Cotton production in Pakistan declined by 34.18 per cent as compared to 8.5 million bales during the corresponding period of 2020.

According to the statistics released by Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association till March 1, exactly 5,631,191 bales underwent the ginning process i.e. conversion to bales. Cotton arrivals in Punjab were recorded at over 3.5 million or 3,501,580 bales, while Sindh generated just over 2.1 million or 2,136,169 bales.

Cotton arrivals in Punjab were recorded at over 3.5 million or 3,501,580 bales whichwas 1.5 million bales less as compared to the last year’s production of more than 5 million bales.

Cotton arrivals in Sindh were recorded 2.1 million or 2,136,169 bales which was 38.52 percent less as compared to the last year’s production of more than 3.4 million bales.

Just over 5.4 million or 5,446,141 bales were sold out with major chunk of it, 5.37 million (5,375,941) bales, bought by textile mills and 70,200 by exporters. Exactly 191.608 bales were lying unsold at the ginneries.

Bahawalnagar district of Punjab remained on top with cotton arrival figure of 998,131 bales followed by Sanghar district in Sindh (791,278) and Rahim Yar Khan (656,885 bales).

A total of 22 ginning factories were operating in the country – all of them in Punjab, and none in Sindh.

United Colors of Benetton has launched a new store in Florence. The tore is well decorated with intensive use of sustainable material and state-of-the-art energy-saving technologies. The 160 sq m, single-floor boutique uses recycled natural materials. The floor is built out of gravel from the river Piave and waste wood from beech trees. The walls are treated with a mineral paint with antibacterial and anti-old properties that can reduce the pollutants in the environment.

As per Massimo Renon, Chief Executive Officer, Benetton Group, the new boutique is a benchmark in terms of power consumption, as it uses 20 percent less energy than normal store. A system based on tiny sensors, AI and data analysis increases the energy efficiency of the points of sale and guarantees comfort for the consumer.

Benetton Group S.r.l. is a global fashion brand based in Ponzano Veneto, Italy founded in 1965. Benetton Group has a network of about 5,000 stores worldwide. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Benetton family's holding company called Edizione.

The government plans to lower the turnover and investment thresholds, and include cotton-based products, according to its draft Rs 10,683-crore production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme. The scheme aims to offer 11 per cent incentive to large companies for investments over Rs 500 crore in Greenfield projects in technical textiles. However, the companies to record an incremental turnover of Rs 1,500 crore in the first year and a 25 per cent rise in turnover each year after that.

Firms with an annual turnover of Rs 100-500 crore will receive an incentive of 9 per cent for brownfield projects. This will be subject to an increase in turnover 50 per cent each year. Similarly, companies with a turnover of Rs 500 crore or more will be granted a 7 per cent incentive in the first year. However, the turnover has to increase by 50 per cent in the first year and by 25 per cent each year after that. The incentives in all the categories will be trimmed by 100 basis points each year after the first year and granted for a total of five years starting FY22.

The draft PLI scheme marks a paradigm shift in the government’s decision-making on two counts. First, it earmarks big bucks for big companies, shedding its long and costly bias towards small businesses. Second, it seeks to correct India’s historical policy preference for a cotton-dominated value chain, which is contrary to the global trend. The idea is to reclaim India’s export markets after ceding substantial ground to Bangladesh and Vietnam in recent years.

To be held at the Tuyap Fair and Congress Center in Istanbul, from June 22-26, 2021, the ITM International Textile Machinery Exhibition has been postponed due to the ongoing pandemic. The exhibition will now be held from June 14-18, 2022. Uniting hundreds of domestic and foreign textile leaders, the exhibition ranks among the leading exhibitions of the sector. It also has a place in the world's textile exhibitions calendar with its feature of international arena where cutting-edge technologies are exhibited.

Prioritizing protecting its exhibitors and visitors’ investments and all rights, the organizers believe the exhibitors and buyers will understand and cooperate with its decision to postpone the exhibition.

The value of apparel imports by the US dropped by 18 per cent to $5.52 billion in January ’21 as compared to $6.76 billion in January ’20. As per Apparel Resources, the import volume tumbled .70 per cent to 2.13 million SME in the first month of 2021. The unit prices of the imported apparels sunk by 11.64 per cent to $ 2.58 per SME in January ’21 as against $2.92 per SME in January ’20.

Imports from all major destinations such as China, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India and Indonesia tumbled in January, while those from countries such as Pakistan, Egypt, Ethiopia and Colombia improved on Y-o-Y basis. However, as compared to December ’20, the import values surged indicating a M-o-M recovery.

In January ’21, apparel imports by the US surged by 14.28 per cent from $4.83 billion worth of apparels imported in December’20.

American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) has added 13 new members to its Board of Directors for 2021-22 besides re-electing several other board members.

The members confirmed as AAFA’s Board of Directors for the 2021-2022 term included Colin Brown, CEO, Under Armour Inc as the new Chairman; Sarah Clarke, Executive Vice-President, Supply North America, PVH Corp as the Vice Chairman; Ted Dagnese, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Lululemon Atheletica as the Secretary and Kurt Cavano, CEO, Nimbly as the new treasurer.

