Latest news with #QIMA
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How Trump's tariffs are snarling supply chains
Despite signs of a thaw earlier this week, Washington and Beijing are locked in a standoff on tariffs, and global supply chains are feeling the pressure. Disruption from tariffs is occurring at multiple points in commercial supply lines — from factory floors in East Asia, through the shipping and transportation industry, at U.S. ports of entry, and by U.S. retailers who are warning of empty shelves. A quick resolution with Beijing, while desirable for U.S. importers, could spell additional interference, as a sudden demand surge would likely bullwhip through the commercial pipeline. Here's a look at what global supply chains are going through as the U.S. and China dig their heels in. The tariffs are discombobulating Chinese production, with work drying up for some firms as others pick up the slack, supply chain experts told The Hill. 'The flow of goods is far less predictable,' Sébastien Breteau, CEO of quality control firm QIMA, which inspects factories in China, said. 'Some suppliers have excess capacity, while others face bottlenecks driven by shifting demand.' Breteau said that some of his clients are changing their business strategies. 'Several large Chinese multinationals we work with are actively repositioning. In some cases, they're even deprioritizing the U.S. market in favor of more globally stable strategies. Tariff uncertainty and regulatory unpredictability are … shaping sourcing decisions at the highest levels,' he said. The concerns from businesses are being echoed by the Chinese Communist Party. A readout of the Politburo's Friday meeting translated by China expert Bill Bishop said that 'the effects of external shocks are intensifying.' 'It is necessary to strengthen bottom-line thinking [and] fully prepare contingency plans,' the readout said. Shipping and logistics experts say they're seeing supply chains changing in real time as a result of the tariffs. 'Ocean carriers — the people that operate the ships — have already started to reposition cargo ships,' Ryan Petersen, CEO of logistics platform company Flexport, said Wednesday. 'Instead of serving China, they're going down to Vietnam. They're picking up new trade routes going from Southeast Asia to Europe or to the US.' Cargo insurers have been raising their premiums in response to the tariffs, adding to the costs of global shipping. 'Cargo insurance premiums are at punishing and unsustainable levels,' David Osler wrote for Lloyd's List in March. 'Tariffs are expected to entail broadly commensurate increases in cargo insurance premiums.' As premiums have been going up, container freight rates out of Shanghai have been going down for major world ports including Rotterdam, Los Angeles, Genoa and New York. Rates to Los Angeles dropped 2 percent to $3,611 per 40-foot container, shipping indexer Drewry reported Thursday. Port operators are seeing increased cancellations from client shipping companies. 'What I'm seeing right now … is that we've got about 12 canceled or voided sailings for the month of May — that's equivalent to all the voids last May at this time,' Los Angeles Port director Gene Seroka said earlier this month. Drewry projected a 1-percent decline in world port throughput for the year, which would be only the third time in the company's history that volumes turned negative compared to the previous year. 'The predicted drop of 1 percent will be roughly on a par with that witnessed in the pandemic year of 2020, when carriers cashed in with record profits,' analysts for Lloyd's wrote Friday, calling attention to 'the return of naked protectionism.' To manage their inventories, companies are also making use of bonded warehouses, in which their imports can be stored without having to pay tariffs until they're released to retailers or re-exported. Bonded facilities are being used in the hopes that Washington and Beijing strike a deal to bring down the 145-percent U.S. tariff on Chinese imports, logistics experts say. 'People are starting to scramble to move goods into bonded warehouses,' Flexport's Petersen said. 'People are feeling paralysis right now — if you know the duties are going to come down, the right move is to wait and hold off on shipping new cargo.' At the end of the global value chain, retailers are wringing their hands. The heads of U.S. mega-retailers Walmart, Home Depot and Target met with President Trump this week, where they warned about empty shelves. During the meeting, they spoke about their fears of higher prices for consumers, including during the holiday season at the end of the year, one source told The Hill. In statements provided to The Hill, spokespersons for Target, Walmart and Home Depot all said their meeting with the president was productive. 'We had a productive meeting with President Trump and our retail peers to discuss the path forward on trade,' Target spokesperson Jim Joice said. The National Retail Federation, a major industry lobby, has been railing against the tariffs. 'Speak out against tariffs,' the group says on its website. 'The administration should avoid tariffs on everyday consumer goods.' Despite a tonal shift this week in its trade stance toward China and reports that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told financial leaders that the trade war was reaching 'unsustainable' levels, Chinese officials Friday threw cold water on the idea that a deal would soon be reached. 'China and the U.S. are not having any consultation or negotiation on tariffs. The U.S. should stop creating confusion,' Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Friday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
