FW
In a development that might prove to be disastrous for the knitwear, garment and textile industry of Ludhiana, which has a turnover of Rs 15,000 crore per year and accounts for 95 per cent of total hosiery production in India, the Union government's move to cut down the duty drawback incentive on export of readymade garments from 7.7 per cent to 2 per cent.
In one of the worst drop registered this year, exports from the country have fallen more than Rs 3,712.67 crore in the month of October as compared to corresponding period last year. According to city exporters, this massive decline is just the beginning and the worst is yet to come as Pakistan has announced a large number of incentives for its garment and textile exporters under its prime minister's package of incentives.
Exporters are worried as they feel this move by Pakistan will hit them very hard in the global market as they will be unable to compete with the exporters of Pakistan due to cut in their incentives. It is an emergency situation for garment exporters as the duty drawback has almost been totally finished by the government. It is said that the situation won’t improve Until the union government tries to match the incentives given by the neighboring countries like China, Pakistan and Bangladesh to their exporters.
Cambodia’s garment exports are expanding at five per cent. Similar growth is expected in coming years if certain issues hindering the industry are addressed. Issues now hampering the sector include: high production costs, low productivity and access to a limited number of markets. The minimum wage will be raised from January. So, factories hope for a change in productivity, a reduction in the cost of doing business and new policies to help investors.
Cambodia’s total export volume reached $9 billion during the first nine months of the year. Eighty per cent of that trade consisted of garments or footwear. In 2016, Cambodia’s garment and footwear industry had 786 factories and a workforce of more than 7,00,000 people. The main export markets for Cambodian garments are the EU, the US, China, New Zealand and Japan.
Cambodia wants international buyers to increase investment in the garment and footwear sector and introduce new technologies. The garment sector is burdened by low productivity brought about by outdated technology, which sinks a country into low positions within global value chains.
A workshop will be set up with buyers, unions, factory owners and government agencies to hear from all sides and collectively prepare a strategy to guide development in the sector.
Cambodia has benefited from the US’ GSP scheme since 1997. In July last year, the US expanded GSP preferences to Cambodia by allowing Cambodian-made travel goods to enter the US market duty-free. However, Cambodia hopes footwear exports are included in the GSP scheme. This is an unlikely, since footwear has never been included in the scheme since it was established in 1976.
Meanwhile the US will review countries that have been granted GSP and see how they score on criteria like combating child labor, respecting internationally recognised worker rights, providing adequate and effective intellectual property protection, and providing the US with equitable and reasonable market access.
If a country fails to meet the criteria, the US could trigger a full review and strip a country of its status, thus ending duty-free access to the world’s largest consumer market. In the past, the US has excluded some countries from GSP coverage because they supported terrorism, for example, Libya, or were communist, like Vietnam, or were deemed to be facilitating intellectual property piracy.
Cambodia, for one, has always met criteria for the GSP scheme and secured its eligibility because of improvements in working conditions, especially in the garment industry that has seen higher wages.
In Q3 The Children’s Place net sales increased 3.4 per cent. Comparable retail sales increased 5.1 per cent.
Adjusted operating income in the third quarter of 2017 was 14 per cent of net sales. The Children’s Place is the largest pure-play children’s specialty apparel retailer in North America. It delivered exceptional operating results in the third quarter with comparable retail sales, gross margin, operating margin and earnings per diluted share all exceeding last year’s. Merchandise margin expanded for the eleventh consecutive quarter.
Store traffic experienced sequential improvement for each of the past six quarters and all of the key retail metrics increased - AUR, ADS, UPT, transactions and conversion. The retailer continues to make significant progress against each of its strategic growth initiatives - superior product, business transformation through technology, global growth through alternate channels of distribution and fleet optimization - all of which are supported by a best-in-class management team.
The company ended the quarter with 1,027 stores. Its international franchise partners opened 10 points of distribution and closed three in the third quarter, and the company ended the quarter with 168 international points of distribution open and operated by its seven franchise partners in 19 countries.
Leading industrial thread manufacturer and a major player in the Americas textile crafts market, Coats has roped in Hongyan Echo Lu (Echo) as a non-executive Director. She has 20 years HR, operations and general management experience. Echo started at Bristol-Myers Squibb, a global biopharmaceutical company, where she spent seven years in a series of HR roles. She spent 10 years at Tesco and was the managing director of Homebase. A bachelor of arts in international economy and finance from Fudan University and a master of science in industrial relations and human resources from West Virginia University, Echo is a native Mandarin speaker.
Echo has previously been a non-executive director at Dobbies Garden Centres and served as a steering committee Member of the Trestle Group Foundation, a non-profit organisation which supports women-led businesses in emerging economies. Coats hopes to benefit from her direct managerial experience in global companies operating in Asia, particularly Northeast Asia.
UK-based Coats, is at home in some 60 countries, Coats employs 19,000 people across six continents. Coats is the second largest supplier of zips to global brands. Each year it makes enough thread to go into eight billion pairs of jeans.
Denmark wants to enhance bilateral trade with Pakistan in various sectors including textile and knitwear. Danish companies are planning to sign joint ventures in different sectors with Pakistani companies. Danish companies will work with Pakistan’s corporate sector in knitwear manufacturing. Advanced technology will be introduced in Pakistan, which would help increase production, improve quality of products and cut production costs. Danish companies will focus on various fields including renewable efficient energy, health care and food production.
