Sweden’s Smoltek, Heraeus to test low-iridium PTE for hydrogen

Smoltek Hydrogen and Heraeus Precious Metals will start a 3,000-hour autumn durability test of ultra-low iridium PTEs for PEM water electrolysis.
The work targets a PEM scaling bottleneck: high iridium cost, with Smoltek aiming for below 0.1 mg/cm² loading while maintaining efficiency.
Heraeus will run testing and material analysis under realistic operating conditions to support industrialisation.

Bain-Altagamma says personal luxury goods fell 2 per cent to €358 billion ($410 billion) in 2025, before a 2026 rebound.
LVMH's H1 2026 revenue reached €38.6 billion ($44.28 billion), with Q2 organic growth at 3 per cent.
Europe tourist spending fell around 20 per cent in February 2026, Middle East mall traffic weakened, and L'Oréal briefly overtook LVMH.

BoE held the Bank Rate at 3.75 per cent in September, with a 6–3 MPC vote, as higher energy prices lifted UK inflation risks.
CPI rose to 3.1 per cent in August and may rise further, keeping cost, wage and demand pressures in focus for UK apparel retail and sourcing.
The MPC said it was ready to act to return inflation to 2 per cent, while annual £20 billion gilt sales will run to 2034.

Vietnam’s outbound investment rose 4.7-fold in the first eight months of 2026, while registered FDI reached $40.63 billion, up 55.4 per cent year on year.Trade turnover rose 28.7 per cent to $770.14 billion, and manufacturing PMI hit 53.3 in August, signalling continued expansion in production, trade and investment activity.
Business formation also strengthened during the period.

Vietnam is projected to record the fastest economic growth among Southeast Asia’s six largest economies, with average annual GDP growth of 6.2 per cent through 2035, according to a report by Bain & Company, DBS Bank and Vriens & Partners.The outlook is supported by manufacturing exports, foreign investment and Vietnam’s role in regional supply chains.

AI agents are entering apparel product development, costing and sourcing through launches from PTC, Aptean and Centric.
Research warns up to 90 per cent of AI initiatives fail to scale beyond pilots, blocked by governance, data quality and fragmented tools.
Despite 92 per cent planning more AI investment, only 1 per cent report mature deployment; brands must fix product data.

US final-demand producer prices rose 5.4 per cent in the 12 months ended August 2026, with goods up 7.7 per cent and services up 4.5 per cent.Energy led goods inflation at 24.4 per cent, while foods were nearly unchanged at 0.1 per cent.Transportation and warehousing services rose 13.0 per cent, signalling cost pressure for sourcing and logistics teams.

South Korea’s apparel imports rose 2.82 per cent to $7.901 billion in January-August 2026, with August shipments up 10.98 per cent to $1,283.819 million.
Knitted apparel imports grew 4.64 per cent and non-knitted apparel imports rose 1.47 per cent in the first eight months.
Exports of man-made filaments fell 4.32 per cent, while knitted or crocheted fabrics gained 8.56 per cent.

Industrial production fell 0.1 per cent month on month in the euro area and 0.3 per cent in the EU in July 2026, according to the Eurostat.
Non-durable consumer goods output declined 1.6 per cent in the euro area and 1.3 per cent in the EU as other main groupings mostly rose.
Annual output was stable in the euro area and up 0.3 per cent in the EU, giving sourcing teams a mixed signal.

European hourly labour costs rose 3.1 per cent year on year in the euro area and 3.2 per cent in the EU in Q2 2026, according to the Eurostat.
Construction recorded the strongest increase among business activities at 3.9 per cent in both regions.Bulgaria, Lithuania and Croatia posted the highest wage-cost growth, while Luxembourg and Romania recorded the lowest.

Bangladesh’s gas supply rose to 2,610 mmcfd on Tuesday, supported by 990 mmcfd of imported regasified LNG and 1,620 mmcfd from domestic gas fields.The improved supply is expected to ease pressure on industries, power plants and other gas-dependent consumers that have faced supply constraints, while helping meet the country’s overall demand.

Vietnam is pushing practical cross-border e-commerce training as online exports become a stronger route to overseas consumers and buyers.
Exports through e-commerce were estimated to grow 78 per cent in 2025, taking channel trade to about $4.45 billion.
Programmes will target China, the EU, the US, Japan and the Republic of Korea with market surveys and business matching.

India called on the BRICS Business Forum to strengthen supply chains, expand market access and reduce trade barriers.Discussions focused on logistics, raw materials, regulatory procedures and digital payments, while a proposed BRICS logistics framework could improve cross-border supply-chain resilience and efficiency.

Cambodia is strengthening its digital trade ecosystem as e-commerce revenue is projected to rise from $1.1 billion in 2025 to $1.8 billion by 2029.The government is focusing on digital infrastructure, regulatory reforms and market access, while expanding CambodiaTrade.com to help MSMEs, rural entrepreneurs and women-led businesses reach digital markets.

India and Russia are exploring a digital currency mechanism for trade settlements, with their central banks working on the structure.
The move could reduce payment frictions for exporters and importers as bilateral trade targets $100 billion by decade-end.
BRICS finance officials are also studying faster, lower-cost cross-border payment channels and local-currency settlement options.

