Ecuador's crude-oil exports totaled 11.93 million barrels in March, a 2% increase from the previous month, the Central Bank said Thursday. Crude oil is Ecuador's main export. All the oil is exported by Ecuador's state-owned companies. The country's crude-oil exports revenue totaled $1.16 billion in March from the $1.17 billion registered one month before. The average price of crude oil in March was $97.8 a barrel. The central bank also said Ecuador produced 15.63 million barrels of crude oi

Representatives of the Turkish company Chalik Holding paid a three-day visit to Georgia on Wednesday. According to the Georgian National Investment Agency, the delegation is headed by director of Chalik textile holding's subsidiary. The visit was organised by the Investment Agency. The company is interested in investing in the Georgian textile sector. In particular, the company is looking at creating a garment enterprise in western Georgia, where about 600 people will be offered jobs. The

Representatives of Brazilian companies and of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) are visiting the Amazon region of San Martin to share experiences on improving cotton production in this region. The visit of the delegation is held as part of the Brazil-FAO International Cooperation Program in Peru, according to FAO office in Lima. The objective is to promote the development of family farms producing cotton, increase productivity

Netherlands-based apparel body passed resolution on lack of labour safety, health measures and an inappropriate work environment in Bangladesh. After the recent incidents of fire at and collapse of factory buildings in the garment exporters' hub of Bangladesh, the country and its garment units, are facing the ire of international business communities. The Netherlands-based International Apparel Federation (IAF) yesterday passed a resolution, on lack of labour safety and health measures and an

Bangladesh has shut down 18 garment plants for safety reasons after a building housing five of the factories collapsed and killed more than 800 people, a minister said Wednesday. The move comes days after Bangladesh agreed with the International Labour Organisation to give safety “the highest consideration” amid government fears that Western garment firms might start sourcing goods from other countries. “Sixteen factories have been closed down in Dhaka and two in Chittagong,”textile minist

Cotton futures rose to one-month highs on Wednesday on fresh buying driven by concerns about dry weather in Texas, the country's No 1 growing state, and as investors prepared for a key US crop report due Friday. Gains were tempered though by news that India, one of the world's top producers and consumers, started selling its reserves to protect its domestic textile mills from costly imports. "The talk of releasing India stocks has helped keep a lid on the market," said the broker. US traders wo

Angel network Mumbai Angels has invested in Yoga Smoga, a yoga-inspired athletic apparel and accessories company founded by US-based Indian-origin entrepreneur Rishi Bali. This is the fifth international investment for the Angel group. Yoga Smoga was founded in 2010 as a designer and manufacturer of athletic clothing. Mumbai Angels, along with a group of unnamed US based Angels, has invested around Rs 5 crore in the company. The company has developed a high technology fabric that is a mix of S

The Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) recently granted permission to Nizhnekamskneftekhim (NKNK), Russia’s and one of the world’s leading petrochemical producers, to acquire 100% of the shares of JSC Polymatiz, according to Irina Kashunina, an official spokesperson for the FAS. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, however, according to some Russian analysts, they could be in the range of 1.1 to 1.5 billion rubles (USD$33-49.5 million). Established in 2006, Polymatiz is

During the past year or so, the tabloids have been dominated by one crazy story after the next about Amanda Bynes, which is a shame since the former child star and comedian is super talented. Maybe she'll channel some of the creativity she used in her old performances into the new clothing line she's working on. Yep, you read that correctly: Amanda is at work on a fashion line! "My line will be a mixture of sick styles, and it's going to be for everybody," she told In Touch magazine. "I l

It's been a very sad year so far for the Missoni family. Ottavio Missoni, the 92-year-old co-founder of the Italian knitwear brand, died today at his home in Sumirago, Italy. Ottavio's death comes just a few months after we learned a plane that was flying his son Vittorio and a few other passengers disappeared off the coast of Venezuela. This runway image is particularly poignant, as this show went on just one month after Vittorio's plane went missing. In a statement, a spokesman confirme