KARACHI: The Spot Rate Committee of the Karachi Cotton Association on Thursday has decreased the spot rate by Rs 100 per maund and closed it at Rs 10900 per maund.
The local cotton market remained satisfactory on Thursday. Market sources told that trading volume was low.
Cotton Analyst Naseem Usman told that not long ago one of the best introductions of Pakistan used to be its cloth industry, nay, more precisely, its cotton clothing. Some of the finest finery of the world relied on imports from Pakistan as hundreds of thousands of growers, ginners, weavers, cloth makers and exporters created a supply chain that brought the country compliments and foreign exchange.
Then the cotton belt — essentially the south of the largest province of Pakistan, the Punjab, and several districts of adjoining Sindh — also wielded enormous political clout, typified by white shalwar-qameez wearing millionaires who sat in the assemblies and through family connections directed the nature and course of national politics beyond party lines. Those days now seem so far away.
This year cotton has seen its worst decline in decades in terms of production. Consider a small comparison. About 25 years ago the total bales available for processing and export neared 24 million. A decade later these got reduced to almost 14 million. This year they have dwindled to 5.5 million bales. To illustrate the point further, just last year these figures were 8.8 million — a loss of 3 million in a year. This is no less than carnage for a crop that is the country’s pride and joy. Worse there is no hope that the crop will reclaim its lost share in the market and become the focus of the businessmen again.
What has gone wrong? Several things; including the preferences of the rich growers. They have now shifted to the more lucrative sugar cane. In a country where diabetes is touching national outbreak levels this switch to the deadly sweetness of the sugar may seem odd, but considering how sugar cane can be harnessed in different ways to fill individual coffers this shifting of the production base makes sense.
Meanwhile, Value-Added Textile Associations - Zubair Motiwala, Chairman, Council of All Pakistan Textile Associations (CAPTA), Muhammad Jawed Bilwani, Chairman, Pakistan Apparel Forum, Riaz Ahmed, Central Chairman Pakistan Hosiery & Manufacturers Exporters Association, Tariq Munir, Zonal Chairman (SZ), Farrukh Iqbal, Senior Vice Chairman PHMA (NZ), Ijaz Khokhar, Former Chairman, Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers & Exporters Association, Haroon Shamsi, Former Chairman, Towel Manufacturers Association and Zia Alamdar, Former President, Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry in an online meeting held with Abdul Razak Dawood, Advisor to Prime Minister on Commerce & Textile demanded that government, through Presidential Ordinance, must abolish all duties and taxes and allow duty-free import of cotton yarn which is the raw material of value-added textile sector in order to sustain and achieve milestone in enhancement of exports.
They also demanded that government should also place ban on export of cotton yarn of 30 single or below till June 2021 ensuring availability of quality yarn to facilitate export sector to complete their export orders without hassle and unrest. In view of shortage of wheat and sugar, the government had allowed to import wheat and sugar and also banned their export to cater the national needs.
Consequently, without discrimination, in order to overcome the scarcity of yarn in the Pakistan, as the government previously allowed for import of pharmaceuticals, it is also most crucial to allow import of cotton yarn from neighbouring country through Wagah border as the quality yarn is not available and prices are also multiplied to manifolds.
Likewise, anti-dumping duties on goods imported meant for re-export by Export Oriented Units and Manufacturing Bond should also be abolished. Moreover, to turn vision of the Prime Minister for enhancement of exports into reality and to control the declining trend in exports, the government should freeze the special tariffs of 7.5 cents for electricity and $ 6.5 for gas for at least next three years and provide uninterrupted and quality electricity and gas providing level playing field and competitive environment to enhance their export efficiency and materialize all exports orders.”
Naseem Usman told that 2400 bales of Saleh Pat were sold at Rs 10,200 to 10,700 per maund, 2000 bales of Khairpur were sold at Rs 10,250 to Rs 10,500 per maund, 1200 bales of Ghotki were sold at Rs 10450 to Rs 10,500 per maund, 250 bales of Sadiqabad were sold at Rs 11000 per maund, 200 bales of Haroonabad were sold at Rs 10925 per maund, 600 bales of Fort Abbas were sold at RS 10,900 per maund and 2200 bales of Alipur were sold at Rs 10,900 per maund.
Naseem also told that rate of cotton in Sindh was in between Rs 10,000 to Rs 10,700 per maund. The rate of cotton in Punjab is in between Rs 10,200 to Rs 11000 per maund. He also told that Phutti of Sindh was sold in between Rs 3800 to Rs 5000 per 40 kg. The rate of Phutti in Punjab is in between Rs 3500 to Rs 5400 per 40 Kg.
The rate of Banola in Sindh was in between Rs 1600 to Rs 2000 while the price of Banola in Punjab was in between Rs 1800 to Rs 2250. The rate of cotton in Balochistan is Rs 11,000 per maund.
The Spot Rate Committee of the Karachi Cotton Association has decreased the spot rate by Rs 100 per maund and closed it at Rs 10900 per maund. The Polyester Fibber was available at Rs 197 per Kg.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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