KARACHI: Sindh government has convened a meeting on August 4, 2011, to discuss support price for cotton as a measure to stabilise cotton prices in the country.
All stakeholders including Sindh Chamber of Agriculture, Sindh Abadgar Board, Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association, Cotton Commissioner, Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) and Sindh Agriculture Department have been invited to attend the meeting.
The meeting to be chaired by Secretary Agriculture is likely to recommend a support price for cotton to the federal government to stabilise the fast dwindling cotton prices in the country.
The cotton prices have declined from their peak of Rs 15,000 per maund last year to Rs 5,000 this August on the news of bumper crop and last year's accumulated stock with the ginners, a leading broker said.
Naseem Usman said that growers had stopped supplying phutti to the ginners as its price declined to Rs 2,000 per 40 kilogramme in Sindh.
He said the growers had cultivated cotton in the hope to get high price for their product, but the falling prices would discourage them and they might not cultivate cotton next season.
Meanwhile, the Karachi Cotton Association, a group of cotton traders and ginners have opposed the government's move to ask TCP to procure cotton to stabilise its prices.
Usman said that cotton price has increased by Rs 300 to Rs 6,000 per maund during last three days on rise in purchase of cotton from mills and exporters.
It is hoped that the support price and entry of TCP will help in stabilising cotton price in the market, Usman said.
Copyright APP (Associated Press of Pakistan), 2011
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