The Hindu Business Line : Cotton arrival put at 256 lakh bales

Coimbatore May 20 Total arrivals of cotton so far (for the second week of May) in the 2006-07 season (Oct-Sept) is estimated at 256 lakh bales on all-India basis as compared to the 222 lakh bales registered for the same period during last year.

Gujarat

According to the South India cotton Association (SICA) sources, Gujarat, whose total output for the current season is estimated to touch 10 million bales, is reported to have moved out close to 90 lakh bales, with only another 10 lakh bales still remaining with the farmers.

Total output

This quantity along with about 15 lakh or so bales still anticipated to be with the farmers in the other States were only to be marketed yet.

In such case, the overall cotton output for the 2006-07 is anticipated to marginally exceed the earlier projected 270 lakh bales, the sources added.

SICA sources maintained that the market appeared steady price-wise despite the sluggishness prevailing in trade enquiries both in local market and exports.

Prices steady

The trade has discounted scope for any easy price tendency as the cotton farmers remained reluctant on liquidating their stocks.

Gujarat's Shankar-6 continued to remain steady at Rs 19,000 per candy and the V-797 too held ground at Rs 15,200 per candy this week too.