HTL International Holdings Ltd, leather tannery operators and furniture makers, have said they are in discussions with a potential investor to issue S$20 million ($11 million) of new shares.

HTL International Holdings Ltd, leather tannery operators and furniture makers, have said they are in discussions with a potential investor to issue S$20 million ($11 million) of new shares.

South Korea's Bailsan T&S Group are planning to construct a US$35 million leather and footwear materials plant at an undisclosed location in Vietnam in 2003, according to the Vietnamese News Agency. The company sell materials worth US$3 million to Vietnamese footwear manufacturers each year. Vietnam's leather and footwear industry imports 90% of its required raw materials.

South Korea's Bailsan T&S Group are planning to construct a US$35 million leather and footwear materials plant at an undisclosed location in Vietnam in 2003, according to the Vietnamese News Agency. The company sell materials worth US$3 million to Vietnamese footwear manufacturers each year. Vietnam's leather and footwear industry imports 90% of its required raw materials.

General-Tower Ltd have plans to introduce a new polymer blend as a leather replacement or supplement in mid- and high-priced autos.

General-Tower Ltd have plans to introduce a new polymer blend as a leather replacement or supplement in mid- and high-priced autos.

Livestock hides and skins exports from the western Iranian province of Hamedan increased substantially year-on-year in the first quarter of the current Iranian year (March 21 - June 20, 2002), according to the IRNA news agency. Most exports were delivered to Germany, Italy, Pakistan, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Iran's Customs Administration has reported that Iran exported cattle hides and skins worth US$19.6 million in the first quarter of the current Iranian year (March 21 - June 20, 2002), according to the IRNA news agency. The figure was higher than in the same period last year.

The authorities in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in western China say they plan to curb livestock numbers because of chronic overgrazing, according to the Xinhua news agency. Xinjiang currently has 60 million hectares of pasture land that can support up to 26 million head of livestock, but current livestock numbers total 45.3 million. If no measures are taken to curb livestock numbers, then the total number is expected to grow to 52 million by 2005.

President Saparmurat Niyazov of Turkmenistan has said that the number of cattle in Turkmenistan in the first half of this year increased by 14% year-on-year to over 2 million, according to the Interfax news agency. The number of sheep increased by 22% to 14.1 million.

Despite all expectations, the hide market rose in June and then steadied in early July. Kills continued to be low and Italian tanners were booking hides for delivery in September which tended to indicate that prices were unlikely to fall in the immediate future. However, wet-blue producers continue to maintain that wet-salted hides cannot be converted into wet-blue profitably at current raw prices. This opinion is repeated by every single wet-blue producer and there is a feeling that something has to give.

Azerbaijan's State Statistics Committee has reported that the number of cattle in Azerbaijan currently stands at 2.1 million head, with a big increase in cattle numbers expected this year, according to the Arminfo news agency. There are also currently 6.5 million head of sheep and goats in Azerbaijan.

Bulgaria's Agriculture Ministry announced a ban on the import of livestock and livestock products from Argentina on June 10, following the announcement of an outbreak of foot and mouth disease on June 6, according to the Bulgarian Telegraphic Agency.

The Czech Statistical Office has reported that there were a total of 1.52 million head of cattle in the Czech Republic as of March 1, a fall of 3.9% compared with the same date last year, according to the CTK news agency's Business News. The fall in cattle numbers was attributed to a fall in profit margins from cattle breeding over the past. The fall in cattle numbers was attributed to a fall in profit margins from cattle breeding over the past year.

The Czech Agricultural Chamber has reported that the fear of the spread of BSE in the Czech Republic last year cost local cattle breeders Kc2 billion (US$1 = Kc36) because of falls in beef prices, according to the CTK news agency's Business News. Overall slaughter cattle sales in the Czech Republic in 2001 rose by 0.2% year-on-year to 208,524 tonnes, but prices received by producers fell by a third following the registration of two BSE cases in June and August.

Estonia's Statistical Office has reported that there were 281,000 head of cattle on farms in Estonia as of the end of March this year, compared with 278,400 head on the same date last year, according to the LETA news agency.

