LONDON: Some of Europe’s biggest stores are failing to stem the abuse of Syrian refugees who work in the Turkish factories that supply their clothes, a business pressure group said on Friday.
The Business and Human Rights Resource Center (BHRRC) called on the worst offenders — from fashion icon Topshop to discounter Aldi — to better protect refugee workers who have fled war only to suffer workplace exploitation in their new home.
Low wages, discrimination and poor conditions are common for Syrian refugees working in Turkey’s multibillion-dollar garment industry, where child labor is also a problem, said the BHRRC.
“Some high street fashion brands ... have made progress in protecting workers, but too many, like Aldi, Asda and Topshop, are lagging way behind,” Phil Bloomer, executive director of the BHRRC, said in a statement.
“They should learn from the leaders, and quickly.”
The Britain-based charity surveyed 37 major European brands with Turkish factories in their supply chains on the policies and practices undertaken to tackle the abuse of workers.
Companies including supermarket chains Aldi and Asda and fashion retailer Arcadia — which owns the Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Miss Selfridge brands — are not doing enough to stop the exploitation, the BHRRC survey found.
ASOS, New Look, Next, SuperDry and Zara were the top ranking brands in the survey; Asda and Arcadia came bottom. Six companies, including Mexx and River Island, failed to respond.
The charity said more brands had boosted efforts to clean up their supply chains compared to last year, with the top performers establishing plans to protect refugees, mechanisms to handle complaints, and initiating dialogue with workers’ groups.
More than 3 million Syrian refugees — about half aged under 18 — have fled to Turkey to escape a war that erupted in 2011.
About 650,000 are estimated to be working in Turkey, many in the garment industry, yet most lack work permits, leaving them at greater risk of abuse, the BHRRC said.
A Reuters investigation last year found evidence of Syrian refugee children in Turkey working in clothes factories in illegal conditions. Turkey bans children under 15 from working.
“The Syrian refugee crisis poses a complex challenge for retailers sourcing garments from Turkey,” said Peter McAllister, head of the Ethical Trading Initiative, an alliance of trade unions, firms and charities promoting workers’ rights.
“Refugees are particularly vulnerable to exploitation,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “More needs to be done, but we are confident our member companies are taking it seriously.”
A spokesman for Walmart, which owns Asda, said the company was exploring how to address the risks to vulnerable workers in its global supply chain, with a focus on ethical recruitment.
The British Retail Consortium, which counts Aldi among its members, said more needed to be done to prevent exploitation.
The chairman of the Istanbul Apparel Exporters’ Association, which represents three-quarters of Turkey’s clothing exporters, said Syrian refugee workers holding work permits were protected by the country’s “very strict laws” on working regulations.
“Portraying a few exceptional cases that could happen even in the most developed countries around the world as Turkey’s reality is not befitting of fairness and good intentions,” Hikmet Tanriverdi said in a statement on Friday.
Topshop declined to comment on the BHRRC survey, Arcadia did not respond to requests for comment, and Mexx and River Island could not be reached.
— REUTERS
European chains ‘profit on back of Syrian refugees in Turkish factories’
European chains ‘profit on back of Syrian refugees in Turkish factories’
Dubai Financial Market reports $288.6m profit for 2025 - up 159%
RIYADH: Dubai Financial Market reported net profit before tax of 1.06 billion dirhams ($288.6 million) in 2025, up 159 percent from a year earlier.
The improved performance was driven by sustained confidence in Dubai’s capital markets and a year of heightened trading activity, with momentum continuing through the fourth quarter.
The results coincided with the exchange marking 25 years since its establishment in 2000, highlighting its evolution into a more globally connected and institutionally active marketplace, according to a report by the Emirates News Agency.
For the full year ending Dec. 31, total consolidated revenues rose to 1.28 billion dirhams, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization reached 1.13 billion dirhams, translating into an EBITDA margin of 88 percent.
The results come as Dubai pushes ahead with its D33 agenda to double the emirate’s economy by 2033 and deepen its position as a global financial hub.
The UAE central bank has pointed to solid capital markets momentum and low sovereign risk indicators in 2025, underscoring the confidence backdrop for higher trading activity.
Helal Al-Marri, chairman of DFM, said: “DFM’s performance in 2025 reflects the continued strength of Dubai’s capital markets and the confidence of global investors in the emirate’s economic vision.
“As we mark 25 years since the establishment of DFM, the exchange continues to play a central role within Dubai’s financial ecosystem, supporting transparency, liquidity, and long-term market development in line with the Dubai Economic Agenda D33.”
Fourth-quarter net profit before tax increased to 124.4 million dirhams from 110.6 million dirhams in the same period of 2024, reflecting sustained trading momentum toward year-end.
Market performance remained strong throughout the year, with the DFM General Index rising 17.2 percent and total market capitalization reaching 992 billion dirhams.
Average daily traded value climbed to 692 million dirhams, while total traded value amounted to 174 billion dirhams, marking the highest liquidity levels in more than a decade.
The average daily number of trades rose 31 percent year on year, driven by increased institutional and cross-border activity.
Hamed Ali, CEO of DFM and Nasdaq Dubai, said: “In 2025, DFM continued to build on the progress of recent years, supported by steady trading activity, growing international participation, and ongoing enhancements to our market infrastructure.”
He added: “Our focus throughout the year remained on improving market accessibility, supporting a broad range of investment activity, and ensuring the market continues to operate efficiently for both issuers and investors. As we mark 25 years of DFM, we remain committed to developing the market in line with Dubai’s long-term capital markets ambitions.”
Investor participation broadened further during the year, with 97,394 new participants joining the market, of which 84 percent were foreign.
Foreign investors accounted for 51 percent of total trading value, while institutional investors represented 71 percent of trading activity.
The total investor base reached 1.25 million, reinforcing DFM’s position as a destination for regional and international capital.
Capital-raising activity also expanded DFM’s sectoral footprint.
The exchange hosted Dubai Residential REIT, the region’s first publicly traded residential leasing real estate investment trust, which attracted subscriptions 26 times over and total demand of 56 billion dirhams.
It also saw the secondary public offering of Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co., alongside the initial public offering of ALEC Holdings, the UAE’s largest construction-sector listing to date, which generated subscriptions of 30 billion dirhams, representing an oversubscription of 21 times.
Innovation and market development remained a focus in 2025, with the launch of a centralized securities lending and borrowing framework and further enhancements to digital platforms, including AI-enabled features on iVestor.
DFM also strengthened its international engagement through global roadshows and partnerships, including a memorandum of understanding with the Taiwan Stock Exchange aimed at supporting cross-border listings and investor outreach.
Looking ahead, the exchange said it remains focused on enhancing liquidity, expanding product offerings, and deepening global connectivity, supported by a strong financial position and a diversified investor base.
