China's cotton imports in July rose 29 percent from a year earlier to 169,000 tonnes, the China Cotton Association said, citing customs data. In the first seven months, cotton imports surged 98 percent from year-ago levels to 1.71 million tonnes, the association said.
Rising demand amid economic recovery has prompted China to import increasing amounts of the crop even though import prices have been rising. The average import price reached $1,941 per tonne in July, up 5.9 percent from June, the association said.