Increase in prices of polyester fibre to aggravate problems

Recent increase in prices of polyester fiber by local manufacturers would further aggravate the problems of already ailing textile industry by increasing the cost of production and making textile exports uncompetitive in market, said Wasim Latif, Chairman and Adil Manzoor Elahi Vice Chairman Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) here on Tuesday.

In a joint press statement, they said that short supply of polyester staple fiber coupled with its increased prices have hit the value added textile sector hard and the local producers of polyester staple fiber were reportedly planning to further raise its price. Hike of Rs 5 per kg in the polyester fiber will give another blow to the value added sector, which is already reeling due to high cost of production, they revealed.

Elaborating, they said, polyester staple fiber prices were already increasing as a result of Anti Dumping Duty on import of polyester staple fiber in Pakistan and recent increase is also part of that wave. The concept of anti dumping duty under WTO is protection of finished goods industry, however, in the present case, the textile industry is being deprived of cheap raw material by imposing anti dumping duty, they explained. The government should take notice of the polyester fiber manufacturer's cartel attitude and the said duty should be withdrawn, they demanded.

The chairman PTEA said that Pakistan is already facing 30% to 40% shortage of cotton due to floods in the country. Pakistani exporters have no option but to divert their production to alternate raw material of polyester fiber. Elaborating, he said that raw material shortage was on two sides, on the one hand 20% of cotton crop had been washed away in the recent floods while on the other hand demand of polyester fiber was in excess of total manufacturing capacity of the fiber mills, they said.

It was, therefore, imperative that adequate supply of raw material for the textile exporters should be ensured to enable them to meet their export commitments, they said. This could be appropriately done by removing import restrictions and allowing duty free import of polyester fiber to give a breathing space to the crisis ridden textile sector, they concluded.

Elahi was of the view that textile crisis lingering over the last few months. Gas closure has added fuel to the fire and the industry is on the verge of collapse, he added. A number of manufacturing units have already shut down their operations while many others are operating partially, as a result thousands of workers have lost their jobs. The textile sector was generating 70% of foreign exchange few years back which has slumped to 55% now, he said apprehending negative impact of downslide in industrial production, he said, textile sector in the country was already under severe strain due to four days loadshedding of gas. Under these circumstances textile exporters were constrained to stop manufacturing activities. PTEA office bearers said that fair distribution of shortage of gas across the board was imperative and asked the government to remove discrimination in gas loadshedding. They demanded that duty free import of polyester fiber should be allowed to fulfil requirements of raw material of local industry.

12 Ways to save the world!

1   Energy saving LED lamps

Lighting is a large contributor to electricity costs in hospitality.  Replace incandescent or halogen lamps with LED lamps for huge savings.  You can save up to 85% on electricity costs and LED lamps can last up to 45 times longer than standard lamps. 

2   Microfibre E-cloth

Eco cloths reduce the need to use cleaning chemicals - just add water and clean - but they are not suitable for use in food preparation areas.  Using smaller amounts of cleaning products saves money and cuts down on pollution.  And also helps to prevent allergic 

reactions to these products.  

 

3   Ecosure Light a space paint

Light and space uses up to 20% less light energy, meaning lighting can be set to lower levels or switched on for shorter periods.  

 

 

4   Recheable batteries

Batteries can be recharged up to 1000 times, saving £1,000s over their life span and lasts up to 40% longer than ordinary nickel-cadmium batteries.  As well as saving significant amounts of money on buying new batteries, using rechargeable ones cuts down on waste disposal.

 

 

5   Switch it off!

You could cut your lighting costs by as much as 15% just by making sure you turn off lights in areas that aren't being used.  These stickers are perfect for back-of-house use.

 

 

6   Smart Meter

The energy meter helps you to understand which appliances use most power so that you can adapt your usage or exchange them for more efficient equivalent.  

