Page 18 - May-June-2019

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African nations

become the largest

cotton source for

Bangladesh

African nations have become the largest source of
cotton for local Bangladeshi spinners and millers
as they intend to cut down their dependence on a
single source (India) for their vital raw material.
Last year, Bangladesh met 37.06pc of its
requirement for the white fiber from East and West
African countries. Down from 60pc, India
accounted for 26.12pc of Bangladesh’s total
cotton imports.
Mr Mehdi Ali, President Bangladesh Cotton
Association said, “A section of Indian cotton
traders cannot maintain timely shipment and
deliver the right quantity of cotton as per
agreement.”

Last year, 11.35pc of the cotton came from CIS
countries, 11.14pc from the US, 4.65pc from
Australia and 9.65pc from the rest of the world.
Bangladesh imported 8.28mn bales of cotton and
produced 1.65 lakh bales of cotton which is less
than 3pc of the annual demand of 10mn bales.

Mr Monsoor Ahmed, BTMA Secretary said, “The
low quality of the Indian cotton is the main reason
behind the falling imports from the neighboring
country.” The board hopes to produce 2.5 lakh
bales of cotton by 2021, which will meet nearly
5-7pc of the domestic consumption.

May/June 2019