The kill in Sweden in 2001 was just under the 500,000 mark achieved in 2000. This decline refers to a couple of weeks following the FMD outbreak in Europe when there was almost no kill at all. This year, kills are expected to reach the 500,000 mark once again and this is likely to be the kill level for the coming years, unless anything dramatic happens such as diseases or a change in farming policies. Meat consumption has returned to normal but was never really affected. So far, Sweden has no confirmed cases of FMD or BSE.

A ban on the export of raw animal hides has been reimposed in the Philippines as part of efforts to protect the country's tanning industry and ensure an adequate supply of raw materials amidst global shortages. The six-month ban was enforced on March 1, 2002, and covers cow, caribou, goat, sheep and other ruminants.

Russia's Agriculture Ministry has reported that Russian farms had a total of 29.8 million head of cattle as of June 1 this year, a fall of 0.3% compared with the same date last year, according to the RIA Novosti news agency. The production of livestock and poultry for slaughter in the first five months of this year totalled 2.4 million tonnes liveweight, a year-on-year rise of 3.7%.

During the week ended July 14, prices on branded material firmed as packers were able to maintain the previous week's increases and even advance prices further on some selections.

German leather chemical manufacturers, Boehme, have introduced a synthetic retanning agent and three fatliquors. They are as follows:

Pittards have developed an organic tanning system that can successfully incorporate a range of advanced technical properties. Traditionally vegetable tanning produced unstable results, could not be successfully treated with technical applications and has not been seen as a realistic option to chrome and other more modern tanning methods.

Bayer's Euderm Aroma will aid manufacturers in producing leather which not only feels and looks good but also has an appropriate fragrance.

Clariant have introduced a series of acrylic resins and acrylic based compact binders to cover all aspects of leather finishing. The acrylic products are made at Clariant's production facilities around the world and complement the company's existing range. The acrylics are suitable for impregnating not only shoe leathers but also a whole variety of leather articles including automotive leathers.

Satra have introduced the Dynamic Footwear Water Resistance tester. Consequently, it has become a key method of testing whole shoes in laboratories. It comprises of a pneumatically-driven foot to which the test shoe is fitted and then lowered into a tank with the water at a pre-set level above the shoe's featherline. Water penetration is checked at regular levels and the number of cycles (flexes) completed for leakage to occur is recorded.

Spanish tannery, laboratory and pilot plant machinery specialists, Inoxvic, have updated their stainless steel pilot scale drums. The new Simplex-4 TDF is composed of a double-walled cabinet with funnels located on the top for the introduction of liquids into the drums. This eliminates interruptions for water or chemical additions during the drum cycle.

Lectra have introduced their Total Leather Solution HV, a new generation of cutting technology for leather processing. The system has been developed for large hide processing in the transport and furniture industries and it has completely different technology from traditional cutting solutions.

Spanish drum and automation specialists, Olcina Group, have introduced a semi-automated pH measuring station to be used with their new range of Olcina System Automation products. Olcina have also completed trials on their novel Cangilones design and the drums can now be used to process vegetable tanned leathers as well as wet-blue.

Turkish machinery manufacturers Derimaksan have introduced the Junior Toggle Drier for small hides and skins.

German leather chemical manufacturers, BASF, have added three new products to their global range of chemicals. They include an aqueous dispersion, a transparent top coat and a new black liquid drum dye.

Ingrassante D3 is a semi-transparent, straw coloured, fatliquor paste. The anionic, synthetic compound offers strong softness with excellent fullness and body. It imparts a characteristic waxy and silky surface touch to the grain. Crust leathers featuring Ingrassante D3 have good finishing absorption properties and good lightfastness.

Lipsol QPF is a new fatliquor for all types of light coloured automotive and upholstery articles. Leathers show a fine and evenly-milled grain. Lipsol QPF is particularly suitable for chrome-free leathers. Fatliquoring with Lipsol QPF results in good softness and a light and fluffy leather character with excellent lightfastness and heat resistance.

Synthol WP, one of Smit & Zoon's most popular fatliquors in the market worldwide, is now available in liquid form. It is a multi-purpose fatliquor used in the garment, upholstery and shoe upper industry, because of its high softening power, tight character, good fullness, water repellency effect and washable properties etc.

