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Bayraktar drone deliveries are latest instance of regional powers meddling in Sudan’s civil war

Egypt has delivered drones to the Sudanese military to bolster its fight against a powerful warlord, security officials said, a potentially dangerous escalation of a conflict that is drawing in more regional players.

The Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drones, which have helped alter the balance of power in a series of recent conflicts—including in Ukraine—were delivered to Sudan’s military last month, according to the officials. Members of the Sudanese military also trained in neighboring Egypt to improve their handling of the unmanned aerial vehicles, the officials said.

Spokesmen for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry and the Sudanese military didn’t return requests for comment. Egyptian officials have previously called for an end to the fighting.

The delivery of the drones is the latest instance of regional powers getting involved in the civil war in Sudan, a country long coveted for its strategic location on the Red Sea, its access to the Nile River and vast gold reserves. The Wall Street Journal reported in August that the United Arab Emirates was sending weapons to the Rapid Support Forces, a militia led by Lt. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo that is battling Sudan’s military for control of the East African nation.

The shipments have raised the risk of widening the conflict and are undermining efforts by the U.S., the United Nations and others to mediate a cease-fire in Sudan.

Egypt’s involvement also highlights Cairo’s expanding, and increasingly complex, role as a power player in the Middle East and North Africa when the region is experiencing new violence and upheaval.

The government of President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi has been a close U.S. ally, largely for its efforts to mediate between Israel and Palestinian authorities—a task it has once again assumed following the deadly attacks by Hamas militants this weekend. But its supply of drones to the Sudanese military—similar to Egypt’s support to a rebel commander in Libya—runs counter to calls by the Biden administration for other countries to stay out of the Sudanese war.

At least 9,000 people have been killed since fighting broke out in April between Sudan’s military and Dagalo’s RSF, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, a nonprofit. The war has forced some 5.5 million people—about one in nine Sudanese—out of their homes and triggered a humanitarian catastrophe, with nearly half of the country’s citizens now in need of food and other aid.

Cairo has long backed the Sudanese military led by Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the country’s de facto head of state. Burhan has been a key ally of Egypt in its dispute with Ethiopia, which is expanding a giant dam that the Sisi government says threatens to choke off the waters that run into the Nile. Egypt already sent warplanes to back the Sudanese military in the early days of the war.

Burhan and Dagalo worked together in 2019 to oust Sudan’s longtime dictator, Omar al-Bashir, and again in 2021 to topple a civilian transitional government.

The Egyptian drone shipment, requested by Burhan, came as the Sudanese military was losing ground to Dagalo’s forces following the U.A.E. weapon supplies. Abu Dhabi is betting on Dagalo to help protect Emirati interests in Sudan, which include swaths of farmland and a stake in a planned $6 billion port on the Red Sea.

Burhan visited Egypt in late August, the general’s first known trip abroad since the fighting began. Days later, the Egyptian military delivered the drones to a military base in Sudan’s north, according to officers in the Sudanese military.

These drones have since been deployed to several air bases from where they have been used to launch strikes against the RSF, targeting its weapons warehouses, military vehicles and bases.

Military airstrikes have inflicted significant damage on RSF facilities and weapon warehouses around Khartoum since late August, according to ACLED, the nonprofit. Last month, the Sudanese military also regained control of Zalingei, the capital of Central Darfur, which had been captured by the RSF in early August. The drone strikes have also helped the military to successfully repulse a series of attacks on two large bases in the capital, Khartoum, inflicting heavy losses on the RSF, according to witnesses and humanitarian officials.

But some drone attacks have hit civilian targets, including a Sept. 10 strike that killed 40 people at an open market, according to local human-rights activists. More air force troops are being trained in Egypt to improve operational capacity and avoid such errors, Sudanese officials said.

The RSF has reacted to the drone attacks with artillery shelling and by obstructing food and medical supplies flowing to the military’s strongholds, according to witnesses.

Conflict in the Middle East, surging global interest rates and elevated oil prices threaten fragile recovery

The U.S. economy might be heading for a soft landing. But the rest of the world could be in for a jolt.

