The following is a round-up of apparel and footwear news from the world’s local media.

  • Pakistans’s Ministry of Commerce is to fund research and innovation projects for the country’s textile sector initiated by the National Textile University (NTU). The project would establish a Textile Innovation Centre at the NTU to focus on the global demand for the next-era fabric, which includes technical and functional fabrics to provide new initiatives in the field of design and value-addition. THE INTERNATIONAL NEWS

  • India has lost 37 textile markets in the European Union (EU) to Pakistan over the last two years due to the latter’s inclusion in the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP). In 2014, the European Union included Pakistan to the list of GSP which allowed duty-free access to EU markets for textile exports. Consequently, exporters from Pakistan are now able to ship fabrics, made-ups and garments with no tariffs. BUSINESS STANDARD

  • Dockworkers and shipping companies at US West Coast ports are officially considering extending the five-year contract they agreed to last year, according to Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker. An extension would avoid another round of negotiations that could disrupt trade, and would come as a relief to retailers, manufacturers and other shippers that use the West Coast ports. WALL STREET JOURNAL

  • Pakistan’s export-oriented textile industry has threatened legal action if its sales tax refund claims, pending for the last two years, are not released immediately. Pakistan Readymade Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PRGMEA) chief coordinator Ijaz Khokhar asked Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to personally intervene and play a role in the early processing of exporters’ claims. THE NEWS

  • Arrangements are under way to hold the third round of negotiations for a China-Sri Lanka FTA in June. However, Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen, said: “When reviewing the garment sector, we need to be able to carefully address the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement under which tax free garment export opportunities have been given to countries such as Vietnam. This may also affect exports from Sri Lanka in the future.” LANKA BUSINESS ONLINE

  • Three people were killed in a fire that broke out in a textile unit in Ludhiana, Punjab late last week. It is understood they were workers at the factory who had stayed over during the night. No reason for the fire has yet been ascertained. NDTV

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just-style has not checked these stories so cannot guarantee their accuracy.

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