Goldman Sachs has lowered its forecast for 2025 eurozone GDP growth to 0.8 per cent from 1.1 per cent. Europe’s economy will be hit by the return of Donald Trump as president, due to the likelihood of new trade tensions with the US, pressure to raise defense spending and a blow to business confidence due to higher geopolitical risks, its experts believe. European companies may also face tariffs.

India's Textile Minister approved 12 new research projects worth ₹13.3 crore ($0.16 million) under the National Technical Textiles Mission. The projects focus on areas like geotextiles, smart textiles, and composites, led by institutions like IITs and CRRI. Total funding under the Mission now stands at ₹509 crore ($6.11 million). IPR guidelines aim to boost innovation.

Suominen Corporation has reported Q3 2024 net sales of €111.6 million (~$120.53 million), up from €106.4 million YoY. The company suffered a net loss of €3.2 million (~$3.4 million) due to operational challenges. YTD sales reached €343.8 million (~$370.9 million), and the company expects a full-year EBITDA increase. Sustainability efforts earned Suominen a Gold Medal from EcoVadis.

Burberry has introduced its first virtual scarf try-on experience in its ‘Wrapped in Burberry’ holiday campaign. Partnering with AR provider WANNA, the immersive experience lets customers view iconic Burberry scarves in real-time, with over 50 styles and two classic options. Available online and in select stores, customers can share images and directly access product pages for purchases.

Tariff policy under the new government will indeed be a challenge and will trigger new inflationary cycles if campaign proposals are fully enacted, making apparel expensive for Americans, trade body AAFA recently said. AAFA will continue to push Congress and the Administration to renew expired and expiring programmes like the AGOA, the GSP and the Haiti HELP/HOPE preference programme.

Turkiye’s apparel exports to Germany fell by 8.73 per cent to $1.92 billion in January–August compared to the same period in 2023. Despite this decline, Germany remained Turkiye's top apparel export market, accounting for 17.43 per cent of total exports. Trousers and shorts were leading export items, valued at $415.2 million. Turkiye’s overall apparel exports for Jan-Aug totalled $10.99 billion.

Bangladesh’s export earnings in October this year grew by 20.6 per cent YoY, fetching $4.13 billion. From July to October this year, exports grew by 10.8 per cent YoY to reach $15.79 billion. The readymade garments (RMG) sector contributed $12.81 billion to export earnings during the four-month period. In October, the RMG sector generated $3.30 billion in export revenues—a 22.8 per cent YoY increase.

In October, the US consumer price index for garments rose by 1.1 per cent month-over-month, reversing prior declines in 2023. Current clothing prices are 7.6 per cent higher than 2019 averages. Import prices for cotton-heavy apparel stabilised at $3.70/SME, still above pre-pandemic levels. Consumer confidence rose to its highest since January 2024, with spending on apparel up 1.7 per cent YoY.

Skirts, spanning casual to formal styles and materials like cotton, denim and silk, are a significant part of women's clothing export market. Notably, skirts saw an 8.47 per cent growth in 2022, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. The US and Germany are leading skirt import markets, with the US showing 18 per cent growth. Despite geopolitical and economic challenges in 2024, recovery is expected by 2025.

Page Industries Limited has reported revenue of ₹12,463 million (~$147.7 million) in Q2 FY24, a YoY increase of 11 per cent, with sales volume rising 6.7 per cent to 55.2 million pieces. EBITDA grew 22 per cent YoY to ₹2,815 million (~$33.4 million), with a margin of 22.6 per cent. PAT was ₹1,953 million, up 29.9 per cent. For H1 FY24, revenue was ₹25,238 million, growing 7.3 per cent YoY.

The Philippines’ apparel exports are projected to reach $1 billion next year, backed by an expected boost from the FTA with South Korea expected to be effective in Q1, the Foreign Buyers Association of the Philippines said. It believes the FTA will attract South Korean players to set up units in its economic zones and domestic manufacturers can penetrate the zero-tariff Korean apparel market.

Chic Wings (BD) Lingerie Co Limited, a Singapore-China joint venture, will invest $18 million to set up a garment manufacturing plant in BEPZA Economic Zone, Chattogram. The company plans to produce 30 million garments annually and create 3,000 jobs. The agreement was signed on November 12, with BEPZA. BEPZA EZ hosts 36 companies with a total investment of $868.5 million.

The 2024 Laureus Sport for Good Index honours brands advancing the 17 SDGs through sport, highlighting impactful initiatives that address key social and ecological issues. Head of Partnerships Astin Ewington emphasises the Index’s role in showcasing sport's power to drive positive change, inspiring more brands to use sport as a platform for meaningful, sustainable impact.

Seventy-four per cent of online products in the UK feature green claims, averaging 2.9 claims per product, according to BRC and Provenance research. Nature-related claims were most prevalent, while carbon-related claims were few. To support compliance, BRC and Provenance are launching Retailer Green Claims Forum, promoting transparency in green marketing.

Goldman Sachs has lowered its forecast for 2025 eurozone GDP growth to 0.8 per cent from 1.1 per cent. Europe’s economy will be hit by the return of Donald Trump as president, due to the likelihood of new trade tensions with the US, pressure to raise defense spending and a blow to business confidence due to higher geopolitical risks, its experts believe. European companies may also face tariffs.

Despite some optimism that the US truck freight market would begin to recover from continued downward pressure during Q3 2024, U.S. Bank freight metrics showed challenges remain for motor carriers with shipments and spending softer in Q3. Shipments were off 21.2 per cent YoY, one of the largest drops. The bank’s national shipments index fell by 1.9 per cent in Q3 after a 2.2-per cent drop in Q2.

