Economy

Cotton Arrivals Near 4 Million Bales, Up 29% In 2 Weeks

Pakistan’s Cotton arrivals have seen a remarkable 29.3 percent increase as of September 15 compared to August 31, according to data released by the Pakistan Cotton Ginner’s Association (PCGA).

The total cotton arrival now stands at 3.933 million bales, up from 3.041 million bales at the end of August 2023, marking a significant rise of 0.892 million bales. In a year-on-year comparison, cotton arrival has surged by nearly 80 percent from 2.187 million bales on September 15, 2022.

This boost comes as a welcome development for Pakistan, especially after floods wreaked havoc on agricultural land in Sindh and Balochistan last year, severely impacting the cotton crop.

Province-wise data reveals a substantial increase in cotton arrivals from Punjab. As of September 15, Punjab reported 1.544 million bales of cotton arrival, a 44.5 percent increase from the 1.069 million bales recorded on August 31, 2023.

Sindh has overall contributed nearly 60 percent to the total arrivals so far Punjab’s share stands at 39 percent followed by some 2.4 percent from Balochistan. Most Cotton arrivals are reported from Sanghar (33 percent), Bahawalnagar (8 percent), Sukkur (5.2 percent), Bahawalpur (4.4 percent) and Khanewal (4 percent).

On a yearly basis, cotton arrivals from Punjab surged by 43.4 percent, compared to 1.077 million bales during the same period last year. Similarly, Sindh reported 2.389 million bales of cotton arrival, a 21.2 percent increase from the 1.972 million bales recorded on August 31. Year-on-year, Sindh saw a remarkable 115.2 percent increase in cotton arrivals compared to 1.11 million bales in the same period of the previous year.

Data from the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) indicates that textile exports for the first eight months (January-August) of 2023 stood at $10.58 billion, down 19 percent compared to $13 billion reported during January-August 2022.

Source: Pro Pakistani