Global financial officials say they are grappling with an increasingly fractured economic outlook, as many countries struggle with the lasting scars of the Covid-19 pandemic while others power ahead.

Surprising strength in the U.S. economy poses a threat to the rest of the world, portending higher interest rates for longer and a stronger dollar that will weigh on other countries’ growth. A jump in oil prices since the summer is also threatening to reignite inflation just as many global central banks thought they were at the end of policy-tightening cycles.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned of a “deepening divergence in economic fortunes” during a week of meetings of financial officials in Marrakesh, Morocco, held just a month after the country was devastated by earthquakes.

The outbreak of conflict between Israel and Gaza now threatens to inject volatility back into energy markets, harking back to last year’s commodity chaos after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Geopolitical tensions are the real economic risks now and we are all aware of that,” said French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire. “Any escalation in the region would, of course, have a significant impact on global growth.”

Strong U.S. economic data, including September’s blockbuster hiring report, helped send Treasury yields to 16-year highs as investors bet the Federal Reserve would keep interest rates elevated for longer. The IMF this week boosted its growth projections for the U.S. economy, now forecasting 2.1% growth this year and 1.5% next year, a sign of “a softer landing than earlier expected.”

Its expectations for much of the rest of the world grew dimmer. China’s economy has been suffering under a downturn in the property market, weak exports and lower consumer demand. China has weighed on Germany—the only advanced economy the IMF projects to shrink this year—and helped turn Europe into a weak link.

Total global trade is set to grow only 0.9% this year, the IMF expects, a sharp drop from 5.1% growth last year.

The IMF is concerned that slowing global trade could mark a new era of deglobalization as nations orient economic policy toward national security rather than growth. Geopolitical conflicts such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine—and friction between the U.S. and China—have already upended supply chains.

Supply disruptions not only slow growth but also have prompted investors to factor in more future risks from potential geopolitical shocks, helping drive up interest rates.

The persistence of inflation continues to surprise global central banks and investors. The IMF boosted its inflation forecast for next year to 5.8%, up from its previous forecast of 5.2%. For most countries, the IMF doesn’t expect price growth to return to their central banks’ targets before 2025.

U.S. data on Thursday showed that the recent decline in inflation stalled in September.

Economies abroad face additional inflation risks from the rise in the dollar and higher oil prices. When the dollar rises, it becomes more expensive for other countries to buy foreign goods and commodities, most of which are priced in dollars.

“Central banks do not take pleasure in just keeping interest rates higher…but because inflation has been more persistent than we thought, we are going to have to keep policy rates higher,” Lesetja Kganyago, the governor of South Africa’s central bank, said in an interview. South Africa’s rand has fallen 6% against the dollar over the past few months.

That is why, even as higher U.S. rates pose problems for emerging markets, some central bankers want to see American inflation tamed. Abdellatif Jouahri, the Moroccan central bank governor, said declining inflation in the U.S. would help Morocco control prices.

“So all things considered, this will make our lives easier,” Jouahri said.

Global officials fear rising interest rates and a stronger dollar also could usher in a new wave of debt distress across the developing world.

The strength of the dollar is already making it more expensive for emerging-market countries to pay back dollar-denominated debts. The rise in interest rates makes it harder for them to issue new debt to fund themselves and refinance bonds coming due.

“It’s a burden on very-low-income countries with a lot of debt without a lot of fiscal space,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in an interview. “These countries are already hurt by higher food prices, higher energy prices—spillovers from Russia’s war against Ukraine.”

Development officials warn rising debt costs are threatening vulnerable countries’ ability to spend on climate-change projects. According to the IMF, nearly 60% of low-income countries are in, or at risk of, debt distress, a classification that signifies a country can’t meet its debt obligations.

Countries such as Zambia and Sri Lanka that have already defaulted on foreign bonds continue to face a long road to debt relief. China’s emergence as a lender to the developing world has challenged the process for resolving debt issues, which for decades has been coordinated by a group of mostly wealthy Western countries known as the Paris Club that doesn’t include Beijing.

