Cotton prices surge to Rs13,000

KARACHI:

Cotton prices shot up to another peak at Rs13,000 per maund (37.324 kg) on Wednesday on the back of skyrocketing international market and shortage of the commodity in the domestic market, dealers said.

However, there was not much activity in the market and a few deals were signed as most of the ginning and textile factories had already met their requirements. The season will come to a close in the next one to two months and so far the farmers have supplied around 11.5 million bales to the market.

Cotton dealers expect that production this year will be around 12 to 12.5 million bales after floods last year damaged planted crops across the country. At the start of the season in May last year, the production target was set at 14.6 million bales.

“Prices are expected to increase further in the domestic market because of a shortage of good quality cotton. Even if the New York market falls, it will have no impact on the Pakistani market,” said cotton analyst Shakil Ahmed.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 10^th, 2011.