Cotton arrival in Pakistan decreased 24% year-on-year, showed the latest fortnightly data released by the Pakistan Cotton Ginner's Association (PCGA) on Monday.
As per the report released by PCGA, total cotton arrival in Pakistan declined to 2.930 million bales as of October 1, 2022, compared to 3.846 million bales in the same period last year, a fall of 0.916 million bales or 24%.
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The decline in cotton arrival is attributed to the flash floods in Pakistan, which devastated large swathes of agricultural land in the country, especially in Sindh and Balochistan.
“Recent flash flood has adversely affected cotton and other important crops, making the performance of the agriculture sector more vulnerable,” said the Ministry of Finance in its latest “Monthly Economic Update & Outlook for September”.
Meanwhile, as per the PCGA data, cotton arrivals reported a substantial decrease from Sindh.
As of October 1, cotton arrival in Sindh was 1.390 million bales compared to 2.351 million bales in the same period last year, a decrease of 0.916 million bales or 41%. On fortnightly basis, cotton arrivals recorded an improvement of 25% as compared to 1.110 million bales arrived on September 15.
Similarly, cotton arrival in Punjab clocked in at 1.540 million bales as compared to 1.496 million bales reported in the same period last year, an increase of 3%. On a fortnightly basis, cotton arrival recorded a significant increase of 43% as compared to 1.077 million bales arrived on September 15.
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Talking to Business Recorder, Tahir Abbas, Head of Research at Arif Habib Limited (AHL), said cotton arrival from Sindh took the hardest hit, as the province was the worst affected from recent floods.
“The cotton crop in Sindh was devastated due to floods, however, cotton production from Punjab may witness a marginal growth,” he said.
“This would translate into an increased dependence on imported cotton affecting the import bill,” he said.