“Many of these countries have already lost access to market financing and so their ability to finance even the most basic public spending needs is limited,” said Vitor Gaspar, director of the IMF’s fiscal affairs department. “That’s one of the reasons why we’re so concerned with basic priorities, like food security.”

Oct 13 (Reuters) - More than 30 U.S. lawmakers on Friday urged the chief executives of American Airlines (AAL.O), Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) and United Airlines (UAL.O) to resume flights to Israel "as soon as possible."

The three U.S. carriers have all suspended flights to Israel citing security concerns.

The letter to the CEOs Friday led by Democrat Debbie Wasserman Schultz urged the carriers "to prioritize resuming flight operations" to Tel Aviv and said lawmakers "stand ready to assist you in any way necessary to get the job done."

Weekend Papers Summary

-Thousands were on the move in Gaza on Friday, departing their homes in overcrowded minibuses, in cars and on foot as they contended with fuel shortages and destroyed roads.The warning for about half of the Gaza Strip’s population to relocate from the north to the south of the enclave came with what the UN said was a 24-hour deadline, as Israel maintained its siege and bombardment of the 40km-long territory, particularly its main city.

-Cairo has resisted pressure to allow Palestinians to flee to its territory in large numbers. On Friday Egypt’s foreign ministry warned that the order to leave was a “grave violation” of international humanitarian law.Al-Shanty said she believed that Gaza City, her home, would be flattened and that residents would be forced into Egypt. Israel “told us to go south in the direction of Rafah because they will destroy the city and expel us to Sinai”, she said.

-The weekend break in Congress was announced after Republicans in the House selected hardline conservative Jim Jordan as their newest nominee for Speaker in a secret ballot on Friday afternoon. But Jordan, the chair of the House judiciary committee and a prominent ally of former president Donald Trump, faces an uphill battle if he is to shore up enough support to win in a final vote on the floor of the House, where Republicans hold a wafer-thin majority over Democrats.

-JPMorgan Chase reported a 35% jump in profits for the third quarter, as the biggest US bank continues to reap the benefits from higher interest rates and lower than normal loan losses.

-J&T Express, a delivery company with operations in south-east Asia and China, was forced to lower the fundraising target due to lackluster investor response, according to three people familiar with the matter.The downsized listing of the group, which counts Chinese ecommerce giants Pinduoduo and ByteDance’s TikTok as its clients, comes as global investors are increasingly pessimistic over China’s growth outlook and frayed relations with the US.

-Shares in LVMH, owners of 75 luxury brands including Dior, Louis Vuitton and Tiffany, fell 7% on Wednesday after it disclosed that a post-pandemic luxury spree had slowed in Europe, and US sales of spirits such as Hennessy cognac had fallen.

-Russian authorities have detained three lawyers for Alexei Navalny after raiding their homes on extremism charges, a move allies of the jailed opposition leader say is meant to further isolate him from the outside world. Vadim Kobzev, Igor Sergunin and Alexey Liptser are being charged with being part of an extremist group, which carries a sentence of up to six years in prison, Navalny’s team said on Friday.

-A prominent US bankruptcy judge will step away from hearing large cases as a federal appeals court investigates his alleged failure to disclose a romantic relationship with a prominent bankruptcy lawyer. An order posted on Friday said cases classified as “complex”, or those with liabilities more than $200M, assigned to David R Jones, the chief judge of the US bankruptcy court for the southern district of Texas, will be transferred to other judges.

-Australia’s indigenous community leaders and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have issued their final rallying cry in support of a historic referendum to improve the lives of the country’s First Nations population.Saturday’s referendum, known as “the Voice”, will ask Australians to decide whether to amend the constitution to recognize the country’s original inhabitants and to establish a non-binding body to advise parliament on issues that concern the 1M indigenous people.

