Cotton export has started to pick up, with the new season (October to September) having begun, but is unlikely to meet the estimates put forward by the Cotton Advisory Board (CAB). The Board, under the Union textile commissioner, has estimated total export in 2014-15 at nine million bales (a bale is 170 kg), about 23 per cent lower from the previous year’s export of 11.7 mn bales. Analysts believe the total might be no more than 7-7.5 mn. Prerana Desai, head of research with Edelweiss Comm

Mills and spinners continued buying on expectations of increase in prices in times to come, dealers said on the cotton market on Friday. The official spot rate was unchanged at Rs 5,150, they added. In the ready session, around 30,000 bales of cotton changed hands between Rs 4600 and Rs 5300, they said. In Sindh, rates of seed cotton were firm at Rs 2000 and Rs 2500, in Punjab prices were unchanged at Rs 2400 and Rs 2650, they said. Market sources said that in the short run, no major change

China's manufacturing growth picked up to a three-month high in October, a closely watched private survey confirmed Monday, but did little to counter a picture of slowing growth in the world's second-largest economy. British bank HSBC's final purchasing managers index (PMI) came in at 50.4 last month, above the 50-point level that separates expansion and contraction and the strongest since July's 51.7. The index tracks activity in factories and workshops and is considered a key indicator o

The tannery owners have demanded of the central bank and the government to instruct all the banks to ensure full-fledged implementation of the incentive package offered to help relocate the leather processing factories from Hazaribag to Savar. Bangladesh Bank on Sunday offered an incentive package including transferring irregular loans to block accounts, moratorium facilities and flexible payment term for the owners to help move their factories to a designated industrial park in Savar. Th

Knitwear garment exports from Tirupur recorded a growth of 16 per cent at Rs 10,050 crore in the first six months of financial year 2014-15 as against Rs 8,650 crore in the corresponding period last year. In dollar terms, the growth stood at 13.35 per cent. Exporters from this tiny town, which is the hub for knitwear exports, in southern Tamil Nadu are hoping to close the fiscal with an export turnover of Rs 21,000 crore. Tirupur Exporters Association (TEA)'s president A Sakthivel said the

The Punjab-based textile industry has lost 40 percent of production capacity after being exposed fast to unbearable electricity load shedding since 2011. According to the available data, the Punjab-based textile industry was exposed to four hours a day load shedding in 2011, followed by six hours a day in 2012 and 2013 and eight hours a day in 2014. The incremental surge in load shedding for the Punjab-based textile industry is resulting into widespread unemployment besides a substantial drop

Bangladesh's apparel sector will continue to thrive due to retailers' growing confidence and the country's ability to supply garments at competitive prices, said officials of Foreign Trade Association, a Brussels-based platform mainly of European retailers. The platform with 1,400 active members has different wings such as Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI) and Business Environmental Performance Initiative (BEPI). “My guess is that Bangladesh's garment sector will continue to gro

DESIGNER labels Armani, Ralph Lauren and Fendi are among manufacturers whose clothing failed recent quality tests by the city’s quality watchdog. Other well-known international brands and retailers whose goods fell foul of the watchdog included Marks and Spencer, Lacoste and Muji. Problems were encountered with fiber content, color fastness, excessive levels of formaldehyde, a high pH index and labeling, the Shanghai Industrial and Commercial Administrative Bureau said. Retailers were o

Turkey, the biggest importer of US upland cotton last year, buying 1.1 million bales worth about $500 million announced the investigation into possible dumping of US cotton in the country, the US government and an industry group said, the third dispute over US cotton in recent years and a sign of rising tensions in global trade as prices sink. The move was significant for several reasons. It came just four days after the US regulators cleared the way for a 1.25 percent anti-subsidy duty on T

Vietnamese-made textile products at present enjoy a preferential tariff in Japan due to ASEAN+1 (ASEAN plus Japan) and the Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement as similar items from China are subject to 15-20% tariffs. Preferential tariffs may no longer be a competitive advantage for Vietnamese goods over those from China in the Japanese and South Korean markets after the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement is signed. The 10 member states of the Associatio