27-04-2025
- Business
- The Hill
How Trump's tariffs are snarling supply chains
Despite signs of a thaw earlier this week, Washington and Beijing are locked in a standoff on tariffs, and global supply chains are feeling the pressure. Disruption from tariffs is occurring at multiple points in commercial supply lines — from factory floors in East Asia, through the shipping and transportation industry, at U.S. ports of entry, and by U.S. retailers who are warning of empty shelves. A quick resolution with Beijing, while desirable for U.S. importers, could spell additional interference, as a sudden demand surge would likely bullwhip through the commercial pipeline. Here's a look at what global supply chains are going through as the U.S. and China dig their heels in. On the Chinese factory floor The tariffs are discombobulating Chinese production, with work drying up for some firms as others pick up the slack, supply chain experts told The Hill. 'The flow of goods is far less predictable,' Sébastien Breteau, CEO of quality control firm QIMA, which inspects factories in China, said. 'Some suppliers have excess capacity, while others face bottlenecks driven by shifting demand.' Breteau said that some of his clients are changing their business strategies. 'Several large Chinese multinationals we work with are actively repositioning. In some cases, they're even deprioritizing the U.S. market in favor of more globally stable strategies. Tariff uncertainty and regulatory unpredictability are … shaping sourcing decisions at the highest levels,' he said. The concerns from businesses are being echoed by the Chinese Communist Party. A readout of the Politburo's Friday meeting translated by China expert Bill Bishop said that 'the effects of external shocks are intensifying.' 'It is necessary to strengthen bottom-line thinking [and] fully prepare contingency plans,' the readout said. Global shippers seek alternate routes Shipping and logistics experts say they're seeing supply chains changing in real time as a result of the tariffs. 'Ocean carriers — the people that operate the ships — have already started to reposition cargo ships,' Ryan Petersen, CEO of logistics platform company Flexport, said Wednesday. 'Instead of serving China, they're going down to Vietnam. They're picking up new trade routes going from Southeast Asia to Europe or to the US.' Cargo insurers have been raising their premiums in response to the tariffs, adding to the costs of global shipping. 'Cargo insurance premiums are at punishing and unsustainable levels,' David Osler wrote for Lloyd's List in March. 'Tariffs are expected to entail broadly commensurate increases in cargo insurance premiums.' As premiums have been going up, container freight rates out of Shanghai have been going down for major world ports including Rotterdam, Los Angeles, Genoa and New York. Rates to Los Angeles dropped 2 percent to $3,611 per 40-foot container, shipping indexer Drewry reported Thursday. Port flows recall pandemic disruptions Port operators are seeing increased cancellations from client shipping companies. 'What I'm seeing right now … is that we've got about 12 canceled or voided sailings for the month of May — that's equivalent to all the voids last May at this time,' Los Angeles Port director Gene Seroka said earlier this month. Drewry projected a 1-percent decline in world port throughput for the year, which would be only the third time in the company's history that volumes turned negative compared to the previous year. 'The predicted drop of 1 percent will be roughly on a par with that witnessed in the pandemic year of 2020, when carriers cashed in with record profits,' analysts for Lloyd's wrote Friday, calling attention to 'the return of naked protectionism.' To manage their inventories, companies are also making use of bonded warehouses, in which their imports can be stored without having to pay tariffs until they're released to retailers or re-exported. Bonded facilities are being used in the hopes that Washington and Beijing strike a deal to bring down the 145-percent U.S. tariff on Chinese imports, logistics experts say. 'People are starting to scramble to move goods into bonded warehouses,' Flexport's Petersen said. 'People are feeling paralysis right now — if you know the duties are going to come down, the right move is to wait and hold off on shipping new cargo.' Retailers put pressure on Trump At the end of the global value chain, retailers are wringing their hands. The heads of U.S. mega-retailers Walmart, Home Depot and Target met with President Trump this week, where they warned about empty shelves. During the meeting, they spoke about their fears of higher prices for consumers, including during the holiday season at the end of the year, one source told The Hill. In statements provided to The Hill, spokespersons for Target, Walmart and Home Depot all said their meeting with the president was productive. 