-Former Barclays chief executive Jes Staley has been banned from working in the UK financial sector after allegedly misleading regulators about his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

NEW YORK TIMES

-Fears of escalation hang over battered Gaza as thousands flee south. Amid signs that Israel’s military was preparing for a ground invasion, an initial deadline that Israel gave for civilians to leave northern Gaza came and went.

-The secrets Hamas knew about Israel’s military. A gunman’s video suggests that Hamas had deep knowledge of Israel’s military secrets and weaknesses. Here is how the attacks unfolded.

-Palestinians fled from northern Gaza to the south after the Israeli army issued an unprecedented evacuation warning on Friday.

-The University of Pennsylvania is facing angry donors after an on-campus Palestinian literary conference.

-Nikki Haley knocked Donald Trump and Vivek Ramaswamy over their recent comments on Israel.

-Trapped in Gaza, Palestinian Americans said they felt abandoned by the US.

-After tension and rumors, a protest for Palestine in Times Square occurred without incident.

-Secretary of State Antony Blinken is trying to persuade Arab nations to limit their criticism of Israel.

-The CIA reports issued days before the Hamas attack did not foresee such a deadly strike.-Republicans have asked Jim Jordan (OH) for Speaker, but Delay Vote as Holdouts Balk. The Ohio congressman Jim Jordan was his party’s second nominee this week. But Republicans put off a House floor vote until next week.

-The current chaos in the House of Representatives is not the first time Republicans have found themselves rocked by a vacancy at the top.

-The charges against Senator Robert Menendez and his wife highlight how Egypt’s powerful intelligence agency wields influence.

-A teacher was killed in a terrorist stabbing at a school in France. A suspect was quickly arrested after the attack. President Emmanuel Macron said France had been “hit by the barbarity of Islamist terrorism.”

-Physicians unionize at big health care system. The physicians, at Allina Health in Minnesota and Wisconsin, appear to be the largest group of unionized doctors in the private sector.

-Kaiser Permanente has reached tentative deal with health workers, a week after a three-day walkout.

-The United Automobile Workers union said its strikes would become more unpredictable.

-In Alaska, a road to metals needed for clean energy could also cause harm. A proposed industrial road would cut through pristine wilderness in Alaska to reach a planned copper and zinc mine.

-The Supreme Court judges will hear another broad challenge to agency power. The justices apparently added the new case to ensure that Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson could take part in deciding whether to overrule a major precedent.

NY POST

-Murad Abu Murad, a top Hamas official who helped orchestrate last week’s attack in Israel, was killed during an overnight airstrike, according to the Israeli Air Force. Murad is the head of Hamas’ Air Force, the Jerusalem Post reported, citing Hebrew media. The country also recovered the bodies of several missing citizens during a raid on Gaza, the IDF confirmed.

-Walmart’s push to crack down on shoplifting at self-checkout counters with anti-theft technology has led to a surge in “hostile” encounters between hourly workers and shoppers, according to a report. The big-box chain — one of many retailers battling increasing theft that has eaten into their bottom lines — has armed employees with handheld devices that track purchases at self-checkout registers, an Insider report revealed.

For weeks it seemed like investors couldn’t take part in enough nine-figure rounds. Well, that all stopped this week, as only one round topped $100 million (although by quite a lot!) and rounds all-in-all were relatively small. Did investors take a fall holiday? Is the big-round frenzy over? Stay tuned.

1. Main Street Health, $315M, health care: This huge round may have gone unnoticed. Value-based health care provider Main Street Health locked up more than $315 million led by Oak HC/FT. The health care organization focuses on rural America, partnering with primary care physicians in those areas. The firm currently partners with over 900 clinics in 18 states and plans to expand into another eight states next year. Founded in 2021, the Nashville-based firm has now raised $342 million, per Crunchbase.

2. Pair Eyewear, $75M, retail: The direct-to-consumer startup market is not what it used to be. All one needs to do is look at Birkenstock’s recent IPO to be reminded of that. Nevertheless, VCs are still willing to put cash into some such startups — including New York-based Pair Eyewear. The customizable eyewear brand raised a $75 million Series C led by Prysm Capital. The company makes prescription glasses for just $60 and has realized 24x revenue growth from 2020 to 2023. Clearly those numbers caught some investors’ attention. Founded in 2017, the company has raised nearly $150 million, according to Crunchbase.

