Reg. No. 2037/02 - A Quarterly Cotton Magazine - Volume 4 - Issue 4 - October 2004

Editor-in-Chief

Quamrul Ahsan, Ph.D

Editor

Sagar Lohani

Assistant Editor

Saad Farooq Chowdhury

Advisory Board

Abdul Hannan

Christina M. Rozario

Daniel Post

Dr. Muzaffer Ahmad

Meer Tabarrak Husain

Sultan Ahmed

Zafrul Karim

Circulation

Monjur Rahman

Administration

Golam Hossain

Advertisement

Moti Lal Saha

Graphics Design

S. C. Banik

Computer Graphics

Moniruzzaman Monir

Photography

Mohammad Younus

Aminur Rahman Azam

Service Agent

Cotech, Inc.

11 Cedar Drive

Tuxedo Park, NY 10987, USA

Tel.: 845 753 6844 Fax: 845 753 6841

E-mail: CottonBangladesh@aol.com

Publisher

Mahmudul Ahsan

Cotton Bangladesh

416 Road No. 30, New DOHS

Dhaka 1206, Bangladesh

Tel.: 880 2 885 0927, 989 1534

Fax: 880 2 989 1527

E-mail: cottonbd@greengroup-ltd.com

Printed in Bangladesh by

Binimoy Printers Ltd.

Bangladesh Cotton and Textile Convention 2004, Dhaka

Cotton Bangladesh and GLOBECOT, an US cotton research organization, are organizing

The Bangladesh Cotton and Textile Convention on October 13, 2004 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The theme of the Convention is 2005.MARKET TURMOIL. are we ready?

FiberMax Quality Summit Held in Singapore

With a successful year under its belt, Bayer CropScience hosted the Certified FiberMax

Quality Summit 2004 in Singapore this summer bringing together most of the world's leading experts on cotton and cotton quality.

An interview with the BGMEA president

Annisul Huq, the current president of BGMEA is Chairman of Mohammadi Group, a leading conglomerate of RMG factories, and Technovista, a top software exporting company in Bangladesh, which also caters to the local market.

LCA Annual Trade Dinner and Conference 2004

The LCA Annual Dinner and Conference 2004 will be held from October 6 to 8, 2004. The annual dinner will be held at St George's Hall, Liverpool on Friday, 8 October 2004.

The LCA Trade Dinner represents one of the premier events in the International Cotton Calendar.

Cargill Cotton A renowned name to Global Spinners

Cargill has a long, rich history, starting with William-Wallace Cargill's first grain storage

facility on the American frontier in 1865. The company has grown to become an international, privately owned business providing food, agricultural and risk management products and services around the globe.

Editor-in-Chief's Column

We are glad to announce that Cotton Bangladesh, jointly with GLOBECOT will organize the Bangladesh Cotton & Textile Convention on October 13, 2004. The objective of holding such an international convention, for the first time in Bangladesh, is to sensitize the relevant stakeholders on issues and concerns that have relevance to the entire range of the textile sector of the country. Like many others, we are concerned about the post MFA era and the uncertainty that could create. On the other hand, we are confident that Bangladesh textile entrepreneurs would be able to face this challenge most effectively. However, it requires careful reflection, modification and clarification of existing regulations and reexamination of their position to create new markets. It is of utmost importance that relevant issues are discussed among concerned stakeholders. We are making an effort to create that platform for discussion. We hope that the discussions during the Cotton & Textile Convention 2004, will pave the way to changes that will benefit the overall Textile sector of Bangladesh.

We are also pleased to announce that Cotton Bangladesh will organize similar conventions regularly to discuss pressing issues related to the Textile sector.

Conference News

Bangladesh Cotton and Textile Convention 2004, DHAKA

2005.MARKET TURMOIL. are we ready?

January 1, 2005 will not only usher in a new year but also a new world for business in Bangladesh. It is said that the only constant in the world is change itself. Normally change is healthy and part of the natural order of things, but the kind of change we are likely to experience in the world of textile next year, could shake the very foundation of Bangladesh's econ-omy. Market turmoil could quickly become economic turmoil.

There are certain market forces that could be and most likely will be set in motion unless there is a surprise last minute turnaround by the WTO. Come the morning of January 1, will Bangladesh wake up in a new world with-out QUOTAS? The following questions now loom before various stakeholders of the textile industry of Bangladesh. Will there be turmoil in the textile marketshow bad? Is there a last minute solution to save the industry? This years Cotton Market crash-will it be repeated in 2005? What sort of Risk Manage-ment plan is being drawn for cotton procurement? What kind of survival strategy is being adopted? Where will the markets be after 2005? How to deal with the old customers? What will be the demand in future? Who would be the new competitors?

