Global Textiles & Apparels - Daily E-Paper Global Textiles & Apparels E-PAPER - (30 July 2018

Daily E-Paper MAHENG/2007/20880 Vol. 01 No. 102 Transport Strike has hit textiles exporters badly – TEXPROCIL Mumbai : All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) started a nationwide indefinite strike on July 20. Their demands include a reduction in central and state taxes by getting diesel under the GST so that price of the deregulated commodity can be reduced. “The transport strike has started adversely affecting textiles exports and is a matter of deep concern for us”, said Shri Ujwal Lahoti , Chairman of The Cotton Textiles Export promotion Council ( TEXPROCIL). There is sharp disruption in the movement of raw materials to the factories and finished goods to the ports for exports, pointed out Shri Lahoti. In the case of Cotton textiles, raw cotton are mainly produced in Gujarat and Maharashtra whereas their consumptions are in the textiles units located in the Southern states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh . The transport strike has brought the movement of textile products to a standstill. There are strict shipment schedules given by the foreign buyers for exports and many of the textiles exporters will miss these schedules which may result in the loss of export orders , said Shri Lahoti . There is a possibility that our competitors in the export markets will benefit from this strike. The Chairman , TEXPROCIL expressed his serious concern that if the strike continues , it will lead to loss of reputation in the international markets for many of the textile exporters apart from loss of business. Shri Ujwal Lahoti appealed to the Government to resolve this issue so that the strike gets called off at the earliest and textile exports , which otherwise is facing many other challenges , can meet the commitments made to the overseas buyers on time. Myanmar RMG to mull Shutting down Myanmar: The rising labour wages and cost of land seems to be taking a toll on the Myanmar garment industry with around 14 factories in the country’s Yangon’s industrial zones expected to shut down in next couple of months, leaving over 3,000 workers jobless. According to the Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association, the primary reason behind these factories deciding to wind-up operations was due to increase in production cost, especially the wage of the workers. The Association said that the garment industry is under pressure from having to raise the minimum wage. At the same time, productivity, which is already lower than other countries in the region, has not improved. As a result, many garment businesses no longer want to operate. It may be mentioned that earlier in 2018, the National Committee for the Minimum Wage has set daily minimum wage at US $ 3.60 per hour for an eight- hour shift, which is reportedly almost 30 per cent increase from the earlier base wage. Afghanistan to Import RMG from Bangladesh Bangladesh: Bangladesh’s bilateral trade relations with Afghanistan, especially export of readymade garments, is expected to get a boost. The Bangladesh Minister on his part reportedly underlined his country’s willingness to strengthen the bilateral ties with Afghanistan as well as Bangladesh’s interest to become its trusted development partner. Bangladesh has reportedly been actively participating in the rebuilding process of Afghanistan and has come-in for praise from the political leaders of that country. In terms of exports, Bangladeshi jute, ceramics, and pharmaceutical products reportedly have good demand in the Afghanistan market. New Cotton Variety to Boost Textile Industry Mumbai: Two new Bt cotton varieties, MRC 7377BG11 and MRC7361BG11, has been approved for commercial release by the National Committee on Naming, Registration and Release of Crop Materials. The crops, which are Nigeria’s first home-grown GM cotton, was developed by Mahyco Nigeria Pvt. Limited in collaboration with the Institute for Agricultural Research, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. They are expected to bring succour to farmers and boost Nigeria’s textile industry with a yield of 4.1 to 4.4 tonne per hectare as against the local variety’s yield of 600 to 900kg per hectare. Mumbai, Monday , 30 July 2018 Pakistan Textile Exports Result Pakistan: In June, Pakistan exported textile worth US $ 1.19 billion as compared to US $ 1.22 billion of shipment in the same month of 2017. The product categories such as garments, towels and bedwear showed dismal performance and fell in their respective shipments. The fall can be attributed to significantly higher cotton prices in 2018 which hampered the growth of exports. The prices are said to increase from US $ 50.38 per maund in 2017 to US $ 73.64 per maund in 2018. Pakistan government has extended the Prime Minister’s Export Package to boost the textile exports, to restrict rapidly growing trade deficit as well as to support falling foreign currency reserves in last one and half year. Despite these efforts the exports fell and it’s a serious matter of concern for the country. Textile exporters will struggle in the days ahead in the current fiscal year 2018-19 as cotton sowing target has been missed. Additionally, duties and taxes have been re- imposed on cotton imports, which will be costlier, also due to the US dollar’s strengthening against the rupee. In the meantime, expensive re-gasified liquefied natural gas (LNG) has forced the closure of several small mills in Punjab. Pages 05 INSIDE NEWS International Conference on Advanced Textiles Announced C o i m b a t o r e : Avinashilingam Institute for Home Science and Higher Education for Women will be organizing an international conference in collaboration with Texas Tech University, USA in its campus in Coimbatore, India between January 30th and 31st, 2019. Page 04