Gunnar Meyer is the new managing director of Monforts.

He started his career with Monforts and has spent his whole working life in the textile machinery industry. Between 1985 and 2010 he was a key part of the Monforts team in various roles related to sales and commercial issues, including as general sales director.

He returned to the company in 2019 after working for other well-known German textile machine manufacturers in the field of nonwovens.

Working in other parts of the textile industry, he has gained a lot of experience in the management of complex technical textile projects and his special focus will be on challenges like the current energy crisis, alternative heating systems and sustainable textile finishing.

Monforts, based in Germany, was founded in 1884 and today is a leading supplier of textile dyeing and finishing machines as well as coating devices. The company is a market leader for stenters, continuous dyeing ranges, sanforising ranges and special executions for denim and for the coating of technical textiles and other special applications. At its Advanced Technology Center (ATC) customers can undertake fabric trials on the latest Monforts equipment under real production conditions. For over 40 years, the company`s production site has been in Austria.

Cambodia has extended tax breaks for eligible textile-related enterprises until the end of 2025.

The move is expected to ease the burden on the sector, which has experienced a severe decline and drop in orders as a result of global economic headwinds linked to the ongoing Ukraine crisis. These sharp drops in orders are most likely to persist throughout 2023. Some factories may be temporarily closed and jobs may be cut due to the Russian-Ukrainian war’s effects on the incomes of the peoples of Europe and the US, some of Cambodia’s biggest markets.

The Ukraine and Covid crises have weakened global economic growth, driving up prices for fuel and commodities across the world, eroding incomes and forcing consumers to cut back on spending, particularly so in Europe and the US. So the tax breaks are aimed at maintaining the sustainability of industries as well as safe guarding local employment although global economic conditions have yet to improve.

Cambodia’s exports of garments, footwear and other textile-related items from January 2022 to November 2022 were up 17 per cent year on year. These category of items accounted for 49 per cent of the value of the country’s total exports over the eleven-month period.

Men’s shirt exports from India from January 2022 to November 2022 increased by 30 per cent. Of total exports, exports of knitted shirts were up by 23 per cent in terms of revenues while exports of woven shirts were up by 35 per cent in revenues.

The US remained much ahead of other export destinations with a large margin. India’s exports of men’s shirts to the US market – almost 39 per cent of its entire men’s shirt export value – grew by 58 per cent from January 2022 to November 2022. The UAE is the second largest export destination for men’s shirts from India; however, the Middle East country sourced 24 per cent less men’s shirts from India in the mentioned period as compared to the same period of the prior year. And men’s shirt exports to the UK from India grew by 24 per cent on year on year basis.

From January 2022 to November 2022 men’s shirt exports constituted around ten per cent of India’s overall apparel export values.

Abercrombie & Fitch has boosted its fourth quarter outlook. This is expected to be driven by record demand for women’s apparel.

The retailer of apparel and accessories for men, women and children now expects net sales for the current quarter to be up one per cent to two per cent. The strong momentum seen all year at the Abercrombie & Fitch brand continued in the holiday season with the women’s business on track to deliver its highest fourth quarter sales ever.

This strong performance has been complemented by acceleration in men’s growth from third quarter trends. For its Hollister brand, the firm expects to finish the fourth quarter with sales below where they were during the same quarter last year. Still, it has seen promising trends resulting from changes in both personnel and product assortment.

Abercrombie & Fitch had reported in August that inflation and other economic pressures are affecting brands in different ways, with the Abercrombie brand delivering its best performance in years while Hollister — which is aimed at teens — was seeing a drop due to the impact of inflation and a shift away from its core categories and toward a more fashion-driven product.

Looking ahead, Abercrombie & Fitch will continue to adjust in response to an evolving macroeconomic environment.

The textile chemicals market in Asia is buoyed by strong demand from the textile industry in China, India, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and Indonesia. The market is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of seven per cent.

The global textile chemicals market is in a transitional phase, with an increase in emphasis on developing skin- and eco-friendly apparel. Textile companies are regulating their supply chain stringently. Compliance with international regulations and a focus on using safe chemicals will be the key trends in the Asia textile chemicals market.

