Growing demand for cotton in the global market coupled with diminishing production in China and the satisfactory yield back home has created a favourable scenario for the state’s ginning industry.

More than 40 per cent of the 700 mills in Gujarat had shut down following last year’s slump, but now all the mills are gearing up to start operations on a full-scale. Besides, several new mills have come up in the state in view of the upward trend.

With groundnut production falling by 40 per cent, cotton and agro products are expected to be the saver for the agro-produce market.

The Gujarat Ginners Associations has estimated cotton production in the state to touch the 90 lakh bales mark, which is 30 per cent of the total 310 lakh bales estimated for India.

The demand for cotton bales in the global market is likely to go up by 7 per cent with exports likely to touch 160 lakh bales, much higher than the 130 lakh bales benchmark of 2007. Last year, India’s cotton export was less than 90 lakh bales.

Production is Gujarat is, however, likely to fall by seven lakh bales compared to last year, but combined with favourable local and global factors, the ginners are expecting a productive year ahead. The icing on the cake is that some 30 more mills have come up in Saurashtra this year, which accounts for 70 per cent of the total cotton production area in Gujarat.

Elsewhere, production in China, which was 8 million tonnes last year, is expected to fall by 10 per cent. As such, with the supply falling by three per cent corresponding with an increased demand of 5 per cent, India, which is the second largest producer of cotton after China, will have a huge market to tap.

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