Piyush Goyal said India has put textiles among five focus areas to lift India-Russia trade to $100 billion by 2030, with a $50 billion two-way investment aim.
The plan means adding $40 billion from a $60 billion base in four years, requiring more than double-digit annual growth.
Exporters are being asked to flag payment, logistics, certification, standards and visa barriers.

China’s textile and apparel exports rose 3.05 per cent YoY to $203.308 billion in January-August 2026, GACC data show.
Garments and accessories shipments inched up 2.5 per cent, while textile products rose 3.7 per cent.
Imports of textile yarns and fabrics increased 20.6 per cent to $7.709 billion as mills replenished raw materials.

Vietnam’s textile and apparel exports rose 1.7 per cent YoY to $22.2 billion in H1 2026, but heavy import dependence for raw materials remains a key vulnerability.The industry is focusing on localisation, productivity, traceability, digitalisation and green manufacturing to strengthen supply-chain resilience, meet rules-of-origin requirements and sustain competitiveness in global markets.

UK real GDP grew 0.4 per cent in July 2026, extending expansion for an eighth consecutive three-month period.However, retail trade excluding motor vehicles fell 0.5 per cent, signalling softer consumer activity.Services grew 0.6 per cent over three months, while production and construction each contracted 0.5 per cent, highlighting a mixed economic backdrop for apparel and retail demand.

Bangladesh’s NBR has tightened duty-free 10–30 count cotton yarn imports under the bond facility for export-oriented readymade garment factories.
Spinners say the move will lift demand for local yarn, revive mills, boost value addition, conserve foreign currency and support jobs.
BGMEA and BKMEA warn bank guarantees may raise costs, disrupt shipments and weaken garment export competitiveness.

BASF said Cheniere has commissioned Durasorb LNG MAX at its Corpus Christi LNG facility in Texas, across multiple liquefaction trains.
The single-unit adsorption technology removes trace contaminants and water to help prevent freeze-outs and downtime in LNG operations.
Cheniere aims to finish remaining trains by end-2027, with BASF providing adsorbents, modelling tools and technical support.

Gulf Cryo plans to lift regional liquid CO₂ output from 700 MTPD to 1,300 MTPD by end-2026, equal to over 470,000 metric tonnes a year.
Projects in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait aim to secure local supply and GCC backup for industrial users.
A further 750 MTPD from existing facilities can be activated as demand rises.

Eni and PETRONAS have signed a feasibility agreement to assess high-performance bio-gasoline made from renewable raw materials via Eni’s Ecofining process.
The study covers technical, market, sustainability and performance profiles, with motorsport use first and later commercial products.
The work adds to biofuel options for transport-linked supply chains.

Asia 1.4D lyocell prices remained largely rangebound in the week ended September 4, 2026, with the readings pointing to stabilisation rather than a breakout.
China rose 0.36 per cent to CNY 14,000 per metric tonne, while India held at ₹203 per kg and Pakistan at PKR 721 per kg.
Lenzing's phased exit is tightening specialty supply as Chinese and Indian producers add capacity.

Shell, Schneider Electric and Axens have installed an industrial-scale Electric Tubular Heater at Shell Rheinland’s R3 base oil project in Germany.
The European first replaces conventional fired heating with an electric option designed for zero direct CO₂ and NOx emissions.
The project integrates process technology, electrification, power distribution and controls for refinery heating.

Asian MEG prices recorded their sharpest weekly move in months as Gulf shipment disruption through the Strait of Hormuz tightened China availability.
TexPro showed CFR China closing at $815/mt, up 10.88 per cent from Monday’s $735/mt, while CFR SE Asia rose 9.62 per cent to $855/mt.
Domestic China MEG increased 14.29 per cent to CNY 6,912/mt, outpacing import benchmarks.

Aarti Industries has commissioned phase I of its Zone IV project at Jhagadia, Gujarat, adding calcium chloride, PEDA and part of a multipurpose plant.
The assets expand downstream integration, flexible multi-product manufacturing and high-value product commercialisation.
The company will now move towards qualification, customer approvals and disciplined ramp-up this fiscal year.

Canada’s retaliatory tariffs of 15-50 per cent on $20 billion of US goods, including clothing, furniture, steel and electronics, have intensified the trade dispute.With 68 per cent oof Canadian exports heading to the US, uncertainty over USMCA and its future is raising concerns over investment, growth and cross-border trade.

Ecobat has closed the sale of its lithium-ion battery recycling operations and assets in Casa Grande, Arizona.
The deal is the final step in its exit from lithium recycling after prior disposals in Darlaston, United Kingdom, and Hettstedt, Germany.
The company will now concentrate resources on its North American lead recycling operations.

South Indian cotton yarn demand stays sluggish, with Mumbai and Tiruppur prices stable as buyers limit purchases.
High cotton yarn prices are shifting buying towards polyester and polyester-cotton yarns, while weak garment exports weigh on demand.
Gujarat cotton prices returned to previous levels; mills have one-to-two-month stock cover, and the new crop needs more rain in western India.