3. Shine Technologies, $70M, Energy: Fusion has been very popular with investors for a while now. This week it was Wisconsin-based Shine Technologies that raised big, locking up a $70 million round led by existing investors including Baillie Gifford and Fidelity Management and Research Co. The round is a convertible note ahead of a Series D later, per Axios. Many feel the commercialization of fusion energy — created when two atoms are merged — is close to becoming a reality thanks to recent tech advancements in things like switches and modeling software. Founded in 2005, the company has raised $742 million, per Crunchbase.

4. Saronic, $55M, defense: Fusion isn’t the only hot sector investors eyed this week. Defense tech also has seen a slight surge in funding, and this week Austin, Texas-based Saronic raised some cash in the space. The maritime autonomy company raised a $55 million Series A led by Caffeinated Capital. Saronic plans to use the new cash to accelerate research and development while expanding in-house manufacturing capacity for rapid production of its autonomous surface vessels. Founded in 2022, the company has raised $70 million, per Crunchbase.

5. Capital Rx, $50M, health care: New York-based pharmacy benefit manager Capital Rx closed a $50 million-plus strategic investment round from the likes of Atlantic Health System and Banner Health. The company’s health platform, Judi, connects the various parts of the pharmacy ecosystem and services more than 2.4 million members for Medicare, Medicaid and commercial plans. Founded in 2017, the company has now raised $253 million, per Crunchbase.

6. Mojo Vision, $44M, electronics: Saratoga, California-based Mojo Vision, a micro-LED developer, closed a $43.5 million Series A led by New Enterprise Associates and Khosla Ventures. Founded in 2015, the company has raised nearly $270 million, per Crunchbase.

7. Harri, $43M, human resources: New York-based employee experience platform Harri raised a $43 million Series B led by Atalaya Capital Management. Founded in 2012, the company has now raised $112 million, per Crunchbase.

8. Stash, $40M, fintech: New York-based investing app Stash raised $40 million in a convertible note led by funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Investment Management. Founded in 2015, the company has raised $520 million, per Crunchbase.

9. Prophecy, $35M, data: Palo Alto, California-based data platform developer Prophecy locked up a $35 million Series B led by Insight Partners and SignalFire. Founded in 2017, Prophecy has raised $67 million, per the company.

10. BlueNalu, $34M, aquaculture: San Diego-based cellular aquaculture startup BlueNalu locked up a $33.5 million Series B from new and existing investors. Founded in 2017, the company has raised $118 million, per Crunchbase.

Main Street’s big raise led the way globally, but there was a big AI round overseas.

Union president says strike entering new phase, needs new approach

The United Auto Workers spared General Motors GM -1.55%decrease; red down pointing triangle and Chrysler-parent Stellantis STLA 0.20%increase; green up pointing triangle from a strike escalation Friday, two days after turning up the heat on Ford Motor F -1.04%decrease; red down pointing triangle with a surprise walkout that targeted one of its most profitable plants.

“We’re entering a new phase of this fight, and it demands a new approach,” UAW President Shawn Fain said in a livestream Friday. “We are prepared at any time to call on more locals to stand up and walk out.”

The UAW has sought to keep the pressure on all three automakers during bargaining with a strike strategy that targets specific facilities at each one depending on what movement, or lack thereof, happens at the negotiating table each week.

For the past month, Fain has typically announced additional walkouts during Friday livestreams, a pattern that he is now seeking to disrupt in an effort to keep the car companies on edge.

Fain specifically called out Ford as growing accustomed to the weekly updates and accused it of slow-walking the union with offers that aren’t substantially different.

“They stopped being interested in reaching a fair deal now and only became interested in gaming our system of announcing strike expansions on Friday,” Fain said.

