Myanmar typically has had a salutary effect. The hundreds of millions of new jobs that a globalized economy has generated have contributed to a dramatic reduction of global poverty. More than 60 per cent of East Asians were living in extreme poverty in 1990. Today, that number has fallen to less than five per cent.

Women in Myanmar, for instance, get an opportunity at building a livelihood and the movement toward a sustainable garment industry is gaining momentum. To boost infrastructure investment, Myanmar is looking to kickstart a number of projects with China, its largest investor. China is also Myanmar’s largest trading partner, making up one-third of its total trade volume.

Synthetic textile manufacturers in India hope to see a turnaround. In a major relief for domestic synthetic textile producers, the rupee has depreciated over 11 per cent so far this calendar year. There was a 47 per cent increase in imports of readymade garments made out of manmade fiber between April and July this year compared to the same period last year. Import of manmade staple fibers, yarn, fabrics and made-ups jumped y 26 per cent for the four month period ending July 2018 compared to the same period last year.

Synthetic textile manufacturers are hoping imports of readymade garments slow on the rupee depreciation. While rising crude oil prices have made the inputs of synthetic textiles costlier, the rupee depreciation will make import prices worthy and exports profitable.

The major part of this rupee fall was seen post-April. However, export orders booked after April will start getting executed now. Hence its impact would be seen partly in the September quarter and fully in the December quarter. Thus, India’s exports of synthetic textiles are set to revive in the September quarter. India’s exports of synthetic textiles and raw materials declined in some categories while others remained flat during the April–July 2018 period.

The Berlin Bread & Butter show, held from August 31-September 2, 2018 witnessed a surge in visitors compared to last year. The show, this year was visited by around 35,000 visitors, compared to 30,000 last year. The show had over 40 exhibitor stands, majority of which housed fashion brands. Cosmetics labels Clinique, M.A.C. and Origins were present as was German e-tailer Zalando, the owner of Bread && Butter, which has featured a beauty section in the exhibition since March 2018.

Popular exhibitors either put their products up for sale or offered services, entertainment or even the chance to take part in a prize draw, like Mercedes, which offered visitors a chance to try their luck at winning a car. Exhibitors like Nike and Adidas also adopted a experiential approach by staging concerts, while Columbia’s stand offered T-shirts customised using paintball equipment in a transparent booth.

"Bangladesh’s merchandise exports in the last couple of years have declined to a single digit. The country’s average export growth between FY15 and FY18 was only 5.03 per cent. Moreover, export earnings in the last three years have fallen behind annual projection of the Seventh Five-Year Plan (7FYP). In the past fiscal year, value of merchandise export stood at $36.66 billion as against the projected $42.0 billion. The government has targeted export earnings of $39.0 billion for the current fiscal year (FY19). This is much lower than the projected figure of $47.46 billion. The government has also set an annual target of service export at $5.0 billion in the current fiscal year against the actual export of $4.53 billion in FY18."

Bangladesh’s merchandise exports in the last couple of years have declined to a single digit. The country’s average export growth between FY15 and FY18 was only 5.03 per cent. Moreover, export earnings in the last three years have fallen behind annual projection of the Seventh Five-Year Plan (7FYP). In the past fiscal year, value of merchandise export stood at $36.66 billion as against the projected $42.0 billion.

The government has targeted export earnings of $39.0 billion for the current fiscal year (FY19). This is much lower than the projected figure of $47.46 billion. The government has also set an annual target of service export at $5.0 billion in the current fiscal year against the actual export of $4.53 billion in FY18.

Implications of US-China tariff war

The ongoing tariff war between US and China has disturbed the trade order of the world. Trump has been trying to avoid a global trade order since he assumed office in 2017. In July, the US imposed 25 per cent tariff on Chinese goods worth $34 billion to which China retaliated by imposing its own tariffs on the US goods. The US is again planning to impose a 25 per cent tariff on $16 billion worth of Chinese goods starting August 23. This tariff war is provoking many other countries to increase tariffs on their imports. For instance, India doubled the tariff on more than 300 textile products to 20 per cent on August 07. The hike is mainly targeted to contain import from China.

Increase in Bangladeshi exports

Export from Bangladesh surged around 30 per cent in the past fiscal year and stood at $873.27 million compared to $672.40 million in FY17. This is for the first time Bangladesh's exports to India crossed $800 million. Textile products, ready-made garment (RMG) to be precise, contributed significantly to the increase of export to India where Bangladesh is enjoying tariff-free market access. The increased tariff will not, however, be applicable to countries which have free trade deals with India.

Effects of a trade war on LDCs

As per estimates of The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Bangladeshi products may face an average tariff over 40 per cent if the world enters a full-fledged trade war. The UN body fears this trade war will severely affect the world's poorest countries and dash the hope of doubling the share of the Least Developed Countries' (LDCs) in global exports by 2020 under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The World Trade Statistical Review 2018 states merchandise exports of LDCs increased 13 per cent to reach $164.23 billion which is around 0.96 per cent of the total global export in 2017. As per the SDGs target, the share of LDCs' export to global exports would have to reach 2.0 per cent. In the ongoing volatile trade regime, it is unlikely that the LDCs will be able to reach the target within three years.

Refurbishing the policies

To increase these exports, the export policy needs to be revamped. The tenure of the current three-year export policy ended in June this year. Any delay in finalising and enforcing the new policy may send wrong signals to the exporters. The potential sectors would not get adequate policy and fiscal supports. Efforts of exploring new markets and increasing the shares in the emerging markets may also slow down. Therefore, a long-term trade strategy is essential to prepare the country to face the challenges of the global trade war.

World Textile Information Network (WTIN) has launched Protective Textiles, a new online channel. The channel will cover both demand and supply side trends and analyse their impact on companies, enabling better and faster business decisions, helping to increase competitiveness, raise profitability and facilitate innovation.

It is the first comprehensive intelligence platform for the protective textiles industry and will be an invaluable resource for product developers and business strategists, helping converters identify new textile technologies and the companies behind them, while offering textile producers unmatched insights into downstream markets and trends. World Textile Information Network is a textiles knowledge provider. Protective Textiles will offer fully researched intelligence into the markets and technology of textiles designed to protect against a range of hazards, including heat, cold, chemicals, physical injury and biological organisms. It will provide access to all the sector’s information needs on one platform, including technological developments, market trends, and customer and competitor analysis.

With rising concerns about worker safety, including protection from fire, chemical agents, and disabling and life-threatening injuries, demand for high-performance protective fabrics is rising. The global protective textiles market is expected to grow up to four per cent annually over the next few years, creating many commercial opportunities.