FW
A parliamentary standing committee recently pulled up the Textile Ministry for spending just 39 per cent of the outlay approved for the 12th Plan period (2012-17) in the first three years, and sought a concrete plan of expenditure for the next two years. The committee sought to know why the ministry hasn’t been able to spend the allocated amount and asked if it would be able to utilise the remaining 63 per cent of the approved outlay in just two years. The ministry has blamed the step-wise procedures and time-lag in the implementation of schemes from concept stage to in-principle approvals to consultations with states, among others, for the delay. It said it had been able to firm up all the major schemes after due procedures at the end of the third year of the current plan and expenditure has been accelerated since 2014-15.
When the committee wished to be apprised of the concrete plan of action to optimally utilise the plan outlay in the next two years, the ministry said weekly monitoring was being done by the secretary (textile) in the presence of all senior officers, which has led to higher expenditure under most schemes.
The ministry also said for schemes which require proposals from states, regular interactions with chief secretaries of those states are being done. States have also been told to expedite fund transfer to the implementing agencies for various schemes, among other things.
Readymade garment workers in Bangladesh will soon benefit from the added security of insurance. Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has directed its member factories to institute worker insurance or face export embargoes.
The country’s central garment sector organisation has also said it would cancel a facility’s membership for denying insurance. BGMEA is prioritising secure work environments and worker safety. Factories that are non-compliant with the direction would be spared from all kinds of facilities BGMEA provides. The organisation would be monitoring insurance implementation closely.
It isn’t uncommon for factory owners to forego insurance installments in favor of pocketing it for profit. Factories opting out of providing insurance won’t be able to export goods without the necessary documentation that only BGMEA can provide. Two of the major services BGMEA provides are issuance of utilisation declaration, a record of raw materials imported duty free, and utilisation permission, a written consent from customs mandatory for the sale of duty-free goods.
BGMEA is one of the largest trade associations in the country representing the readymade garment industry, particularly the woven garment, knitwear and sweater sub-sectors. Started in 1983, BGMEA takes care of an industry that is the backbone of Bangladesh’s economy. The association is dedicated to promoting and facilitating the apparel industry through policy advocacy to the government, services to members, ensuring workers’ rights and social compliance at factories.
Invista's Cordura was the sponsor of the second annual Struktur event in the US, May 7 to 8. Struktur is for active, outdoor, and urban design professionals. It’s for designers, those who work with designers, or aspire to be part of the outdoor design industry. The event exposes them to ground-breaking ideas, innovative techniques, and creative minds who are driving the industry. It is a forum for design leaders in the outdoor/active industry to share ideas, share experiences and walk away engaged and excited.
Cordura is dedicated to supporting designers. At Struktur, Cordura shared knowledge and insights of fabric technology advancements designed for outdoor, active and lifestyle products with participants. As a part of the sponsorship, Cordura collaborated with High Above, Carryology and Bellroy to create a limited edition bag designed exclusively for Struktur attendees.
In its second year, Struktur is a cross-disciplinary event, exploring the intersection of user experience, trend research, materials science, and their influence on design. Struktur is a chance to experience the breakthrough ideas of a new age of design.
This year’s conference explored themes like design leadership and design communication, including what it means to run a design-focused company, how to develop and sustain creative teams, how to succeed in the new selling environment, and more.
www.strukturevent.com/
Pakistan’s textile exports increased 2.94 per cent in April 2015 as against April 2014. Similarly, textile exports increased 4.6 per cent in April 2015 as against March 2015. Exports of textile group during the first 10 months of the year 2014-15 however, decreased by 1.21 per cent as compared to exports of the same period of last year.
Textile products that witnessed an increase in trade include cotton carded or combed export of which increased by 2.49 per cent. Exports of yarn other than cotton yarn increased by 5.40 per cent this year while exports of knitwear increased by 7.76 per cent. Exports of towels increased 3.2 per cent. Exports of tents, canvas and tarpaulin went up by 73.26 per cent from July to April 2013-14 to July to April 2014-15. Exports of readymade garments increased 9.14 per cent.
Raw cotton exports declined 26.22 per cent. Exports of cotton yarn decreased by 7.5 per cent while exports of cotton cloth decreased by 10.98 per cent. Exports of bed wear showed a negative growth of 1.13 per cent while exports of art, silk and synthetic textiles decreased by 12.02 per cent.
British clothing sales have seen a rise in volumes in April by 1.2 per cent from March. Consumers took advantage of falling prices to buy new clothes. It is the biggest monthly increase since November. Annual sales growth picked up pace to 4.7 per cent. The pound jumped to its highest level in two months against the euro and strengthened by one per cent against the dollar.
Robust April reading is a great springboard to a strong second quarter gross domestic product outlook. Quarterly growth in the April to June period could accelerate to one per cent after slowing to 0.3 per cent in the first three months of 2015. Some of the sharp increase in sales was due to a surge in purchases of clothing, textiles and footwear, which jumped by 5.2 per cent in April from March, the biggest monthly rise in four years. The warmer than average weather led consumers to bring forward purchases of summer clothing.
