But will it make any progress?

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations approved last week a charter that aims to turn the 40-year- ASEAN into a European-style economic union by 2015 and   ../read moreabout:ASEAN nods to EU-style union by 2015.13 Feb 08

Vietnam’s consumer price index will grow to over 10% – the highest since 1996 - by the end of this year after the country decided to increase gasoline prices, local Thanh Nien newspaper   ../read moreabout:Vietnamese inflation to hit double digits13 Feb 08

The Foreign Investment Advisory Services unit of the World Bank has recently undertaken a survey asking international buyers about their view on the competitiveness of Vietnam’s apparel   ../read moreabout:Buyers review Vietnamese competitiveness13 Feb 08

Logistics provider DHL has commissioned the world's largest high performance electric vehicle to  handle deliveries to fashion retailers in the UK. The first zero carbon emission truck to be   ../read moreabout:DHL adds green fashion deliveries 15 Sep 07

A group of 71 Democratic House members sent a letter to Charles Rangel,  Chairman  of the House of Representatives'  Ways and Means Committee, on April 24 urging him to use the   ../read moreabout:Democrats call for retention of core labour standards15 Sep 07

Nike's latest corporate responsibility report adds four new kinds of commitment:
- To eliminate excessive overtime in factories by F2011 through both pressure on contractors and better   ../read moreabout:Nike report gets union praise15 Sep 07

The Indian government has cut import duties on some fibre import duties. Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram announced plans 29 November to cut duty on polyester fibres and intermediaries from   ../read moreabout:India cuts fibre duties to help exporters13 Feb 08

A new online textile export licence system began operation in China on December 25, just before quotas to the EU expired The online application system "is one of a series of measures taken by   ../read moreabout:China publishes restrictions on exporters18 Feb 08

Pakistan has ordered hundreds of textile mills to close for up to five hours a day because of an acute power shortage, a government official said on January 5. All business and shopping centres   ../read moreabout:Pakistan power shortage hits mills and factories18 Feb 08

More than 2,000 consignments of Bangladeshi garments exported to Germany – the second largest market for Bangladeshi clothes - were hit by a special 12% security deposit due to fears over the   ../read moreabout:Germany imposes deposits on Bangladeshi imports13 Feb 08

Local yarn price increases (now up to $2.80/kg from $2.40 a year ago) have highlighted the continuing squabble in Bangladesh between spinners and garment producers about access to imported   ../read moreabout:Bangladeshis argue over knitwear imports18 Feb 08

Pakistan has ordered hundreds of textile mills to close for up to five hours a day because of an acute power shortage, a government official said on January 5. All business and shopping centres   ../read moreabout:Pakistan power shortage hits mills and factories18 Feb 08

A group of 71 Democratic House members sent a letter to Charles Rangel,  Chairman  of the House of Representatives'  Ways and Means Committee, on April 24 urging him to use the   ../read moreabout:Democrats call for retention of core labour standards15 Sep 07

At present,  labour costs $0.30-0.60 per hour in Vietnam and that is similar to other surrounding countries and competitors like China, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Cambodia. But we have been   ../read moreabout:Worries as minimum wage hike looms…13 Feb 08

Around 10,000 workers at Tae Kwang Vina shoe plant in Vietnam, which makes shoes for Nike, struck for higher wages  on November 29 calling. The workers protested that their pay was too low to   ../read moreabout:Strike at Viet Nike supplier settled13 Feb 08

Global retailers could soon stop procuring from low-cost sourcing bases like India and China. The Deloitte "2007 Global Powers of Retailing" report says a combination of political and   ../read moreabout:"Cheap sourcing doomed": accountants15 Sep 07

Europe's largest clothing retailer, Inditex, has reported a 25% rise in profit for 2006 - taking it to the €1bn mark for the first time. Profit for the year to 31 January 2007 was €1.0bn,   ../read moreabout:Inditex 2006 profit jumps 25% to €1bn 15 Sep 07

Charming Shoppes reported higher fourth-quarter earnings, a cautious first-quarter forecast and the appointment of Lori Twomey, formerly Eddie Bauer general merchandise manager, direct sales, as   ../read moreabout:Charming Shoppes' cautious Q1 outlook 15 Sep 07

 Li & Fung, announced full year 2006 sales up 22% to HK$68bn ($8.7bn). The rise in turnover came mostly from organic growth in the mid-teens with acquisitions made during the year,   ../read moreabout:Acquisitions push Li & Fung FY profit up 23%15 Sep 07

Liz Claiborne will sell four brands to the US unit of Li & Fung, as it attempts to shift its focus to smaller, more powerful labels and develop its own retail business, putting 165 of 36 brands   ../read moreabout:Liz Claiborne sells four brands to Li & Fung04 Nov 07

Shareholders of clothing and hat firm Genesco approved  the company's $1.5mn  takeover offer from shoe and apparel retailer The Finish Line - as bankers expressed continuing concern about   ../read moreabout:Bank worries about Genesco 04 Nov 07

Speaking to the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt, US Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said the U.S. remains committed to negotiating a free trade agreement with Egypt, according a Reuters   ../read moreabout:Gutierrez Says Administration Still Wants FTA with Egypt15 Sep 07

The President of France's Union des Industries du Textiles (UIT), Lucien Deveaux, called for EU quotas on Chinese imports to be extended until end-2008 in line with agreements between the US and   ../read moreabout:French trade body calls for extension on Chinese import quotas15 Sep 07

The US Department of Commerce announced on March 30 a landmark preliminary decision to impose countervailing duties against paper imports from China, reversing a 20-year-old policy against   ../read moreabout:US moves ahead with CV case against China15 Sep 07