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In 2018, Vietnam’s textile and garment exports grew by 16 per cent. The free trade agreement with the European Union is expected to yield huge benefits. The EU is the second biggest market for Vietnamese textile and garment products. Textiles and garments shipped to the EU are currently subject to export tariffs of 9.6 per cent, but when the free trade agreement takes effect, the rate will be gradually reduced to zero in seven years. If Vietnamese firms meet origin requirements, the agreement will open enormous opportunities for exports. To be exempt from tariffs, apparel products must satisfy two conditions: the fabric used to make apparel must be from Vietnam or the EU, and the production process must be carried out in Vietnam or the EU. However, apparel products can also benefit from preferential tariffs under this deal if the material fabric comes from the countries that have FTAs with both the EU and Vietnam, such as the Republic of Korea.
However, Vietnamese firms still face several challenges as most of them have engaged in only cutting and sewing so far, and not producing fabric or yarn. Additionally, most production materials still come from China, which doesn’t have a trade deal with the EU.
Texworld USA will be held July 22 to 24, 2019. This is the largest fabric sourcing event for the North American market. This edition boasts an exciting educational line up with a spotlight on sustainability, and will also cover topics including circularity, traceability, and how to stay relevant in the current state of the industry. Since companies are uncertain how to implement sustainable practices, Texworld’s educational platform aims at addressing this matter by explaining how to improve internal processes and systems like a direct to consumer business model and how to become sustainable-certified. Interactive sessions will address current issues facing the industry, from supply chain changes to the impact of environmental textile trends. Insightful and informative sessions will be offered for every role and level of experience across every segment of the industry.
The African continent is a rapidly developing apparel market with Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, and the AGOA beneficiary countries topping the list for sourcing executives. The event will present the latest on this emerging region in the light of trade tensions, tariffs, and sustainability considerations. Experts will share their thoughts on the future of the area for apparel and the range of factors companies should consider when evaluating these countries.
The next edition of Collection Premiere Moscow (CPM) will be held from September 3 to 6, 2019. It will showcase collections for the spring/summer 2020 season. Exhibitors from Germany, Italy, France and Turkey will be strongly represented. Around 30 per cent of the exhibition space will be taken up by Russian manufacturers. CPM Shop & Retail Solutions is a service meant for specialists, manufacturers, retailers and service agencies, who, for example, manage online shops and retail chains digitally and are looking for the latest IT solutions, products and services for retail range management including merchandising.
There will be a focus on lingerie with CPM Body & Beach Fabrics featuring new products in terms of fabrics, haberdashery, accessories and print technologies. Spain will be represented by brands such as Admas, Disney, Santoro and Ysabel Mora. Exhibitors from Germany include Bugatti, Ceceba, Götzburg, MEY, Rosch Fashion and Tom Tailor Underwear. CPM Body & Beach is organised by Lingerie, one of the most influential Russian publications about lingerie and the lingerie business. At the upcoming edition of CPM, the magazine will be celebrating its 15-year anniversary and inviting its most important business partners, customers and friends. There will be a competition for young lingerie designers.
In spring/summer 2019 season Russian clothing imports from the European Union increased by eight per cent.
Südwolle Group, a leading producer of worsted yarn for weaving, circular and flat knitting in pure wool and wool blends, will showcase its Biella Yarn and HF collections at Pitti Filati. These variety of landscapes, both natural and human, is an inexhaustible source of inspiration, colours, feelings and shapes which is reflected in the yarn collections we create to clothe your daily life.
The new products feature the finest wools, sometimes in blends with other natural fibres, for lightweight contemporary knitwear. The color palette indulges prevailing trends with numerous shades of whites and beiges and an array of greys, from luminous ice tones to the darkest greys verging on black. Alongside these neutral and balanced hues there are flashes of bright color in yellow, green-blue and turquoise. An exploration of warm autumnal colors ranges from a variety of different khakis, ochre, sand and hazelnut to intense dark browns
India may revamp its customs duty regime, weeding out some exemptions and correcting inverted duty structures in order to encourage exports. An inverted structure is one in which the import duty on finished goods is lower than that on the materials or parts that go into making such a product, thus acting as a disincentive for local manufacture.
There will be a review with respect to encouraging domestic manufacturing. Sectors such as telecom, metals, batteries and chemicals for electric vehicles could see changes. Earlier duties were imposed on smart phones and telecom equipment and enhanced. A comprehensive review may now be undertaken that could lead to a reduction of duties on some critical inputs used in the manufacture of phones while raising them on finished products to further encourage domestic manufacture of handsets. Companies which have established assembly lines will be asked to locate their entire manufacturing chain in India.
