Pakistan: Cotton crop covers shortfall by over 120,000 bales

By Razi Syed
KARACHI: Cotton crop 2010-11 continued to sustain its recovery at the last stages when it covered its shortfall by around 120,000 cotton bales, Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) said Thursday.
The country is facing a production shortfall of around 1.10 million bales during the crop season 2010-11—but it is hoped it will get further around 310,000 bales by the end of May 2011, fibre analysts said.
According to PCGA’s fortnight arrival report till May 1, 2011, the country faced a shortfall of 875,105 bales. “In the remaining 45 days of crop season, which is extended period the growers in Punjab and Sindh will get more than 350,000 cotton bales to minimise the shortfall by a margin of around 1 million bales,” fiber analyst Shakeel Ahmad said.
Ahmad said cottonseed arrival in Punjab was still steady as farmers planted crop in areas where sufficient water was available besides in Sindh some fields in upper parts of the province were also having plantation which would be harvested in mid of May 2011. If all the fundamentals including weather remain friendly, the production will further improve to 100,000 bales by late May 2011.
He said till May 1, 2011, the total arrival at the ginneries stood at around 11.69 million bales—out of which, the textile sector bought around 10.09 million bales.
He said cottonseed arrival during fortnight till May 1, 2011 remained 27,000 bales at the ginneries while stocks withheld with the ginneries stood at 70,000 bales. He said the textile and yarn sector consumption for 2011 would be expected to stay around 15.3 million bales and a possible shortfall to 1.2 million bales would be met by making imports from USA, Brazil, CIS countries and Sudan etc.
During this period, the country also exported around 1.64 million bales to Bangladesh, Vietnam, Hong Kong and other countries. He said due to use of Bt cottonseed, the output has improved while some growing areas in Sindh and Punjab also came under late cultivation.
“This will help minimise the shortfall level, as most of the growers prefer to cultivate late crop at the end of crop season,” Ahmad maintained.
According to reports, NYF stood at around $1.69 cents per pound—cottonseed price remained at Rs 5,000 per maund with spot rate at Rs 9,000 per maund. By April 30, 2011, the private sector commercial exporters bought more than 540,000 bales.
Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MINFA) was yet to chalk out any strategy and had failed to gather possible members for the committee—as report to this effect had to be submitted to NA Standing Committee on Food and Agriculture by end April 2011.
There is a need to release funds relating to research and design and other projects forthwith by the MINFA and Ministry of Finance and reactivate the closed Agriculture Research Center of Balochistan, which is closed for unknown reasons.

(Source: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011%5C05%5C06%5Cstory_6-5-2011_pg5_8)