The 88-year-old labor union initially walked out at three assembly plants for each automaker in mid-September and has since escalated the work stoppage unevenly among the Detroit Three, taking action at parts-distribution facilities as well as additional factories.

On Wednesday, the union suddenly ordered 8,700 workers to join the picket lines at a Ford pickup-truck factory in Kentucky, an assembly plant that is one of the nation’s largest and builds some of the company’s most profitable vehicles.

The move came after talks between Ford and the UAW during the week hit a standstill after a flurry of activity.

In all, more than 33,000 UAW workers are out on strike, about one-fifth of the union’s roughly 146,000 U.S. factory workers at GM, Ford and Stellantis.

Ford executives said Thursday the automaker was at the limit of what it could offer to the union. The latest proposal from the Dearborn, Mich. automaker included a 23% pay increase, the return of cost-of-living adjustments, and a faster timeline to convert temporary workers to full-time.

“We stretched to get to this point. Going further will hurt our ability to invest in the business,” Kumar Galhotra, president of Ford’s gas-engine business, said in a briefing with reporters Thursday.

Company executives said they had been bargaining this week around core economic issues, such as retirement benefits, as well as the future of Ford’s EV battery plants.

The battery facilities have become a core discussion topic after the union said last week that GM agreed to place battery production under its master agreement. Stellantis and Ford haven’t yet made similar commitments, with some executives noting that it is up to the workers to decide whether they want to join the union.

Tie-up between ‘magic circle’ law firm and US rival creates $3.5bn transatlantic law firm after 99% of votes cast in favour

Partners at “magic circle” law firm Allen & Overy and New York’s Shearman & Sterling have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a merger between the two groups, clearing the path for one of the industry’s biggest-ever tie-ups.

The merger, which creates a legal giant with roughly $3.5bn in combined revenues, will push ahead after more than 99 per cent of partners on both sides backed the plan, according to a statement from the firms on Friday. The deal creates an outfit with nearly 4,000 lawyers in total.

“This is a historic moment for both firms and our profession,” said Wim Dejonghe, senior partner at Allen & Overy, in a statement. “We are delighted that our partners have voted so resoundingly in favour of this merger, which is a transformational step for the legal industry.”

The deal, announced earlier this year, is the first between one of the UK’s so-called “magic circle” firms and a US rival in more than two decades, and creates one of the world’s biggest law firms by revenue. Allen & Overy will be hoping the merger can give it a leg up in America, where UK law firms have long struggled to gain traction in a market dominated by a group of top tier US law firms.

For New York’s Shearman, the deal brings an end to a tumultuous period that saw the firm lose a number of lawyers after merger talks with Hogan Lovells fell apart earlier this year. The firm, which is dwarfed in size by Allen & Overy, has also undergone a restructuring aimed at boosting its profitability.

The new firm will be known as A&O Shearman, with the tie-up set to close by May 2024. The firm hasn’t disclosed how management will be structured.

The deal came together in a matter of weeks after Shearman’s senior partner Adam Hakki called his Allen & Overy counterpart Dejonghe not long after the US firm’s proposed merger with Hogan Lovells collapsed in March. For Allen & Overy, it brought a fresh opportunity to boost its American ambitions after merger talks with California-headquartered O’Melveny & Myers failed four years ago.

Nothing has yet been communicated about how the profit structures of each firm will be merged, even privately, according to one senior Allen & Overy partner, who described the mood as “excited”. Equity partners at Shearman took home $2.48mn in average profits last year, compared with £1.82mn for partners at Allen & Overy. Both firms have said previously their pay structures would not be difficult to knit together.

Shearman, a well-known 150-year-old firm that once advised the cream of corporate America, is the far smaller entity, with $907mn in revenues in calendar year 2022 and about half of Allen & Overy’s more than 40 offices. Together they will have 48 offices and about 800 partners.

Vitale Barberis Canonico’s commitment to transparency and quality attracts young designers to its Heritage and New Talents program.

The market-leading success of Vitale Barberis Canonico is pinned to innovation, high-quality, Made-in-Italy fabric, and a remarkable 360-year heritage. But there is another dimension driving success for the family-owned mill. The famed fabric maker is working with emerging designers as part of its Heritage and New Talents program.