Procedures for exporters and importers will be simplified. There is a move to anonymous assessment, aimed at greater efficiency and transparency in functioning. Single-window clearance has already been put in place for traders. Measures to boost exports, including tax refunds, are also on the anvil. Provisions to check tax evasion will be tightened.
India may extend the rebate scheme to other textile categories like yarn and fiber. As of now the scheme to rebate embedded central and state levies is confined to the garment and made-up sectors. The decision may be taken in the light of the urgency to do away with the popular merchandise export incentive scheme (MEIS), which is against World Trade Organization rules. MEIS which offers incentives based on the markets the goods are being exported to has to be withdrawn as Indian textiles have graduated out of the group of items allowed export sops at the WTO.
The embedded taxes include central excise duty on fuel used in transportation, embedded CGST paid on inputs such as pesticides and fertilisers used in production of raw cotton, purchases from unregistered dealers, inputs for transport sector and embedded CGST and compensation cess on coal used in the production of electricity. Also funds for exporters under the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) will be cleared. GST issues on textiles and clothing, including inverted duty structure in the manmade fiber sector, will be addressed. The hank yarn obligation may be reduced from 30 per cent to 15 per cent.
India slipped to the fifth position among garment and textile exporters in 2018.
The global industrial hemp market is growing at 14 per cent. Its driven by hemp’s nutritional and cosmetic qualities. Hemp is seen as a sustainable, organic and regenerative agricultural crop.
Almost everything that can be made with cotton or soy or corn can be made with hemp – with less impact on the earth. Hemp is a weed, so it grows prolifically with little water and no pesticides. It takes up relatively little space, produces more pulp per acre than trees and is biodegradable. Hemp crops even give back by returning nutrients to the soil and sequestering carbon dioxide.
Hemp is cultivated for a medley of biodegradable materials including plastic polymers, building products, fabrics, wood, biofuel, paper and even car components. Virtually every part of the plant can be used. The stalk’s outer bast fiber can make textiles, canvas and rope while its woody core – hurd – is used for paper, construction and animal bedding. The seeds are high in protein, fiber, omega-3 fats and other nutrients. The oil can be used for paints, adhesives, cooking and plastics. Even the leaves can be eaten and used to make juice. This fiber from industrial hemp has been used for thousands of years to make paper, rope, cloth and fuel.
The Indian government may impose anti-dumping duty on imports of certain types of filament yarn from China, Korea, Taiwan and Thailand as the commerce ministry has started investigation into alleged dumping of the product following complaints from domestic players.
The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR), under the commerce ministry, has initiated the probe as it has found "sufficient evidence" of dumping of nylon multi-filament yarn from these countries.
If the DGTR establishes that dumping is impacting domestic players, it would recommend imposition of a certain amount of anti-dumping duty, which if levied, would be adequate to remove the injury to the domestic industry. The finance ministry will take final call on imposition of the duty after considering recommendations of the directorate. Two firms, including Century Enka have filed application for imposition of anti-dumping duty on the imports. The period of investigation covers 2018-19. However, for the purpose of injury investigation, the period will also cover data for 2015-18 periods.
Destination Maternity has initiated job cuts which would generate cost savings of $4 million to $4.5 million on a projected annualised basis. The company, which operates the Motherhood, A Pea In The Pod and Destination Maternity retail chains and e-commerce sites, aims to become a more efficient and profitable organisation through this initiative.
The workforce cut back is expected to result in a one-time severance charge of approximately $1.3 million to $1.5 million during the second quarter of 2019, with severance benefits paid out ratably. The company reported a decrease of 8.7 per cent in its net sales for Q1of fiscal 2019. Impacted by the net closure of 32 owned locations and 88 lease locations, the company sales decreased to $94.2 million, Net income in the quarter also declined by 50 percent to $100,000 from $200,000 in the prior-year period
Durst has unveiled its fifth generation Alpha printing systems. They feature improvements in material handling, efficiency and material diversity. The technology platform offers sustainable, flexible and scalable solutions for every application, even enabling waterless one-step production with the new Durst advanced digital pigment ink.
The Alpha Series 5 printers, including dual roll, are all equipped with the new Durst workflow print and the monitoring tool Durst analytics to become a production unit from day one. To integrate e-commerce businesses, Durst offers a scalable solution with Durst smart shop. Backed by consultancy and seamless integration provided through Durst professional services, the new workflow software give users access to key functions in production such as color management and RIP. Expansion modules are integrated with the printing system to create a production process from pixel to output. The Alpha 190 / 330 Series 5 with SuperMultipass provides 30 per cent better performance than comparable systems. This next generation of high performance printing systems integrates new technologies in the print heads, inks, drying units and in the interaction of software. The Alpha Series 5 can also have a patented SwiftJet pretreatment system positioned upstream of the Alpha printer. Digital pretreatment is particularly valuable for short-run and fast-turnaround jobs.
