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The government of Bangladesh has decided to take action against RMG units that have not adhered by the corrective action plan provided by a government-set review committee for ensuring structural, fire and electrical safety at the apparel units. The government is contemplating a legal action against such factories.
If the units fail to implement the recommendations of the government-set committee, they will no longer be allowed to run their businesses. Recently, Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, a consortium of North American buyers, recently submitted a list of its 11 supplier factories to the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) stating that the progresses the factories made in implementing the recommendations by the review committee were not at all satisfactory.
Alliance also added that out of the 11 factories had got time from 412 days to 642 days to implement the review committee’s recommendations like conducting detailed engineering assessment, removal of water tanks and columns from the rooftop and keeping a specified area of the building empty until remediation is completed. The four other factories got time from 96 days to 17 days for demolishing unauthorised cantilevers, propping under the cantilever parts and removal of additional load from the structures.
Four of the 11 factories have been directed to stop running the factories until the review committee’s recommendations are implemented but none of them have suspended production in their factories.
www.bangladeshworkersafety.org
All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Punjab Chairman Aamir Fayyaz indicated at a press conference held after its AGM that several textile mills in the region may completely stop functioning before end of this month. The move may be taken due to the delay in announcement of bailout package by the government.
He said that all textile associations from Punjab have contacted the APTMA leadership for collective action against the government's apathy towards the industry problems. "The situation is heading fast towards a total collapse of the textile industry," he warned.
He said that government has imposed anti-dumping duty on cotton yarn while leaving the import of MMF yarns unattended, as the relevant notification does not cover them. The government has allowed long-term financing facility (LTFF), which would have no immediate impact because of the hostile environment for new investments. Finally, there is only one per cent reduction in the export refinance facility, which has not even been extended to spinning and weaving. He said that SNGPL has shutdown gas supply to the Punjab-based textile mills altogether, increasing the number of closed down mills to 70.
He also discussed in detail the prevailing adverse circumstances, including 40 per cent drop in cotton arrival in Punjab, unaffordable electricity tariff and burdening of industry with domestic taxes, and urged the government to do away with them without any further delay. While speaking on the occasion, former chairmen APTMA Gohar Ejaz urged the government to restore gas supply immediately besides tariff rationalisation of electricity to improve country’s exports.
www.aptma.org.pk
Indian companies in the commodity business from sectors including cotton and yarn, metals and mining, and capital goods are experiencing adverse impact of structural changes in the Chinese economy. China has recently been moving towards a consumption-driven economy after focusing on manufacturing for decades, leading to decline in China's imports of commodity products, while its exports of finished products continue to increase owing to excess manufacturing.
\Data shows that China imported 7 per cent less cotton yarn from India in the three months to October 2015 compared to the preceding three months; with the imports declining sharply in October impacting Indian companies like Vardhman, Nitin Spinners, RSWM, Sutlej Textiles, Nahar spinning.
Revenue of cotton yarn manufacturing companies may fall in the 5 per cent-10 per cent range in the second half, according to Sanjay Jain, VP, Hosiery Manufacturer Association of India, which he says could be a positive for domestic garment manufacturers as it will create reservoir of raw material leading to rise in profitability of several companies such as Indocount, Welspun India, Nandan Denim, Page Industries, Gokaldas and Arvind.
18th knitwear exhibition under the series of Knit-Vision 2015, an exclusive exhibition of knitting, sewing, textile, finishing and allied machinery from December 18 to 21, 2015 in Ludhiana.
The exhibition provides a platform to display the latest in knitting technology and visitors can update themselves about the latest developments in the global market. Knit Vision is an ideal platform to build contacts, develop business prospects, and bridge new tie-ups and partnerships.
The exhibition will witness around 100 exhibitors displaying innovations of 300 brands across garment manufacturing. Organised by Showman Associates, the event anticipates around 20,000 visitors to be at the event.
Garments Machinery Manufacturers & Suppliers Association (GMMSA) – formed by various companies of Ludhiana and international machine manufacturers – is organising its debut GMMSA EXPO from February 19 to 22, 2016. And next edition of ‘KnitWorld’ will also be held from January 15 to 18, 2016.
www.knit-vision.com
Despite the existence of a minimum wage, workers in Myanmar’s garment factories still find it hard to make ends meet and suffer from harsh work conditions, according to Oxfam.
