Cotton Industry & Cotton Commodity Market

  Weekly Cotton Reports - USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service

  Annual Cotton Price Statistics (U.S. Spot) - USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service

  U.S. Cotton Export Sales (Weekly) - USDA, Foreign Agricultural Service

  Cotton and Wool Outlook - USDA Economics, Statistics and Market Information System

  Cotton and Wool Yearbook - USDA Economics, Statistics and Market Information System

  Cotton Ginnings - USDA Economics, Statistics and Market Information System

  World Supply and Demand Estimates - USDA, Office of the Chief Economist

  Cotton: World Markets and Trade Monthly Circular - USDA, Foreign Agricultural Service

  ICE Cotton No. 2 Futures Contract

  CME Group / NYMEX Cotton Futures

  Cotton Outlook A-Index

  The Seam Trading Monitors

  Cotton Association of India (CAI) Spot Prices

  CFTC Cotton On-Call Report (Weekly)

Cotton Cultivation

Cotton, which is a member of the mallow family (Malvaceae), is a perennial shrub (approximately 2 to 5 feet in height) that has been cultivated by man for several thousand years. The plant is grown in warm climates (the plant can be damaged by frost). In the northern hemisphere it is planted in the Spring / early Summer and then harvested in the late Fall or early Winter. There are several varieties:

Gossypium hirsutum, also known as Upland cotton, is the variety (plus hybrids) that is primarily cultivated around the world, and has a staple length of 1 to 1¼ inches.

Gossypium barbadense, also known as Extra Long Staple (ELS), is known as Pima (Supima, American Pima, and is grown primarily in the U.S, Southwest, primarily in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and southwestern Texas (although it is an old species dating back to pre-Columbian Inca civilization). Egyptian Cotton is extra long staple cotton produced in Egypt (but not all cotton cultivated in Egypt is ELS). Sea Island cotton (Gossypium vitifolium) is also an ELS variety that is from the southeast United States. ELS cotton is at least 1 3/8 inches or longer.

Gossypium arboreum is native to India and Pakistan.

Gossypium herbaceum is native to southern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.

Cross-pollination can occur between Gossypium hirsutum and Gossypium barbadense (and even wild Gossypium species) by either pollinating insects or by wind dispersion (cotton pollen is heavy and not easily windborne). In order to maintain varietal purity, fields of different types of cotton have minimum separation distance requirements. In addition, producers also conduct pre- and postharvest cleaning and inspections of harvesters, module makers used in harvest, transport vehicles, bins used for storage, and ginning facilities in order to control opportunities for cross-pollination.

The cotton plant has a very long growing season: approximately 150 to 220 days. About 55 days after the seedling emerges, white blossoms appear. The blossoms turn red and then violet as they mature. The bloom falls off, and the hulls that protect the fruit, usually called bolls at this stage, begin to grow. Fibers (seedhair) grow around the seeds of the cotton plant, which are contained in the hull / capsule called the boll. When the hull is speckled, hard, and tipped in violet-red, it is ready to open. Bolls open in approximately 50 to 70 days after bloom.

All U. S. cotton in commercial production is now harvested by machines of two types, picking and stripping. Machine-picked cotton accounts for approximately 75% of the total cotton harvested, while the rest is machine stripped. Machine picking differs from machine stripping mainly in the method by which the cotton lint and seed are removed from the plant. Machine picking is done by a spindle picker machine that selectively separates the exposed seed cotton from the open capsules, or bolls. In contrast, the mechanical stripper removes the entire capsule, with lint plus bract, leaf, and stem components in the harvested material.

Strippers collect up to six times more leaves, burs, sticks, and trash than the spindle picker machines. This higher ratio of trash to lint requires additional equipment for cleaning and trash extraction. Stripper-harvested cotton may produce 1,000 pounds of trash per 500-pound bale of lint, compared to 150 pounds of trash per 500-pound bale from spindle picking.

A defoliant is often used on the cotton plant in order to make the machine harvesting process easier. The timing and application of the defolinat are critical to producing a profitable crop as improper timing may result in reduced seed cotton yield and quality.

