Fashion
Sri Lanka’s apparel workers pay rises, but living wage gap persists
Sri Lanka’s recent apparel wage hikes have raised nominal pay, but currency depreciation has limited real gains.
While manufacturers benefit from lower dollar-denominated labour costs, workers continue to face a wide gap between minimum wages and living costs, highlighting persistent structural pressures in a sector central to the country’s export economy.
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Fashion
India launches MAS to boost MSME, first-time exporter market access
Approved by the union cabinet on November 12, 2025, the MAS Intervention is being implemented under the Niryat Disha sub-scheme of EPM and aims to strengthen international market access for Indian exporters, particularly MSMEs, first-time exporters and firms from priority sectors.
India has launched the Market Access Support Intervention under the Export Promotion Mission, offering partial airfare support to small exporters with turnover up to ₹75 lakh (~$83,470).
Approved on November 12, 2025, the scheme supports MSMEs and first-time exporters through trade fairs, buyer-seller meets and delegations, with digital processes and mandatory feedback.
The EPM is jointly implemented by the Department of Commerce, the Ministry of MSME and the Ministry of Finance, in coordination with Indian Missions abroad, Export Promotion Councils, Commodity Boards and industry associations. The MAS Intervention focuses on improving buyer connect and enhancing India’s global market presence through structured, outcome-oriented market access initiatives, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a press release.
Under the scheme, financial and institutional support will be extended for Buyer-Seller Meets, participation in international trade fairs and exhibitions, Mega Reverse Buyer-Seller Meets organised in India, and trade delegations to priority and emerging export markets. A forward-looking three-to-five-year calendar of major market access events will be prepared and approved in advance to enable better planning and continuity of market development efforts.
A minimum participation of 35 per cent MSMEs has been mandated for supported events, with special prioritisation for new geographies and smaller markets to promote export diversification. Delegation size has been benchmarked at a minimum of 50 participants, with flexibility based on market conditions and strategic relevance.
Event-level financial support ceilings and cost-sharing ratios have been rationalised, with preferential support for priority sectors and markets. End-to-end processes covering event listing, proposal submission, approvals, participant onboarding, fund release and monitoring will be enabled online to ensure transparency and ease of access.
Mandatory online feedback mechanisms will capture exporter inputs on buyer quality, business leads generated and market relevance. Based on feedback and implementation learnings, the MAS guidelines will be progressively refined. A new component for proofs-of-concept and product demonstrations to overseas buyers, particularly in technology-intensive and sunrise sectors, is expected to be notified shortly.
Additional digital tools for lead tracking, exporter follow-up and market intelligence integration will be rolled out in phases. Through the MAS Intervention, the government aims to provide Indian exporters with predictable market-entry pathways, stronger buyer engagement and data-driven policy support, enabling deeper integration into global value chains and sustained export growth.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)
Fashion
India’s manmade yarn market ends 2025 on cautious optimism
India’s manmade yarn market closed 2025 with modest price gains amid average-to-better demand.
Higher cotton, polyester and PTA prices, along with a weakening rupee against the USD, lifted PC, polyester and viscose yarn rates across key markets.
Demand support remained uneven, with payment constraints and thin year-end trade limiting momentum despite expectations of improved lifting in January.
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Fashion
Japan’s Fast Retailing secures fourth CDP A List for climate change
Fast Retailing’s Initiatives
Fast Retailing was included on CDP’s A List for climate change for the fourth consecutive year and water security for the third time since 2022, reflecting strong transparency.
In November 2025, it raised its supply-chain greenhouse gas reduction target to 30 per cent by 2030 from a FY2019 baseline, with SBTi approval, while continuing water risk assessments and forest protection efforts.
Fast Retailing promotes sustainability initiatives as an integral part of its business, centered on its “LifeWear” philosophy of creating high quality clothing that improves the lives of all people around the world. In the area of climate action, the company is strengthening its efforts aiming to achieve net-zero egreenhouse gas emissions by 2050. In November 2025, Fast Retailing announced that it would raise its greenhouse gas emissions reduction target* across the supply chain to 30% (against FY2019 baseline) from the previous target of 20%. This new target has also been approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) as a science-based target (SBT), and is in line with the level of decarbonization required to achieve the goals outlined in the Paris Agreement.
Commenting on the recognition, Yukihiro Nitta, Fast Retailing Group Executive Officer responsible for sustainability, said: “Fast Retailing is accelerating its transition toward a business model that eliminates waste by making, transporting, and selling only the products that customers truly need. Through this approach, we aim to achieve both global business growth and long-term sustainability. In addressing climate change–our highest-priority issue–we are further strengthening our initiatives, including raising our Scope 3 greenhouse gas reduction targets for 2030 in close collaboration with our production partners. We are also advancing water security initiatives by conducting comprehensive risk assessments and implementing actions based on those findings. We believe our continued efforts to work alongside stakeholders, to pursue initiatives that meet globally expected standards, and to maintain highly transparent disclosure have all contributed to our inclusion on this year’s CDP A List.”
Note: The headline, insights, and image of this press release may have been refined by the Fibre2Fashion staff; the rest of the content remains unchanged.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RM)
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