The strong retail sales numbers suggest consumers are finally starting to respond to the boost in spending power brought by last year’s slump in oil prices and a recent tentative pick-up in wages. However, despite the strong headline volume growth figures, there are still tough times ahead on the high street.
The Gujarat government has signed MoUs with a Chinese enterprise to attract investments worth Rs 29,000 crores in the state. The MoUs, inked in Beijing during chief minister Anandi Patel's visit to China, would assist the state in building the Smart City project and along with RS 10,000 crores for a textile park in Sanand, followed by an industrial park in Gujarat, an official statement said.
"An MoU signed between the China Small and Medium Enterprise Investment (CSMEI) and iNDETXb (Industrial Extension Bureau)- a Gujarat Government entity - envisions $ 3 billion (Rs 19,000 crores) investment for the Smart City project in Gujarat," said the statement, adding, "Gujarat's Additional Chief Secretary (Industries and Mines) Arvind Agarwal exchanged MoU documents with Guo Zhixin, Deputy Secretary General, CASME, in presence of Chief Minister Anandi Patel.”
Patel on a six-day visit to China, also inked a pact with CSMEI to set up a Rs 10,000 crores industrial park in the state. She was part of the delegation that accompanied Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his tour of the neighbouring country.
www.indextb.com
In the light of rural distress caused by drought and unseasonal rains, the Maharashtra government has appealed to seed companies to reduce the price of Bt cotton seeds. Bt cotton accounts for 60 to 70 per cent of total turnover of the rapidly growing seed industry in the country.
Though there is no paucity of Bt cotton seeds in the market this season, seed companies say they cannot reduce prices. They say production cost of seeds has risen and that there has been no reduction in the royalty fee that they have to pay. Seed companies had sold 4.5 crore packets of Bt cotton seeds in 2014-15, one-third of which was sold in Maharashtra, the state that has the highest area under cotton in the country and ranks second in production of the fiber crop.
Companies have already been fighting legal battles on the right of the state government to control seed prices. Sale of cotton seeds in the northern region, comprising Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, is almost over. In Maharashtra, only about seven to eight per cent of seeds have been sold in areas where cotton is sown early. Most of the seed sale will take place in the first week of June.
Over the last three months Ethiopia’s earnings from textile and garment exports have been growing.
The growth of the textile industries has triggered the expansion of cotton farming by public, private sector and small scale farmers. Currently, cotton is being farmed on a total of 42,000 hectares of land.
Foreign investment is flowing in thanks to the prevalence of peace and stability, availability of abundant cheap labor, plenty of cheap energy from hydro power and flourishing industrial parks all over the country.
Thanks to the enabling investment environment foreign companies are injecting their money, technology, experience as well as skills into the sector. In addition, foreign investors are encouraged through the provision of various incentives including tax holidays, tax free capital goods imports, custom services provision on the spot and easy access to financial credit.
The world number one US textile industry known as HDM has installed its factory in Hawassa Industrial Park creating 10,000 jobs and expected to create many more jobs in the coming years. Most graduates from technical colleges would benefit from these job opportunities.
India's National Green Tribunal (NGT) circuit bench of Jodhpur has ordered the closure of 739 textile factories in Balotra, Jasol and Birthuia until July 9. If they wish to reopen, they have to obtain a hazardous waste disposal authorisation from the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board (RSPCB).
These orders followed a joint common effluent treatment plant (CETP) inspection report completed by the Central Pollution Control Board and RSPCB that was submitted in court, stating that the CEPT had not been adhering to the rules laid by pollution control boards regarding the consent to operate and the disposal of hazardous waste.
The joint report recommended installation of adequate capacity reverse osmosis plants immediately to reuse treated water in the member units and acquire land for the evaporation of reverse osmosis rejects. NGT has directed the Prabodhan Samiti advocacy organisation chaired by the district collector to regularly monitor the CETP and address any shortcomings of its operation or compliance with the rules.
The tribunal has also requested that a report outlining the textile units’ sources of water in Jodhpur and Pali be submitted by July 9. Nearly 900 textile units were ordered to close by the RSPCB for failing to install CETPs, resulting in 18 million liters of untreated chemical water being discharged into the Drayvawati river every day.
Bangladesh's earnings from exports to Turkey dropped by 19.50 per cent in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year. However, in financial year 2012-13, export earnings from Turkey grew by 146.35 per cent. Following the imposition of safeguard duties by Turkey on readymade garment imports from Bangladesh, Bangladesh’s export earnings witnessed a drastic fall in financial year 2011-12. Export earnings in financial year 2012 decreased by 64.26 per cent compared to earnings in financial year 2011.
Among the reasons for the fall in export earnings is the devaluation of the euro as well as the Turkish lira. Domestic consumption in Turkey decreased a bit due to a fall in the value of the euro. In last one year, the lira depreciated by two per cent against the euro and about 20 per cent against the dollar.
Amid the depreciation of the local currency, Turkish consumers prefer local production to imports. Due to the devaluation of the local currency production costs in Turkey became cheaper than imports and so the country started to utilise its capacity in production. Depreciation of the euro is one of the reasons for the negative export growth in Turkey as payments between Bangladesh and Turkey are settled in euro.