Once harvested, the cotton is often pressed into "module builders", which are rectangular, portable containers located on the edge of the cotton field. Once the module builder is full with compressed cotton bolls the builder is disassembled and the shaped module is covered with a weatherproof tarp (module cover performance is important so that the seed cotton is not damaged). The modules are later taken to the gin for processing. Harvested cotton is often sometimes loaded directly into large trailers which transport the cotton directly to the gin. Some of the most recent cotton harvesting machinery (John Deere 7760) will actually produce round, wrapped modules as the machine is working the rows in the field.

The cultivation of cotton requires substantial water, attention to weed management, broadleaf plant pest control and the boll weevil. In the United States, the boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis Boheman) is a constant threat to cotton crops. The USDA indicates that most states in the U.S. have a boll weevil eradication foundation.

Usage of Bt cotton has increased crop yield sustantially and reduced insecticide usage. Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a naturally occurring microorganism that produces chemicals toxic to specific insects. Thus, researchers have inserted Bt into the genes of certain crops, cotton being one of them, in order to create a natural defense against insects within the plant (i.e. the plant is modified to produce the insecticide). There is some controversy over whether Bt-modified crops are entirely safe for farmers and consumers and there has been a report regarding bollworm developing resistance to Bt-modified cotton plants (Bruce E Tabashnik, Aaron J Gassmann, David W Crowder & Yves Carriére; Insect resistance to Bt crops: evidence versus theory; Nature Biotechnology 26, 199 - 202, 2008).

There is also a growing organic cotton movement due to the intensive use of insecticides in cotton cultivation. The International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) has produced Basic Standards covering organic production and also textile processing which provide a minimum basis upon which standards in many countries have been based (local organic certification bodies are assessed against the IFOAM Norms). Additional organizations include the Organic Trade Association, the OTA Fiber Council Committee. An EKO-label verifies compliance with EU directive 2092/91 referring to organic agriculture as well as with Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS). In 2007, Cotton Incorporated introduced the Natural trademark as part of a sustainability program.

Cotton Producing Nations

Convert Acres to Hectares / Hectares to Acres (do not enter commas)

Australia

In Australia cotton is grown in New South Wales (MacIntyre Valley, Gwydir Valley, Upper Namoi, Lower Namoi, Macquarie Valley, Bourke, Tandou, Hay/Hillston) and in Queensland (Emerald, Central Highlands, Dawson Valley, Darling Downs, St George, Dirranbandi, Lower Balonne). On an annual basis, the Australian cotton crop is primarily exported to Indonesia, Japan, China, Thailand and South Korea.

Africa / Middle East

African nation producers include Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad (A-51 LS), Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana (Bukalasa Pedigree Albar LS), Eygpt (Guiza-70 und -88 ELS; Guiza-86 und -89 LS), Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sudan (Barakat ELS / Gossypium herbaceum, Gossypium arboreum), Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Israel cultivates primarily ELS (Pima, Acalpi & Acala).

Brazil

Brazil grows cotton in Mato Grosso State and São Paulo State.

China

China, the largest producer based on 2007-08 cotton season, grows cotton in Hutubi County; Urumqi in Xinjiang Province; Nantong; Yancheng; Jiangsu Province.

European Union

In the European Union only three Member states produce cotton at a commercial level: Greece, Spain and Portugal.

India

India, the second largest producer based on 2007-08 cotton season, has seen crop yield increase after the introduction of grows hybrid/Bt Gossypium hirsutum (American Upland) cotton throughout the country. Acreage under cotton cultivation has also been steadily increasing. The harvesting of raw seed cotton (Kapas) is still primarily completed by manual picking.

Cotton is cultivated in 3 regions:

Northern India in the States of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan

Central India in the States of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat

Southern India in the States of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu

Shankar-6, one of the best known hybrid seed varieties, is cultivated primrily in the State of Gujarat. Other varieties cultivated in India include Bengaldeshi, Brahma, Bunny, DCH-32, H4/MECH-1, Jaydhar, J34, MCU-5, NHH-44/LRA-5166, Surabai, V-79722. -26.0, Wagad, Y-1.

Export volume has also been slowly increasing after the Government of India liberalized raw cotton exports in July 2001.

In September 2008, the Indian government increaraised the minimum support price (MSP) for cotton by up to 46% in response to a decline in prices due to a decline in world demand. However, the price increase is being born by Indian cotton ginners.

