The Gujarat government has signed two agreements with the Intimate Apparel Association of India (IAAI) and the Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI) to promote garment and apparel sectors. The agreements were signed during a roadshow for the forthcoming investor summit Vibrant Gujarat, in the presence of chief minister Vijay Rupani. The ninth summit is being held from January 18-20, 2019, in Gandhinagar.

Over 30,000 delegates from 100 countries participated in the eighth edition of Vibrant Gujarat last year. The state signed around 25,000 MoUs in sectors such as MSME, chemical, pharma, engineering and IT, among others. In the 2019 edition of the summit, the state expects to sign around 25,000-30,000 MoUs.

About 800 Indian firms that enter the European Union (EU) using the United Kingdom as a gateway are keen to continue their ties post Brexit. Nearly half of India’s investments to the EU goes to the United Kingdom.

The annual trade between both nations stands at $24 billion. India is reportedly keen on deals facilitating the export of software, the movement of information technology and healthcare professionals, and offering a greater access for generic drugs and pharmaceutical firms.

India’s textile and garment sectors are also extremely keen on a trade pact. India’s trade rivals, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Vietnam and Pakistan, receive the benefits of preferential agreements or quotas in garments. Indian exports of garments to Europe attract a 9.6 per cent duty, making such products uncompetitive.

India, in its bid to pave the way for a post-Brexit deal, will allow 100 per cent foreign direct investment in insurance brokerages. India is also keen on deals to ease the export of software as well as the movement of IT and healthcare professionals. India’s textile and garment sectors are also extremely keen on a trade pact with the UK. These sectors are major forex earners, after software and gems and jewelry.

Currently around 300,000 people work in Iran's clothing industry, and the figure has the potential to increase to 1 million. But the country is concerned about the loss of 200,000 jobs due to smuggling of clothes. Iran currently has $3 billion worth of smuggled clothes. Easy and high profits make smuggling of clothes economically beneficial. The official import of clothes into Iran last year amounted to $59 million, which is a small part of foreign clothes in the local market.

Another problem that the country faces is the flow of liquidity and circulating capital. For one month, no currency has been given to anybody in the clothing industry. Before that, the country imported major raw materials from China through the Kunlun bank of China, but with the imposition of sanctions, China stopped providing it with textile raw materials anymore.

View Premium Selection will be held in Germany, December 4 to 5, 2018. This is a communications platform for networking, in-depth dialogue and professional, efficient working. A high-energy community benefits from the positive atmosphere, mood and venue and gives priority to quality, innovation and all things special at the same time.

Suppliers will exhibit fabrics to the tune of 400 collections for spring/summer 2020. Supplementing the summery preview programs will be numerous collections with short-term delivery dates. With this broad-based range, the show responds to the trend toward continuous collection development beyond classic seasons.

Trendsetting design studios will introduce visitors to the latest print and pattern developments for spring/summer 2020. Information on the latest fabrics, colors and stylings for spring/summer 2020 will come from leading trend offices, such as Peclers Paris, Laufer Fashion Consulting and The Trend Bunker. The latter will also offer exclusive trend seminars.

New fashion themes are optimistic, bright and luminous in general. Rustic tones mingle with cheerful colors. All areas and facets of sustainability continue to dominate the ranges while re-oriented sportswear draws on street and work wear inspirations. Summer thrives on natural looks, linen, hemp, ramie and cotton. Prints preferably feature on fabrics with irregular surface textures. As always, the Trend Installation will provide topical, concrete examples of this.

The textile screen printing equipment market is expected to emerge as a highly remunerative vertical in the years to come. This industry vertical is split into numerous segments.

Screen printing is the most popular printing technique available currently, used for printing fabrics. The screen printing process has three components, including a screen on which the image is printed, a squeegee, and ink. A squeegee is a smooth and flat rubber blade that controls or removes excess ink on a screen during printing.

The screen printing sector has come a long way from just printing visiting cards, letterheads, and invitations to garments, textiles, automotive for auto dials, decals for motorcycles and four wheelers and other commercial uses. Since screen printing, digital sublimation, heat transfer and textile printing/garment decoration are undergoing a rapid change.

