FibeRio, the developer and manufacturer of ground breaking Forcespinning nanofiber production systems, announced it has completed a $13M capital raise led by two global strategic investors – SABIC Ventures B.V., Saudi Basic Industries Corporation’s corporate venture capital arm, and Aster Capital Partners, sponsored by Solvay, Schneider Electric, Alstom and the European investment fund. The funding will be used to accelerate the company’s commercial growth, introduce larger scale production syst

The textile exports from the country increased by 8.39 per cent during the first seven months of the current fiscal year as compared to the same period of last year. During the month of Jan 2013, the exports of textile products increased by 8.72pc and 0.49 per cent when compared to the exports of January 2012 and Dec 2012 respectively, according to the data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). Source: The Nation, Pakistan

China, a major textile producer for about two decades, is now focusing on other sectors. It is expected this would change the fortunes of other textile producers such as India and Bangladesh. The Chinese government has told mills in that country that if they import cotton, they would have to buy twice that amount from the state agency. The government has also increased yarn import and is concentrating on manufacturing high-value items. As a result, India, Bangladesh and Vietnam are receiving m

Clothing makers in Yangon say the rising demand for clothing made from imported raw material and cotton, combined with a spike in local retailers, has lead to fiercer market competition throughout February. A woman unpacks clothing at BFC Men’s Fashion in Yangon’s Yuzana Plaza February 18, 2013. (Thiri Lu/The Myanmar Times) “Sales have increased compared to last month because of [the demand for lighter clothing in the hot season], but because there are so many suppliers now, sales have not

Sewing workers at a garment factory Photo: VNA Local garment and textile businesses felt excited in the first two months of 2013 as orders from abroad came in droves. Experts predicted that the garment and textile sector will maintain its growth rate of 12-15 percent to pocket around US$19.3 billion in export turnover this year. For the goal, the sector needs a large workforce, senior advisor to the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) Le Quoc An said, suggesting the employme

THE Philippines should take advantage of preferential tariffs offered by the European Union (EU) under the bloc’s new import scheme, which will take effect in 2014. Next year the European Commission is rolling out a new Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) dubbed as “GSP+” that will grant trade concessions for “trade-vulnerable countries” and limit imports to developing countries most in need. “Top gainers for the Philippines, if and when we quality for GSP+ additional preference, are p

Greenpeace hailed China’s commitment to clean up chemical pollution with a breakthrough chemical management plan that acknowledges for the first time the existence of ‘cancer villages’ and will blacklist 58 chemicals and have an elimination chemical list by 2015. “China has been the world’s largest chemical producer since 2010. The Plan indicates that the massive pollution found across the country, caused by large-scale chemical production and the release of hazardous chemicals, urgently ne

US growers will harvest the smallest cotton crop in four years and notch the smallest exports in 12 years as world demand for the fibre drops, especially in China, the Agriculture Department said on Friday. At its annual Outlook Forum, USDA projected a crop of 14 million bales from planted acreage of 10 million acres. Plantings would be the smallest in four years and down 19 percent from last year. The crop, projected to be down 18 percent from 2012, would be the smallest since 2009. Exports w

The Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC), which has its headquarters in Gurgaon, announced a new proposal to boost international trade for the garment sector, which for the first time in the past eight months is reporting positive growth. The list of recommendations have been submitted to the Union textile ministry, with one of the demands being curtailment of custom duty on selected fabrics. "The AEPC has put up an ambitious plan for increasing the total garment exports to $30 billion in t

As demand dropped after a recent hike, cotton declined by about Rs 200 a candy on Monday. However, kapas price remained strong due to low arrivals. According to traders, cotton price may decline but not much as supply is weak. Gujarat Sankar-6 cotton was traded lower by Rs 200 to Rs 36,700-36,800 a candy of 356 kg. B-grade cotton stood at Rs 36,400-36,500. Kapas price remained stable at Rs 880-980 for 20 kg in Saurashtra. About 30,000-32,000 bales of cotton arrived in Gujarat and 1.35 la