The total kappas arrival in India is approximately 70,000 bales per day. Till now, approximately 3.60 crore bales have arrived in the market out of the expected 3.71 crore, said Indian Cotton Federation (ICF) on Friday. About 95 lakh bales have been shipped, out of the 1 crore registered for exports.
In most consignments, quality has dropped drastically as the season comes to a close. As farmers have received good rates for the crop all through the season, they may be motivated to sow more cotton in the upcoming season. Prices may rise when arrivals slow down, the Federation pointed out.
In the current fortnight, sowing has reached near-completion, with more BT seeds being planted in the northern belt of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. In Gujarat, daily arrivals have dropped to 20,000 bales against the all-India average of 75,000 bales. In spite of the drop in arrivals, prices are weak due to two issues: deterioration in quality, and weak domestic and export demand.
According to the Federation, in Maharashtra, low micronaire 28 mm cotton is procured by exporters at R39,000/spot per candy while 29 mm with 3.2 micronaire is procured by domestic mills at R41,000/spot per candy. Daily average arrivals have come down to 21,000 bales. Farmers have started soil preparation and input collection to avoid any last-minute rush.
In Madhya Pradesh, quality variation is reported in both MECH.1 and DCH.32. The price quoted for 28.5-29 mm MECH.1, at R42,500 per candy spot, is only nominal and no business has been reported in this quality.
Quality has also dropped drastically in most cotton-growing areas of Andhra Pradesh. In Adilabad, 26 mm cotton is being quoted at R35,000/spot per candy. Also, 28 mm in Warangal is being quoted at R40,500/spot per candy and 31 mm Guntur cotton is priced at R44,500/spot per candy.
In Karnataka, kappas arrivals have started dropping drastically. However, in a small pocket, Guttal, in north Karnataka, approximately 10,000 bales of Bunny kappas have started arriving. This pocket was famous for its Dch-32 cotton. The price for good quality Dch-32 is R65,000/spot per candy.
