Fashion
US PMI slips to 52 in Sept, tariffs slow factory output & new orders
The latest survey showed a weaker gain in production, whilst new order book growth softened as tariffs continued to weigh on exports. Tariffs and broader policy uncertainty also dampened firms’ assessment of the business outlook, but expectations of manufacturing production reshoring and hopes of better demand in the year ahead meant sentiment remained positive overall, S&P Global said in a press release.
Cost pressures meanwhile were again elevated, with tariffs reportedly the dominant factor pushing up overall purchase prices. Whilst firms sought to pass on higher supplier costs to clients, competitive pressures and signs of faltering demand meant output charge inflation softened to an eight-month low.
The S&P Global US Manufacturing PMI slipped to 52 in September from 53 in August, indicating slower expansion.
Tariffs weighed on exports—especially to Canada and Mexico—and drove up costs, while production and new orders rose modestly.
Despite weaker demand, employment increased, and optimism persisted on reshoring prospects.
Selling price inflation eased to an eight-month low.
Weaker growth emanated from a slowdown in new order book gains. Although up for a ninth successive month, new orders rose only modestly and at a pace below the survey average. Exports were a source of demand weakness, falling overall for a third month in a row. Tariffs were reported to have weighed on export sales especially to Canada and Mexico.
A slowdown in demand growth led to weaker output gains in September. Overall output increased at a much weaker pace than August’s recent high. However, rising to a faster degree than new orders, production increased sufficiently for firms to add to their stocks of finished goods for a second month in succession.
Work outstanding declined at the fastest pace for five months, in part due to an expansion of labour capacity. September’s survey showed that employment rose solidly as firms filled vacancies and as part of business expansion plans.
A positive outlook also helped encourage manufacturers to take on additional staff, with several anticipating an increase in sales over the next 12 months. In some instances, tariffs were seen as driving an expansion of domestic focused industrial output.
The overall business activity expectations subsequently improved slightly compared to August. That was despite some ongoing uncertainty amongst the panel related to trade and wider federal government policies.
Meanwhile, tariffs continued to push up input prices during September, with vendors reportedly raising their charges. Although input cost inflation weakened since August, it remained elevated in the context of the survey history. High prices discouraged purchasing activity in September, which overall rose only slightly on the month. Where buying rose, this was linked to a desire to bolster inventories, in part due to tariff and supply-side uncertainty. Difficulties importing goods and stock shortages were again noted as driving average vendor delivery times higher in September.
Regarding manufacturers’ own selling prices, these rose at a noticeably slower pace in September as competitive pressures and slower demand growth weighed on company pricing power. Although still rising at a historically strong pace, output price inflation softened in September to its lowest level since January, added the release.
“US manufacturing production rose for a fourth successive month in September, but the upturn lost momentum as companies reported a drop in order book growth alongside a buildup of unsold finished goods inventories,” said Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P. “Despite a slowing in demand growth, many factories produced more goods, using up raw materials that had been stockpiled ahead of tariff implementation. This poses a downside risk to future production in the absence of a pickup in demand, though also hints at some alleviation of price pressures: there is already evidence of companies offering excess stock to customers at reduced rates.”
“A growing uncertainty, however, relates to supply chains, with September seeing an increase in tariff-related vendor delays, which threaten to curb production and push up prices if these difficulties persist or intensify,” added Williamson.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)
The report, ‘Breaking Point: Heat and the Garment Floor’, by Tata Institute of Social Sciences and HeatWatch, documents widespread heat stress and major gaps in workplace protections across factories in Tamil Nadu, Delhi-NCR and Gujarat. Based on surveys of 115 workers and 47 in-depth interviews, along with factory case studies, the study highlights how extreme heat combines with production pressure and gendered workplace dynamics to intensify risks.
Severe heat stress and weak protections plagued India’s garment factories, employing 45 million people, mostly women, a new report found.
It urged legal recognition of heat stress as an occupational risk, stronger labour rights, enforceable safety standards and infrastructure upgrades such as ventilation, cooling and medical access to protect workers’ health, productivity and incomes.
Survey findings reveal limited access to basic protections. Over 36 per cent of workers reported irregular or unclean drinking water, 78 per cent struggled to access toilets, and 80 per cent said their workstations lacked air movement. Nearly 88 per cent felt completely drained during peak summer months, while 87 per cent reported heat-related ailments such as headaches, dizziness and muscle cramps in the past year.
Women workers reported acute impacts, with 96.8 per cent experiencing burning sensations during urination and 92.6 per cent reporting menstrual disruptions linked to heat and production pressure.
Factory assessments across 15 surveyed units across different states showed 60 per cent lacked on-site medical facilities, 73.3 per cent had metal or asbestos roofs, and nearly half did not monitor temperature or humidity. In some cases, monitoring devices were installed only during buyer inspections.
The report warns that extreme heat is not merely seasonal discomfort but a structural labour and public health issue. It calls for legal recognition of heat stress as an occupational disease, expanded social protection, mandatory work-rest cycles, infrastructure upgrades and stronger worker participation in safety decisions.
With India projected to lose 35 million jobs and 4.5 per cent of GDP by 2030 due to heat stress, the study urges urgent structural reforms to protect one of the country’s largest employment sectors.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (CG)
Without seasonal adjustment, this number dropped by 369,000, or 0.8 per cent MoM, with the decrease being a usual seasonal phenomenon.
The seasonally-adjusted number of employed in Germany fell by 14,000 month on month (MoM) in January to 45.5 million, provisional data show.
This number was down by 0.2 per cent YoY in the month.
Around 1.86 million were unemployed in January—a rise of 11.7 per cent YoY.
The unemployment rate rose to 4.2 per cent—a rise of 0.5 pp YoY.
