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#Natural Fibers

Cotton consumption and sourcing are under pressure

If a projected 7% increase in world cotton lint production to 25.8 million tonnes happens, the projected 2% increase in consumption to 25.5 million tonnes would mean the global market is heading toward a bearish outlook.

And unfortunately, it's coming at a time when the cotton trade is already facing supply chain issues due to its highly fragmented structure, not to mention geopolitical factors like the security issues on the Suez Canal and worldwide logistics delays. 

Trade has been revised downward to 9.45 million tonnes due to decreased import demand from China; minor gains from other parts of the world — primarily Bangladesh, Egypt, Turkey, India, and Vietnam — likely will be insufficient to offset the decrease in imports.

The Secretariat’s current price forecast of the season-average A index for 2024/25 ranges from 79 cents to 88 cents, with a midpoint at 83 cents per pound. ICAC’s price projections are made by Lorena Ruiz, Economist, ICAC.

Please note that the cotton balance sheets have been moved to the ICAC Data Dashboard. This ensures that the season balance sheets are always up-to-date and available whenever you need them. This also helps to reduce errors because the data is compiled directly from our database. They are included in this PDF report, but we strongly encourage users to obtain all data from the Dashboard.

Dr Matthew Looney has resigned as Data Scientist at the ICAC. The new author of Cotton This Month is Parkhi Vats, ICAC Economic Affairs Officer. You can email her with comments and questions by clicking here.

The next Cotton This Month will be released on June 2, 2025.

If you are a subscriber to Cotton This Month, please access your account.

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#Raw Materials

Global production expected to decline in 2026/27 as policy shifts and weak demand reshape trade

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#Raw Materials

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#Raw Materials

ICAC projects slight decline in production, relative stability for consumption

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#Europe

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#Raw Materials

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#Raw Materials

Better Cotton Initiative strengthens regenerative focus in standard update

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#Natural Fibers

Global Standard gGmbH launches second public consultation for GRTS Draft 2 for the textile industry (1–30 April 2026)

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#Raw Materials

Textile Exchange publishes cotton Life Cycle Assessment study to strengthen impact data

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#Research & Development

Hohenstein publishes 2025 Sustainability Report

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#Techtextil 2026

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#Techtextil 2026

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#Texprocess 2026

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