The global textile chemicals industry is highly fragmented and is comprised of both big and small players catering to a fiercely competitive market. To consolidate their position in the market, the key textile chemical companies will focus on developing innovative products and widening their range of offerings.

Furthermore, it is anticipated that the demand for functional finishes that impart specific properties to textiles will continue to drive innovation in the market.On the basis of product type, the textile chemicals market in Asia is segmented into textile auxiliaries and textile colourants. Owing to the increased demand for chemicals used during the various processing stages, the textile auxiliaries segment has a slight upper hand over textile colorants.

The US already has several restrictions in place for imports from Xinjiang, where rights groups say Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minorities have faced a raft of human rights abuses, including being placed in mass internment camps. Under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, passed in 2021, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) blocked all imports made in the region. It blocked all goods made by firms outside the region whose links with Xinjiang companies or with Xinjiang’s government make them complicit in the Department of Commerce’s view on forced labor practices.

Of course, China hit back as a spokesperson of China’s Ministry of Commerce pointed out the Chinese government has laws in place that explicitly ban forced labour and the ban would not only hurt Chinese industries but also American retailers and consumers. Evidence gathered by human rights organizations directly contradict the Chinese Ministry’s claims about laws banning forced labour.

Banning Xianjiang-related products aren’t easy

America is in love with Chinese ultra-fast fashion brand Shein. As recent as November 22, Bloomberg conducted a research test on Shein garments shipped to the US and it was found that the clothing had Xianjiang cotton in them. Two batches of clothes purchased from Shein — one ordered in March and a second in July — were shipped to Agroisolab GmbH in Jülich, Germany for analysis. The clothes were chosen from about 60,000 items that turned up in a search for ‘cotton’ on Shein’s US website.

The fashion brand that is expected to reach revenues of $8 billion in sales in the US in 2022 is in the line of fire but the garments out in the US market haven’t been recalled yet as customers are on a buying spree. Bloomberg called out the loophole termed “de minimis” exemption which Shein used cleverly to escape the scrutiny of US Customs. This rule facilitates packages valued under $800 to be shipped to the US duty free and avoid the scrutiny of the US Customs. Shein spokespersons are yet to confirm the Bloomberg test results.

Similarly, German brands Adidas, Puma, Jack Wolfskin, Tom Tailor and Hugo Boss have also been accused of using Xianjiang-farmed cotton as tests revealed traces of strands from the region in some of their clothing items, particularly t-shirts, shirts and pullovers. This is in direct contradiction to these brands having promised to only source material that does not have the label of forced labour on them. Put under the spotlight, these five German brands have reiterated their commitment on their stance on sourcing from Xianjiang. A private auditing firm held an independent research amongst Chinese subcontractors supplying to major international fashion labels said that no matter what these brands claim about their stance on forced Uyghur labour, they cannot for certainty state that Xianjiang cotton is absent from their items as it is near impossible to monitor these subcontractors continuously.

Certification of cotton isn’t exactly a cakewalk. There are many cotton trading hubs including in Dubai where cotton is sold in bales, the provenance of cotton in the market gets mixed up. For example, readymade cotton garments from Bangladesh are made from a mix of cottons as Bangladesh imports raw cotton in entirety from wherever it gets at the lowest price. Therefore, checking samples of garments manufactured in China isn’t enough. Global Organic Textiles Standard (GOTS) is responsible for monitoring the provenance of the textile throughout its supply chain and the organisation doesn’t have Chinese manufacturers on its radar.

Meanwhile Xianjiang continues good production

Despite the global condemnation and the US ban, the north western Chinese province has seen a a growth of its crop output. The cotton yield in Xinjiang averaged 143.9 kg per mu in 2022, an increase of 7.5 kg per mu over the previous year. Government officials claim that 80 per cent of cotton farms in Xianjiang are mechanized and no longer rely on manual labour for the pickings. This counter-claim is a direct refute to the West’s claim of exploitation of Uyghur labour forces.