 

 

 

7   Dryer Balls

Dryer balls reduce the time needed to dry a load by up to 25% and soften fabrics without the use of chemicals.  They also reduce creases and wrinkles, making ironing easier and cut down on waste fluff.

 

 

8   Recycled Printer Paper

Using recycled paper gives rise to lower environmental impact, such as resource depletion (timber, energy and waste) and pollution.  And double-sided printing reduces waste and saves  money too. 

 

 

9   Recycling Bin

Talk to your waste collection contractor about trade waste recycling -  many materials have a market value and the cost of collecting recyclable material can be less than the cost of waste sent to landfill. 

 

 

 

10   Thermostatic radiator value

Giving guests/staff control over the level of heating in their rooms mean that they are less likely to open the window if it is too hot, especially as many people like to sleep in a cooler room.  You can save up to 8% on heating costs by turning the thermostat down by 1%.

 

 

11   Standby saver

Research suggests that leaving electrical equipment on standby can reduce the lifespan by an average of 15% and creates a needless fire risk.  One standby saver installed in a home can save more then £43p,a., so business can save much more. 

 

12   Toiletry dispensers

Only a fraction of individually packaged toiletry products in bathrooms and guest rooms (as little as 15%) are used by guests and the remainder are often thrown away.  Wall mounted dispensers can reduce packaging and product waste significantly. 

 

 

How Do I Get The Iron Out My Water? It Is Turning My Towels Yellow.

Generally .5 ppm of iron will stain and discolor white textiles. Chlorine is not a good choice for washing textiles when there is any significant amount of iron present in the water. The best way to wash under the conditions where iron is present is to use oxygen bleaches.  When using commercial laundry equipment, an iron removing sour can strip iron or control the presence depending upon the concentration of the bath, and lower pH value of the water in the bath.

When iron is causing significant textile cleaning and whiteness problems in a laundry operation, I recommend installing a water softening system that utilizes de-iron salt pellets.  A water softener can remove up to .2-.3 ppm of iron. This approach has great benefits for cleaning, whiting, and maintaining tensile strength of the textile fabric over more costly chemical alternatives.

Spot rate on cotton market hits Rs 11,000, an all-time high

KARACHI  (February 03, 2011) : Official spot rate after a short break, went up to touch all-time high level on the cotton market on Wednesday due to persisting demand in the world market, dealers said. The Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) spot rate was raised by Rs 200 to Rs 11000, they said. Phutti prices in Sindh and Punjab were unchanged at Rs 4200-5200, they said.

In the ready business, trading activity improved as about 12,000 bales of cotton changed hand between Rs 10,200-11500, they added. A few ginners showed interest in fresh selling and finalised the deals below their psychological level. Mills were also ready to grab the lots, which were matching with the export parity level, experts said.

Commenting on the thin activity, they said that short crop and higher demand pushed prices higher, but it looks that some ginners may try to sell to keep themselves away from the dullness because of long holiday in China. Some analysts said that the government may take measures to bring out the mills and spinners from the prevailing uncertainties.

According to a report India has asked traders to apply for cotton yarn exports for unshipped quantities out of the 720 million kg allowed in the 2010/11 season, a government circular said. Exporters must apply between February 2 and February 7, the circular said, and after getting permission have to export the quantity by March 31.

Besides global cotton use will rebound in 2011/12, a year after soaring prices and limited output stunted consumption, International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) said on Tuesday. The ICAC said world cotton production will rise to 27.4 million tonnes from 25.1 million tonnes during 2010/11. Demand will increase by 700,000 tonnes to 25.4 million tonnes.

On Tuesday the US cotton futures settled higher for the second day running on speculative buying inspired in part by stronger Chinese prices, with no sign speculative bulls are done rallying fibre contracts. Cotton futures had risen over 22 percent in a fresh rally that began in the middle of January, with Chinese cotton futures matching the rally in the US market.

