FW
With a sudden surge in import of cotton in the last two months, Pakistan is expected to import a total of 2.5 million bales during the ongoing fiscal 2013-14. Pakistan has imported approximately 1.7 million bales so far during this fiscal year. Traders are importing a significant amount of cotton from India as this saves freight cost and transportation time. So far, Pakistan has imported approximately 1.2 million bales from India.
In the beginning of the year, imports were slow because of two reasons. Spinning mill owners were waiting for local cotton to arrive in the markets. Secondly, import cost was higher because of the continuous appreciation in dollar value against rupee at that time.
Now, the situation has changed. The rupee has considerably recovered its value against the dollar during December and January. Secondly, ginners in Pakistan have a small quantity of high quality cotton in stock. The low availability of high quality cotton always forces traders to increase imports. Pakistan imports high quality cotton from India, US, Argentine and Central Asia every year. However, imports from India may slow down after India raised the price of cotton higher than other exporting countries.
Conventional textile production is one of the most polluting industries on the planet. It's estimated that the textile industry is responsible for as much as 20 per cent of land and river pollution. Finding ways to curb environmental pollution caused by textile production starts with producing fabrics that don't require toxins and large amounts of water, and which minimize harm to the ecology.
Organic cotton is grown without chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Textiles made of organic cotton require less water to manufacture than conventional cotton textiles and are often more comfortable. Silk is produced by moths, and conventional methods destroy the moth and cocoon in the process. Sustainable products, such as ahimsa silk, use methods that don’t kill the moth pupa. Eco-friendly silk is produced primarily in India, North Asia and Africa. This lacks the harsh dyes that are common in conventional silk production. There are a variety of types of sustainable silk, each with their own unique colors and characteristics. The most common is produced by a creamy white-colored silk worm that is found on the mulberry tree in India.
Bamboo is considered a sustainable source for textiles. It is an extremely fast growing plant that doesn’t need to be replanted each year, doesn’t require massive amounts of pesticides and keeps the air clean.
Leading apparel retailers like Adidas, Marks and Spencer, Patagonia and Phillips-Van Heusen have taken steps against cotton from Uzbekistan entering their supply chain to protest against forced labour practices in the country. A survey named ‘Cotton Sourcing Snapshot: A Survey of Corporate Practices to End Forced Labor’, of 49 apparel and home goods firms released by the Responsible Sourcing Network (RSN) looked at what the companies are doing to identify risks, establish policies, implement procedures, and disclose practices to eliminate and prevent incidents of forced labour in cotton harvesting. Evaluations covered 11 indicators across policy, public disclosure, engagement, and implementation and auditing.
While only five companies scored over 50 points, 19 scored under 25 points, and two companies scored zero. Among those with the lowest rankings were Costco, Forever 21 and Sears, with All Saints and Urban Outfitters coming last according to the report.
The report found that only 2 per cent of companies surveyed fully disclose progress and/or challenges with their strategies on Uzbek cotton, and only 6 per cent have fully implemented a traceability or spinner verification program.
Of those that do implement best practices, 18.5 per cent are involved in spinner efforts individually or through another initiative; 16 per cent provide training and require their suppliers/spinners to abide by their policies; an additional 8 per cent also include this in their supplier contracts; and 12 per cent have independent third-party audits of their spinners/mills.
www.sourcingnetwork.org
Two investment licenses have been granted by the Ho Chi Minh city Export Processing and Industrial Zones Authority in Vietnam that will lead to the construction of two apparel complexes worth nearly $200 million. The investments are spurred by duty-free opportunities that would eventually be offered from the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership trade treaty with countries including Canada and the US.
The first will see Gain Lucky Limited, a Vietnamese subsidiary of China’s leading textile and garment maker Shenzhou International Group, build a $140 million apparel complex in the Dong Nam industrial park near Ho Chi Minh. The complex will include a design centre and manufacturing facilities producing high-quality apparel. The Hong Kong stock exchange listed Shenzhou International Group currently supplies goods for international brands including Puma, Nike, Adidas, Mizuno, Fila and Uniqlo.
The second license has been given to Taiwanese water sports apparel maker Sheico Group, which is to invest $50 million in a facility at the same industrial park. This complex will extend from fabric production to sewing lines, and will employ around 3,550 local workers.
C.L.A.S.S. has once more joined hands with NICE and the Danish Fashion Institute to be their official materials partner for textiles at the 3rd edition of the Copenhagen Fashion Summit in April this year. This event is known as the leading and largest conference dedicated to all the key issues relating to sustainable fashion on a global scale.
C.L.A.S.S. and NICE have worked well together since 2009, because of their common objectives and philosophy, as well as their understanding of bringing innovation and sustainability to the fashion industry. These projects help facilitate a more responsible way fashion brands and designers can acquire materials and processes.
In December 2013, during an exchange workshop titled ‘The Design Challenge in Copenhagen’, new designers selected fabrics and materials from the C.L.A.S.S. eco-library. The seven designers who participated included Remix, Barbara I Gongini, Gudrun & Gudrun, Marimekko, Nina Skarra, The Local firm and Leila Hafzi. These designers will next present their vision of sustainability on the conference catwalk in Copenhagen, and Giusy Bettoni will be part of the Design Challenge Jury to select the best and overall winner of this year’s event.
Fabric Source, the first Nordic sustainable fabric platform, created for the fashion and textile industry commenced on February 24. The aim is to prove that fashion can be sustainable without compromising design, price and quality. C.L.A.S.S. is the main partner of the event. It has brought its knowledge and eco-library into the new platform. C.L.A.S.S. product categories available at the Fabric Source will include the whole range from natural and organic textiles, to recycled fabrics and innovative renewables.