In an attempt to find answers to these questions and also to create a platform for discussion, Cotton Bangladesh and GLOBECOT, an US cotton research organization, are organizing The Bangladesh Cotton and Textile Convention on October 13, 2004 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The theme of the Convention is 2005.MARKET TURMOIL. are we ready? Well known Bangladeshi and international speakers will attempt to provide answers to the above questions and will offer concrete ideas and strategies, so that real solutions may be discussed. The Convention will be participated by stakeholders from home and abroad who will try to find solutions to some extremely difficult issues, like :

- Bangladesh's role in the global market the big picture;

- Alternatives to the WTO'S present course of action;

- What is in store for Bangladesh when quotas disappear;

- Risk Management for cotton procurement;

- Strategies essential for ensuring a future for the Bangladesh textile industry;

For registration and information concerning the Bangladesh Cotton and Textile Convention 2004, please visit www.cottonbangladesh.com/conference or contact the Convention Secretariat at convention@greengroup-ltd.com

An Apex Body For Textile Sector

A Proposal

Two individual organizations, which are extremely important for the textile industry of the country, BGMEA and BTMA, recently attracted a lot of attention due to their positions regarding certain issues related to the textile industry. More than the outcome of the discussions, we were concerned about the process of the discussions. The organizations required external arbitration, intervention and finally government decision for issues that has relevance to their respective industries.

We wondered if the discussion process would have been smoother if these two organizations, before taking their firm stands, could discuss the nuts and bolts of this issue in detail among themselves? Perhaps it would have been possible if there were an apex organization to look after, negotiate or discuss the problems and opportunities of the textile industry that is earning majority of the foreign exchange of Bangladesh.

Unlike some other sectors, the different components of the textile sector, from production of cotton to final delivery of apparel, are more intertwined and interdependent. Although we find that there are some organizations looking after the interest of certain components of the sector, like BGMEA, BTMA, BKMEA; there isn't a common platform where these organizations can table their common concerns. It is axiomatic that the development of the textile sector of Bangladesh depends on the healthy growth of each component within the sector.

Therefore, we propose that the industry leaders consider developing an apex body that would be a platform where all the major organizations related to the textile industry of Bangladesh, could discuss issues of common interest. This apex body will have representatives from all related organizations, like Cotton Association, BGMEA, BTMA, BKMEA, BTTLMEA, etc. This platform will enable the organizations to discuss and develop concerted efforts on issues of common interest e.g. port facility, problems of customs, PSI problems, remittance of foreign exchange for import, Central Bonded Warehouse, etc.

There are some good examples of similar apex bodies working in Bangladesh and abroad. FBCCI in Bangladesh had proved itself to be a strong bargaining body trying to protect the interest of its member organizations. National Cotton Council of USA, which comprises of seven segments of American cotton industry; namely; cotton growers, cotton ginners, cotton warehouse providers, cotton merchants, cotton-spinning mills, seed cotton crushers and cotton cooperatives, is also a replicable example.

We strongly feel that an apex body comprising of representatives from all components of the textile sector could help create that necessary bonding among the organizations, which will help the sector to grow and thrive at its aspired potential. 1

Christina M . Rozario

Advisor

COTTON BANGLADESH

Abdul Wadud

Dy. Manager

SQUARE TEXTILES

Sagar Lohani

Editor

COTTON BANGLADESH

Quamrul Ahsan Ph.D

Editor-in-Chief

COTTON BANGLADESH

FiberMax Quality Summit held in Singapore

A Global Forum for Cotton Quality

Certified FiberMax Cotton Goes to Asia

By Beth Roden

With a successful year under its belt, Bayer CropScience hosted the Certified FiberMax Quality Summit 2004 in Singapore this summer bringing together most of the world's leading experts on cotton and cotton quality. This summit is the first in the world devoted to U.S. cotton quality and changes in the market.

The summit was a very successful international meeting, said Brent Crossland, marketing manager for the Certified FiberMax Cotton Program.

We presented information to more than 70 spinning mills and 30 merchants from 12 countries. The summit covered topics like FiberMax and why it's different, its spinning characteristics, the world cotton supply and demand among others.

Brent also noted the collaboration within the Bayer Group because the summit also discussed Baypures, one of our textile chemicals products. Another way for Bayer CropScience to present a total solution to our partners: the seed, the fiber, and the finishing chemical.

The BioScience business group launched The FiberMax Certification Program officially in June 2003 at the EFS Conference (a technical conference for textile companies) in Greenville, S.C. The certification program gives growers the opportunity to reinforce the value of FiberMax cotton and enhance profit potential by certifying that their cotton was produced from an elite FiberMax cotton seed.