Addressing the issue of emerging trends, he said:

Pediculosis in cattle occurs throughout the world, and is more common in cattle than in any other domestic animal (Urquhart et al. 1987). Two species of lice are endemic in Norwegian cattle, biting lice (Damalinia (Bovicola) bovis (Linnaeus 1758)) and sucking lice (Linognathus vituli (Linnaeus 1758)).

Seaward describes Clarks now as being completely retail-led and an important factor of the commitment they require from their suppliers is that they expect to be the first to see all new leathers. This gives them an edge on early development.

Director general Anthony D Cox told delegates that: 'At last year's AGM, we were all acutely concerned with the effects of the serious outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the UK. After my return from Hong Kong, the British association's offices continued to be inundated with telephone enquiries relating to (a) no abattoir through-put for weeks; (b) the effects of the loss of the UK's FMD-free status; (c) the spread of cases of FMD to Europe and elsewhere and (d) export restrictions and/or special requirements to overcome export documentation difficulties. 'These required government re-negotiation at national and international levels. Not an easy year!

Looking back over world events in the last few years, it seems to me that the 'management of change' has now become the 'management of crisis'. Never a year goes past without something, somewhere, turning the trade upside down.

The problem

Acids are an essential ingredient in many parts of the leather making process. They are used as a preservative for part processed skins, eg pickled pelts, and to create the correct pH for chemical penetration and reaction to occur, eg penetration of chrome tanning agents.

Livestock hides and skins exports from the western Iranian province of Hamedan increased substantially year-on-year in the first quarter of the current Iranian year (March 21 - June 20, 2002), according to the IRNA news agency. Most exports were delivered to Germany, Italy, Pakistan, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Iran's Customs Administration has reported that Iran exported cattle hides and skins worth US$19.6 million in the first quarter of the current Iranian year (March 21 - June 20, 2002), according to the IRNA news agency. The figure was higher than in the same period last year.

The authorities in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in western China say they plan to curb livestock numbers because of chronic overgrazing, according to the Xinhua news agency. Xinjiang currently has 60 million hectares of pasture land that can support up to 26 million head of livestock, but current livestock numbers total 45.3 million. If no measures are taken to curb livestock numbers, then the total number is expected to grow to 52 million by 2005.

President Saparmurat Niyazov of Turkmenistan has said that the number of cattle in Turkmenistan in the first half of this year increased by 14% year-on-year to over 2 million, according to the Interfax news agency. The number of sheep increased by 22% to 14.1 million.

Despite all expectations, the hide market rose in June and then steadied in early July. Kills continued to be low and Italian tanners were booking hides for delivery in September which tended to indicate that prices were unlikely to fall in the immediate future. However, wet-blue producers continue to maintain that wet-salted hides cannot be converted into wet-blue profitably at current raw prices. This opinion is repeated by every single wet-blue producer and there is a feeling that something has to give.

Azerbaijan's State Statistics Committee has reported that the number of cattle in Azerbaijan currently stands at 2.1 million head, with a big increase in cattle numbers expected this year, according to the Arminfo news agency. There are also currently 6.5 million head of sheep and goats in Azerbaijan.

Bulgaria's Agriculture Ministry announced a ban on the import of livestock and livestock products from Argentina on June 10, following the announcement of an outbreak of foot and mouth disease on June 6, according to the Bulgarian Telegraphic Agency.

The Czech Statistical Office has reported that there were a total of 1.52 million head of cattle in the Czech Republic as of March 1, a fall of 3.9% compared with the same date last year, according to the CTK news agency's Business News. The fall in cattle numbers was attributed to a fall in profit margins from cattle breeding over the past. The fall in cattle numbers was attributed to a fall in profit margins from cattle breeding over the past year.

The Czech Agricultural Chamber has reported that the fear of the spread of BSE in the Czech Republic last year cost local cattle breeders Kc2 billion (US$1 = Kc36) because of falls in beef prices, according to the CTK news agency's Business News. Overall slaughter cattle sales in the Czech Republic in 2001 rose by 0.2% year-on-year to 208,524 tonnes, but prices received by producers fell by a third following the registration of two BSE cases in June and August.

Estonia's Statistical Office has reported that there were 281,000 head of cattle on farms in Estonia as of the end of March this year, compared with 278,400 head on the same date last year, according to the LETA news agency.

