Growth of man-made synthetic and cellulose fibres is likely to push down world cotton production. The world cotton production share is likely to decline from 23 million tonnes to 3.20 million tonnes Man-made synthetic and cellulose fibres output is expected to reach 138 million tonnes by 2030. On the other hand, despite all efforts, Pakistan’s lint production would be hurt by high cost of inputs, weak prices, poor weather, increased pest attacks like pink bollworm and white fly, and discouraging farmers from better crop management. The decline in lint production has attributed a dent to annual growth of the country this fiscal year, as the growth has declined by around 0.5 per cent to 5 per cent. Pakistan Yarn Merchants Association senior member Ghulam Rabbani said Pakistan’s cotton production during 2016 crop year has fallen to its lowest in 17 years, depressed by poor weather and pest outbreaks. “This will force consumers to rely on imports to meet end-demand,” he added. Pakistan, the world’s fourth-ranked cotton producer after China, India and the United States, is facing a drop of around 31 per cent. Asia is the major cotton-producing region, wherein China and India account for 54 per cent of the total world cotton production. Cotton prices in Pakistan remained in the range of Rs 6,400 per maund to Rs 6,150 per maund (fluctuating) during 2015-16 mid June. Pakistan mostly exports raw cotton to far-east countries like Bangladesh, Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, Myanmar, Singapore and somewhat to India. It is clear that global cotton production would show either flat or stagnant results and would no longer be able to meet world’s fibre demand.