When we saw reports that indicated more FiberMax cotton was being traded than existed, we knew we had to act quickly to protect the FiberMax brand and generate demand through the creation of Certified FiberMax Cotton. Our summit in Singapore allowed us to create more demand among the international spinning community for high quality FiberMax cotton while adding value for U.S. cotton growers, said Brent.

Efforts to promote this first-of-its-kind program included: Pre-Certification and Certification forms, along with Q&A sheets, certification kits, including bale tags with the Certified FiberMax logo; a Web site; and several meetings and tradeshows with spinners and merchants in Gdansk, Poland; Liverpool, England; and Milan, Italy.

Some of the key people who shared their views during different sessions of the Summit were : Brent Crossland from Certified FiberMax, Ed Jernigan from GlobeCot, Lee Yi Shyan from IE, Singapore, Jane Dever, FiberMax Cotton Seed USA, Hibbie Barrier from the Jernigan Group, Jagdish Parihar from Olam International, Richard Knowles from Knowles/ Taylor, Phil Burnett from The Seam, Bob Anotoshak from Globecot, Li Lin from China Cotton Association, Chok Hak Leong from Bayer Asia, William Gunter from Cotton Inc., Craig Muller from US Growers Association.

With a year under its belt, program success is evident with about 600,000 bales of FiberMax Cotton certified to date and the expectation to exceed one million bales in 2004.

Photo description

1. Bob Antoshak of GlobeCot Inc. USA, Mostaque Ahmed Siddiqui of Square Textiles Ltd., Bangladesh, David Fraser of Globecot Inc. USA., Md. Mobarak Hossain of Paradise Spinning Mills Ltd., Sultan Ahmed of Prime textile mills Ltd. Bangladesh, Fred Hardin & Ed Jernigan of GlobeCot Inc. USA Syed Mozurul Huq of Techno Textile Mills, Bangladesh.

2. Bob Antoshak, Fred Hardin & Ed Jernigan of GlobeCot Inc. USA, with William Gunter of Cotton Incorporated.

3. Jack Alexander of Louis Dreyfus, Belgium, Andrew Wakefield of Asian Cotton Traders, B.G. Jain of Forbes Gokak Ltd., India, with their colleagues.

4. Mahesh Menon of Olam, Patricia Tay, Josephine Chua, Sandeep Hota & Sunny Verghese of Olam, Vasanth Subramanium, Jagdish Parihar, Vibhu Nath of Olam, Jennifer Lee & Vincent Ong (all of Olam).

5. Ann Antoshak , Hunter Colby,John Antoshak, Robin Goodrich, Robert Antoshak, Jennifer Wong and David Fraser of Globecot, Inc.

6. Sandeep Hota (left) of Olam Int'l, Singapore and Dr. Quamrul Ahsan (right) of Cotton Bangladesh.

7. Participants at the Summit.

8. Phillip Burnett of the Seam, Ray Wall of Cargill Shanghai China and and Bill Dwyer of Ecom USA Inc.

9. Monty Christian of Bayer Bio Science, Texas, USA, David Farley of Matrix Commodities Australia Phillip Burnett of the Seam, USA and Fred Hardin of GlobeCot Inc., USA.

10. Md. Azhar Ali of Square Textiles Ltd., Bangladesh, Sultan Ahmed of Prime Textiles Mills Ltd. Bangladesh, Sunny Verghese of Olam, Singapore, and Dr. Quamrul Ahsan of Cotton Bangladesh, Md. Mobarak Hossain of Paradise Spinning Mills Ltd., Jagdish Parihar of Olam, Singapore, Mostaque Ahmed Siddiqui of Square Textiles Ltd., Bangladesh.

11. Mr. Che Ming, Qingdao Textile Corp., Li Lin of China Cotton Association Sunny Verghese of Olam, Singapore, Su Zhao Hua, Shandong Cherry Textile Group, Jagdish Parihar of Olam Int'l, Singapore, Wang Chunpu Hangzhou Textile Co. China,

Vibhu Nath of Olam Int'l, Singapore.

12. Rodney Ward of Andira Netherlands VB, Viet Nam. Sandeep Hota of Olam Int'l, Singapore, Le Thu of Viet Thang Textile Co. Viet Nam, Hoang Ve Dung, Hanoi, Vietnam.

13. Yin Xianglin of Qingdao Textile Assn.,China, Sunny Verghese & Jagdish Parihar of Olam, Singapore, Liu Chun Hai, Shandong Demian Group, Zhao Yun Chen, Anhui Yuzhong Textile Co,Ms. Yanyee of Olam, Mahesh Menon of Olam Int'l.