The rally has made cotton the early leader of commodities in the Reuters-Jefferies commodity index in 2011, as it rose almost 20 percent year to date. In 2010, cotton was the best performing commodity as it went up over 90 percent. The key March cotton contract on ICE Futures US rose 3.78 cents or 2.2 percent to settle at $1.7222 per lb, dealing from $1.6923 to daily limit up at $1.7244. Total volume stood around 26,800 lots, about 40 percent above the 30-day average, Thomson Reuters preliminary data showed.

The following deals were reported: 600 bales of cotton from Mir Pur Khas sold at Rs 10400-10500, 400 bales of cotton from Sanghar at Rs 10800, 400 bales of cotton from Shahdad Pur at Rs 10800, 400 bales of cotton from Kumb at Rs 10900, 1200 bales of cotton from Ghotki at Rs 11400-11500, 200 bales of cotton from Layyah at Rs 10200, 1000 bales of cotton from Bahawal Pur at Rs 10300, 400 bales of cotton from Bahawal Nagar at Rs 10400, 200 bales of cotton from Muridwala at Rs 10800, 400 bales of cotton from Mian Channu at Rs 11000, 1000 bales of cotton from Rahim Yar Khan at Rs 11000, 927 bales of cotton from Shadan Lund at Rs 11000, 400 bales of cotton from Ali Pur at Rs 11150, 400 bales of cotton from Mianwali at Rs 11200 and 400 bales of cotton from Dera Ghazi Khan at Rs 11500

World bed bug summit

More than 300 people have gathered at the National Bedbug Summit in Washington DC to try to find ways to deal with the growing problem of infestations. Experts say bedbugs are now the "toughest pests to control", and that the insects are becoming more resistant to chemical treatments.

Warning - reading this could make you itch.

"I can't think of anything creepier than these little things that suck the blood out of you," says Bob Rosenberg, vice-president of the National Pest Management Association.

"You wake up with your sheets stained by faecal matter and blood; can you think of anything worse?" he asks.

With a description like that - perhaps not. And that is why more than 300 people, from lawmakers to pest controllers to academics, have met in the nation's capital to discuss ways to beat the bedbugs.

Bug bear
It's not your usual fodder for Washington summits, granted - but the issue of bedbugs is so widespread that representatives from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the US Department of Agriculture, and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development are among the list of attendees.


Bedbugs can cause a nasty-looking rash when they bite
There are no nationally-collated figures on the numbers of bedbug infestations in the US, but officials from the EPA say cases are on the rise, and that they are putting more money and manpower into tackling the problem.

"It's spreading throughout the country," says Bill Diamond, from the EPA. "It used to just be concentrated in hot spots but now we're seeing them pop up in lots of places."

Mr Diamond says that while cases are still mainly confined to cities on the East Coast, there are now reports of infestations in every state in America. The purpose of the bedbug summit is to determine the nature and scope of the problem and find ways to deal with it more efficiently.

One problem, Mr Diamond says, is that the bugs are becoming increasingly resistant to the pesticides used to control them.

"There are many different strains of bugs not only in this country but around the world and that's one of the problems we are having," he adds.

Itchy infestations

This is one reason why the nation's pest controllers now say that bedbugs are the toughest insects to deal with.

Continue reading the main story
Battling bedbugs


Don't take in second-hand beds or mattresses
Don't allow clutter to build up where you sleep - it's a perfect nesting place for bedbugs
When looking around rented accommodation, watch out for telltale blood spots or smears on sheets, and in the seams of furniture and upholstery
Don't wait to report a problem - nip an infestation in the bud before it grows
Bedbugs are not thought to be able to bite through clothing. So as a last resort, you can zip yourself into a sleeping bag or all-over body suit
Call pest control to deal with an infestation
"When you ask US pest control operators what is the most difficult pest to control - is it termites, cockroaches, bedbugs or ants - close to 80% say bedbugs are the most difficult," says Mr Rosenberg.

"There's not any one silver bullet, not one magic thing you can do that works all the time."

