It is not so often that one hears of a Leicester-based UK knitwear firm expanding these days. Leicester was once the thriving hub of knitwear production in the UK, employing 30,000 people, but as retailers have sought to protect margins in an increasingly competitive retail environment, much manufacturing has gone to the Far East. However, there are signs that for those who have managed to cling on through the difficult times, UK retail demand for their knitwear could be returning and even g

With the textile industry reviving from two years of slowdown, the Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (Texprocil) is confident that cotton textile exports from the country will double in three years. Chairman of the council Manickam Ramaswamy toldThe Hinduthat the annual cotton textile export now was worth $ 10 billion, consisting of cotton yarn, fabric and home textiles. India is most competitive manufacturer of textile products globally, compared to China and Bangladesh too. It has se

Apparel export of $17 billion is expected this financial year, compared to $14 bn last year, say those in the trade. A cheaper rupee will help. Exporters are hoping to capture buyers who used to source apparel from Bangladesh. The latter, currently the second largest apparel exporter in the world, has seen several negative happenings which have highlighted the poor working conditions of labour in the segment. These have led to several foreign brands which had outsourced garment making there to

Sixteen Cambodian garment workers and union representatives have been charged with inciting violence and damaging property during a strike for higher pay at a factory making clothes for U.S. sportswear company Nike, a lawyer said on Tuesday. Low-cost labor has attracted Western brands to Cambodia and garments now account for around 75 percent of exports from the Southeast Asian country, but strikes over pay and working conditions have become common. Up to 4,000 workers at Sabrina (Cambodia

Vietnam’s textile-garment industry will see a wave of Chinese investment, said a source from Vietnam National Garment and Textile Group (Vinatex). Chinese firms are quick to seize investment opportunities. Vietnamese apparel products would enjoy a zero tariff in the U.S. after Vietnam signs the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, said the source. The garment industry will be the strongest magnet for Chinese investors, while textile and dyeing will also lure Chinese investment, but a

The seed cotton campaign recently began in Mozambique with the Mozambican Cotton Institute setting a production target of 100,000 tons, compared to 184,000 tons in the previous campaign according to Mozambican daily newspaper Notícias. Norberto Mahalambe, the director of the Cotton Institute, said that the expected drop in production, of 46 percent, was not a concern, as it exceeded long term projections, set at 92,000 tons of seed cotton. “We have gone from production of 41,000 tons, in 2010,

Invista (Wichita, KS) has signed an exclusive, long-term agreement with Petrochemical Conversion Company Ltd. (PCC; Jubail, Saudi Arabia) to purchase and market polyamide 66 engineering resin manufactured at PCC's new world-scale PA 66 plant in Al-Jubail. The new facility-expected to start up in late 2013 or early 2014-will produce up to 50,000 tonnes/year of polyamide 66. Other than PCC's own sales in Saudi Arabia, the product will be sold and marketed under Invista's Torzen engineering polymer

Bangladesh's central bank approved $154 million worth of investment on Tuesday to boost electricity supply and enable a number of textile investments. The move was made by the Investment Scrutiny Committee dealing with approvals of private sector foreign borrowing at a meeting presided over by bank governor Atiur Rahman, a bank statement said. The highest interest rate permitted for the approved inverstment is a 6-month LIBOR+4.50 percent per annum, it said. The committee said more foreign

Pakistani textiles, textile made-ups, pharmaceuticals, rice, fruits, surgical goods, sports goods have a huge potential in Ukraine therefore Pakistani businessmen should avail opportunities in these areas. This was stated by Ambassador-designate to Ukraine Maj Gen (r) Wajahat Ali Muftee while speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Thursday. LCCI Vice President Mian Abuzar Shad presented address of welcome while Executive Committee member Mian Zahid Javaid, former EC members

- PHOTO: BLOOMBERG The volume of Japan's customs-cleared crude oil imports rose 0.7 per cent in May from the same month a year earlier, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday. Japan, the world's third-biggest oil consumer, imported 16.71 million kilolitres (3.39 million barrels per day) of crude oil last month, the preliminary data showed. That compared with April imports of 18.729 million kl. Japan's imports of liquefied natural gas totalled 6.42 million tonnes last month, down 9.8