'We had a productive meeting with President Trump and our retail peers to discuss the path forward on trade,' Target spokesperson Jim Joice said. The National Retail Federation, a major industry lobby, has been railing against the tariffs. 'Speak out against tariffs,' the group says on its website. 'The administration should avoid tariffs on everyday consumer goods.' Despite a tonal shift this week in its trade stance toward China and reports that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told financial leaders that the trade war was reaching 'unsustainable' levels, Chinese officials Friday threw cold water on the idea that a deal would soon be reached. 'China and the U.S. are not having any consultation or negotiation on tariffs. The U.S. should stop creating confusion,' Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Friday.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
QIMA, Retraced team on traceability aim, secures investment from PE firm
The collaboration will see the integration of QIMA's onsite compliance expertise with the Retraced platform to offer solutions across supply chains. The apparel sector requires both digital and physical verification methods to achieve supply chain visibility. QIMA's network of on-site auditors ensures that the information added into Retraced's platform is reliable and accurate. QIMA consumer products CEO Pierre-Nicolas Disser said: "Our partnership with Retraced provides brands with the tools for ethical, transparent, and sustainable sourcing. By combining expertise in compliance with advanced traceability technology, we're enabling brands to build trust through responsible sourcing practices that protect both consumers and workers at every stage of the supply chain.' The strategic alliance seeks to offer benefits to brands, retailers and suppliers by ensuring complete traceability is achieved from start to finish, without compromising both regulatory and customer standards. It aims to help streamline compliance and risk mitigation by facilitating due diligence processes, effectively rectifying compliance issues, and minimising vulnerabilities within the supply chain. Furthermore, it seeks to help enhance reputation and collaborative relationships using validated data, increase transparency, and strengthen business partnerships. The partnership provides brands with enhanced oversight, governance, and assurance of adherence to compliance within their supply chains. The integration of QIMA's environmental, social, and governance (ESG) services with the Retraced platform is said to allow businesses to monitor, evaluate, and handle traceability obligations from a unified system. Retraced CEO & co-founder Lukas Pünder said: "Transparency and traceability are no longer optional—they are fundamental for responsible business practices. Partnering with QIMA enables us to bridge the gap between digital traceability and on-the-ground verification, ensuring that brands and suppliers have access to the most reliable data for building transparent, compliant, and sustainable supply chains.' In September last year, Retraced announced a successful Series A closing round of €15m ($16.53m) to expedite its mission to make sustainability management more effective and accessible for companies in the fashion and textile industry worldwide. In a separate development, international private equity firm TA Associates made a strategic investment in QIMA. Financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed. The collaboration is designed to propel QIMA's aggressive growth strategy and catalyse innovation within the Testing, Inspection, and Certification (TIC) market. Serving over 30,000 clients, QIMA has been focused on developing an advanced technology platform since its foundation in 2005. With the support of TA's financial investment, QIMA is poised to further refine its technological and AI competencies, aiming to provide superior quality assurance and compliance solutions to its wide-ranging clientele. TA managing directors Patrick Sader and Christopher Parkin, who will join QIMA's Board of Directors, said: 'We believe there is significant opportunity for QIMA to expand its reach into new markets and build on its service offerings, all to the benefit of its customers." QIMA-Retraced partnership provides fashion brands with solutions to ensure a transparent and sustainable supply chain. Credit: Chay_Tee/Shutterstock. From: Laura Husband Sent: 25 March 2025 14:32 To: medialeads-asia Cc: newsdesk@ Subject: Style story FW: Strategic Growth at QIMA: TA Associates Investment and Retraced Partnership Image: "QIMA, Retraced team on traceability aim, secures investment from PE firm" was originally created and published by Just Style, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
QIMA, Retraced team on traceability aim, secures investment from PE firm
