Cotton arrival in Pakistan witnessed an increase of 3.5% as of December 15 compared to November 30, showed the latest fortnightly data released by the Pakistan Cotton Ginner’s Association (PCGA) on Monday.

As per the report, total cotton arrival in Pakistan rose to 8.024 million bales compared to 7.753 million bales recorded on November 30, 2023, an increase of 0.271 million bales.

On a year-on-year basis, cotton arrival in surged by nearly 74%, when compared to 4.613 million bales registered on December 15, 2022.

Last year, flash floods in Pakistan devastated large swathes of agricultural land in the country, especially in Sindh and Balochistan, impacting cotton crop production, which witnessed a 34% YoY decline.

The improvement in cotton arrivals, an essential raw material for the textile sector, is a welcome development for cash-strapped Pakistan.

The country’s crucial textile sector, responsible for a majority of Pakistan’s exports, is bearing the brunt of a plunge in demand and escalating economic woes.

Last week, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) approached caretaker Finance Minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar for the availability of electricity at wheeling charges of 1-1.4 cents/kWh and B2B contracts.

Province-wise breakup

As per PCGA data, cotton arrival reported a substantial increase from both Punjab and Sindh.

As of December 15, cotton arrival in Punjab clocked in at 3.957 million bales as compared to 3.737 million bales reported on November 30, 2023, an increase of 5.9%. On a yearly basis, cotton arrivals from Punjab jumped by 43.2%, as compared to 2.762 million bales clocked in during the same period last year.

Similarly, cotton arrival in Sindh was 4.067 million bales compared to 4.017 million bales recorded on November 30, an increase of 0.05 million bales or 1.2%. However, the YoY increase was more pronounced in Sindh, as cotton arrivals jumped by 119.8% as compared to 1.850 million bales registered in SPLY.