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| The season-average Cotlook A Index will be 63 cents per pound in 2003/04, seven cents more than the average expected for 2002/03, says The International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC), an association of 42 governments of cotton producing and consuming countries. |
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| World consumption is expected to rise to 21.1 millions tons, up by 0.5 per cent, and China (mainland) is expected to continue fuelling the world cotton industry, with net imports projected to climb to 550,000 tons. |
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| World ending stocks are projected to shrink to 8.3 million tons in 2003/04, the lowest in nine seasons. |
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| However, the stocks-to-use ratio outside China (Mainland) is projected at 48 per cent in 2003/04, down from 54 per cent in 2001/02 but still above the average of 40 per cent during the nineties. |
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| These market fundamentals suggest that the season-average Cotlook A Index will be 63 cents per pound in 2003/04, seven cents more than the average expected for 2002/03. |
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| Most of the increase in world cotton consumption at the end-use level is occurring in industrial countries, while increases in cotton mill use are taking place in developing countries. As a consequence, net imports of cotton textiles by industrial countries are increasing. |
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| The elimination of all quotas on textile and apparel trade, 18 months from now, is likely to accelerate the decline of the spinning industries in industrial countries. |
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| US mill use is headed lower because imports of cotton products are rising more than three times faster than the rate of increase in retail sales. |
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| The strengthening of the euro against all currencies will have a devastating impact on cotton mill use in the EU. |
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| In contrast, mill consumption is expected to increase by 150,000 tons in China (mainland) in 2003/04, to an estimated 6.35 million tons. Significant increases are also anticipated in India, Pakistan and Turkey. |
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