APTMA concerned over closure of cotton exchange building

ISLAMABAD: The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) has expressed its concern over the continued closure and disruption of operations at the historic Cotton Exchange building and urges the concerned authorities to facilitate the immediate restoration of possession of the premises to the Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) and its lawful tenants.

For more than nine decades, KCA has served as a cornerstone of Pakistan’s cotton economy and has played a vital role in supporting the country’s cotton and textile sectors through trade facilitation, market transparency, price discovery, standardization, and stakeholder coordination.

The Cotton Exchange Building has historically served as the nucleus of Pakistan’s cotton trade and has housed numerous merchants, brokers, exporters, service providers, financial institutions, and businesses associated with the cotton and textile value chain.

APTMA believes that the prolonged disruption of activities at the Cotton Exchange Building has adversely affected a large number of stakeholders and has unnecessarily impacted the functioning of an institution that has served Pakistan’s cotton economy for generations.

APTMA urged the concerned authorities to immediately hand over possession of the Cotton Exchange Building to KCA and its tenants in accordance with the findings and relief granted by High Court of Sindh, so that KCA may once again become fully functional and continue to play its pivotal role in Pakistan’s cotton economy.

APTMA is also concerned that the closure of the KCA HVI Laboratory has deprived the cotton and textile sector of a highly respected testing facility. It is noteworthy that the KCA HVI Laboratory was ranked No. 1 in the world up to December 2025 in the CSITC Round Trials conducted jointly under the auspices of the ICAC (Washington), Bremen Fibre Institute, and the USDA.

The Association maintains that at a time when Pakistan’s textile sector faces significant domestic and international challenges, every effort should be made to strengthen institutions that support the cotton value chain rather than allow continued disruption to their operations.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026