Bangladesh has shut down 18 garment plants for safety reasons after a building housing five of the factories collapsed and killed more than 800 people, a minister said Wednesday. The move comes days after Bangladesh agreed with the International Labour Organisation to give safety “the highest consideration” amid government fears that Western garment firms might start sourcing goods from other countries. “Sixteen factories have been closed down in Dhaka and two in Chittagong,”textile minist

Cotton futures rose to one-month highs on Wednesday on fresh buying driven by concerns about dry weather in Texas, the country's No 1 growing state, and as investors prepared for a key US crop report due Friday. Gains were tempered though by news that India, one of the world's top producers and consumers, started selling its reserves to protect its domestic textile mills from costly imports. "The talk of releasing India stocks has helped keep a lid on the market," said the broker. US traders wo

Angel network Mumbai Angels has invested in Yoga Smoga, a yoga-inspired athletic apparel and accessories company founded by US-based Indian-origin entrepreneur Rishi Bali. This is the fifth international investment for the Angel group. Yoga Smoga was founded in 2010 as a designer and manufacturer of athletic clothing. Mumbai Angels, along with a group of unnamed US based Angels, has invested around Rs 5 crore in the company. The company has developed a high technology fabric that is a mix of S

The Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) recently granted permission to Nizhnekamskneftekhim (NKNK), Russia’s and one of the world’s leading petrochemical producers, to acquire 100% of the shares of JSC Polymatiz, according to Irina Kashunina, an official spokesperson for the FAS. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, however, according to some Russian analysts, they could be in the range of 1.1 to 1.5 billion rubles (USD$33-49.5 million). Established in 2006, Polymatiz is

During the past year or so, the tabloids have been dominated by one crazy story after the next about Amanda Bynes, which is a shame since the former child star and comedian is super talented. Maybe she'll channel some of the creativity she used in her old performances into the new clothing line she's working on. Yep, you read that correctly: Amanda is at work on a fashion line! "My line will be a mixture of sick styles, and it's going to be for everybody," she told In Touch magazine. "I l

It's been a very sad year so far for the Missoni family. Ottavio Missoni, the 92-year-old co-founder of the Italian knitwear brand, died today at his home in Sumirago, Italy. Ottavio's death comes just a few months after we learned a plane that was flying his son Vittorio and a few other passengers disappeared off the coast of Venezuela. This runway image is particularly poignant, as this show went on just one month after Vittorio's plane went missing. In a statement, a spokesman confirme

Wilmslow-based premium womenswear indie Black and White Denim has won its battle against The Scottish Knitwear Group, after the company planned to open a store under the same name. The group, which is the distributor for Pringle and Ben Sherman in South Africa, had intended to open a shop in Johannesburg in July called Black White Denim, using the indie’s identity as well as concept. Owner Jo Davies discovered the plans after The Scottish Knitwear Group approached the brands stocked by the indi

British fashion retailers are seeing their online businesses soar with revenues expected to reach 28 billion pounds by 2020. The new findings were presented by analysts OC&C and Google in a report called 'Britain's Retail E-mpire.' The findings show international sales could outgrow domestic revenue to make up 40 percent of total online sales in the next seven years. Last year, online sales from outside the UK totalled 4 billion pounds and accounted for 14 percent of total online sales. Wes

Adidas has surpassed estimates with its first-quarter profit and reported gross margin widened to a record, sending the shares to the highest level ever. Net income jumped by 6.5 percent to 308 million euros far ahead the 298.5 million euros consensus estimate of 15 analysts. On the wake of the news, shares surged 6.2 percent to 84.44 euros reaching the highest since trading began in 1995. “We delivered strong margin progress, which is our top priority for the year,” Chief Executive Officer Her

New research forecasting the UK luxury market has reported that the sector will “almost double” in size over the next five years from 6.6 billion pounds in 2012 to 12.2 billion pounds in 2017. According to Walpole British Luxury, the trade body that represents luxury brands such as Burberry, Harrods and Jimmy Choo, and market research firm Ledbury Research, the study reports that he UK luxury industry is set for “strong growth”, despite the difficult environment in Europe, with the sector predic