The garment exporters' profitability has hit a rock-bottom thanks to the continued downward price pressure by the international retailers amid rising production costs. “In fact we are just keeping our businesses afloat,” said a garment manufacturer who exports apparel items worth nearly $500 million a year. The price of garment items has been falling 5-8 percent every year whereas the cost of production is increasing 15-18 percent, he said. For instance, in 2015, a pair of denim trouser

The Zimbabwe Textile Manufacturers’ Association (ZCMA) has appealed to the government to timely disburse foreign currency to its members to ensure they meet their obligations and remain in business in times of liquidity crisis. ZCMA secretary-general Raymond Huni recently said the textile industry needed urgent intervention to avoid a total collapse. As the current liquidity crisis continues, the government assisted a few struggling companies to easily access foreign currency. People have re

In an effort to revive the Egypt’s rewarding cotton industry that can help its stagnant economy, the farmers enlarge the area planted with cotton. Farmers at Fayoum province, some 100 km south of Cairo, cultivated one feddan (1 feddan=1.038 acres) of land with the finest long-staple cotton (known in Egypt as Giza 95). He will double his cotton field next year. The farmers said that the ministry of agriculture helps them by providing subsided seeds and fertilizers necessary for the treatment o

Increase in wages for workers and logistics costs, putting Vietnam’s local garment exporters under pressure, particularly in the face of fierce competition from regional rivals like Bangladesh, Myanmar and Cambodia. Part of the problem with Vietnam’s competitors is they are enjoying preferential policies from their governments—including things like tax breaks to boost exports—where Vietnam hasn’t had as many of these perks. They’ve also enjoyed preferential trade status from major trade partn

With the supply of textiles from Uzbekistan to Russia increasing by 22 percent in 2017, both countries Russia and Uzbekistan aims to further expand cooperation in textile industry which is a strategic centerpiece of the Uzbek economy due to the fact that Uzbekistan is the world’s sixth-largest cotton-growing country producing about 1.1 million tons of cotton fiber annually. Russia and Uzbekistan intends to create a “green corridor” for the supply of textile products. Uzbek Foreign Trade Minis

Ethiopia and India aiming to strengthen its ties on Thursday signed various partnership agreements, which were signed in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa by visiting Indian President Ram Nath Kovind and Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome, includes agreements in textile and garment sector. Over 584 Indian companies have invested over 2 billion U.S. dollars in Ethiopia's various areas, including textile and garments, education, technology, among other sectors. Kovind, who is the first Indian p

Wool is becoming increasingly well-recognised for its sustainable qualities despite facing numerous challenges around the way sustainability within the textile and garment industry is defined and assessed. Janet Prescott reports. In today’s textile and clothing industry, "sustainability" is a word on everybody’s lips. It appears as shorthand for everything good in industrial practice and product. Its prominence, as seen in the recent yarn and fabric shows for autumn/winter 2018/19 around Euro

The minimum wage increase, coupled with the increase for social insurance and union fees, is putting financial burdens on enterprises operating in labour-intensive sectors, such as the garment and textile sector. At the October 4 conference on estimating the impacts of labour, wage, and social insurance policies on garment and textile enterprises organised by the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas) in Hanoi, representatives of organisations and enterprises in the garment and texti

According to the General Statistics Office, export turnover enjoyed a year-on-year increase of 19.8 percent in the first nine months of this year, or 154 billion USD. Economists attributed the growth to Vietnam’s participation in free trade agreements which encourage the business community to invest more in exports and seek new opportunities. In addition, global commodity prices are rising, resulting in increases in export values. The Ministry of Industry and Trade said that the improve

Punjab Agriculture Minister Naeem Akhtar Bhabha has said that the provincial government is making all-out efforts to enhance cotton crop production. He said the efforts had helped increase cotton cultivation by 19 percent compared with the last year. He expressed these views in a meeting of the Cotton Crop Management Group, held at Tehsil Jalalpur Pirwala. He said that the government was committed to making south Punjab the cotton valley. Different uplift schemes have been initiated for impro