Newly elected members included Deborah Weinswig, Coresight Research Inc and Sid Howard, Amann Group. The re-elected members included Halide Alagoz, Ralph Lauren Corporation; Lisa Bate, Bureau Veritas Consumer Products; Ted Dagnese, Lululemon Athletica; Bill Ells, Vibram USA; Mike Fralix, Textile/Clothing Technology Corporation; Katherine Gold, Goldbug Inc; Todd Kahn, Tapestry Inc; David Miller, Minnetonka Moccasin Company, Inc; Steve Mostofsky, TTI Global Resources; Josue Solano, BBC International and Sunny Tan, Luen Thai.

Online fashion and lifestyle destination in growth markets, Global Fashion Group (GFG), plans to accelerate its marketplace and platform services by focusing on technology development. For this, the group has placed seven year senior, unsecured bonds convertible as per their terms and conditions in an aggregate principal amount of €375 million.

As per report, these bonds also support the group’s ambition of becoming a €10 billion Net Merchandise Value (NMV) business in the next 7-9 years. They enhance the group’s capacity to accelerate fashion e-commerce adoption in key markets and fuel the next chapter of its growth, say Christoph Barchewitz and Patrick Schmidt, co-CEOs. GFG also plans to expand its adjacent categories, acquire new customers, and introduce innovations in delivery. This will facilitate the expansion of its Global Fashion Platform, strengthening its position in the digital fashion market.

The group will issue the convertible bonds at 100 per cent of their principal amount with a coupon of 1.25 per cent payable semi-annually. The initial conversion price was set at a premium of 42.5 per cent above the reference price of €12.60.

US-based renowned denim giant Levi Strauss has launched the COVID-19 Response for RMG Women Workers in Bangladesh Program, which will deliver cash aid to 1,000 female ready-made garment (RMG) workers who lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect. Around 600 apparel workers in Dhaka and 400 workers in Chattogram would get Tk5,000.

Besides, 600 more apparel workers – 360 in Dhaka and 240 in Chattogram – would get hygiene kits including soap, detergent and reusable face masks, worth more than Tk1, 200 per person. NGO ActionAid Bangladesh would distribute the cash aid and hygiene kits among the workers through its two associates – Safety and Rights Society in Dhaka and Sangsaptak in Chattogram.

Sekender Ali Mina, Executive Director, Safety and Rights Society, said they will list the project recipients from their RMG workers database. Moreover, they will gather information from the RMG workers. Mina said, they had already prepared 50 volunteers for the aid payment. By mid-March, they expect to reach out to the RMG workers with the aid. Annually, Levi’s sources 39.5 million pieces of denim from Bangladesh.

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has approved cross-border import of cotton yarn as the shortage of industrial input is feared to stymie recovery in textile exports.

As per reports, Pakistan’s cotton production declined to 5.5 million bales from as much as 15 million bales recoded annually in previous years, causing unstoppable rise in its prices.Its textile and clothing exports increased by over 8 percent to $8.8 billion in the seven months of the current fiscal year.However, traders warned that the growth pace can slow down amid the shortage of raw materials.

Pakistan Yarn Merchants Association expressed deep concern over the unavailability of cotton yarn and its price reaching to an all-time high. It asked the government to immediately allow duty-free import of yarn and cotton from India to save the textile industry from collapse

If export orders are not fulfilled on time, the business will adversely be affected, according to the association.

The association’s office bearers said a large number of export orders from China, Bangladesh and India were transferred to Pakistani exporters, which led to an increase in production activities. However, these days the cost has risen sharply due to non-availability of raw materials as per the demand of the textile industry and the high price of yarn in the local markets.

Nudie Jeans aims to create 15,000 pairs of jeans from the company’s unsold denim. The Swedish denim brand, celebrated for its use of organic cotton and its jeans repair program, will take its own jeans it considers to be “second-quality” and turn them into fabric for new jeans. Second-quality jeans are those with slight defects such as a discolored wash, inconsistent stitching or irregular cut. Historically, they are either sold at a discount or otherwise discarded.

Post-industrial waste recycling is a $350 billion opportunity in the Western hemisphere, according to a report from Accelerating Circularity, a collaborative initiative formed by sustainable materials community Textile Exchange. The denim brand teamed with United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) as part of the EU-funded circular accelerator, SwitchMed, to bring denim recycling to Tunisia. Nudie Jeans produces the majority of its jeans in Tunisia through companies Denim Authority and Universal Colours.

In December, Nudie and UNIDO developed a two-phase pilot project to test the recycling process at scale. Phase one involves taking 8,000 pairs of second-choice jeans and combining them with virgin denim material to make 20,000 meters of new fabric. By May 2021, the project will have produced 15,000 pairs of new jeans. The second phase will then focus on developing a post-industrial denim recycling program with Tunisian designers to further circularity efforts. Tunisia has seen increased water scarcity in recent years, making circular design an even greater priority for the denim brand.