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The International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) has predicted that the chocolate industry will continue to face cocoa supply deficits, with its latest quarterly assessment predicting that for 2022/3, there will be 99,000 tonnes more grindings than cocoa production. As a result, global stocks will fall to 1.744 million tonnes, amidst declines in output from key production hubs Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.…

The Indonesian garment sector, already reeling from a decline in international orders, is facing a double whammy: a surge in illegal textile imports that is undercutting local producers and increasing pressure for sustainable production.

According to the Indonesian Fibre and Filament Yarn Producers Association (APSyFi – Asosiasi Produsen Serat dan Benang Filament Indonesia), the value of illegal textile and textile products, notably clothing imports into Indonesia last year (2022) reached USD2.94 billion.

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.…

The increasing risks posed by creative high-tech crime have been highlighted in the first European Financial and Economic Crime Threat Assessment released by European Union (EU) police agency Europol. It concluded criminals have weaponised the drift to digital finance, work and business.…

Indonesia’s tobacco farmers are enjoying a good harvest this year, but they are also facing uncertainty over new health regulations that could affect their livelihoods.

The tobacco industry is a major contributor to the Indonesian economy, generating about 10% of the state revenue from excise taxes, according to the country’s finance ministry.…

Signatory universities of the Magna Charta Universitatum declaration are meeting in Poland to assess how research and teaching can help reconstruct cities harmed by war, environmental pressures and socio-economic change.

This conference chimes with the aims of the declaration, which highlights the value of academic freedom, institutional autonomy and community collaboration, and which has been signed by 960 universities from 94 countries worldwide.…

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has sparked an unprecedented level of international sanctions. However, it has also caused an unprecedented wave of sanctions evasion.

June’s (2023) plenary of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) had a clear message for the global anti-money laundering community, which includes organisations fighting sanctions evasion: “FATF reiterates that all jurisdictions should be vigilant to current and emerging risks from the circumvention of measures taken against the Russian Federation in order to protect the international financial system.”…

With weaknesses in terror finance controls exposed by Hamas’ bloody attack on Israel, killing more than 1,400 people (UN reports), and sparking deadly military reprisals in Gaza, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has proposed a range of CFT reforms (1).…

In the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has forced 6.2 million people from the country (UN figures) (1) and caused more than USD151 billion in infrastructure damage, says the Kiev Schol of Economics (2), Ukraine’s fashion retail market has been transformed.

While energy price rises have started levelling off after 2022 steep inflation, the need to boost sustainable electricity capacity in Europe, carried by strengthened transmission networks, boosting security of supply against unreliable partners such as Russia and further reduce carbon emissions, is becoming ever more pressing.…