The Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) has requested Minfal for fortnightly publishing cotton lint import figures, like seed-cotton arrivals report.
In a letter to the Ministry, the Association said that absence of lint import figures gives an edge to All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) for manipulating cotton buying exercise in the local cotton market.
The Minfal has the lint import figures but does not share them with other stakeholders, or make it public, sources told Business Recorder on Friday.
"We are consulting the attached departments for considering PCGA''s request for periodically releasing lint import figures", sources in Minfal said.
Aptma has been circulating information that it has been importing two million bales lint from India to meet its members'' consumption, as local production of cotton is far short of consumption requirements.
"It will definitely create panic in the local cotton market, as the prices of lint will hit small industrialists", a leading ginner told this correspondent. He demanded of the concerned officials to end this "malpractice of Aptma".
Aptma had booked cotton lint at prices higher than local market prices when about two million bales are still lying with the ginners, but Aptma''s bid was only to manipulate the ginning industry, which is not earning profit, said a ginner.