Cotton export down in March, but surges 139% until March
The US and Brazil are the world’s biggest cotton exporters, accounting together for more than half of the global supply. The US is expected to export 12.5 million running bales in the 2023-24 season. India is the largest producer in the world, but its cotton export is relatively low, almost half of what US sends out. US cotton also guides global cotton pricing, which Indian cotton markets generally follow.
Cotton export from India in March, the sixth month of the 2023-24 marketing season, was 331 thousand bales worth INR956 crore or US$116 million. During the month, Bangladesh was the single largest importer of Indian cotton, followed by Vietnam, China, Indonesia and UAE. Total exports during the first six months of 2023-24 marketing season was 2.31 million bales worth US$6,374 crore or US$774 million.
Export price (FOB) realisation for cotton averaged INR170 a kg or US cents 93.83 per pound in March. This was lower than Cotlook A index, the global spot price benchmark and slightly lower than the spot prices for benchmark Gujarat Shankar-6. During the month, Cotlook averaged US cents 99 per pound while Shankar-6 averaged US cents 93.50 per pound.
February, the fifth and last peak month of the 2023-24 marketing season, recorded export of 937 thousand bales, the highest in last 24 months. It was also the lowest in terms of pricing.
