Search Results for: Japanese

Japanese paint manufacturers are facing challenging times – reducing costs where possible as the price of inputs rise, to reduce pressure on final product pricing as they deal with a local consumer market with declining consumption. Economic pressures caused by geo-political turbulence and the weak Japanese yen are both creating challenges, according to industry experts.…

Sales in Europe of China-built electric vehicles (EVs), such as Tesla Models 3 and Y, BMW iX3 and Renault Dacia’s Spring, could all be hit if the European Union (EU) slaps proposed countervailing duties on cheap battery electric vehicles (BEV) made in China.…

The Canadian automotive import market is becoming an increasingly important to USA-based assemblers, with USD17.2 billion’s worth of American-made cars, SUVs and light trucks sold in Canada in 2022, according to federal government figures issued from Ottawa. That is up from USD14.2 billion in 2021 and higher than pre-Covid-19 sales – USD14.6 billion in 2018 and USD13.8 billion in 2019.…

Digital textile printing could grow in Argentina, but successive international and national crises are hindering the trust needed for the industry to invest in this critical technology, especially as the country heads to October presidential elections that may lead to major economic changes.…

A GRI (the Global Reporting Initiative) and EFRAG (the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group) joint statement has detailed the mutual recognition of reporting under both GRI and European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS).

Stressing that both systems focus on double materiality (the impact of sustainability issues on companies and companies’ impact on sustainability), the GRI and EFRAG said they will establish a list of the ESRS disclosure requirements and datapoints that correspond to GRI disclosure requirements and datapoints, enabling ESRS reporting with reference to GRI.…

China’s key government economic body has released restrictions on the use of iron oxide pigments and titanium dioxide, the most important white pigment used in the coatings industry. In July (2023), China’s National Development and Reform Commission and related departments issued an updated Notice on Issuing the Energy Efficiency Benchmark Levels and Baseline Levels in Key Industrial Fields, with 11 additional controls, including 11 key areas including titanium dioxide (TiO2).…

International clothing brands have been hoping to see major outsourcing centres develop their own sustainable apparel markets, but this year’s choppy global economy has impeded sales to these potentially lucrative consumer bases.

Brazil, the world’s 10th largest economy, with 216 million people, was back in 2011 considered by US-based consultants A.T.…

The release by the European Commission (EC) of the first European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) on July 31 has prompted concern that while efforts have been made to align these with International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) models, there are still important contrasts (1).…

Bangladesh clothing manufacturers have been looking to expand export sales beyond their established markets in the European Union (EU), the United States, Canada and the UK, seeking new revenue in non-traditional markets such as Brazil, India, Japan and South Korea.

According to data from the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), Bangladesh apparel exports for 2022 (calendar year) have sourced 16.1% of revenue from non-traditional markets – USD7.35 billion, out of overall apparel exports of USD45.7 billion.…

Time was that whistleblowing laws were a novelty. No longer – they are increasingly commonplace in developed economy jurisdictions and offer a widening range of protections.

Take the USA. A bipartisan bill was proposed in March (2023) by Republican Senator Chuck Grassley and Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren to strengthen whistleblower protections at the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).…