Indian cotton group wrestles with US over whose forecasts are better

Cotton prices in India were down more than 20% from a year earlier during the summer, before partially recovering, owing to a slump in demand from millers in the country

Grumblings from an Indian cotton industry group have been growing louder against the US Department of Agriculture over who is the more accurate forecaster for the fiber in the world’s largest producer.

The Cotton Association of India, or CAI, says the USDA stockpile estimate for India is overly bearish. The group has written to the US agency, and has also asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to intervene to “restrict the damage” over the perception that there’s a supply glut.

Meanwhile, the USDA says it includes bales, such as those undelivered by farmers during the pandemic, that the Indian group doesn’t incorporate,