India, the world’s second-largest cotton grower, is unlikely to achieve cotton production of 35.6 million bales of 170 kg each, forecasted by the Cotton Advisory Board (CAB) for the current season that began on October 1, 2011.

Cotton yields have been lower this year due to unseasonal rains in parts of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, the second and third largest cotton growing States in the country, respectively.

As a result, the country’s cotton harvest for this season may be 2 to 3 million bales less than the projection made by the CAB.

“Daily arrival of cotton in the market is now around 200,000 bales. It should have been substantially higher, if we had a crop of 35.6 million bales, even after giving allowance for possible holding back of cotton by some farmers,” Mr. DK Nair, Secretary-General of the Confederation of Indian Textiles Industry (CITI), told fibre2fashion.

Giving reason for the less arrival of cotton, he says, “There are reports about decline in yield in some States, because of weather related problems. That can be a factor for less than expected cotton arrival.”

“However, arrivals are expected to pick up from the present levels in the coming weeks and months, resulting in a decline in cotton prices in the domestic market. Moreover, since there is a large crop globally, export prices are also expected to remain low this year,” he adds.

Talking about the potential export markets for Indian cotton this year, the CITI Secretary-General says, “China and Bangladesh will be the largest clients for our cotton exports this year. But, how much China will buy is difficult to project because they will be buying mostly for building up buffer stock.”

(Source: www.fibre2fashion.com )