Denmark played an important role in getting Pakistan GSP Plus status from the European Union, which allowed duty-free export of many products. Pakistan’s problems with managing its power crisis could get valuable support from the Nordic country. Denmark is considered to be a stronghold of renewable energy. Around 40 per cent of the world’s wind turbines are manufactured in Denmark. Renewable energy is an area for cooperation, given Pakistan’s focus on alternative resources in its new energy policy.
Denmark’s private industry would also support Pakistan in energy conservation technologies and agricultural machinery. Denmark will work with provinces in Pakistan for capacity building and with civil society organizations on democratisation, human rights and gender equality. Denmark is ranked as one of the least corrupt countries and the happiest nation. But it has some of the highest tax rates in the world.
Shanghai Tex will be held from November 27 to 30, 2017. Over 1,200 exhibitors from 26 countries and regions will showcase their latest technologies and more than 60,000 professional buyers are expected to attend the show for commercial procurement. In order to bring more business opportunities for exhibitors and to enhance interaction between industry players, Shanghai Tex has launched a series of comprehensive promotions to invite key buyers, associations, and textile enterprises to visit the show.
Over 70 industry associations with hundreds of professional buyers are expected to visit Shanghai Tex 2017. Several technical seminars, networking events as well as new product and technology releases will be organized concurrently.
The show contributes to the progressive realization of Industry 4.0 to breathe new dynamics and value to the industry. This is the most established and professional textile machinery exhibition of its kind in China since 1984. Visitors may get a chance to meet over 10 industry names as Marks & Spencer, Nike, Li-Ning, Triumph, Decathlon, ANTA, Li & Fung, H&M, C&A, Under Amour etc. It will also be a rare opportunity to discuss with their professional purchasing team and OEMs about the latest development of industry technology and new ideas on the sports apparel market.
Mike Simko is a new marketing director for Hyosung. Simko will lead the global marketing of Creora spandex, Mipan nylon and specialty polyester fibers to deliver innovation and superior brand and retail collaborative services.
He has worked for Invista and DuPont. He has over 20 years of textile, chemical and industrial experience with leadership positions in global marketing and sales, strategic planning, business development, R&D as well as manufacturing.
Simko will be located in New York City and will be joined by Sejin Roh, marketing manager. Sejin has a degree in textile management and has had experience in marketing, business and product development roles for the last five years at Hyosung.
Also new to Hyosung is Deborah Richert, textile marketing manager. She has over 20 years of sales, marketing, brand, product merchandising and business development roles in the textile industry. She has previously worked for Nike, New Balance, Puma, and Schoeller Textiles.
Hyosung is a spandex producer with the Creora brand. It is known for innovations in spandex, nylon and polyester along with the latest fabric trends. Hyosung launches innovative products, delivers superior value and works with mills, brands and retailers globally.
Continued investment in production facilities underscores Hyosung’s long term commitment to the textile industry.
Huntsman Textile Effects has introduced the new Phobotex RSY non-fluorinated durable water repellent (DWR) that raises the standard for repellency especially on high-performance synthetic textiles. This new product will allow brands and retailers to meet the global demand for eco-friendly clothing that requires extreme rain- and stain- protection.
Phobotex RSY durable water repellent raises the bar for performance on synthetics, allowing brands to offer high-performance weather protection to outdoor enthusiasts with an assurance of eco-friendly sustainability. It is an environmentally friendly, non-fluorinated formulation that customers and global brands can rely on to produce sustainable textile products without compromising performance.
The DWR repulses rain, sleet and snow and performs well on synthetics and blends. It is ideal for high-performance outerwear fabrics, offering breathable comfort and durable water repellence. Fabrics treated with Phobotex also repel stains, so they stay looking new for longer and can be easily spot cleaned.
Working closely with mills, Huntsman Textile Effects is a leader in textile dyes and chemicals. It is in the van of the textile sector’s transition to more sustainable and eco-friendly business models. The market for outdoor apparel is growing worldwide, and customers expect comfort and high-performance protection.
The industry is shifting away from traditional formulations based on per-fluorinated chemicals due to environmental health and safety concerns.
GSP Plus from the European Union has helped Sri Lankan exports. Apparel exports to the EU from January to September this year increased 11.3 per cent compared to the same period last year. Sri Lanka’s apparel exports to the US too increased this year by 12 per cent. The country’s overall apparel exports to all countries this year from January to September increased by 13.4 per cent in comparison to the same period last year.
In 2016, Sri Lanka's apparel exports were 43 per cent of the total Sri Lankan export basket of that year. Meanwhile, Intex South Asia is being held in Sri Lanka, November 15 to 17. It has become the largest and sole international textile sourcing event in South Asia for yarns, apparel fabrics, and accessories. A strong presence of Chinese, Indian and Hong Kong participants is seen along with leading multinationals such as Reliance, Bombay Rayon Fashions, Mekotex and Woolmark.
Intex is the largest textile sourcing exhibition in the region. It helps integrate Sri Lanka with the global trading system and with the rest of South Asia. It will help Sri Lanka seize opportunities in the value chain in the region that it has not taken.
