Significant increase in imports of long-staple cotton

24-Oct-2025 03:38 PM

Mumbai. Although India's production of extra-long and long-staple cotton was projected to improve from 100,000 tons in the 2023-24 season to 110,000 tons in the 2024-25 season, this was insufficient to meet the rapidly growing needs of the industry.

Consequently, imports of this high-quality cotton from abroad jumped 194 percent from 90,000 tons to a peak of 265,000 tons during the same period.

According to a new report by the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC), India became the leading producer of long and extra-long cotton with a production of 110,000 tons during the 2024-25 season, followed by the United States, Egypt, China, and Peru.

While production patterns in India remained largely unchanged from last year, farmers in the United States and Egypt showed significant enthusiasm in increasing production.

According to the report, India's consumption of this high-grade cotton was approximately 95,000 tons in the 2023-24 season, which increased to 150,000 tons in the 2024-25 season.

Its imports also increased by nearly 200 percent to 265,000 tons. India is witnessing a significant increase in the use and import of this high-grade cotton.

The government has made cotton imports duty-free until December 31, 2025. India primarily imports this cotton from Egypt and the United States.

It is noteworthy that India also exports this cotton. Its exports increased from 155,000 tons in 2023-24 to 187,000 tons in 2024-25. India also exports other varieties of cotton. Export performance in the 2024-25 season was not encouraging.