Bedbugs often live in the seams of mattresses, sofas and sheets, emerging to feed on their victims at night.

They are not known to carry diseases, but many people develop an itchy swelling when bitten.

Many people are now trying to deal with bedbugs themselves, and while this was a topic for discussion on the summit's agenda, experts say DIY treatments such as home chemicals and "foggers" - bug bombs - should be used with caution.

Fifty years ago, cases of bedbugs were virtually unheard of. Back then, chemicals such as DDT - which is now banned - were credited for getting killing them off.

In recent years, the rise has been attributed by some experts to an increase in international travel.

The numbers of people calling out professional help to eradicate bedbugs is now at an all-time high. Between 2006 and 2009 it tripled - with almost $258m (£160m) spent on treatments.

In New York last year, locations including the flagship Nike store, a branch of lingerie chain Victoria's Secret and even the BBC's studios at the United Nations were forced to deal with infestations.

'Stigma misplaced'
One of the summit's attendees, Michael O'Leary from the Baltimore City Health Department, says his city saw a 93% increase in infestations between July and December 2010, compared with the previous year.


Michael O'Leary says cases in Baltimore rose significantly last year
"We see about 90 cases per month during the peak periods which is during summer. Overall we see maybe 650 to 700 cases in a year, and that's probably only a quarter of the actual cases," he says.

He has come to the summit in the hope of securing more resources to deal with the problem.

"We are doing what we can, but we could be doing a lot more," he says.

"The stigma around bugs is that they are caused by people being dirty, poor people, or through inadequate housing - that is not true.

"I often go to talks and I have a piece of string on me and I say picking up a bug during the day is as easy as picking up string on your clothes."

But perhaps a bit more uncomfortable.

There was very little head-scratching at the summit as the delegates crammed into the hall to hear such sessions as: "The cornerstone of control and prevention", "Using temperature extremes for best effect" and "Educating to increase successes in bed bug control".

All of this is working towards the creation of a National Bedbug Strategy - a comprehensive programme of education and research all aimed at killing the little critters off.

