China’s cotton imports fall as domestic price drops
Customs data from China has revealed that the volume of raw cotton imported into the country in the 2021-2022 season (August 2021 to July 2022) was slightly more than 1.7 million tonnes.
In season 2019-2020, when covid-19 restrictions were at their peak, the figure was around 1.6 million tonnes, but in season 2020-2021, Chinese mills imported more than 2.8 million tonnes of raw cotton.
Cotton market information resource Cotlook has said low cotton prices in China and high levels of unsold cotton stock there made it less attractive for buyers to import cotton in the season just ended.
The volume of unsold cotton in stocks in July, the final month of the 2021-2022 season, was at its highest ever point for that moment in the season, according to Cotlook. It said this and the damaging impact of ongoing lockdown measures in some major cities contributed to Chinese prices that are “among the lowest in the world”.