There have now been four or five years of huge ocean freight rate volatility, according to Drewry, which has cautioned its customers to expect little change in 2025, likely the fifth year in a row of high volatility. Shippers need to be aware that the shipping industry will continue to be disrupted and there are risks and a need for contingency plans and active vendor management, cautions Drewry.

TESTEX has launched the TESTEX MICROPLASTIC label, setting a new standard for reducing textile microplastic emissions. Using advanced LDIR technology, the label certifies textiles tested for particle emissions per ISO standards. As a member of The Microfibre Consortium, TESTEX collaborates on reducing fibre fragmentation, sharing data to support sustainability goals by 2030.

ITMA ASIA + CITME 2025, set for October in Singapore, has nearly sold out its 60,000 sqm exhibition space with strong interest from 731 global tech providers. The event, supported by CEMATEX and CTMA, will showcase innovations tailored for Asia’s growing textile hubs. Key sectors include finishing, spinning, and knitting, highlighting sustainable tech and automation trends.

October US container imports were 2,494,635 TEUs, marking the fourth month in a row of volumes exceeding 2.4 million TEUs, a threshold that has historically strained US maritime logistics, the November Global Shipping Report by Descartes Systems Group noted. For the first ten months of 2024, volumes grew by 13.1 per cent YoY. At seven of the top 10 US ports, transit time delays rose in October.

China’s latest fiscal announcements seem aimed at addressing medium-term structural impediments to economic growth from strained local government finances, but are unlikely to immediately boost or offset deflationary risk, Fitch Ratings said. It expects a budget deficit of 7.1 per cent of GDP this year. It believes fiscal stimulus will remain incremental and responsive to downside risks.

Turkiye’s overall export unit value index rose by 3.6 per cent YoY in September, while the overall export volume index fell by 5.2 per cent YoY. The country’s overall import unit value index rose by 4.7 per cent YoY in September, while the overall import volume index fell by 5.8 per cent YoY. Turkish trade sales volume rose by 12.7 per cent YoY and by 3.2 per cent month on month in September.

Global cotton markets saw slight declines and stabilisation in recent weeks, with NY/ICE December futures trading between 67–75 cents/lb since June, now at 71 cents/lb. The global A Index dipped from 85 to 83 cents, while China's index dropped from 101 to 97 cents due to a weaker yuan. Indian and Pakistani spot prices also declined, but both rupees remained stable against the dollar.

APTEXPO 2024 has opened at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore, gathering over 300 international delegates and exhibitors to discuss industry resilience and sustainability. The event spans three days, featuring keynote speakers, panels, and over 200 exhibitors. Focused sessions address global market trends, digitalisation, and cooperation to build a stronger Asia-Pacific textile network.

Leaning into lineages of resilience and care can be a balm for election-related anxiety for LGBTQ people—and everyone.

Christine Ahn and Marie Berry report back from the powerful Feminist Peace Summit, held in Denver recently.

Switzerland’s “No Blame” approach eschews punishment, instead focusing on empathy, tolerance, and respect.

There’s power in a viral clapback. But what of the already-marginalized people whose identities again become a public punchline?

Long harmed by patriarchal, casteist norms within the legal system, women in India are implementing women-centered forms of grassroots justice.

An innovative sex-ed curriculum in Southern California is teaching incarcerated men about consent, birth control, and dismantling masculinity.

When everything that brings LGBTQ people joy is under attack, dancing, laughing, and celebrating our persistent existence are direct acts of resistance.

Tamela Gordon’s new book, Hood Wellness, shows what it looks like to hold others—and be held—in community.

We can no longer accept Pride events that only make room for one type of queer person—or that cater primarily to the corporations more invested in rainbow capitalism than collective liberation.

Poet Julie Quiroz offers a summer solstice spell that celebrates the story of light.

La poeta Julie Quiroz ofrece un hechizo de solsticio de verano que celebra la nacimiento de la luz.

”Atoms Never Touch“ offers a revolutionary premise: The love between trans women is the key to the new world we imagine.

Journalist Sonali Kohli’s new book centers the life and work of three young women of color who refused to let powerful elites shape their lives and communities.

What if in addition to prescribing medication, doctors also prescribed activities that addressed our lack of connection?

For the city’s LGBTQ community, Toronto’s outdoor spaces have been sites of both liberation and violence

Collective grief is a powerful tool that has historically fueled social justice organizing—and healing.

In this excerpt, author Misty Pratt explores emerging research—and her own experience—that suggests remedies like park prescriptions may be as key to mental and physical health as diet, exercise, and sleep.

In rural Argentina, Hacienda Camino offers parents a suite of skills and resources to help raise healthy children.

Advocates are working to overcome patriarchal structures worldwide that deny menstruating people dignity, access, and agency.

Sex education is often taboo in close-knit Druze communities, but a new generation is creating its own care networks.

In Tijuana, Uganda, and Gaza, refugees facing dispossession, displacement, and constant violence are finding moments of solace in the art of dance.

AI is trained on data from our health care system as it exists, which means the data is contaminated by racial, economic, and regional disparities. But there are solutions.

In times of trouble, cowards choose the easiest path. It is only the courageous—and almost always those who are most marginalized—who dare to say and do the hard, but right, thing.

Even before abortion became illegal in 14 states, some reproductive health care clinics were rebranding to better reflect the broad spectrum of gender-inclusive care they provide.

Women of color want demographic and political representation, just as wealthy white men have had for generations.

Now more than ever, we must learn ways to make ourselves—and each other—whole in the aftermath of rupture.