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These days, more and more of our actions and activities are transitioning to digital and electronic methods—and the worlds of fashion and textile design are no exception. The use of digital fabrics can lead to greater efficiencies for the fashion industry by reducing designers’ reliance on physical samples, accelerating design timelines, and providing more opportunities to experiment with new ideas in less time.

With a dwindling tampon supply trending in the news over the past year, rumors of a cotton shortage took hold. It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a substantial impact on the global supply chain across many product categories. However, when it comes to tampons, cotton use and availability are not to blame. Here are the facts.

There are several potential signals that a turnaround in business conditions could be emerging. In its latest round of updates, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lifted projections for global economic growth in 2023 and 2024. While growth is still expected to be sluggish, the reversal in the direction of the updates may be notable.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released an updated set of global estimates for economic growth in late January. The headline for the report was “Inflation Peaking Amid Low Growth”, suggesting that while a major challenge for the global economy may be fading, another remains.

The unemployment rate remains safely below four percent and is low by historical standards. Although it has not been able to surpass inflation, wage growth has been steady near five percent, beyond anything registered in the decade between the financial crisis and the onset of COVID. Nonetheless, inflation has been increasing faster than wages since the first quarter of 2021, implying that consumer spending power has been falling despite higher income.