Cotton prices continued to rise in Brazil in the first fortnight of June due to low supply from the 2016-17 and the 2017-18 crops in the spot market. Between May 30 and June 15, the Center for Advanced Studies on Applied Economics/Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture (CEPEA/ESALQ) cotton Index rose 1.1 per cent, closing at 3.7898 BRL per pound on June 15. During the fortnight, some processors were out of the market as they were expecting the harvesting to advance, which will result in incre

Kenya’s treasury secretary Henry Rotich recently raised the duty on imported second-hand clothes and shoes, known as mitumba, from previous $0.2 per kg to $5 per kg or 35 per cent, whichever is higher, to protect local textile companies and create jobs. He said the step will guard against low mitumba prices that make it tough for local companies to thrive. However, anxiety does exist in the country about the loss of thousands of jobs within the mitumba industry, according to Kenyan media re

Rwanda will take over the tax obligations of its apparel exporters to ensure they are not adversely affected by the anticipated suspension of duty-free access to the US market under the African Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA). The US Government had announced in March its intention to suspend duty-free treatment to all AGOA-eligible apparel items for Rwanda. The Rwandan Government is putting up an adjustment facility to pay taxes imposed on the exporters for the next one year. This would allow

With its Low Impact Denim (LID) range, the Jack & Jones brand which belongs to the Danish company Bestseller has set new standards in the field of environmentally friendly jeans manufacturing. Energy and water savings as well as eco-friendly bleaching, dyeing and washing methods make the LID concept of Jack & Jones a pioneer in the denim market. The CHT Group and its innovative organIQ technology is a fundamental part of this trendsetting LID range. CHT contributes to it with its va

Imports at major US retail container ports are likely to set record numbers in summer and fall 2018, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates. Consumers are buying more, so retailers are importing more, said NRF vice president for supply chain and customs policy Jonathan Gold. “Imports continue to be the primary source of high-quality, mass-produced necessities at affordable prices and will be for the foresee

Coats, a leading industrial thread manufacturer and a major player in the Americas textile crafts market, has announced that the company has appointed Kevin Finn to the newly created role of president, business operations, with effect from July 1, 2018. Kevin is currently the chief operating officer, of Coats Asia, and is based in Shenzhen, China. Kevin will have global accountability for business operations and will oversee the delivery of the annual business plan. His responsibilities in

Home Textiles Sourcing Expo 2018, taking place alongside Texworld USA and Apparel Sourcing USA, will offer a wide variety of seminars and panels in this season’s edition. This summer, the educational events will focus on the global home textiles landscape, Autumn/Winter 2019-20 colour trends and a unique panel on translating fashion trends into home décor. As a marketplace for networking, education and sourcing, Home Textiles Sourcing Expo, beginning July 23, is the only trade event in Nort

Thefts, fraud and losses from other retail ‘shrink’ decreased to $46.8 billion in 2017 from $48.9 billion the year before in the United States as shoplifting and organized retail crime continued to be the leading causes, according to the annual National Retail Security Survey released recently by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and the University of Florida. Shoplifting and organized retail crime accounted for 36 per cent of losses, followed by internal employee theft (33 per cent), ad

India's annual rate of inflation, based on monthly wholesale price index (WPI), stood at 4.43 per cent for the month of May 2018 over same month of last year. The index for apparel increased by 1.2 per cent to 141.0 in May, according to the provisional data released by the Office of the Economic Adviser, ministry of commerce and industry. The official WPI for all commodities (Base: 2011-12 = 100) for the month of May 2018 rose by 0.9 per cent to 117.9 from the previous month’s level of 116.

Zalando, Europe’s leading fashion platform, together with its partner Vailog, leading developer of logistics facilities in Italy, is establishing its new fulfillment centre in Nogarole Rocca (VR). The proximity to Southern European markets, availability of labour, and superior infrastructure are some of the reasons behind Zalando’s choice of this location. The event was attended by Jan Bartels, Vice President Customer Fulfillment and Logistics at Zalando, Eric Veron, General Manager at Vai