The workers in Myanmar usually earn an average of less than $100 (Ks 122,000) a month, including overtime fees and bonuses. Many have to work about 11 hours a day, six days a week. Yet, 75 per cent of the workers are unable to cover the cost of basic needs like food, medicine and transport, the report said.
It also said that most of the workers have to borrow money even to meet their daily needs, further putting them under debt pressure. Rents are so expensive that almost half of their earnings are invested on accommodation alone. And 90 per cent of workers are not even able to save any of their income.
Oxfam, which has been working in Myanmar since 2008, launched a briefing paper last week entitled “Made in Myanmar: Entrenched poverty or decent jobs for garment workers?" It was based on research by Oxfam, the Cooperative Committee of Trade Unions, 88 Generation Peace and Open Society, Action Labour Rights, and Labour Rights Defenders & Promoters (LRDP). Some 123 workers from 22 factories in six industrial zones in Yangon - Dagon Seikkan, Shwe Lin Pan, Mingalardon, Bago, Thilawa, and Hlaing Tharyar - were interviewed. Nearly 90 per cent of respondents were female with an average age of 23 years.
www.oxfam.org
Since more than enough cotton is piled up in global warehouses to make more than 127 billion T-shirts, or 17 for each person on the planet, there is no hope for the prices to rise. World inventories at the end of this season are being forecast to the second-largest ever against last year’s record, according to a US Department of Agriculture report last week.
Experts point out that while threats to the American crop helped make the fibre this year’s best-performing commodity, the gains may not last much longer since demand continues to decline. China, for instance, the world’s largest user, is curbing cotton imports by more than 30 per cent, leading to shrinking of global trade for the fourth consecutive year, states the International Cotton Advisory Committee.
Money managers boosted the net-long position in cotton futures and options by 26 per cent to 60,357 contracts in the week ended December 8, 2015, according to US Commodity Futures Trading Commission data. That’s the highest since May 2014. Prices in New York slid 1.5 per cent last week to 63.71 cents a pound.
Cotton is one of only two gainers this year among the 22 components of the Bloomberg Commodity Index, which is trading near a 16-year low. But the fibre’s upward journey is starting to dissipate. Prices are now up 5.7 per cent in 2015, paring advances of as much as 13 per cent.
Harvesting in the US, the world’s biggest exporter, witnessed adverse impact of heavy rains this year, and output is also expected to decline in China and India. Despite this, there is no fall in global stockpiles, which are forecast by the USDA to dip just 6.8 per cent from last year’s all-time high. The inventories will also be more than 35 per cent higher than the 10-year average.
There are signs that production will rebound. The USDA forecast that plantings will climb 13 per cent to 9.5 million acres next year, a report showed Friday. Societe Generale SA forecasts prices will average 62.9 cents in the first quarter and 62.7 cents in the second.
"There are different types of wastes generated by the industry that are polluting the environment. First, is production waste. It’s estimated that 15 per cent of textiles intended for clothing ends up on the cutting room floor, so this does not make it into the garment. The better alternative for this type of waste is to up-cycle this waste back into fashion products. Second, is consumer waste. There has been a 60 per cent increase in fashion consumption in the last 10 years, with 150 billion new garments thought to be produced ever year."
Things impacting the fashion industry
Dean points out the fashion industry is the second most polluting industry in the world, and it plays a horrific role in causing environmental pollution and social issues. Unless this issue is taken up seriously, the society is going to face a huge crisis in the future. In China, for instance, 17 to 20 per cent of industrial water pollution comes from textile dyeing and treatment, says The World Bank. In China, 26 million tons of textile waste originating from industry and consumers is thought to be generated every year, according to China Association of Resource Comprehensive Utilisation, 2013. And average of 217 tons of textiles was estimated to enter Hong Kong’s landfills every day in 2011, according to Hong Kong’s Environmental Protection Department.
