September 6: ...The average American family planned to spend $674 on clothing, footwear, backpacks and other back-to-school supplies as they outfitted their children in kindergarten through 12th grade for the start of the 2016-2017 school year, according to the National Retail Federation's annual survey. What many don't appreciate is that there is a hefty hidden tax parents will pay as well. (Source: The Hill, joint op-ed by seven industry associations including AAFA)

September 5: President Barack Obama looked to reassure Asian nations that the U.S. commitment to the region would endure as concerns grow over China’s increasingly visible presence and the ability of Congress to pass the Trans-Pacific Partnership. U.S. interests in the region were "not a passing fad," Obama said Tuesday during a speech in Laos, pledging that "in good times and bad, you count on the United States." (Source: Bloomberg)

September 3: The proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) deal between the U.S. and the European Union is facing real issues and it is going to take time, the secretary-general of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) told CNBC on Saturday. The deal would loosen the regulatory barriers to trade between the world's two largest trading blocs. U.S. President Barack Obama is in favor of the project, but U.S. Presidential candidate Donald Trump has been critical of multilateral trade deals that he says may harm U.S. workers and industries. (Source: CNBC)

September 5: ...Truth be told, there is a real threat to our U.S. apparel manufacturing base, and the nature of that threat will surprise you. As the "Made in USA" rhetoric plays out on national TV, those of us who fight the daily battle for domestic apparel manufacturing have routinely encountered unfairness that remains hidden from most Americans. This behemoth will destroy your job, close your factory and — hard to believe — is actually controlled by our own government! (Source: The Hill, op-ed by AAFA’s Rick Helfenbein)

September 2: ...Western priorities in Uzbekistan since the Soviet Union’s collapse have focused on two main concerns: security and trade, particularly in gas, cotton and gold. Democracy comes a distant third. This approach, sensibly pragmatic or hypocritically cynical, depending on your point of view, also applies to the other autocratic central Asian states: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. (Source: The Guardian)

September 2: Despite e-commerce giant Alibaba's promise to crackdown on counterfeits, trade groups are still saying the company isn't doing enough to monitor and pull fake goods from its e-commerce platforms. ...In a statement e-mailed to China Daily, Alibaba Group said that it welcomed the letter. ...The American Apparel & Footwear Association, though not a signatory on the August letter, told China Daily that it, too, has communicated with Alibaba several times to address the issue of not having clearer take-down procedures and that the site is still flooded with counterfeits. (Source: China Daily)

September 2: Ever since the summer of 2015 when the possibility of a vote on the Innovation Act was killed in the House of Representatives, patent reform has remained firmly on the back burner in the U.S. Congress. There has been some discussion around the prospects of venue reform with one bill introduced in the Senate aimed at stopping the kind of forum shopping which means that the vast majority of patent cases are heard in Eastern Texas, but that hasn’t gone anywhere as yet. And with the election just around the corner, most don’t expect anything to happen before the next Congress gathers early next year. (Source: IAM)

In Brief
Hanjin Shipping update: Since Hanjin Shipping filed for bankruptcy on August 31, AAFA has been closely tracking the situation and its impact on members. To provide AAFA members with the latest developments, AAFA will host a call today at 4 PM ET with Ken O'Brien from Gemini Shippers Group. Click here to register for the call.

AAFA’s transportation group might be for you: AAFA members can email Nate Herman at nherman@aafaglobal.org to join the transportation group and receive future detailed updates on Hanjin and related matters. AAFA's transportation mailing list was established to provide interested members with regular updates describing the actions of AAFA on transportation issues, as well as breaking news reports whenever necessary. The transportation mailing list follows issues such as ports, shipping, and logistics.

See all of AAFA’s latest letters, comments, and testimony here.

Member Welcome: Thomaston Mills

Thomaston Mills specializes in manufacturing and distribution of the highest quality bed and bath linens to the hospitality, healthcare, and institutional markets. The company’s manufacturing and warehousing facility is located in Thomaston, GA. 

Visit our events calendar for all webinars and industry events. Be sure to save the date for AAFA's Executive Summit: March 1-3, 2017.

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