The collaboration will see the integration of QIMA's onsite compliance expertise with the Retraced platform to offer solutions across supply chains. The apparel sector requires both digital and physical verification methods to achieve supply chain visibility. QIMA's network of on-site auditors ensures that the information added into Retraced's platform is reliable and accurate. QIMA consumer products CEO Pierre-Nicolas Disser said: "Our partnership with Retraced provides brands with the tools for ethical, transparent, and sustainable sourcing. By combining expertise in compliance with advanced traceability technology, we're enabling brands to build trust through responsible sourcing practices that protect both consumers and workers at every stage of the supply chain.' The strategic alliance seeks to offer benefits to brands, retailers and suppliers by ensuring complete traceability is achieved from start to finish, without compromising both regulatory and customer standards. It aims to help streamline compliance and risk mitigation by facilitating due diligence processes, effectively rectifying compliance issues, and minimising vulnerabilities within the supply chain. Furthermore, it seeks to help enhance reputation and collaborative relationships using validated data, increase transparency, and strengthen business partnerships. The partnership provides brands with enhanced oversight, governance, and assurance of adherence to compliance within their supply chains. The integration of QIMA's environmental, social, and governance (ESG) services with the Retraced platform is said to allow businesses to monitor, evaluate, and handle traceability obligations from a unified system. Retraced CEO & co-founder Lukas Pünder said: "Transparency and traceability are no longer optional—they are fundamental for responsible business practices. Partnering with QIMA enables us to bridge the gap between digital traceability and on-the-ground verification, ensuring that brands and suppliers have access to the most reliable data for building transparent, compliant, and sustainable supply chains.' In September last year, Retraced announced a successful Series A closing round of €15m ($16.53m) to expedite its mission to make sustainability management more effective and accessible for companies in the fashion and textile industry worldwide. In a separate development, international private equity firm TA Associates made a strategic investment in QIMA. Financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed. The collaboration is designed to propel QIMA's aggressive growth strategy and catalyse innovation within the Testing, Inspection, and Certification (TIC) market. Serving over 30,000 clients, QIMA has been focused on developing an advanced technology platform since its foundation in 2005. With the support of TA's financial investment, QIMA is poised to further refine its technological and AI competencies, aiming to provide superior quality assurance and compliance solutions to its wide-ranging clientele. TA managing directors Patrick Sader and Christopher Parkin, who will join QIMA's Board of Directors, said: 'We believe there is significant opportunity for QIMA to expand its reach into new markets and build on its service offerings, all to the benefit of its customers." QIMA-Retraced partnership provides fashion brands with solutions to ensure a transparent and sustainable supply chain. Credit: Chay_Tee/Shutterstock. From: Laura Husband Sent: 25 March 2025 14:32 To: medialeads-asia Cc: newsdesk@ Subject: Style story FW: Strategic Growth at QIMA: TA Associates Investment and Retraced Partnership Image: "QIMA, Retraced team on traceability aim, secures investment from PE firm" was originally created and published by Just Style, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
NBC News
09-02-2025
- Business
- NBC News
New clothes feel cheap? They really don't make them like they used to
You're not imagining it: Well-made clothing is harder to come by. The U.S. fashion industry is having a hard time maintaining quality standards amid stiff competition from overseas rivals and supply-chain shakeups. Twenty-seven percent of textile and apparel professionals reported that ensuring consistent quality was 'difficult' or 'very difficult' over the past year, up from 23% in 2024, according to a recent survey the product auditing firm QIMA provided to NBC News. 'There has been a significant reduction in the quality of the fabric for a number of the major brands and retailers,' said Margaret Bishop, a textile development and marketing professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. She said the decline intensified during the recovery from the pandemic, when apparel makers scrambled to untangle disrupted supply chains and contended with weak sales during global lockdowns. The corner-cutting is partly a tradeoff on price — a bet that the fashion industry has placed on inflation-weary shoppers' willingness to accept lower-quality garments that don't break the bank. Since 2019, consumer prices overall have risen 26%, food is up 30% and cars are up 25%, but apparel prices have inched just 6% higher. There has been a significant reduction in the quality of the fabric for a number of the major brands and retailers. Margaret Bishop, Fashion Institute of Technology Clothing retailers 'know if they raise the price, they lose consumers,' said Sheng Lu, a professor of fashion and apparel studies at the University of