Pakistan

Pakistan grows cotton primarily in southern Punjab.

United States

The United States is the third largest producer based on 2007-08 cotton season (U.S. Pima / Gossypium barbadense, U.S. Upland / Gossypium hirsutum), and cotton is grown in California (San Joaquin Valley, which produces Approved Acala, California Uplands Advanced Strains, and Pima), Arizona, New Mexico, Texas (the largest state producer in the United States), Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia and Florida. In the United States the standard area of measurement for cultivation is the acre:

The United States is the largest exporter of cotton in the world with approximately 40% of the international market. The top export customers for U.S. grown cotton are China, Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia, Canada, South Korea, Japan, Pakistan, Thailand and Brazil.

 
                          U. S. Cotton Supply and Use 1/
===============================================================================
                           :         :         :      2010/11  Projections
        Item               : 2008/09 : 2009/10 :===============================
                           :         :   Est.  :        June            July
===============================================================================
                           :               Million acres
Area                       :                            
  Planted                  :   9.47       9.15         10.51 *         10.91 *
  Harvested                :   7.57       7.53          9.83 *         10.40 *
                           :
                           :                   Pounds 
Yield per harvested        :
    acre                   :    813        777           815 *           845 *
                           :
                           :             Million 480 pound bales
                           :
Beginning stocks 2/        :  10.05       6.34          2.90            2.90
Production                 :  12.82      12.19         16.70           18.30
Imports                    :   0.00       0.01          0.00            0.00
  Supply, total            :  22.87      18.53         19.60           21.20
Domestic use               :   3.59       3.40          3.30            3.40
Exports                    :  13.28      12.25         13.50           14.30
  Use, total               :  16.86      15.65         16.80           17.70
Unaccounted 3/             :  -0.33      -0.02          0.00            0.00
Ending stocks              :   6.34       2.90          2.80            3.50
                           :
Avg. farm price 4/         :   47.8       62.5     60.0-74.0       60.0-74.0
===============================================================================
Note: Totals may not add due to rounding.
1/ Upland and extra-long staple; marketing year beginning August 1.  Totals may
not add due to rounding.  2/ Based on Bureau of Census data.  3/ Reflects the
difference between the previous season's supply less total use and ending
stocks based on Bureau of Census data.  4/ Cents per pound.  * For June,
planted area reported in March 31 "Prospective Plantings."  Projected harvested
area based on 2000-2009 average abandonment, weighted by region and adjusted to
reflect unusually favorable soil moisture conditions in the Southwest. 
Projected yield per harvested acre based on 2005-2009 average yields, weighted 
by region.  For July, planted area reported in June 30 "Acreage." Projected
harvested area and yield per harvested acre adjusted from June to reflect
favorable crop conditions in the Southwest.

Source: USDA World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) - No. 484 / July 9, 2010

Cotton grown in the United States is either grown in row irrigated fields or dryland. Upland variety seeds that account for the most amount of planted acreage in the United States in 2008 (USDA) include Deltapine and Bayer CropScience cotton seed brands FiberMax (LibertyLink, LibertyLink Bollgard II, Roundup Ready Flex, Bollgard II with Roundup Ready Flex) and Stoneville (USDA). Phytogen was the most popular brand of American Pima seed varieties planted in 2008 (USDA). GMO varieties contain Bollgard II or Widestrike insect resistance genes.

On September 30, 2008, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it has funded more than $234 million in fiscal year 2008 to 70 U.S. trade organizations to help promote American farm products overseas. The funding has been allocated under the Market Access Program (MAP) and the Foreign Market Development Program, both administered by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. The Market Access Program uses funds from USDA’s Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) to share the costs of overseas marketing and promotional activities with U.S. agricultural trade organizations, state regional trade groups, and cooperatives. Under the Foreign Market Development program, USDA establishes a partnership with nonprofit U.S. agricultural trade organizations. Funding priority is given to organizations that represent an entire industry or are nationwide in membership and scope. Fiscal year 2008 Market Access Program allocations to the Cotton Council International (the export promotion arm of the National Cotton Council of America) amounted to $20,660,669. Fiscal year 2008 Foreign Market Development Program allocations resulted in an additional $4,491,078 disbursed to the Cotton Council International.