The kill in Sweden in 2001 was just under the 500,000 mark achieved in 2000. This decline refers to a couple of weeks following the FMD outbreak in Europe when there was almost no kill at all. This year, kills are expected to reach the 500,000 mark once again and this is likely to be the kill level for the coming years, unless anything dramatic happens such as diseases or a change in farming policies. Meat consumption has returned to normal but was never really affected. So far, Sweden has no confirmed cases of FMD or BSE.

A ban on the export of raw animal hides has been reimposed in the Philippines as part of efforts to protect the country's tanning industry and ensure an adequate supply of raw materials amidst global shortages. The six-month ban was enforced on March 1, 2002, and covers cow, caribou, goat, sheep and other ruminants.

Russia's Agriculture Ministry has reported that Russian farms had a total of 29.8 million head of cattle as of June 1 this year, a fall of 0.3% compared with the same date last year, according to the RIA Novosti news agency. The production of livestock and poultry for slaughter in the first five months of this year totalled 2.4 million tonnes liveweight, a year-on-year rise of 3.7%.

During the week ended July 14, prices on branded material firmed as packers were able to maintain the previous week's increases and even advance prices further on some selections.

German leather chemical manufacturers, Boehme, have introduced a synthetic retanning agent and three fatliquors. They are as follows:

Pittards have developed an organic tanning system that can successfully incorporate a range of advanced technical properties. Traditionally vegetable tanning produced unstable results, could not be successfully treated with technical applications and has not been seen as a realistic option to chrome and other more modern tanning methods.

Bayer's Euderm Aroma will aid manufacturers in producing leather which not only feels and looks good but also has an appropriate fragrance.

Clariant have introduced a series of acrylic resins and acrylic based compact binders to cover all aspects of leather finishing. The acrylic products are made at Clariant's production facilities around the world and complement the company's existing range. The acrylics are suitable for impregnating not only shoe leathers but also a whole variety of leather articles including automotive leathers.

Satra have introduced the Dynamic Footwear Water Resistance tester. Consequently, it has become a key method of testing whole shoes in laboratories. It comprises of a pneumatically-driven foot to which the test shoe is fitted and then lowered into a tank with the water at a pre-set level above the shoe's featherline. Water penetration is checked at regular levels and the number of cycles (flexes) completed for leakage to occur is recorded.

Spanish tannery, laboratory and pilot plant machinery specialists, Inoxvic, have updated their stainless steel pilot scale drums. The new Simplex-4 TDF is composed of a double-walled cabinet with funnels located on the top for the introduction of liquids into the drums. This eliminates interruptions for water or chemical additions during the drum cycle.

Lectra have introduced their Total Leather Solution HV, a new generation of cutting technology for leather processing. The system has been developed for large hide processing in the transport and furniture industries and it has completely different technology from traditional cutting solutions.

Spanish drum and automation specialists, Olcina Group, have introduced a semi-automated pH measuring station to be used with their new range of Olcina System Automation products. Olcina have also completed trials on their novel Cangilones design and the drums can now be used to process vegetable tanned leathers as well as wet-blue.

Turkish machinery manufacturers Derimaksan have introduced the Junior Toggle Drier for small hides and skins.

German leather chemical manufacturers, BASF, have added three new products to their global range of chemicals. They include an aqueous dispersion, a transparent top coat and a new black liquid drum dye.

Ingrassante D3 is a semi-transparent, straw coloured, fatliquor paste. The anionic, synthetic compound offers strong softness with excellent fullness and body. It imparts a characteristic waxy and silky surface touch to the grain. Crust leathers featuring Ingrassante D3 have good finishing absorption properties and good lightfastness.

Lipsol QPF is a new fatliquor for all types of light coloured automotive and upholstery articles. Leathers show a fine and evenly-milled grain. Lipsol QPF is particularly suitable for chrome-free leathers. Fatliquoring with Lipsol QPF results in good softness and a light and fluffy leather character with excellent lightfastness and heat resistance.

Synthol WP, one of Smit & Zoon's most popular fatliquors in the market worldwide, is now available in liquid form. It is a multi-purpose fatliquor used in the garment, upholstery and shoe upper industry, because of its high softening power, tight character, good fullness, water repellency effect and washable properties etc.