Delaware. While a basic wardrobe of clothing and shoes is essential, households typically approach such purchases as discretionary — nice-to-haves, at least relative to keeping their cars filled with gas and their fridges stocked with milk and eggs. And over the past year, consumers have repeatedly proved to be laser-focused on value, chasing deals and discounts wherever they can find them. When it comes to garments and footwear, Americans often find the best prices among sellers overseas, including the China-linked e-commerce giants Shein and Temu. The ultracheap foreign retailers have given domestic rivals such a run for their money that they drew a crackdown from the Biden administration, and the Trump administration's new China tariffs could crimp them further. China is already the largest exporter of apparel to the United States, and QIMA's factory inspections found the failure rate, or share of textile and apparel products with too many defects for market, rose to 13.7% last year from 12.7% in 2023. As many apparel brands move more production out of China to reduce their labor costs and exposure to tariffs, they're gravitating toward countries with even higher failure rates: India's is 21.2%, Cambodia's is 16.6%, and Indonesia's is 14.2%. 'Someone who's running this factory maybe doesn't have three decades of experience' in many of the emerging garment production markets, said Joseph Ng, CEO of Shift Fashion Group, a consultancy that works with manufacturers. 'It takes a long time to get a large enough workforce to the point where they know what to do exactly.' Those issues are compounded when workers are pushed to generate quantity over quality, he added. The silver lining is that overall global quality levels have remained relatively flat in recent years, QIMA said, and failure rates in several key manufacturing countries improved noticeably last year. Nevertheless, the environment spurred 'a race to the bottom,' Bishop said, at a time when labor and raw materials costs were rising rapidly. Demand for both domestic and foreign fast-fashion brands' low-cost apparel has surged. From 2020 to 2024, the top three global fast-fashion retailers — Shein (based in China), Zara (Spain) and H&M (Sweden) — nearly tripled their U.S. market share, according to data from Euromonitor. Many other domestic fashion brands have struggled to compete, resorting to promotions to prop up sales and cost-cutting to offset the impact on their profit margins. Fabric accounts for 60% of a garment's total production cost, Lu estimated, with labor typically clocking in around 30% and trim — zippers, buttons or decorative details — making up the rest. So when retailers look to save money, fabric is one of the first components to get downgraded. Quality can vary widely even within a single brand's clothing line, depending on where each of its items is made, Ng said. Large retailers 'use buying houses that will actually produce in different regions, producing different products,' he said. That's one reason a brand might simultaneously produce high-quality, well-fitting T-shirts and shoddy jeans with haphazard stitching. The biggest misconception when it comes to fashion is that luxury goods and high-end goods mean quality. Joseph Ng, CEO of Shift Fashion Group Julia Hughes, president of the U.S. Fashion Industry Association, acknowledged anecdotal reports of quality concerns in a statement but said that 'for our members — well-known brands and retailers — they maintain the same or better quality requirements today.' For shoppers looking for the best bang for their buck, it can make for a frustrating experience. To identify well-made clothing, Bishop recommends taking the time to examine each garment closely in person. Stitching and fabric are two key indicators of overall quality, she said, adding that heavier fabrics tend to be more durable than lightweight ones. Bishop also suggests holding garments up to the light to check for small holes or uneven yarn tension. Stitches should be tight, with ideally eight stitches per inch. Avoid garments with loosely sewn buttons and fabrics that lose their shape after they're stretched, she advised. 'There's a myth that if something's made from synthetic, it's bad, it's cheap,' Bishop said. Nylon is very durable, for example, and polyester is great at wicking sweat. Ng said: 'It's really about the right application. When it comes to athletic wear, you don't want cotton leggings.' He also cautioned that steep prices don't necessarily signify better craftsmanship. 'The biggest misconception when it comes to fashion is that luxury goods and high-end goods mean quality,' Ng said. He added that 'there is a movement starting to happen where consumers want higher-quality clothing.' Consumers are increasingly valuing repairability, durability and quality, Euromonitor's market research has found, a trend that coincides with growing interest in secondhand clothing. The more shoppers are turned off by poorly made, low-cost garments, the more brands have an opportunity to differentiate themselves on 'quality and service,' said Marguerite LeRolland, an apparel and footwear industry manager at Euromonitor. That, in turn, can help 'justify higher prices and fewer promotions,' she said.
