Market Topic: Cotton Planting Area In Pakistan Is Far Below Target

China cotton net news: according to the target set by the Federal Agricultural Commission of Pakistan, in 2021 / 22, the cotton area is 2330000 ha, and the output is 10.5 million bales, almost doubling year on year. Among them, Punjab province covers an area of 1.6 million hectares and produces 6.07 million bales.

However, according to feedback from Cotton Traders and ginners, this year's cotton planting area is far below the official target, and the cotton production may be significantly lower than expected, which may not even have 5.6 million bales.

According to the Pakistan ginning mill Association, the planting area in Punjab and Sindh has dropped by more than 20% this year, with the area in Punjab falling to 3.2 million acres, far lower than the planned 4 million acres, and Sindh with an area of no more than 1.2 million acres, far lower than the planned 1.6 million acres. A third of Pakistan's ginning plants are now closed due to a sharp drop in output last year, and only 442 of the 1300 ginning plants are still in operation.

At present, a small amount of new cotton for 2021 / 22 has been put on the market in Sindh province of Pakistan, while the planting in Punjab province has just begun. Affected by the expected reduction in production, cotton prices in Pakistan have recently risen to an 11 year high. As the domestic price is much higher than the international cotton price, Pakistan's cotton import demand is expected to increase greatly.

Farmers in many parts of Punjab and Sindh have switched to other crops, mostly corn. Cotton experts say many farmers in both provinces have begun planting corn, sugar cane, rice and other crops instead of cotton. Farmers can get three crops of corn a year, so the income from planting corn is much better than that from cotton. Despite the reduction of cotton planting area, the output may reach about 7.5 million bales if weather conditions match.