Please see  U.S. Government Agricultural Programs below

Uzbekistan

The Uzbek SIFAT Center is the classing office in the country and classing is based on international principles of testing, using HVI systems. There are 5 standard color grades: Birinchi, Ikkinchi, Uchinchi, Turtinchi and Beshinchi.

Uzbekistan is one of the largest exporters of raw cotton in the world. However, total production has been declining due to the failure of the nation to invest sufficient funds in the maintenence of the canal network used to irrigate crop land (and the related drainage system), which has resulted in an increase in the salinity of the soil (which affects crop yield).

Cotton Consuming Nations

Cotton is used primarily by the textile industry to produce thread, fabrics, linen and apparel. Cotton, a natural, vegetable fiber competes directly against man made fibers. Cotton consumption / imports occur in countries where cotton is also produced.

China, India and Pakistan are the largest consumers of cotton, accounting for approximately 65% of the worldwide cotton consumption on an annual basis. The USDA indicates that "China leads the way, spinning nearly 43% of the total cotton spun. Shares for India and Pakistan have grown more slowly to 15% and 10%, respectively". Similarly, China is the largest exporter of clothing.

Other consuming / importing nations include Bangladesh, Brazil, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, and Viet Nam.

U.S. cotton consumption has been declining over the years.   www.census.gov/cir/www/313/m313p.html (U.S. Census Bureau: Consumption on the Cotton System and Stocks)

Cotton Supply & Demand

                         World Cotton Supply and Use 1/
                             (Million 480-pound bales)
================================================================================
                      :          Supply         :       Use      :      :
        Region        :=========================:================: Loss : Ending
                      :Beginning:Produc-:Imports:Domestic:Exports:  2/  : stocks
                      :  stocks : tion  :       :        :       :      :
================================================================================
                      :
                      :                 2010/11 (Projected)
World                 :
            June      :   52.21  114.32    36.12  119.49    36.14  -2.58  49.59
            July      :   50.99  116.02    37.05  119.70    37.02  -2.58  49.91
United States         :
            June      :    2.90   16.70       3/    3.30    13.50   0.00   2.80
            July      :    2.90   18.30       3/    3.40    14.30   0.00   3.50
Total foreign         :
            June      :   49.31   97.62    36.12  116.19    22.64  -2.58  46.79
            July      :   48.09   97.72    37.05  116.30    22.72  -2.58  46.41
  Major exporters 4/  :
            June      :   17.89   47.00     1.64   29.94    18.94  -0.19  17.83
            July      :   17.75   47.44     1.64   29.94    19.27  -0.19  17.81
   Central Asia 5/Jun :    2.00    6.79     0.01    1.73     5.42   0.00   1.65
                  Jul :    2.01    6.97     0.01    1.73     5.60   0.00   1.65
   Afr. Fr. Zn. 6/Jun :    0.51    2.61       3/    0.18     2.42   0.00   0.51
                  Jul :    0.51    2.66       3/    0.18     2.45   0.00   0.53
   S. Hemis 7/    Jun :    6.83   11.02     0.51    5.95     4.88  -0.20   7.73
                  Jul :    6.79   11.22     0.51    5.95     4.88  -0.20   7.89
    Australia     Jun :    0.74    2.20       3/    0.04     1.85  -0.07   1.12
                  Jul :    0.74    2.20       3/    0.04     1.85  -0.07   1.12
   Brazil         Jun :    4.69    6.80     0.30    4.60     2.20  -0.15   5.14
                  Jul :    4.63    7.00     0.30    4.60     2.20  -0.15   5.28
   India          Jun :    8.12   25.00     0.63   20.40     5.80   0.00   7.55
                  Jul :    8.02   25.00     0.63   20.40     5.90   0.00   7.35
  Major importers 8/  :
            June      :   29.81   47.72    31.89   82.00     2.49  -2.39  27.31
            July      :   28.75   47.42    32.81   82.15     2.24  -2.39  26.99
   Mexico         Jun :    0.64    0.64     1.50    1.90     0.20   0.03   0.65
                  Jul :    0.56    0.64     1.50    1.90     0.20   0.03   0.58
   China          Jun :   20.64   33.00    11.50   49.00     0.03  -2.50  18.62
                  Jul :   20.49   33.00    11.65   49.00     0.03  -2.50  18.62
   EU-27 9/       Jun :    0.46    1.38     0.84    0.93     1.26   0.05   0.44
                  Jul :    0.46    1.38     0.84    0.93     1.26   0.05   0.44
   Turkey         Jun :    1.61    2.10     3.00    5.50     0.15  -0.08   1.14
                  Jul :    1.83    2.10     3.30    5.70     0.15  -0.08   1.46
   Pakistan       Jun :    4.01   10.50     1.90   11.70     0.70   0.03   3.99
                  Jul :    2.91   10.20     2.30   11.60     0.40   0.03   3.39
   Indonesia      Jun :    0.36    0.03     2.20    2.10     0.02   0.05   0.42
                  Jul :    0.36    0.03     2.20    2.10     0.02   0.05   0.42
   Thailand       Jun :    0.29      3/     1.80    1.78     0.01   0.03   0.28
                  Jul :    0.29      3/     1.80    1.78     0.01   0.03   0.28
   Bangladesh     Jun :    0.74    0.05     4.25    4.25     0.00   0.01   0.78
                  Jul :    0.74    0.05     4.25    4.25     0.00   0.01   0.78
   Vietnam        Jun :    0.36    0.02     1.78    1.80     0.00   0.00   0.35
                  Jul :    0.36    0.02     1.78    1.80     0.00   0.00   0.35
================================================================================
1/ Marketing year beginning August 1.   Totals may not add exactly and trade
may not balance due to rounding and other factors.   2/ Generally reflects
cotton lost or destroyed in the marketing channel; for Australia, Brazil, and 
the United States, reflects the difference between implicit stocks based on
supply less total use and indicated ending stocks. 3/ Less than 5,000 bales.  
4/ Includes Egypt and Syria in addition to the countries and regions listed.  
5/ Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and
Uzbekistan.  6/ Benin, Burkino Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad,
Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo.   7/ Argentina, Australia,
Brazil, Paraguay, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe.  8/ In addition to the
countries and regions listed, includes Hong Kong, Japan, Russia, South Korea, 
and Taiwan. 9/ Includes intra-EU trade.