Kingpins is on at New York, January 11 to 12, 2023. The global specialized denim insiders’ show is ready to disclose all novelties for spring/summer 2024.

The event is hosting about 80 exhibitors including specialised insiders and denim manufacturers like Advance Denim, Arvind, Bossa, Calik, Cone Denim, Diamond Denim by Sapphire, Orta, Raymond UCO, Saitex and Lycra.

Lots of get together and events will enliven the show. Key events of the show include trend seminars, talks and discussions on the hottest topics from the industry. The Amsterdam Kingpins held in October 2022 provided a stage for mills, trims, technology companies and chemical suppliers to present their new concepts for spring/summer 2024. While consumers are enthralled with jeans with an authentic stonewashed look, the industry is working overtime to give them what they want without reverting to the unhealthy dry finishing processes used in the 90s to achieve the effect.

Rudolf’s Dry Way is made without sand or other silica-containing compound. To add softness to the fabric, a new laundry aid that works in the dryer replaces traditional fabric softening. Dry Way allows for significant and measurable water and energy savings and is usable with any type of machinery. Technology company Tonello unveiled updates to its Laundry (R)Evolution that increases transparency, traceability and productivity.

Various Indian products, including textiles and apparel, will have preferential market access to the Australian market with zero customs duty.

So far 70 per cent of India’s textile products and 90 per cent of apparel products faced duty on export to Australia. Tirupur accounts for about 60 per cent of India’s garment exports to Australia. And Australia’s zero import duty access to India (earlier five per cent) would likely level the playing field for the Indian textile industry with other countries like Bangladesh, China, and Vietnam.

In fiscal year 2022 and during the first seven months of fiscal year 2023, Australia accounted for about two per cent of India’s apparel exports, compared to about one per cent in fiscal year 2015. Going forward, the share is expected to increase further on account of the added advantages of the free trade agreement.

The Australian market presents good potential for Indian exports of home textiles like bed and bath linen, toilet and kitchen linen, curtains, pillow covers, quilts and comforters, cotton bags, and readymade garments as well as carpets and flooring.

Tirupur hopes to be able to achieve 40 per cent growth in exports in the next three years mostly in active wear.

Tirupur can be a global sourcing hub for such products if knitters, dyers, processors, machine suppliers, dyes and chemical suppliers etc work collectively to make this possible. Due to the performance and comfort benefits of activewear, consumers are moving from conventional products to high-performance, flexible, breathable and versatile apparel made with polyester filament yarns.

Dope dyed polyester filament yarns and technology in this regard can be a game changer for Tirupur. Exporters can use Techno Sportswear’s state-of-the-art lab facilities to analyse their buyers’ fabrics. Knitwear exporters are being encouraged to diversify into manmade fiber quickly since there are encouraging signals as revival of knitted apparel exports is expected in the near term.

This is the best time for Tirupur exporters to invest in technology, R&D and capacity to get the maximum benefits of the second edition of the production linked scheme. Garment exporters in Tirupur are hopeful of bagging more orders in 2023. They expect a 30 per cent growth in orders once the trade agreement between India and the UK is signed. This is expected to bring orders to knitwear exporters all through the year.

R&B Denims has installed new air jet looms. With this the company has started to manufacture luxury levels of denim fabric with a width of 85 inches. It is expected that the company will generate very good margins from the current operating margins with this technology.

By adopting this new technology, the company will be able to gain an advantage over its competitors, as it is not available to many denim manufacturers. It will provide the company with an advantage in serving both domestic as well as international consumers.

R&B Denims is a textile house with integrated textile manufacturing facilities of over 30 million meters of denim. Despite a decrease in revenue in the first quarter the company maintained profits by focusing on cost reduction, flexible working capital management, and improving productivity and efficiencies.

With the new machine installations, the company is expecting a significant increase in revenue and profitability in the fourth quarter.R&B Denim has a robust business model and the ability to navigate through challenging times. Denim products are attracting more and more people, regardless of age and gender, and it is anticipated that the denim industry will grow at a rapid pace in the near future.