‘No sustainability, no sale’ was the message at Playtime & Kid’s Hub New York show, with exhibitors keen to parade their green credentials.

Mexican authorities have walked back certain restrictions on the use 0f Mexico’s IMMEX duty deferral programme for e-commerce textile and apparel shipments following an uproar by various businesses and trade associations in both Mexico and the U.S.

Consumers are favouring gender-neutral clothing for babies and children, according to exhibitors at Manhattan’s Playtime & Kid’s Hub expo.

On 27 December 2024, the Official Journal of the European Union published Council Regulation (EU) 2024/3211 suspending the Common Customs Tariff duties on certain agricultural and industrial products. A few days earlier, namely, on 19 December 2024, the Official Journal published Council Regulation (EU) 2024/3213 opening and providing for the management of autonomous tariff quotas of the Union for certain agricultural and industrial products. Pursuant to these two regulations, operators – including those based in Hong Kong – may find increased opportunities to sell the goods covered by those regulations to EU customers.

China has issued a new product standard – FZ/T 73077-2024 – for knitted quick-dry garments. This new standard became effective on January 1, 2025.

China has issued an updated version of its product standard FZ/T 81009-2024 for artificial fur garments. The revised standard will become effective on July 1, 2026.

Mexico has increased from 20-25 percent to 35 percent its MFN import duties on 138 tariff lines covering a broad range of apparel and made-up textile products as well as from 10 percent to 15 percent on 17 tariff lines covering various types of textile fabrics. These higher duties will remain in place until 23 April 2026 but they could very well be extended beyond that date.

The European Commission has issued a decision imposing a total fine of €5.7 million on Pierre Cardin and the brand’s main licensee, Ahlers, for engaging in anticompetitive practices. The practices restricted cross-border sales of Pierre Cardin clothing and the category of sellers to which Pierre Cardin licensed clothing could be sold.

HKTDC conducted a survey with nearly 368 buyers and exhibitors at CENTRESTAGE 2024. The results show that while the fashion businesses remain neutral about short-term market prospects, there is more optimism over the medium term. Fashion accessories have been identified as the segment with the greatest potential.

The Bangladeshi government has announced that renewable energy projects in the country will get a 10-year tax exemption. The National Board of Revenue (NBR) issued a notification on 29 October 2024 granting renewable energy projects 100% tax exemption for the first five years, 50% for the next three, and 25% for the following two years. The tax holiday will apply to power plants starting commercial operations between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2030. Eligible plants are those built under the build-own-operate (BOO) model outlined in the Private Sector Power Generation Policy. The plants should meet all policy conditions and be operated according to the policy guidelines.