December 18, 2021 (MLN): Pakistan’s cotton production soared by 43.83% to 7.274 million bales up to December 15, 2021, as opposed to 5.057 million bales produced in the same period of last year, the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) said in its fortnightly report released today.
This significant increase was the result of the government incentives being provided to the farmers in the form of interest-free loans, premiums on crop insurance, subsidies on purchase of basic inputs, agricultural machinery and laser land levelers. In addition, the hard work of cotton growers and favorable weather conditions helped achieve higher yields.
Further, this continuous growth in cotton arrival has had a positive impact on the outlook for cotton production where the current production target for FY22 has been set at 9.74mn bales.
These higher yields might lead to higher textile production and exports. It is prudent to mention that Pakistan’s textile exports reached $7.758 billion during July-November FY22, depicting a yearly growth of 28.41% on the back of strong demand for Pakistan’s textiles in the global market despite the resumption of economic activities in competing countries.
Going into details made available by association, textile mills have so far purchased 6.89mn bales while 16,000 bales sold to exporters.
Province-wise, cotton production in Sindh rose to 3.5mn bales, up by 1.42% YoY while in Punjab, the production was recorded at 3.77mn bales as of Dec 15, indicating a growth of 27% YoY, the association said.