Cotton futures prices cruise at majestic levels

LAHORE  (January 28, 2011) : Cotton futures prices in New York (ICE) rose fantastically this week by about ten to eleven cents a pound (as at 6:00 pm Pakistan Standard Time) and were loitering around 172,80 per pound for the key March, 2011 contract.??There was no knowing how far further north the fibre prices would travel given high buoyancy in the commodity complex, global shortage of physical cotton, re-emerging Chinese purchases of cotton and prospects that after the spring holidays the Chinese would re-enter the cotton market to buy further cotton to complete their purchases.??Pakistani millers who have just returned from Frankfurt from the Heimtextil Fair said that fabric prices are also now catching up with cotton and yarn prices signalling prospects of cotton futures prices to rise to 180 cents per pound, or even dash to two US Dollars a pound to satiate the unfulfilled demand for cottons of the spinners who are mostly catering to the Chinese market.??Some veterans of the cotton market say that the prevailing price structure and movements are not just volatile, they border on being dangerous. Most cotton and textile business is in disarray with several settlements and resettlements going on incessantly between the buyers and the sellers. It has yet to be determined whether a classic squeeze or corner has occurred in the cotton futures market because with all the activities of the hedge and speculative funds, the market payments get settled on time till now. Even recent mills fixation of on-call contracts show that till date the futures market mechanism seems to be taking the extraordinary strains and stresses easily where the dynamics of supply and demand seem to be ruling the roost.??According to textile circles in Punjab and in Karachi, the Indian exporters supported by their government have unnecessarily put a spanner in the works by disturbing the otherwise smooth and eminently efficient functioning of cotton futures and also physical trading markets for almost the past one century around the world.??According to media reports, the chairman of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), Gohar Ejaz, has expressed his serious concern regarding the delaying tactics of the Indian government in the shipment of about one million bales of cotton purchased by Pakistani mills. Gohar Ejaz contended that this step by the Indian government has encouraged the Indian cotton exporters to take refuge under an alibi and have thus struck a big blow to the free market mechanism previously prevailing in the global cotton market.??Under a similar strain of arguments, the chairman of the All Pakistan Bedsheet and Upholstery Manufacturers Association (APBUMA), Khawaja Muhammad Jalaluddin Roomi, said recently in Multan that the Indian government intervention in the free market mechanism of cotton trade has brought rightful concern and apprehension from the global cotton community. Khawaja Roomi deplored the Indian government attitude in causing undue hindrance in cotton exports from India. Traders in Karachi also criticised the intervention in cotton exports from India which has led to the vengeance of cotton exports contracts to Pakistan and elsewhere.??In another news item emanating from Multan, the Pakistan Cotton Ginners s Association (PCGA) have announced that they are resuming the purchase of seedcotton (kapas / phutti) after an interruption of several days. This step was possible when the member (Policy) of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Irshad Rauf assured chairman PCGA Masood A. Majeed that ambiguities in the SRO 1161 would be removed to enable them to purchase seedoctton from the growers easily. Also, the relevant SRO would not be implemented till March 2011.??Pakistani mills are likely to consume at least 14 million bales of cotton of domestic size during the current season (August 2010-July 2011). Most of the larger mills are covered upto June 2011. The medium size mills are covered till March 2011, while smaller units have cotton to last them till the end of February 2011 or the middle of March 2011. It is seen that with global increase in cotton prices, the rise in yarn prices will assist the spinners to partly make up for the expensive fibres prices. Today upland imported cotton of 1-1/8 inch staple length may cost upto 190 cents per pound which would convert to a landed cost of more than Rs 12,000 per maund (37.32 kgs), while local lint of comparable fibre characteristics costs from Rs 11,200 to Rs 12,500 per maund today.??Both seedcotton (kapas / phutti) and lint prices in the domestic market are ruling at record high levels. Seedcotton prices in both Sindh and Punjab ranged from Rs 4,200 to Rs 5,000 per 40 kgs according to the quality. Lint prices in both Sindh and Punjab were said to have been offered from Rs 10,200 to Rs 11,500 per maund, according to the quality. With these sky-high prices, one may presume that Pakistan may reap upto 16 million domestic size bales of cotton during the next season (August 2011-July 2012) because the cotton growers got more than double the price for their produce during the current season (2010-2011).??In ready sales reported on Thursday, 800 bales of cotton from Khairpur district in Sindh sold at Rs 11,250 per maund (37.32 kgs), while 500 bales from Daharki in upper Sindh sold at a record high rate of Rs 11,500 per maund. In the Punjab, 400 bales of average grade cotton from Harunabad were said to have been sold at Rs 10,300 per maund in an otherwise very tight market.??On the global economic and financial front, equity markets may be riding high, but the inherent weaknesses of several of the forefront economies in Eurozone, the United Kingdom and the United Stets of America continue to prevail stubbornly. Besides, a tectonic shift in economic power and development is slowly but surely emerging putting China, India, Brazil and Turkey in the limelight, more so to Asia.??The economic recovery in the United States remains stubbornly slow while the budget deficit will reach a historic Dollars 1.5 trillions this year. This situation hardly leaves the US government to borrow more, while more stimuli would be needed to hasten the economic recovery, putting the country in a classic dilemma. United Kingdom has reported a very slow fourth quarter growth during 2010, while the government has hardly any options to borrow more money to keep the economy going. The Eurozone economy still remains essentially in the doldrums except for Germany, as Eurozone financial instability remains an area of high concern.??The end result appears to be that despite massive government stimuli, the unemployment in Eurozone, the United Kingdom and America remains high putting untold unemployed citizens to continued misery. A couple of thousand economic and political leaders are meeting this week at Davos in Switzerland to suggest ways and means to surmount what appears to be the greatest economic and financial breakdown ever to appear in the modern world.