Raw Materials
Stocks to reach highest level in five years as consumption and trade suffer during pandemic
Highlights from the June 2020 Cotton This Month include:
- Global consumption is expected to decline 11.3% in 2019/20
- If production rises 2% this season as projected, ending stock levels will swell to 21.75 million tonnes
- Global trade is forecast to fall to 8.34 million tonnes in 2019/20
Global trade is expected to fall to 8.34 million tonnes in 2019/20, a 9.6% decrease from the previous season. Recovery for the coming 2020/21 season is expected to be modest under the current IMF projections for economic recovery.
China, the world’s top consumer, is expected to fall 12% to 7.25 million tonnes. India is projected to suffer its own 12% slide to 4.75 million tonnes. Others feeling the pain include Pakistan (-7%), Turkey (-8%), Vietnam (-8%), Brazil (-11%) and Bangladesh (-25%).
Stocks to reach highest level in five years as consumption and trade suffer during pandemic
It appears that the expected impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on this season are, unfortunately, developing the way everyone feared they would:
- Consumption is expected to be 23 million tonnes in 2019/20, down 11.3% from the prior year.
- Global trade is projected to decline 9.6% to 8.34 million tonnes.
- With production expected to increase by 2% to 26.2 million tonnes, stocks could swell to 21.75 million tonnes — the highest they’ve been in five years.
PLEASE NOTE: During this time of crisis, nothing is more important than information you can trust — which is why the ICAC is making both Cotton This Month and Cotton Update free to every for May, June and July.