The program, which spotlights womenswear, was launched earlier this year with VitoVi, the brand of Maria Vittoria Lazzarini Merloni. That collaboration showcased the blazer as an iconic garment, but using fabrics normally used in men’s drapery, the mill said in a statement.

In its latest collaboration, Vitale Barberis Canonico is collaborating with CUANTICO, which was founded in 2021 “with the desire to create a wardrobe of iconic garments,” the company said, adding that the dress shirt “was immediately identified as a fundamental element in the dress code, aware of the fact that, when worn by a woman, it is a manifestation of elegance but also a potent weapon of seduction.”

The collaboration will be unveiled at Milan Fashion Week on Tuesday in the showroom at Via Solferino 23. “The itinerary will take the guests through the heritage of Vitale Barberis Canonico to the discovery of the 12 shirts which incarnate the CUANTICO philosophy,” the mill said. “A leitmotif which unites textile tradition with feminine contemporaneity.”

Regarding why the mill works with new talent, Francesco Barberis Canonico, creative director at Vitale Barberis Canonico, said the mill works with new and emerging designers “to give them access, and to keep us up to date,” he said. “CUANTICO is a new company that is doing dress shirts for women. So, it’s not exactly our core business and it’s not something that we normally do, but the collaboration gives us certain opportunities to explore different areas, such as womenswear, while also reaching a younger customer. It’s forcing us to step out of our normal boundaries, which is good thing.”

When asked about the collection, Barberis Canonico said the shirt “represents a milestone and the point of departure when taking care of one’s look. Increasing numbers of women are wearing iconic garments taken from the men’s formal classic wardrobe to exemplify their personality. The founders of CUANTICO have done a great job in terms of style, construction, and the selection of the fabrics, and we are happy to collaborate with them and to continue to support young talents in the fashion world.”

Barberis Canonico also noted that the timing of the collaboration is key. “Overall, this is a good time for us as more and more consumers shift away from fast fashion,” Barberis Canonico said. “They’re looking for high-quality apparel and finer materials. They want products that last. They’re also more careful with their money and are willing to spend more on quality rather than on low-quality fast fashion.”

Barberis Canonico also said there’s demand for greater transparency. Customers want to know how and where products are made. For Vitale Barberis Canonico, the mill’s transparency and traceability are globally recognized. The wool can even be traced to the farm.

For the CUANTICO collection, Vitale Barberis Canonico proposes three iconic fabrics. “The first is Seersucker, a summer fabric which is distinguished by its alternating flat yarns combined with others woven to create the undulated, crinkly surface,” the mill said, adding that it “proposes it in pure wool with natural stretch and crease-resistance.”

The second is Montecarlo, which is made from 21 Micron wool “to give it durability, crease-resistance, perfect drape, breathability and a dry handle,” Vitale Barberis Canonico said in a statement, also noting the hopsack weave “creates three-dimensionality and emphasizes the intensity of the colors.” The fabric can be lined or unlined for use in four seasons.

The third fabric is Perennial, which is designed for day suits. “It is created with wool, it has a comfortable weight ideal for any season and is presented in refined fancies and a wide range of colors,” the mill said.

The three CUANTICO founders, —Chiara, Consuelo, and Chiara— said the brand chose the shirt as an iconic garment “because it has always existed, in every culture, as an accompaniment to the history of humanity. For this reason, we believe it is a fundamental element of the dress code. The versatility and the research of the shapes, and the attention paid to the detail, make this style immediately recognizable, between tradition and contemporaneity.”

The founders said they welcomed the invitation to collaborate with Vitale Barberis Canonico “because they represent the textile excellence of Made in Italy and for us it is a privilege to be able to create a capsule with them. We visited their facilities and were impressed by the level of quality and care taken at every step of the production process. This is not only a wonderful collaboration, but also a challenge to bring to life a female collection using textiles created by a historical company which has always turned to the men’s world.”