Garment production is another significant area of growth and migration from analog to digital production. Digitally produced garments are expected to become an important alternative to traditional screen printing within two years. The shift toward digital textile printing is also enabling new levels of customization and increased design complexity which – together with digital’s inherent just-in-time advantage – can be expected to fuel further growth. Increased interest in printing on textiles seems to stem from two key considerations; aesthetics and economics.

"A report on the global knitwear market for 2016-26 predicts a rise in demand for knitwear products across the globe due to increasing use of e-commerce. There is also an increase in global online sales of knitwear products, which are part of the fashion and apparel industry. The global e-commerce business of fashion and apparel is expected to increase from $408 billion in 2017 to over $706 billion in 2022, rising at a CAGR of 11.6 per cent. Online sales of knitwear products is increasing due to growing penetration of e-commerce in emerging economies like Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS)."

A report on the global knitwear market for 2016-26 predicts a rise in demand for knitwear products across the globe due to increasing use of e-commerce. There is also an increase in global online sales of knitwear products, which are part of the fashion and apparel industry. The global e-commerce business of fashion and apparel is expected to increase from $408 billion in 2017 to over $706 billion in 2022, rising at a CAGR of 11.6 per cent.

Online sales boosts market size

Online sales of knitwear products is increasing due to growing penetration of e-commerce in emerging economies like Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS). Increasing penetration of smartphones across emerging economies, rise in middle class population with increasing discretionary income, and innovative and advanced e-commerce technologies are also driving demand for knitwear products. Online knitwear sales are also increasing due to a rise in average revenue per user (ARPU) in e-commerce knitwear products compared to ARPU of offline knitwear product sale. The ARPU of e-commerce clothing market is expected to increase from $270 in 2018 to $301 in 2022. Knitwear products are a major segment of the fashion industry.

The e-commerce in fashion industry in the US and Europe are expected to expand at a CAGR of 8.8 per cent and 8.7 per cent between 2017 and 2022 respectively; on the other hand, e-commerce in fashion industry in China is expected to grow in double digits at a CAGR of 14.1 per cent between 2017 and 2022. Thus, rising penetration of e-commerce in knitwear sales is boosting the market size of knitwear products across the world.

Product, fabrics, distribution channels drive up sales

The study segments the global knitwear market according to product and material types, application, consumer group and distribution channel. Products are classified as: innerwear, t-shirts & shirts, sweaters & jackets, sweatshirts & hoodies, shorts & trousers etc. Based on fabric, the market is classified into natural, synthetic, and blended. On the basis of application, the market is segmented into outerwear, innerwear, sportswear and others. Based on consumer group, the market is segmented into men, women, and kids. Further on the basis of distribution channel, the market is segmented into online and offline.

The analysis of these segments is based on present and forecasted global demand for knitwear products and prevailing and future trends across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and South America.

Companies dominating the market

The report includes a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, and Threat) analysis of the market, Porter’s Five Force analysis of the market, ecosystem analysis, key macroeconomic indicators influencing the market and raw material analysis of the knitwear industry.

The report highlights major companies operating in the global knitwear market including Adidas, Gap, Gildan Activewear, Hackett, Abercrombie & Fitch, Loro Piana S.P.A., Marks & Spencer, Nike, among others.

The Indian consulate in HCM City in co-ordination with VCOSA organised a business interaction event ‘Textiles: India-Việt Nam Co-operation’ in Vietnam. The event attracted nine Indian companies who also participated in the 18th ViệtNam International Textile and Garment Industry Exhibition in HCM City from November 21 to 24 besides local firms.

In his opening remarks K Srikar Reddy said Việt Nam was among the top five textile and clothing exporting countries along with India. India’s textile and clothing exports to Việt Nam during the 2017-18 fiscal year grew by 42 per cent to $555 million. Its exports exceeded $31 billion last year, a year-on-year growth of 10.23 per cent.

Việt Nam also had to import a lot of raw materials and is planning to diversify its sourcing of raw materials for garments such as cotton, yarn, made-ups and fabric. According to Nguyễn Hồng Giang, Việt Nam Cotton and Spinning Association (VCOSA), there is a plenty of opportunity for co-operation in yarn, cotton and fabrics between businesses in the two countries.

