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The Big Bro vice-like squeeze of the sweeping tariff hikes will soon be felt far beyond edgy boardrooms and uneasy stock exchanges, and there are sporadic reports of this already starting to take effect. For hundreds of thousands of garment workers—many in the factories across South and Southeast Asia, and Africa to a lesser extent—the arbitrary spike in trade tariffs will be a matter of life and death.

The lesson of the current US tariffs crisis roiling the trade world is this: you cannot keep relying on one country as your export destination. From now on it has to be ‘US Plus One’.

The future of fashion isn’t synthetic. It’s natural. It’s regenerative. And The Sheep Inc brand embodies and symbolises ideas from a carbon-negative supply chain, premium merino wool garments and regenerative farms to that word which is at the core of many debates in the fashion world: transparency.

Perspectives are varied, and it is not an open-and-shut case against US Prez Donald Trump as his political opponents would have us believe. The tariff calculations could be questionable and the unilateral announcement should be decried, but what’s amply clear is this: trade will never be the same again.

In today's world people move from one outrage to the next with as much ease as they swipe left over to the next reel. Last year’s Brazil cotton controversy has resurfaced not only because it has been a year to the revelation, but also because Better Cotton is itself pursuing the thread. And, the loopholes in Better Cotton's damage control exercise that was pointed out by Earthsight remain yawning.

Uganda is the fifth largest importer of second-hand clothing in Africa, and the Owino Market in capital Kampala is key to the trade in the country. A recent report looked at Owino and its impact on business and livelihoods. Study author Jennifer Wang talks about the fine print in the report.

Earlier this month, an incisive study looked at prevalent circular fashion (CF) narratives, and contended that CF in its current form is built on unrealistic projections and industry rhetoric. The report has created a buzz, and lead author of the study, Talia Hussain, goes beyond the report in this free-wheeling discussion about the subject.

The Spring Edition of Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics, one of the leading destinations for sourcing fabrics and accessories, gets under way today. As visitors start to throng the three-day event, Wendy Wen, Managing Director of fair organiser Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd, talks about Shanghai and what to expect from the event.

Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics is one of the leading destinations for sourcing fabrics and accessories. The Spring Edition, to be held from 11-13 March, will turn the spotlight on a diverse range of products and services. Wendy Wen, Managing Director of fair organiser Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd, talks about trends in the business of fabrics.

Tersus Solutions, founded in 2009, supports a wide variety of needs by leveraging its proprietary CO2 platform that preserves water and electricity, sanitises or sterilises, captures contaminates and microfibres, and ultimately extends the life of textiles. Steve Madsen, Founder and CTO, and Peter Whitcomb, CEO, speak at length about how the future lies in technology.