14. Sandeep Hota , Mahesh Menon and Vibhu Nath of of Olam Int'l, Singapore.

Interview

An interview with the BGMEA president

By Saad F. Chowdhury

Annisul Huq, the current president of BGMEA is Chairman of Mohammadi Group, a leading conglomerate of RMG factories, and Technovista, a top software exporting company in Bangladesh, which also caters to the local market. During the past couple of months, he has been vocal, expressing concern about the probable consequence of MFA phase out and its impact on the textile sector. His views have caught quite a bit of media attention. However, the face of Annisul Huq isn't new on TV, he is also one of the most popular TV anchor of the country. The reporters of Cotton Bangladesh had a pleasant and informative discussion with Mr. Annisul Haque on 15th September.

The discussion with the President of BGMEA began with a question on MFA phase out and what he thought the consequences would be. He said, that although there would no longer be any quota in the USA market at the end of 2004, he was hopeful that there could yet be a good market in USA, because of their willingness to provide Bangladesh with trade benefits through GSP. However, it would require, strong proactive initiative from the government to avail those benefits.

We cannot interact with USA directly, being a business association, it is a matter to be negotiated between the Governments.- He pointed out.

He further mentioned that Canada, Australia, Japan have become new markets for Bangladesh RMG, due to the trade benefits that they have provided, and we are focusing on these countries. We are also hopeful about the EU market.

When Annis was asked about his role as the new president of BGMEA, he smiled his characteristic pleasant smile, which probably said, Well, it's a tough job! He explained that he was trying hard, along with the other members of the association, for the development of the entire textile sector, particularly the RMG sector.

We have been persistently persuading the Government and the concerned authorities and spelling out the possible disaster the RMG sector could face from 2005. As a remedial measure we have suggested developing Central Bonded Warehouse (CBW) facilities and taking positive measures on Rules of Origin. said Annis.

The RMG sector in the country needs special attention from the Government to protect and promote this sector, which is a key source of revenue for the country. Some of the initiatives that could be taken are, trying to get duty free access to USA market, to allow establishment of Central Bonded Warehouse (CBW), lobbying for change in EU's Rules of Origin to get full GSP facilities, reduction of Bank charges, shipping charges and insurance premium rates, he added.

The president of BGMEA further explained, China and India are considered as power houses, which will unleash in the post MFA era. That would pose as a major threat for Bangladesh, because they would have a marked edge in woven textile. On the other hand, only 20 per cent of the requirement of woven textiles in the country's RMG sector can be met from local sources. We believe that introduction of CBW could decrease the lead time and increase price competitiveness.

We are trying, as much as an association can, to look for new markets for our products. BGMEA will organize fairs in Japan and Australia, who have recently provided trade benefits to Bangladesh, to introduce its products to the new customers. A fair was also organized in Canada. Annis informed.

He also informed that this year, BATEXPO will hold seminars to discuss a number of important topics. A ten-member buyers' delegation from the European Union, of the Euro Bangla Apparels 2005 project, under Asia invest II program, is likely to visit BATEXPO 2004. With a further note of hope, the President of BGMEA informed that the Managing Director, Southeast Asia, of WAL-MART, one of the most important buyers of apparel in the world will visit Bangladesh soon. This would be the first visit of any high official of WAL-MART to Bangladesh.

The sky was overcast with dark clouds on the day the reporter of Cotton Bangladesh met with Annisul Huq. He spoke of some dismal probabilities that resembled the cloudy sky. However, during the interview, he flashed his bright smile a few times, while he spoke about possibilities, only if appropriate strategies could be adopted.

Trade union in EPZ allowed

The Parliament of Bangladesh has recently passed the much-talked about EPZ Trade Union and Industrial Relations Bill, 2004 that allows formation of trade union bodies in the industrial units and establishments, situated in the Export Processing Zones (EPZs) areas in the country.

Workers at EPZs will enjoy trade union right from November 1, 2006 but would not have any affiliation with political parties or their labour fronts. Before the trade union right is ensured, the EPZ workers in the first phase will be able to form "labour representative and welfare committees" empowered to discuss and sign agreements with the owners to protect their (workers) interests.

There are six EPZs in Bangladesh that employs about 13.6 million workers and is contributing a fifth of the country's total national export income. The Minister of Law, Barrister Moudud Ahmed, while speaking about the bill said that the government had been in a dilemma for a couple of years over the issue of trade unionism in the EPZs, due to pressure from buyers and strong opposition from major investors.

The US government threatened to withdraw Generalized System of Preference (GSP) facilities if full-fledged trade union were not introduced while investors of the EPZ areas threatened to withdraw investment if that facility were given.

According to the bill, trade unions can be formed at an industrial unit in the EPZs if 30 per cent workers want it. Then the union will be formed if more than 50 per cent workers take part in a referendum and over 50 per cent of them votes for it.