Addressing the issue of emerging trends, he said:

Pediculosis in cattle occurs throughout the world, and is more common in cattle than in any other domestic animal (Urquhart et al. 1987). Two species of lice are endemic in Norwegian cattle, biting lice (Damalinia (Bovicola) bovis (Linnaeus 1758)) and sucking lice (Linognathus vituli (Linnaeus 1758)).

Seaward describes Clarks now as being completely retail-led and an important factor of the commitment they require from their suppliers is that they expect to be the first to see all new leathers. This gives them an edge on early development.

Director general Anthony D Cox told delegates that: 'At last year's AGM, we were all acutely concerned with the effects of the serious outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the UK. After my return from Hong Kong, the British association's offices continued to be inundated with telephone enquiries relating to (a) no abattoir through-put for weeks; (b) the effects of the loss of the UK's FMD-free status; (c) the spread of cases of FMD to Europe and elsewhere and (d) export restrictions and/or special requirements to overcome export documentation difficulties. 'These required government re-negotiation at national and international levels. Not an easy year!

Looking back over world events in the last few years, it seems to me that the 'management of change' has now become the 'management of crisis'. Never a year goes past without something, somewhere, turning the trade upside down.

The problem

The closure of finished leather producers in the US appears to have halted for the time being after a disastrous 2001 for the domestic tanners. The market is now steadier and flow of US tanners offshore appears to have abated. The reopening of Prime Tanning's plant in Berwick, Maine last December and the probable resurrection of Irving Tanning from Chapter 11 offers some hope for the future. In mid July, tanners Wolverine reported that their second quarter earnings rose by 2.7%.

By now many of you will know that LeatherXchange have formed a separate company, headed by Ron Sauer, called LeatherXchange Global Information Services, which deals with the distribution of a whole range of market reports and market intelligence which were formerly incorporated in the mother company.

The Indonesian Tanners Association has renewed calls for the government to reimpose export tax on raw leather to ensure sufficient supplies at home, noting that many local tanneries have been closed or were facing bankruptcy due to limited supplies of raw materials.

Vietnamese leather and shoe producers have been told to raise their operational efficiency to better compete in the regional and world markets.

Local hide traders are exporting hides to other countries and depriving tanners of the necessary raw materials according to Subramania Balakrishnan, ceo of Zambian tanners Malar Industries. Local tanners are forced to operate below capacity.'Most hides were being exported despite the fact that there were not enough hides to supply domestic demand. The Malar plant was now operating at 15% capacity', he added. Malar are able to process 3,000 hides monthly into wet-blue or finished leather. 'The government should look into banning exports of raw hides like in neighbouring Zimbabwe and Botswana', he said.

Acexpiel, the export arm of Spanish tanners' association, organised two commercial missions to Vietnam and Russia last month. The mission has the support of the Sectorial Plan of 2002 and ICEX. The Russian visit also included the collaboration of the Spanish commercial office in Moscow.

The China Leather Industry Association (CLIA) has taken an active part in the compilation of a new genuine leather mark. The Eco-leather Standards of Genuine Leather Mark has been designed to inspire environmental protection in the Chinese leather industry and ease their transition into the WTO.

Universal Leather & Footwear have told the stock exchange that following an extraordinary general meeting of the shareholders held on June 20, a buy-back of 631,055 shares at Rs80 per share (Rs1 = $0.021) has been approved. It is an interesting development for the country's corporate sector. The decision to repurchase its own shares is only the second such offer by a listed company in Pakistan.

During the last few weeks, the leather market has not witnessed any considerable change in the prices. Demand for goat suedes, glazed kid, upper and lining leather continues.

The report into the foot and mouth outbreak, which occurred across the UK in the spring of last year, was finally published at the end of July. In the 200 page report the author, Dr Iain Anderson, is critical of a number of bodies and individuals including several departments of the national government of Tony Blair, the National Farmers Union and farmers and animal dealers themselves.

Bata India Ltd have received approval from their shareholders to include a clause in their Articles of Association to buy back their own shares from the market and have announced a number of measures to control costs and enhance returns.

Acexpiel is to organise a commercial mission to Poland and Hungary from November 18-22 with the assistance of ICEX and the collaboration of the Spanish commercial offices of Warsaw and Budapest. It is anticipated that five Spanish tanneries will participate although registration remained open until July 29.

