China sees 2011 cotton output at 7.2 million tonnes

China's National Development and Reform Commission expects the country's cotton output this year to be around 7.2 million tonnes, up 7.5 percent from the same period last year, an industry website reported on Thursday. The supply shortage in the 2011/12 crop year starting from September will be narrower than last year's 3.3 million tonnes as the growth of textile output and exports is likely to slow.
According to a report published on www.cottonchina.org, citing Zhang Xiaoqiang, a deputy chief of the NDRC. In the 2010/11 crop year, China imported a total of 2.58 million tonnes of the crop, up 2.93 percent on the year. China's cotton demand this year is unlikely to see a significant increase due to the yuan's appreciation, tightening liquidity, rising production costs as well as replacement by synthetic fibre Zhang said during an annual joint cotton conference attended by eight government agencies.