RTR: Exclusive: Investors push Zara owner Inditex to publish full supply chain

Emotional Cycle of Investing

REUTERS reports:

Investors want Zara owner Inditex (ITX.MC), opens new tab to follow rivals H&M (HMb.ST), opens new tab and Primark (ABF.L), opens new tab in making its full list of suppliers public so they can better assess any supply chain risks.

Inditex is an outlier among big clothing retailers in not publishing which factories it sources from. Regulators and investors want greater transparency and better disclosure from companies.

Clothing retailers, in particular, are under pressure to prove that there is no forced labour in their supply chains, and that garment workers are paid decent wages.

Chinese fashion group Shein has come under scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers over supply chain risks ahead of plans for a U.S. listing.

In the European Union, disagreements have stalled proposed rules that would require all big companies to disclose whether supply chains harm the environment or use child labour. Proposed sanctions for not complying could include fines of 5% of revenue.

Fashion brands and retailers, including Adidas (ADSGn.DE), opens new tab, H&M, Hugo Boss (BOSSn.DE), opens new tab, M&S (MKS.L), opens new tab, Nike (NKE.N), opens new tab, Primark, and Puma (PUMG.DE), opens new tab, already publish detailed supplier lists, including factory names and addresses…

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