News
28th June 2018
New foreign clothing and textiles investment collapses in Vietnam
Foreign textile-related investment in Vietnam has fallen this year to “several” new projects from the 129 projects worth $600 mn approved in 2016. 2017 itself saw a 30% fall in new projects...
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27th June 2018
Clothing return problems worsening, says major card owner
37% of UK clothing businesses say returns from online purchases have risen over the past two years, according to research carried out for card operator Barclaycard. 47% by value of...
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26th June 2018
Worker Rights Consortium documents vicious threats and beatings at Bangalore’s Shahi Export
A new report by the Workers' Rights' Consortium claimed on June 20 that Shahi Export in Bangalore, India, viciously attacked workers in April this year. Attacks included physical beatings and...
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21st June 2018
Tesco and Walmart “ignore labour practices disclosure”
Tesco and Walmart "ignored calls for more information on their labour practices", said the FT on May 1. They are among over 40 large companies apparently failing to reply to a ...
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3rd June 2018
Growth renewed in spinning/weaving investment
The annual International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) machinery shipments report showed faster growth in 2017. In several categories, the previous few years had seen a decline: China continued to be the...
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23rd May 2018
Bangladesh: Ramadan ends with none of the forecast chaos
Ramadan ended on June 14 with virtually none of the carnage predicted for the Bangladesh clothing industry at its beginning. In late May, local media reported that "labour unrest is...
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17th May 2018
UK Prime Minister uses Royal Wedding to disguise Single Market confirmation
Theresa May confirmed on May 16 that Britain would remain in Europe's Single Market - using the news chaos around the Royal Wedding to ensure media would overlook it. The...
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23rd April 2018
Bangladesh: Capitalism’s greatest achievement?
On April 24, 2013 the Rana Plaza catastrophe made Bangladesh notorious. We all know how our industry became a pariah as well. Today – thanks to the way our industry...
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22nd April 2018
Chinese “waiting for Pakistani textile mills to die”
A year ago, Pakistani companies were leaking to news agencies that Chinese firms were using Beijing’s “One Belt, One Road” project to invest heavily in Pakistan's spinning and weaving industry. Six...
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20th April 2018
ETI and Better Buying launch “suppliers rate buyers” programme – in Bangladesh
US-based Better Buying and the UK-based Ethical Trade Initiative have launched a 360 degree appraisal programme - in Bangladesh. The initiative - as far as we are aware, unprecedented in...
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17th April 2018
Primark becomes first British retailer to make over $1bn from selling clothes
Primark's H1 results, announced on April 17, make it the first British retailer to achieve over a billion dollars' annual profit from selling clothes. A disappointing performance from its parent...
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15th April 2018
Trump U-turns again on TPP. EU just presses on with TPP’s key members
The Trump administration's stances on the TPP in April probably established an all-time record for policy U-turns. The TPP's major members, though, made real progress with the EU Trump's wobbles...
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