January cotton crop in India for the 2015-16 season has been estimated at 353 lakh bales, whereas in December, the estimate was 357 lakh bales. Total cotton supply for the 2015-16 season has been estimated at 440.60 lakh bales while domestic consumption is estimated at 315 lakh bales, thus leaving an available surplus of 125.60 lakh bales. The arrival of cotton during the ongoing 2015-16 crop year is estimated to be lower than last year up to the same period.

This is due to the fact that farmers are holding back seed cotton expecting better prices. Arrivals are lower this year also due to the relatively lower crop estimated for the 2015-16 crop year compared to last year. The cotton crop estimate for Punjab is nine lakh bales this year while in Haryana it is 17 lakh bales. Last year, Punjab yielded an estimated 13 lakh bales while Haryana yielded 23.50 lakh bales.

There are four major cotton species of cultivated cotton and India is the only country to grow all four species of cultivated cotton. In addition, hybrid cotton is also cultivated in the central and southern zones. The diploid species contributes 25 to 30 per cent of the country’s production. The tetraploids variety contributes the remaining 70 per cent of the cotton production in India. These varieties have fine quality fiber and are normally used by the textile industry.