The number of unemployed, at 1.75 million, rose by 0.4 per cent MoM.
In the period from May to December 2025, the number was down by an average of 12,000 MoM.
The number of employed in January 2026 was down by 88,000, or 0.2 per cent, year on year (YoY).
The downward trend in the YoY labour market figures, observed since August 2025, continued, a Destatis release said.
According to the Destatis Labour Force Survey, 1.86 million were unemployed in January 2026—an increase of 195,000, or 11.7 per cent, YoY. The unemployment rate rose to 4.2 per cent—an increase of 0.5 percentage point (pp) YoY.
Adjusted for seasonal and irregular effects, the number of unemployed in January stood at 1.75 million—a MoM increase of 6,000, or 0.4 per cent. The adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4 per cent.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
Activewear sales rose 9 per cent to $3,088 million, while Innerwear sales increased 21 per cent largely due to the acquisition. International sales declined 5 per cent to $240 million.
Gildan Activewear has reported full-year 2025 net sales of $3,619 million, up 11 per cent, supported by HanesBrands integration and growth in Activewear and Innerwear.
Adjusted EPS rose 17 per cent to $3.51, while free cash flow reached $493 million.
The company targets $250 million synergies by 2028, plans Bangladesh Phase 2 expansion, and forecasts 2026 revenue of $6-6.2 billion.
The gross profit increased to $1,130 million and gross margin improved 50 basis points to 31.2 per cent, supported by lower manufacturing and raw material costs alongside favourable pricing, partly offset by tariff pass-through. Adjusted for a $35.4 million inventory fair value step-up related to the transaction, adjusted gross profit reached $1,165 million with adjusted gross margin of 32.2 per cent; the remaining $237 million step-up is expected to flow through cost of sales in 2026, Gildan said in a press release.
Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses were $389 million, while adjusted SG&A rose to $387 million (10.7 per cent of sales) from $308 million (9.4 per cent), reflecting consolidation effects and higher variable compensation. Operating income stood at $620 million (17.1 per cent margin) versus $618 million (18.9 per cent) in 2024, while adjusted operating income increased to $779 million, lifting adjusted operating margin to 21.5 per cent.
Net financial expenses climbed $45 million to $149 million due to acquisition-related borrowing. GAAP diluted EPS from continuing operations was $2.57 compared with $2.46, while adjusted diluted EPS rose 17 per cent to $3.51, benefiting from a lower diluted share base.
Operating cash flow increased to $606 million from $501 million, and free cash flow reached $493 million after capex of $114 million. Year-end net debt was $4,417 million, with leverage at 3.0x net debt to trailing 12-month proforma adjusted EBITDA.
In the fourth quarter (Q4), net sales from continuing operations rose 31.3 per cent to $1,078 million, with operating margin at 9.2 per cent and adjusted operating margin at 20.7 per cent. GAAP diluted EPS declined to $0.32, while adjusted diluted EPS increased to $0.96. Quarterly operating cash flow rose to $336 million and free cash flow to $304 million.
Integration progress is ahead of plan, with expected annual run-rate cost synergies of about $250 million by end-2028, up from the earlier $200 million target. The company plans to close two HanesBrands textile facilities in early 2026 as part of footprint optimisation.
Gildan has initiated a formal sale process for the HanesBrands Australian business, expected to generate approximately $675 million in net sales and $0.21 in diluted EPS in 2026, with proceeds earmarked for debt reduction.
For 2026, excluding HanesBrands Australia, Gildan forecasts revenue of $6-6.2 billion and adjusted diluted EPS of $4.2-4.4, alongside adjusted operating margin of about 20 per cent and free cash flow above $850 million. The company also approved a 10 per cent dividend increase, declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.249 per share.
Looking ahead, Gildan plans to develop a second textile facility within its Bangladesh complex, with initial production targeted for late 2027. From Q1 2026, segment reporting will shift from product categories to Retail and Wholesale to align with its go-to-market structure.
“Our results underscore the impressive execution by our global team whose focus is now on fully capturing the value of our expanded platform. As we look ahead to 2026, we are very excited about the HanesBrands acquisition which doubles our scale, combines iconic brands with our world-class, low-cost, vertically integrated platform, and unlocks a powerful engine for innovation and growth. The integration is well underway, and we now expect to deliver higher than initially targeted run-rate cost synergies reaching approximately $250 million by the end of 2028 with approximately $100 million in 2026,” said Glenn J Chamandy, president and CEO at Gildan Activewear.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)
Extreme heat threatens health, jobs in Indian textile sector: Report
Saudi Oil Supply Assurance Lifts Pakistan Stock Market – SUCH TV
Has the Iran war changed the Gulf forever?
India Us Trade Deal: Fresh look at India-US trade deal? May be ‘rebalanced’ if circumstances change, says Piyush Goyal – The Times of India
What are Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities?
Attock Cement’s acquisition approved | The Express Tribune
-
Business6 days ago
India Us Trade Deal: Fresh look at India-US trade deal? May be ‘rebalanced’ if circumstances change, says Piyush Goyal – The Times of India
-
Politics7 days agoWhat are Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities?
-
Business7 days ago
Attock Cement’s acquisition approved | The Express Tribune
-
Business1 week agoHouseholds set for lower energy bills amid price cap shake-up
-
Politics1 week agoUS arrests ex-Air Force pilot for ‘training’ Chinese military
-
Fashion1 week agoOECD GDP growth slows to 0.3% in Q4 amid mixed trends
-
Fashion7 days agoPolicy easing drives Argentina’s garment import surge in 2025
-
Sports6 days agoLPGA legend shares her feelings about US women’s Olympic wins: ‘Gets me really emotional’