The government reached its decision after holding numerous meetings with investors in the EPZs, American Federation of Labor & Congress of Industrial Organization (AFL-CIO), US Ambassador in Dhaka and World Bank Country Director.

The trade association will run under a constitution incorporated in the act and the executive body will be formed through secret balloting. The body will be able to work as a collective bargaining agent (CBA).

The workers' associations in an area can form a federation; but will not be allowed to get involved with a body or federation outside the area or a political party or its labour front. The associations are not entitled to participate in any political activities.

The EPZ area was off-limit to trade union since its inception in 1980. The EPZs are regulated under the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority Act, 1980. 1

Conference News

LCA Annual Trade Dinner and Conference 2004

Cotton Bangladesh Report

The LCA Annual Dinner and Conference 2004 will be held from October 6 to 8, 2004. The annual dinner will be held at St George's Hall, Liverpool on Friday, 8 October 2004. The LCA Trade Dinner represents one of the premier events in the International Cotton Calendar. Following last year's Dinner, when a break from tradition was made by introducing a registration fee, the Board of Directors has reviewed the reaction to this, which was broadly favourable. They have decided therefore to continue with the policy of seeking a registration fee, which will be administered by the Secretariat.

The Registration Fee will cover all of the following activities:

- Trade Exhibition Area;

- Keynote presentations;

- Light refreshments throughout the two-day conference;

- Pre-dinner reception at St. George's Hall in the North Entrance;

- LCA Dinner at St George's Hall;

- Access to hospitality suites post dinner at the Crowne Plaza hosted by local companies.

The President will receive the Association's Official Guests in St George's Hall at the North Entrance. The full floor space of the hall will be used to accommodate diners at their tables. The reception will be held in the refurbished area adjacent to the North Entrance, from where guests will be requested to proceed to their tables.

The events of the programme will include meetings of the LCA Board and Advisory Council, ACME, CICCA and the European Cotton Confedera-tion together with a number of keynote presentations.

A trade exhibition is planned for the period of the conference reflecting a broad spectrum of the Industry. It will be located in the main lounge area of the Crowne Plaza acting as the focal point for light refreshments, lunch and other activities of general interest.

International Conference in Tashkent

An international cotton conference will be held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on May 5-6, 2005 organized by the Government of Uzbekistan and the ICAC, in cooperation with Cotlook Limited, publishers of Cotton Outlook. The conference will capitalize on the experiences of the two previous successful events held in Tashkent: Uzbekistan 2000 held in May and COTTON: Engine for Economic Growth, UZBEKISTAN 2002 held in November. These events were attended by hundreds of participants. It is envisioned that international conferences will be held in Tashkent, regularly during May on biennial basis in odd-numbered years.

The upcoming conference theme will be Cotton and Textiles Important Factors of Economic Growth in Central Asia. Major topics will include:

- Current status and outlook for world cotton market.

- Cotton industry developments in Uzbekistan and Central Asia.

- Requirements of the modern spinning industry.

- Improving competitiveness of cotton fiber and technology achievements.

- Development of cotton quality evaluation.

- Improving cotton standards, certification, quality and weight control, testing.

- New technologies to produce competitive cotton fiber.

- Investments as an instrument of modernization and growth of cotton and textile industries.

- Government efforts to facilitate privatization of cotton and textile industries.

- Outlook for world textile trade.

- Impact of terminating the WTO Agreement on Textile and Clothing.

- Investment climate and participation of international investors in the development of Uzbek textile industry.

- Financing cotton and textile exports; Export financing.

- Improving competitiveness of cotton fibers.

- The latest advances in logistics, transportation and insurance.

- Improvement of transportation methods, regional cotton terminals.

- Role and significance of insurance for cotton trade.

- Price risk management.

- Sanctity of contracts, joint efforts of industry associations.

Cotton News

Biotech Cotton

Benefits and Consequences

Biotech cotton varieties accounted for 21% of world cotton area and an estimated 30% of world cotton production in 2003/04. Approximately one-third of cotton moving in international trade is genetically engineered, and biotech cotton is being sold in retail stores in virtually every country. Nine countries representing 59% of world cotton area allow the commercial use of biotech cotton: Argentina, Australia, China (Mainland), Colombia, India, Indonesia, Mexico, South Africa and the U.S.

The current generation of biotech cotton varieties provides insect resistance and herbicide tolerance, but there is the potential for improvements in product quality, higher yields, lower costs and improved sustainability of production systems. There is an emerging scientific consensus that biotech cotton varieties are safe and economical for farmers in areas where target pests are a major threat to cotton production. However, even in countries where biotech cotton products have been approved for commercial application,, adoption by farmers has not always been rapid, indicating that at least in some regions biotech varieties may have costs and consequences that limit their usefulness.

