November 26: President, in interview, calls it ‘highly unlikely’ that U.S. would hold off on increase to 25% on $200 billion of goods. (Source: Wall Street Journal)

November 23: ... Mr. Trump has dangled the threat of additional tariffs on China while also saying a compromise could be reached. He plans to meet with President Xi Jinping of China for a high-stakes meeting at the G-20 in Buenos Aires later this month. (Source: New York Times)

November 22: ... Fortunately for this year's shoppers, prices likely won't be going up yet. American importers pay the duty, and most items on the floor for Black Friday were already priced before the tariffs kicked in, said Rick Helfenbein, president of the American Apparel and Footwear Association. (Source: CNN)

November 27: First-time users for the top 10 mobile shopping apps in the U.S. grew more than 16% on Black Friday last week compared to last year. (Source: Retail Dive)

November 21: ... more companies are turning to recycled materials as a way to reduce their environmental impact, or maybe just to earn kudos from their customers. In October, following a United Nations initiative, 250 major brands pledged to cut single-use plastics from their supply chains and replace them with natural or recycled ones. (Source: Wired)

November 21: ... Bangladesh’s government had agreed to allow the body an extension to complete remaining safety fixes and help build up a national regulatory body to take over the Accord’s work. However, the High Court ordered it to close on Nov. 30. (Source: Reuters)

November 26: ... This ninth incarnation of the global operation against counterfeit and pirated goods took down 63% more domain names than the last in 2017, and dwarfs the 188 shuttered in 2014, its first year. More than a million individual URLs were seized and 2.2m e-commerce links taken down. (Source: Securing Industry)

November 22: ... The CBP’s goal is to protect consumers by seizing counterfeit or otherwise unsafe items from cargo ships and other shipping hubs. The agency works with the Consumer Products Safety Commission and Homeland Security Investigations teams to seize items that violate import requirements, safety standards and intellectual property rights. (Source: Savannah Morning News)

November 20: ... The U.S. trade chief made the statement in conjunction with a 53-page update it released on a report on its investigation into China's intellectual property practices under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act. That probe and the initial report from March provided the legal basis for Trump to impose tariffs on nearly half of all imports from China. (Source: Politico)

Celebrating fashion’s future on April 15: We are proud to announce our 2019 AAFA American Image Awards honorees – see today’s press announcement and learn more at americanimageawards.org!

Hosted by AAFA, acclaimed model and actress Brooke Shields will emcee the evening at the famed Plaza Hotel in New York City. Our 2018 beneficiary will once again be the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Foundation. Join us in celebrating fashion’s future on April 15, and learn more about the honorees via WWD and MR Magazine!

AAFA on tariffs and the retail outlook: On Black Friday, AAFA President and CEO Rick Helfenbein appeared on Bloomberg Markets, and also spoke with Pimm Fox on Bloomberg radio, regarding the impact of the Trump administration's tariffs on the holiday season and the negative impact on sales that will occur if tariffs increase in 2019.

AAFA team in NYC: Members of the AAFA team including Nate Herman and Kristen Kern are in New York this week hosting the fall 2018 Environmental Committee (EC) Meeting and Social Responsibility Committee (SRC) Meeting, both at Infor’s offices. A very special thank you to Infor for hosting these important meetings! For more information on joining either committee, contact membership@aafaglobal.org. AAFA will preview important new member-only resources, including the 2018 Environmental Sustainability Benchmarking Survey and new reports covering best practices around working hours and safety in denim finishing, during these meetings. Stay tuned for updates as those are released.

AAFA comments on U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement: On Monday, November 26, AAFA submitted comments on the upcoming U.S.-Japan trade negotiations to both the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. International Trade Commission. The comments provided recommendations ahead of the negotiations – including the need to increase commitments in the fight against counterfeit sales – and a formal request to testify during public hearings on December 6 and 10.

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