India is one of the suppliers of high-quality materials, fabric and machinery at competitive prices globally. Under the India-ASEAN FTA, most types of cotton yarns, woven cotton fabrics and cotton knit fabric can be imported duty free from India from January 1 next year.

The Indian government also allows 100 per cent foreign direct investment under the automatic route in many sectors, including textiles. Importers and buyers who are interested in sourcing from India can benefit from a subsidised scheme for hotel stay and travel by visiting the show in India.

Denmark-based Novozymes has launched the Bio Prep Fusion concept. This allows textile mills handling knit processing to increase productivity, while saving costs with reliable enzymatic scouring. It also reduces the producer’s environmental footprint by saving 67 per cent water, 50 per cent energy, and 50 per cent time required for knit pre-treatment processing.

Novozymes, is a world leader in biological solutions for wet processing of textiles. Novozymes, founded in 2000, is the world leader in bio innovation. Its industrial enzymes, microorganisms, biopolymers and other proteins allow its customers to achieve more efficient use of raw materials, reduce energy consumption, replace traditional chemicals with more sustainable alternatives, and offer higher quality products.

The company sees a big opportunity in India and Southeast Asia, where knowledge-based innovations in the field of industrial enzymes can effectively replace polluting chemical processes and deliver environmental sustainability.

Novozymes is known for its Combi Polish technology. This saves time, energy and water during the dyeing process. Use of it is the fastest, gentlest and most sustainable way to perform textile bio polishing and bleach clean-up. The readymade garment sector in countries like Bangladesh faces serious challenges like high water consumption and low energy efficiency. Novozymes’ product is a proven technology to address these challenges.

For the first half of 2018, Taiwan’s textile exports inched up by two per cent year on year. Fabrics accounted for 66 per cent followed by yarn with 17 per cent, fiber eight per cent, apparel five per cent, and others four per cent. Vietnam was the largest export destination, followed by China, the United States, Hong Kong, and Indonesia.

Besides serving long-established brands, Taiwanese companies have been foraying zthe rapidly emerging fast-fashion apparels, supplying brands like H&M and Root, whose order-to-shipment time may be only one week instead of the usual half year.

Taiwan has captured some 70 per cent of the fast-expanding global market for functional fabric, which in turn accounts for ten per cent of the total fabric market. It has also been a major supplier of fabric made from recycled materials. About 50 per cent of the fabric material is now recycled, and the proportion is expected to rise to at least 70 per cent in the next few years as increased environmental awareness drives international demand.

To assure quality and reduce production costs, many of the major Taiwanese textile companies have integrated operations that cover everything from fabric production and dyeing to making the apparel. They have also established global production networks to further control costs.

The annual Fashion Awards by PETA celebrate brands and events that have made major statements for animals this year. Luxury labels including Coach, Burberry, Michael Kors and Diane von Furstenberg, emerge winners in PETA’s biggest luxury fashion moment category for their actions. ASOS was named the Most Progressive Online Platform by PETA in light of its announcement that it will introduce a ban on mohair, silk, feathers and cashmere products on its site.

PETA’s Most Progressive Fashion Event of the Year Award was awarded to Helsinki Fashion Week for its decision to ban leather from its catwalks as of 2019.On the high street, faux fur label Ecopel was honored with the Innovation Award for using recycled plastic bottles to produce its garments.

Other winners included Dr Martens, which was awarded for its extensive range of vegan shoes on the best vegan boot collection category, and Veja, which received the Best Vegan Shoe Collection prize for its vegan leather and organic cotton collection.

Meanwhile, London-based label Felder Felder received the Collaboration Award for partnering with sustainable fashion label Ecoalf to produce a capsule collection of coats made from recycled materials; outerwear brand Save the Duck was awarded Best Down-Free Label for its recycled coats free of animal fillers; and Alexandra K won in the best vegan bags category for its innovative accessories made from apple leather, a sustainable material made in Italy that integrates organic apple peels into the skin of the material.