The use of genetic engineering in cotton deserves additional study to evaluate potential consequences of use, including costs for seeds and technology, the potential for gene transfer, likely development of resistance, environmental impacts and other concerns. In order to provide an objective evaluation of genetic engineering in cotton, the ICAC has constituted an Expert Panel on Biotechnology of Cotton. The Expert panel is chaired by Dr. Gary Fitt of Australia and includes seven leading scientists dealing with various aspects of the technology, including fundamental research, application, bio safety regulations, and environmental impacts.. The ICAC's Expert Panel on Biotech-nology of Cotton met in Washington on July 26-27, 2004 to discuss its draft report. The Panel decided to use the generic term Biotech cotton to describe varieties variously described as GM, GMO or genetically engineered (GE). The Panel believes that application of biotechnology tools is resulting in an expanding number of products best described by the term biotech.

The panel will prepare a balanced, succinct, science-based report written in lay terms for presentation to the 63rd Plenary Meeting in Mumbai, India during November 29-December 3, 2004.

Courtesy- ICAC

63RD PLENARY MEETING of ICAC IN MUMBAI

The 63rd Plenary Meeting of the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) will be held from 28 November to December 03, 2004 at a famous Hotel in Mumbai, India. The theme of the 63rd Plenary Meeting will be Enhancing Cotton Competitive-ness. Twelve general sessions and four breakout sessions are being planned, which include: Government Measures and current developments in the WTO, Trading Cotton on an Instrument Based Classing System, New Developments in Biotechnology in Cotton, the Outlook for Cotton Prices, etc. There will be a technical seminar on How to Improve Yields and Reduce Pesticide Use.

Approximately 400 participants from as many as 40 countries and eight international organizations are expected to attend. The meeting is being organized with the support of the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. 1

Company Profile

Cargill Cotton

A renowned name to Global Spinners

Cargill has a long, rich history, starting with William-Wallace Cargill's first grain storage facility on the American frontier in 1865. The company has grown to become an international, privately owned business providing food, agricultural and risk management products and services around the globe. Cargill operates in 60 countries on all six continents. The company is proud of its 140-year record of fair dealing, quality and integrity.

The story of Cargill Cotton can be traced back to 1818 when John and Eustace Ralli established a partnership in London trading in a variety of commodities from cotton and silk to metals. Ralli Brothers and Coney became a division of Cargill Plc in 1981 adding worldwide origination strengths to Cargill's existing US focused cotton operation of Hohenberg Brothers.

In 2002, after over 20 years of operating under both the Hohenberg and Ralli names the decision was made to combine the strengths of these two highly regarded cotton companies and the 60 billion dollar parent company. Cargill Cotton was the result.

This change accompanied a restatement of a coherent global business philosophy for Cargill that directs the company's drive to success through Customer Focus, Innovation and High Performance to create distinctive value. The emphasis is to add value to our customers' business, not just through price but through a working relationship that explores what the customer requires, collaborates with the customer to create solutions and delivers on our promises. This reinforces our commitment to our customers for the long term, rather than a one off transactional approach. Bangladesh is a high priority for Cargill Cotton. Through Intradeco and Bakul the business is represented by two strong agents and merchants from Liverpool, UK, make regular visits to the market to keep up to date on mill requirements and all aspects of performance.

The preference for hand picked, lower nep cottons for knit yarn production has encouraged Cargill Cotton to align strategically towards a greater share of the important Uzbekistan origin, and to ensure strong links in West Africa, Syria and other outside growths to enhance the range of growths that can be provided as alternatives.

The focus is increasingly technically oriented on all cottons with greater emphasis on pre-testing by HVI, as well as standard visual class. This is done in order to enhance the knowledge base for a particular origin in comparison to mill requirements and where possible to tailor shipments to a particular emphasis that the mill may have for technical characteristics such as maturity, trash content, or uniformity.

Cargill Cotton operates its own ginning facilities in Zimbabwe and Tanzania to ensure quality control throughout the process. More recently an alternative from the US has been presented by the FiberMax seed variety where our US operation has taken a lead role in marketing developments by working closely with the grower associations in the relevant regions. Brazilian cotton is also now being accepted into Bangladesh in increasing volumes and once again Cargill Cotton has a first rate sourcing operation in place to manage any such enquiry.

Cargill recognises that price is often quoted as the main criteria for a purchase but highlights the importance given today's market and logistical environment of both merchant and mill choosing the right trading partner and maintaining an open communication with each other.