Most leather firms dismiss synthetic leather as a sub-cutaneous class unrelated to the real skin. But, in Türkiye, only 10% of tanneries are now operational. One leather luggage and accessories producer has decided to capitalise on branding synthetic school bags and has put leather production business on hold.

Exports of leather garments declined by 17.3% during 2001-2002 compared with the corresponding period of 2000-2001, down from US$376 million to US$311 million.

Nike scored a decisive victory among sportswear manufacturers recently when it sprinted ahead of analysts' fourth-quarter earnings estimates. On the heels of a world cup win by Nike-clad team Brazil, the world's largest athletic footwear and apparel maker garnered analyst praise for cleaning up its inventory problems and its prediction of annual sales growth in the high single digits.

The Italian market is remembering the end of 2000 as a time when slaughter levels fell 30-40%, and 150,000 head were destroyed, all because of BSE. The problem continued in the first two months of 2001 with a strong decrease in slaughter numbers. As there were no offers of hides and skins on the Italian market, prices remained stable until April, despite prices having previously fallen due to international trends. From May onwards, demand was lower than supply which caused a fall in prices in all categories.

At the end of June the Asics Corporation licensed a local unit of a Taiwanese firm to product and market its athletic shoes in China. The Taiwan affiliated company will try to find 200 sales outlets in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and other cities over the next several years.

Bayer have redesigned their website [http://www.bayerleather.com], said to open up new dimensions of information and enhanced services.

Asia Pacific Leather Fair Ltd and the China Leather Industry Association have joined forces to announce the launch of the China International Footwear Fair (CIFF). The first edition will take place at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC) which is in the Pudong Development Zone, China on September 3-5, 2003. CIFF will run concurrently with the All China Leather Exhibition (ACLE) and Moda Shanghai.

The World Bank on May 25 launched the China Project Development Facility (CPDF), the seventh International Finance Corporation multi-donor initiative to support private sector development in southwest China's Sichuan Province.

In June, Stahl organised a fashion seminar for Thai Tanners, working in conjunction with the Thai Tanning Industries Association (TTIA). The seminar was held in Bangkok and focused on the ways in which tanners can use fashion to enhance the sales of their leather.

Due to the high level of demand, The Leather Research Laboratory has scheduled a third Leather Orientation Course this year. The seminar will be held December 4-5 at the University of Cincinnati.

The Pakistan Tanners Association has protested to the government for imposing duty on imports of several sophisticated types of tanning machinery which are not manufactured locally such as:

An offer is being prepared to raise money for a federally inspected slaughter plant for small and specialised livestock in Canada. Five Star Specialty Meats Limited is the company behind the push to build a $4-$5 million plant near Saskatoon to slaughter lambs, goats, emus, ostriches and rabbits.

According to China Chemical Week, apparel exports will come up against the azo dye barrier. The EU has passed a document on a draft decree on banning the use of azo dyes. The move indicates that the EU will very likely pass the decree this year, prohibiting EU sales of textile garments and leather products which use azo dyes, particularly those that contact the human body and imports from a third country or region.

Armenia's National Statistics Office has reported that Armenia exported leather and leather products worth US$162,800 in the first four months of this year, according to the Arminfo news agency. Leather and leather products imports were worth US$453,000, resulting in a foreign trade deficit in these commodities worth US$290,200 during the period.

Vietnam exported leather, leather products and footwear worth US$708 million in the first five months of this year, an increase of 10% compared with the same period in 2001, according to the Vietnamese News Agency.

Bata India are to transfer their tannery division at Makamehghat to BDCL Enterprises Private as part of their restructuring plan. The tannery division will be transferred in consideration of BDCL allotting their shares to Bata India shareholders.

Leather manufacturers in Bangladesh have made an agreement with their employees that strikes called on political grounds will not affect the production of the tanneries and other allied industrial set ups. This is according to Syed Manzur Elahi, chairman of Apex Tannery Ltd, the biggest tannery in Bangladesh.

Kingmaker Footwear Holdings, a large Chinese manufacturer who is reputed to be a key supplier to Timberland and an important source for Skechers, has announced a decline in profits of 25.5% compared with last year. The company said that higher leather prices had contributed to the decline.