There are different types of wastes generated by the industry that are polluting the environment. First, is production waste. It’s estimated that 15 per cent of textiles intended for clothing ends up on the cutting room floor, so this does not make it into the garment. The better alternative for this type of waste is to up-cycle this waste back into fashion products. Second, is consumer waste. There has been a 60 per cent increase in fashion consumption in the last 10 years, with 150 billion new garments thought to be produced ever year. The rise in fast fashion has meant that in recent years, designers, manufacturers and retailers have gone into overdrive to satisfy this consumer appetite, so much so that people are buying items of clothing with as much thought as a Big Mac.
Consumers are also throwing a huge amount of clothes away. In Hong Kong, around 12,000 garments enter the landfills every hour. The best way forward, Dean says, is to buy less, buy better and to care more for what we have.
Sustainability a growing theme
However, sustainable fashion is gradually moving into mainstream consciousness, from designers to consumers. Consumers are now waking up to the impact caused by the fashion industry. They are looking to consume more sustainable clothing, be this on the high street, which is now littered with small, sustainable collections, or through supporting local emerging designers or wearing secondhand clothes.
Dean is hopeful that the future of the sustainable fashion industry will be much more focused on waste reduction and recycling. According to her, fashion courses will need to grow their capability to incorporate sustainable design education into curriculum in order to plant a widespread vision for a more sustainable fashion industry among those who, ultimately, are tomorrow’s industry.
Redress.com.hk
Overcoming deteriorating conditions, Indian cotton exporters are set to flourish and get back in the league as neighbouring Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar have again become the top importers unlike China. At present, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar have emerged top importers of cotton in the current cotton year (October 2015 to September 2016) and exports have risen by 35 percent.
Previous year saw total exports worth 2.2 million bales and Pakistan’s share was negligible. This year around three million bales (170 kg is one bale) of cotton export contracts has been registered with one million from Pakistan alone.
Dhiren Sheth, President, Cotton Association of India (CAI), feels floods are the major reason for damaged cotton crop. Though in 2014-15, Pakistan imported 500,000 bales, Indian industry anticipates imports to be 1.5-1.7 million bales in this season.
Export earnings from US market in the January-October period of 2015 grew by 11.40 per cent to $4.84 billion compared with that of $4.34 billion in the same period a year ago, according to the data released by the Office of Textiles and Apparels under the US commerce department.
Bangladesh witnessed its readymade garment export earnings from the United States in the 10 months increase by 11.14 per cent to $4.66 billion from $4.19 billion in the same period of the previous year. This is despite the country not enjoying the GSP+ status to the US.
Bangladesh is the third largest apparel exporting country to the US after China and Vietnam. Apparel export earnings of Vietnam from US in the first 10 months of 2015 grew by 13.86 per cent to $9.03 billion from $7.93.billion in the same period of the year 2014, the data showed. Apparel exports of China to the US market in January-July period of this year grew by 2.37 per cent to $26.23 billion from $25.62 billion in the same period of last year.
However, Bangladeshi exporters fear that the export growth of Vietnam to the US market could witness a substantial increase more after the implementation of the TPP. Even many western players are already shifting their focus from Bangladesh to Vietnam keeping the TPP implementation in sight. On the other hand, Bangladesh is exploring new export destinations such as Russia, South Africa and Brazil.
According to the US data, India’s apparel exports to the US market in the January-October period of this year grew by 7.52 per cent to $3.16 billion from $2.94 billion in the same period of last year.
www.otexa.ita.doc.gov
The textile industries and clothing sector is considered strategic for the national economy of Tunisia. They were once key sectors of Tunisian manufacturing industry in terms of exports and employment. However, things are not the same and the sectors are in dire need of immediate support.
The President of the trade association of the garment and apparel and industries, Samir Ben Abdallah and consultant Slim Khedher, recently spoke about the current state of these segments, while outlining the prospects of their evolution in terms of social, economic and political development. The sector has 1,852 companies employing around 1,85,000 employees, or 34 per cent of all jobs in manufacturing. Of the 1,852 units of the sector, 1,548 companies produce for exports. 820 companies are operating in partnership, including 551 units being 100 per cent foreign owned.
They pointed out that the Tunisian textile sector is at strategic cross-roads and the government must take action to boost this industry. Compared to the years 2008 - 2009 - 2010 to today, the textile and clothing sector which represented 50 per cent in terms of employment and export value has declined to mere 30 per cent because the industry has emerged as just outsourcing destination or a market for subcontracting.