It is envisaged that situations similar to this season, where mills have found longer transit times disturbing production schedules, will continue to occur in an environment where global container traffic exceeds 300,000 TEU stressing both ports of origin and transhipment. Cargill believes that such an environment makes it increasingly important for mills to partner with merchants who are able to leverage global preferential shipping company contracts, select from relatively large quantities at origin and also provide alternative origins if required. Cargill acknowledges that due to size, they are one of a selected few cotton merchants that can meet these requirements.

In 2003- 04 Cargill Cotton traded close to 4 million bales in total out of its two main trading offices. The Americas are handled from Memphis, Tennessee and rest of the world origins from Liverpool. Gary Taylor is overall head of the division with Paul Kinney President in Liverpool. Worldwide representation is thro-ugh Cargill offices in China, Australia, Zimbabwe, Brazil and Ivory Coast and a representative office in Tashkent, where Cargill has been active since 1991.

Cargill Cotton realizes that whilst the breadth, depth and integrity of its presence in the cotton industry can be considered its strengths, the best way to ensure continued success is to take prudent marketing decisions and continue to provide prices, solutions and shipments that meet the requirements of our mill customers. 1

CONTACTS

Cargill Cotton USA

7101 Goodlett Farms Parkway

Cordova, Tennessee 38016 USA

Tel: (901) 937-4500

Fax: (901) 937-4463

Email: cotton_us@cargill.com

Web site: www.cargillcotton.com

Cargill Cotton UK

12 Princes Parade

Liverpool L3 1BG, England

Tel: 44 (151) 2427500

Fax: 44 (1932) 576256

Email: cotton_uk@cargill.com

Web site: www.cargillcotton.com

INTRADECO

03-07 Priyo Prangan Tower

19 Kemal Ataturk Avenue

Banani, Dhaka-1213

Tel: 2 8853901, 0171 539965, 0118 09747

Fax: 2 9885866

Email: rnco@citechco.net

arencot@citech-bd.com

BAKUL LIMITED

Prime View (Suite No 403)

7 Gulshan Avenue

Gulshan 1, Dhaka-1212

Tel: 2 8816089, 0118 53118, 0171 595571

Fax: 2 9883181

Email: bakulgrp@citechco.net

BATEXPO

Scheduled on 6-8 October 2004

A three-day Bangladesh Apparel and Textile Exposi-tion (BATEXPO) is scheduled from October 6 to 8, 2004 at Hotel Pan Pacific Sonargaon ballroom in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This gala occasion will bring together Bangladeshi readymade garments, fabrics and accessories sellers and global RMG buyers and set stage for negotiations and exchange of views. This years exhibition will have display from every category of men's, women's and children's wear, accessories and fabrics. Conferences, seminars, fashion and cultural shows will also be organized during the exhibition. Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Begum Khaleda Zia is expected to inaugurate this years event. Sheikh Hasina, leader of the opposition in the Parliament will be invited to be present as the chief guest at the closing cermony. A number of foreign participants from different countries will display their stalls at BATEXPO 2004. Since its inception in 1989, every year this event has been acting as a one stop efficient location to the RMG buyers to meet their requirements from wide ranges of products, as well as for sellers to negotiate with their buyers.

This years Exposition has special significance, since it will be the last Exposition before the MFA phase out.

Photo: Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia delivering her speech in the inaugural ceremony, while opposition leader in the Parliament Sheikh Hasina addressing at the closing ceremony in BATEXPO 2003.

Event Review

Knit expositions 2004

By Saad F. Chowdhury

With the aim of promoting the knitwear sector of Bangladesh and make this sector internationally more competitive through in due course initiatives Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) organized, for the first time in the country, the three-day Knit Exposition 2004 from September 22 to September 24, 2004 at hotel Sheraton, Dhaka, Bangladesh. The slogan for this year's event was-Explore the galore of Bangladeshi Knitwear. Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Begum Khaleda Zia, inaugurated the Knit Exposition 2004. The inaugural ceremony was also participated by Finance Minister M. Saifur Rahman, Commerce Minister Altaf Hossain Chowdhury, and Adviser to the Ministry of Commerce Barkatullah Bulu.

The Exposition's objectives were: To focus the knit sector's on going progress that has been made over the years; to create a platform so that all the related organizations could rendezvous and shared the ideas of common vision and set a common goal; to create awareness about the sector and its importance in the socio economic development of the country; to cater the manufacturers, exporters, buyers, suppliers etc. a common stage of demonstration; to reinforce healthy competition among local manufacturers and exporters; to enhance the image of BKMEA as pivot of the sector.

In addition to the exhibition, a number of other events like Seminar, Briefing to the Ambassadors and High Commissioners, Fashion and cultural show were arranged.