Guangdong Investment Ltd have announced that their parent, GDH Ltd, is looking to acquire the company's stakes in subsidiaries Guangdong Brewery and Guangdong Tannery. If the sales proceed, Guangdong Investment would be better placed to focus on their core utilities and tourism-related operations, and there would be an increased likelihood of cash and asset injections into Guangdong Brewery and Guangdong Tannery.

A number of leather industry related projects have been approved by the Ministry of Industries, Government of Saudi Arabia making the largest number of tanneries approved during the past two to three years.

Slovenian hide dealers KOTO dd Ljubljana have invited the International Hide and Allied Trades Improvement Society (IHATIS) to hold their 2002 and final congress in Ljubljana, Slovenia from August 28-30 at the Grand Hotel Union, Miklosiceva 1, 1000 Ljubljana.

Istanbul-based Organik Kimya Sanayi ve Ticaret AS have announced plans for a $15-million factory in Rotterdam. Construction will begin in September 2002 and the 60,000 sq m production facility will come on stream in 2004.

I think that corrected grain leather is a rip-off! There, I've said it. If I take off my professional hat and change it for one of a consumer when buying leather, I see heavily corrected (plastic looking) leather on a whole range of automotive, furniture and leathergoods leathers. The grain pattern you get may be uniform but it's not the one the cow ever had.

The Trustees of the Dr Dorothy Jordan Lloyd Memorial Trust have kindly agreed to sponsor ten young people to enable them to participate in the Annual Conference of the UK Society of Leather Technologists and Chemists, to be held on Saturday September 14, 2002, in Harrogate.

Turkish leather garment producers reported few buyers at Mosleather, held 3-6 July 2002 in Moscow. This is an event that clothing makers put much effort into and they anticipated buoyant results.

The closure of finished leather producers in the US appears to have halted for the time being after a disastrous 2001 for the domestic tanners. The market is now steadier and flow of US tanners offshore appears to have abated. The reopening of Prime Tanning's plant in Berwick, Maine last December and the probable resurrection of Irving Tanning from Chapter 11 offers some hope for the future. In mid July, tanners Wolverine reported that their second quarter earnings rose by 2.7%.

By now many of you will know that LeatherXchange have formed a separate company, headed by Ron Sauer, called LeatherXchange Global Information Services, which deals with the distribution of a whole range of market reports and market intelligence which were formerly incorporated in the mother company.

The Indonesian Tanners Association has renewed calls for the government to reimpose export tax on raw leather to ensure sufficient supplies at home, noting that many local tanneries have been closed or were facing bankruptcy due to limited supplies of raw materials.

Vietnamese leather and shoe producers have been told to raise their operational efficiency to better compete in the regional and world markets.

Local hide traders are exporting hides to other countries and depriving tanners of the necessary raw materials according to Subramania Balakrishnan, ceo of Zambian tanners Malar Industries. Local tanners are forced to operate below capacity.'Most hides were being exported despite the fact that there were not enough hides to supply domestic demand. The Malar plant was now operating at 15% capacity', he added. Malar are able to process 3,000 hides monthly into wet-blue or finished leather. 'The government should look into banning exports of raw hides like in neighbouring Zimbabwe and Botswana', he said.

Acexpiel, the export arm of Spanish tanners' association, organised two commercial missions to Vietnam and Russia last month. The mission has the support of the Sectorial Plan of 2002 and ICEX. The Russian visit also included the collaboration of the Spanish commercial office in Moscow.

The China Leather Industry Association (CLIA) has taken an active part in the compilation of a new genuine leather mark. The Eco-leather Standards of Genuine Leather Mark has been designed to inspire environmental protection in the Chinese leather industry and ease their transition into the WTO.

Universal Leather & Footwear have told the stock exchange that following an extraordinary general meeting of the shareholders held on June 20, a buy-back of 631,055 shares at Rs80 per share (Rs1 = $0.021) has been approved. It is an interesting development for the country's corporate sector. The decision to repurchase its own shares is only the second such offer by a listed company in Pakistan.

During the last few weeks, the leather market has not witnessed any considerable change in the prices. Demand for goat suedes, glazed kid, upper and lining leather continues.