Pakistan's textile exports to China are in the form of low value-added fabric and yarn. China transforms the product into a higher value-added form. There has been a slowdown in Chinese demand for yarn and fabrics but Pakistan has made up for it in the value-added segment by increasing exports to European Union on the back of its new GSP Plus status. Pakistan’s yarn exports to China dropped 8.6 million kg. The country exported 43.41 million sq. mtr less fabric in January 2014 compared to January 2013.
In the value added segment, Pakistan’s exports of knitwear to EU jumped by 16 per cent between January 2013 to January 2014. Exports of bed wear increased 8.8 per cent and readymade garment exports were up 8.4 per cent. Had exports to China been normal, textile exports would have posted an overall gain of 15 per cent in January this year, over exports made during the corresponding month of the last year.
The uptrend in value-added exports shows that GSP Plus is positively impacting Pakistan. The country’s textile industry is now gearing up to capitalise on the GSP Plus status. Since the time Pakistan has got GSP, the number of summary orders has been rising.
As per figures released by the economics department at ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, orders for textile machinery rose during the fourth quarter of 2013. It shows a 5 per cent increase compared to the previous quarter. However, on the domestic side, orders fell by 15 per cent, due to a highly critical situation for the Italian market. Exports rose by 7 per cent over the previous quarter, and remain the main growth driver for Italian manufacturers.
On an annual basis, due to the poor performance in domestic market, the overall index declined by 4 per cent compared to the 2012 average. On the export side, after a declining third quarter, sales picked up in the fourth quarter. Although they include only the first ten months of the year, the foreign trade data provided by ISTAT confirm a slight drop compared to the previous year.
To support and boost Italian textile machinery manufacturers in their global processes, ICE, Italian Trade Agency for the promotion and globalization of Italian businesses abroad, together with ACIMIT, have planned an intense promotional campaign for the industry in 2014. Promotional initiatives for Italy’s textile machinery sector will be held in 16 countries, including China and India, as well as nations and markets which already present potential business opportunities for Italian machinery builders, such as Ethiopia, Mongolia and Uzbekistan.
www.acimit.it
www.itatrade.com
For the first time, five global clothing brands and retailers have raised $40 million (over Rs 247 crores) for victims of the Rana Plaza factory disaster in Bangladesh. Activists are further campaigning to put pressure on other brands to gather funds for donations. The collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh on April 24 last year killed over 1,100 workers and was the deadliest disaster in the history of the garment industry. It attracted global attention to the unsafe working conditions in some Bangladeshi factories, the rock-bottom wages earned by workers, and the lack of accountability and oversight on the part of importing global brands.
The companies, who have raised funds to donate include El Corte Inglés, Inditex, which includes the brand Zara, Loblaw Mango and Mascot. Now labour groups are pressurizing companies like Walmart, Children's Place and Benetton, which were linked to Rana Plaza tragedy. International Labour Organisation, which is managing the fund, has established formulas and a claims process had been established to pay lost wages, medical bills and other compensation to roughly 4,000 victims, including survivors of the factory collapse, who were injured and the families of the dead.
Two other retailers, Primark and Bonmarché, have expressed their intent to contribute, and Primark has already spent more than 3 million dollars for short-term assistance to victims. But activists insist that those not linked directly to Rana Plaza, must also pitch in.
shop.mango.com
At INDEX 2014, Switzerland which starts from April 8 to 11, 2014, Freudenberg Nonwovens will focus on individual solutions from advanced wound care to sun protection. Freudenberg has 30 years experience in the medical sector and presents a comprehensive portfolio for traditional wound care, complemented by solutions for ostomy applications. In addition the focus is on innovations, such as antibacterial finishing to the use of chitosan fibers in combination with hydro-active nonwovens for advanced wound care products.
In the hygiene segment, Freudenberg offers ultra light and skin friendly top sheets, back sheets and acquisition distribution layers for baby diapers, feminine care and adult incontinence applications. These nonwovens are comfortable thanks to the cotton like structure. Special solutions such as eco friendly ADLs complete the product portfolio for the hygiene segment.
Freudenberg has developed an ultra light product variant of Evolon with a 3D structure, a material with an soft touch and high volume, with additional cleaning efficiency of a microfilament cloth. The general purpose microfilament is used both for wet and dry applications -- for surface treatment of cars, in professional cleaning, as well as in the consumer sector as LCD wet wipes or for cosmetic wipes. Evolon has an ultraviolet protection factor of 80. So it’s an interesting option for textile manufacturers, makers of sunshades, awnings etc.
Freudenberg Nonwovens is one of the world’s largest producers of nonwovens, with 21 manufacturing and processing sites in 13 countries.
www.index14.ch/, www.freudenberg-nw.com/
In a move, which the company claims to be not politically motivated, Gaps Chairman and CEO, Glenn Murphy has raised the minimum hourly wage rate for stateside employees from $7.25 dollars to $9 dollars in June 2014. This would be further revised to $10 a year later. Recently, the White House had said that the minimum wage for federal contract workers would be raised to $10.10 an hour in 2015. President Obama has applauded the Gap move in a statement, stating a minimum wage increase would lift the incomes of more than 16 million Amherican workers.
According to the company, the increase in hourly wage rate would affect 65,000 employees by 2015. But it also said that not all these workers are currently earning the minimum wage. Murphy believes that the current wage hike is with an aim to strengthen frontline employees to further enhance an in-store experience. Gap employs 1,35,000 employees across 50 countries and currently owns six brands, including Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime, Athleta and Intermix.
On the other hand, Walmart, the largest retailer and private employer in the United States has decided to stay ‘neutral’ on the wage issue since it already pays most full-time employees above 10.10 dollars (Rs 626.9). However, as per the recent report by nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, increasing wages to 10.10 dollars would result in the loss of 500,000 jobs.
www.walmart.com