On the second day of the exposition, a seminar was conducted on Bangladesh Knit sector where Dr. Mustafizur Rahman, Director Research, of CPD, a leading research organization in the country, presented the keynote paper. The VC of The North South University Dr. Hafiz G. A. Siddiqui was present as moderator at the seminar.

A total of 52 stalls displayed their products in the Exposition in six categories of which as many as 32 stalls were from Knit and Yarn sector, while rest of the stalls were shared among others that included Sweater, Accessories, Machinery industries and a Knitwear software developing organization. Several participants from India and Pakistan displayed their products at the exhibition.

The BKMEA believes this occasion has been able to create a congenial atmosphere for Bangladesh to share their experience with international buyers' which would be mutually beneficial. They informed that this year's exposition was an efficient one stop event for the buyers, as it has created significant trade opportunity to meet their requirements from wide ranges of products, as well sellers who were able to negotiate with their buyers with varied products. Buyers from Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal etc. were present in the exposition.

This year BKMEA Exposition carried special significance in light of the MFA phase out. Industries experts think that the knit division has better chance than that of other divisions in the textile sectors to cope with the post MFA jolt which begins from 2005.

The Reporter of Cotton Bangladesh met with the President, BKMEA, Md. Fazlul Hoque in the Exposition. He expressed his satisfaction about the Exposition and said from now on, they will try to make it a regular yearly event for BKMEA.

We are not too much worried of post MFA jolt as we have been flourishing rapidly as a single sector in Bangladesh RMG. Despite the imminent MFA phase out, last year the total knit export has increased by about 30 percent Fazlul Hoque said. Quantity wise the Knit sector outnumbered the Woven sector last year. The Knit sector exported 50.3 per cent of total garments export while woven sector accounted for 49.7 per cent, he added.

Replying to a question Fazlul Hoque stated We have been getting good support from the backward linkage industries in the country even though the price of locally produced yarn is bit higher. The president mentioned that it is more likely that China and India would play a major role in the Post MFA era, but interestingly we have our eyes on India and China to export our Knit items, because of their huge domestic market and their less concentration in some of the times in Knit sector.

US ambassador to Bangladesh Harry K. Thomas and the President of BKMEA Md. Fazlul Hoque (second from the right) with others in the exposition.

Cotton Bangladesh Report

Sourcing USA Summit

November 18 - 20, 2004

Cotton Council International, Cotton Incorporated, U.S. cotton exporters and allied industry sponsors will host the third Sourcing USA Summit on November 18 - 20, 2004 in a top star rated hotel in San Diego, California. The theme for the event is Strengthening Enduring Partnerships.

The body thinks; to survive in today's intense competitive environment, it is essential to understand the latest trade and consumer trends and trade policies, demanding the employment of cutting edge manufacturing technologies and advanced business systems. The 2004 Summit, an exclusive by-invitation-only event, will introduce new "best practices" that will drive the global cotton complex forward. Executives in the cotton trade and textile industry from 35 countries will attend this Summit where industry leaders will exchange new ideas and initiate or strengthen important strategic partnerships.

The organizers hope, against the stunning background of the Pacific Ocean, the venue is the ideal setting for the next Sourcing USA Summit. The perfect balance of business and pleasure will be offered at this urbane, sophisticated and cultured resort. The mixture of world-class golf and the beauty of the Pacific Ocean and Southern California are pleasant not only to the eyes, but also to the mind, body

Photo: Bill Dunavant of CCI is flanked by A. Matin Chowdhury of Malek Spinning Mills and Tapan Chowdhury of Square Textiles at the Sourcing USA summit 2002.

Dhaka Textile & Garment Machinery Exhibition 2005

BTMA and Chan Chao International Co., Ltd will organize the 2nd Dhaka Textile & Garment 2005 (DTG 2005) from Jan. 23-27, 2005 at Bangladesh China Friendship Conference Center (BCFCC).

This event will act as a gateway to provide and create more opportunity for Bangladeshi exporters to come into contact, or deal with related manufacturers, regional agents and wholesalers at one place and to source high quality machinery, equipment and materials.

The show will exhibit items ranging from spinning, knitting, weaving, embroidery, sewing, CAD/CAM, testing and other related textile and garment equipments. It is expected that this event will accommodate more than 380 booths with world class leading brands from USA, Germany, Switzerland, France, Italy, Turkey, Japan, Korea, Singapore, China, India, Hong Kong, Czechoslovakia and Taiwan. It will set a one-stop selling and searching platform. Exhibitors from Turkey, China and Taiwan will be especially housed in pavilions.

For further information about DTG 2005, interested groups may contact at e-mail: service@ccie.com.tw and Website: www.bangla-expo .com