The report into the foot and mouth outbreak, which occurred across the UK in the spring of last year, was finally published at the end of July. In the 200 page report the author, Dr Iain Anderson, is critical of a number of bodies and individuals including several departments of the national government of Tony Blair, the National Farmers Union and farmers and animal dealers themselves.

Bata India Ltd have received approval from their shareholders to include a clause in their Articles of Association to buy back their own shares from the market and have announced a number of measures to control costs and enhance returns.

Acexpiel is to organise a commercial mission to Poland and Hungary from November 18-22 with the assistance of ICEX and the collaboration of the Spanish commercial offices of Warsaw and Budapest. It is anticipated that five Spanish tanneries will participate although registration remained open until July 29.

Most leather firms dismiss synthetic leather as a sub-cutaneous class unrelated to the real skin. But, in Türkiye, only 10% of tanneries are now operational. One leather luggage and accessories producer has decided to capitalise on branding synthetic school bags and has put leather production business on hold.

Exports of leather garments declined by 17.3% during 2001-2002 compared with the corresponding period of 2000-2001, down from US$376 million to US$311 million.

Nike scored a decisive victory among sportswear manufacturers recently when it sprinted ahead of analysts' fourth-quarter earnings estimates. On the heels of a world cup win by Nike-clad team Brazil, the world's largest athletic footwear and apparel maker garnered analyst praise for cleaning up its inventory problems and its prediction of annual sales growth in the high single digits.

The Italian market is remembering the end of 2000 as a time when slaughter levels fell 30-40%, and 150,000 head were destroyed, all because of BSE. The problem continued in the first two months of 2001 with a strong decrease in slaughter numbers. As there were no offers of hides and skins on the Italian market, prices remained stable until April, despite prices having previously fallen due to international trends. From May onwards, demand was lower than supply which caused a fall in prices in all categories.

At the end of June the Asics Corporation licensed a local unit of a Taiwanese firm to product and market its athletic shoes in China. The Taiwan affiliated company will try to find 200 sales outlets in Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and other cities over the next several years.

Bayer have redesigned their website [http://www.bayerleather.com], said to open up new dimensions of information and enhanced services.

Asia Pacific Leather Fair Ltd and the China Leather Industry Association have joined forces to announce the launch of the China International Footwear Fair (CIFF). The first edition will take place at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC) which is in the Pudong Development Zone, China on September 3-5, 2003. CIFF will run concurrently with the All China Leather Exhibition (ACLE) and Moda Shanghai.

The World Bank on May 25 launched the China Project Development Facility (CPDF), the seventh International Finance Corporation multi-donor initiative to support private sector development in southwest China's Sichuan Province.

In June, Stahl organised a fashion seminar for Thai Tanners, working in conjunction with the Thai Tanning Industries Association (TTIA). The seminar was held in Bangkok and focused on the ways in which tanners can use fashion to enhance the sales of their leather.

Due to the high level of demand, The Leather Research Laboratory has scheduled a third Leather Orientation Course this year. The seminar will be held December 4-5 at the University of Cincinnati.

The Pakistan Tanners Association has protested to the government for imposing duty on imports of several sophisticated types of tanning machinery which are not manufactured locally such as:

An offer is being prepared to raise money for a federally inspected slaughter plant for small and specialised livestock in Canada. Five Star Specialty Meats Limited is the company behind the push to build a $4-$5 million plant near Saskatoon to slaughter lambs, goats, emus, ostriches and rabbits.

According to China Chemical Week, apparel exports will come up against the azo dye barrier. The EU has passed a document on a draft decree on banning the use of azo dyes. The move indicates that the EU will very likely pass the decree this year, prohibiting EU sales of textile garments and leather products which use azo dyes, particularly those that contact the human body and imports from a third country or region.

Armenia's National Statistics Office has reported that Armenia exported leather and leather products worth US$162,800 in the first four months of this year, according to the Arminfo news agency. Leather and leather products imports were worth US$453,000, resulting in a foreign trade deficit in these commodities worth US$290,200 during the period.

Vietnam exported leather, leather products and footwear worth US$708 million in the first five months of this year, an increase of 10% compared with the same period in 2001, according to the Vietnamese News Agency.