Search Results for: China

The New Zealand Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has called for comments on planned reductions to allowable lead levels in paints, and in art materials such as chalk, crayons, and felt-tip pens.

The country’s current lead level limit for paint is 0.1% (1,000 parts per million/ppm) and the proposed changes would reduce this to 0.009% (90ppm), in line with countries including Australia, Canada and the United States, the EPA said in a note.…

The global market for tallow, traditionally a common ingredient in the production of soaps, detergents, and lubricants, is undergoing considerable movement, driven by rising consumption of meat products coupled with the rising usage of tallow in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, biofuels and feeds industries.…

Implementing international sanctions is never easy, but the sanctions regime on Iran is highly complex, buffeted by shifting diplomatic stances. With its Security Council ally Russia relying on Iranian military and technology supplies for it to pursue its invasion of Ukraine, time-limited UN restrictions on Iran’s nuclear programme officially lapsed on October 18.…

Hong Kong-based shirtmaker Esquel has been developing natural dyes to boost its sustainability, seeking similar quality colours and fastness to dyes based on artificial finishing chemicals. These innovations were explained during the company’s annual Esquel Integral Conversation event, tis year held on October 26, as usual in Guilin, southern Chinaat Esquel’s Integral Sustainable Development Garden.…

The number of students at Portuguese higher education (HE) institutions may have peaked in the past academic year (September 2022 to July 2023), say the country’s HE officials, with proactive measures needed to ensure a projected future decline is not too steep. …

Hong Kong-based shirtmaker Esquel has been through some tough times of late, but its vice-chairman has told Just Style that the company is optimistic about the future. Esquel has been fighting bad fortune since early 2020, when its operations in mainland China were hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.…

As US brands look for new ways to communicate quality and integrate sustainability into their business, their attention is increasingly shifting to digitally printed fabric signage. Part of this growth is fuelled by iconic global brands such as Apple (1) and Nike (2) opting for digitally printed backlit soft signage.…

Policy initiatives aimed at reshoring large sections of the US automotive supply chain could seriously restrict the growth of the country’s electric vehicle (EV) market, a key UK motor industry conference was told on Wednesday (Oct 18). Speaking at the UK Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders’ (SMMT) Global Trade Conference, in London, David Schwietert, chief policy officer at the Washington DC-headquartered Alliance for Automotive Innovation, aired concerns about the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) manufacturing incentives.…

UK recession expected by the end of the year

The way the data is evolving there is a 60% chance the UK will be in recession by the end of 2023, or certainly by the early stages of 2024, according to Simon Ballard, Chief Economist, First Abu Dhabi Bank.…

The Great Lakes region in cenztral and eastern Africa is exceedingly resource rich, and being beset by instability and conflict, it is highly attractive for illicit trade and financial crime fuelling money laundering. A new European Union (EU) Great Lakes Strategy is trying to promote the rule of law in the region – notably Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) – but faces major challenges.…