Source: USDA World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) - No. 484 / July 9, 2010

Cotton Bale Dimensions

Bale weights are measured differently around the world and each bale can be different due to the moisture content of the cotton at the time of compression. For instance, in the United States bale dimensions and weight are set by the Joint Cotton Industry Bale Packaging Committee (JCIBPC) of the National Cotton Council. The Gin Universal Density measurements are:

In the U.S., a bale weight is approxiamtely 500 lbs. (226.8 kilograms; the ICE, Cotton No. 2 Futures Contract is based on the Trading Unit of 50,000 lbs. net weight or approximately 100 bales).

The Australian Cotton Shippers Association sets bale weight at 227 kilograms (500 lbs.; range is set at 185 to 245 kilograms).

In Egypt a bale weighs 327 kilograms (720 lbs.) to 330 kilograms (725 lbs).

The Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) sets bale weight at 170 kilograms.

In Brazil, the Bolsa de Mercadorias & Futuros (BF&M) sets bale weight from 180 to 250 kilograms (contract size is 12,500 kilograms).

Convert kg. to lbs. / lbs to kg. (do not enter commas)

Example: One pound equals 0.453597 kilograms.
One bale is equal to 500 pounds.
A 500-pound bale equals 226.8 kg. (500 x .453597)

Bale Density is a unit of measurement of weight per unit volume normally expressed as Kilograms per cubic meter (or pounds per cubic foot).

Vollume iis determined by multiplying bale length, width and thickness diimensiions.

Thickness is determined by measuriing from tie to tie across the crown of the bale.

Universal Density (UD): Cotton bale density of cotton fiber compressed to at least 448 kg per cubic meter (28 lbs./cu ft.).

Cotton Bale Packing Materials consists of:

Woven Cotton Bags

Warp Knitted Cotton Bags

Polyethylene Film Bags

Polypropylene Bags

Polyethylene Woven Bags

Jute Bags

Shrink Wrap

The European Cotton Rules govern the purchase and sale transactions of raw cotton within the European Union and are administered by the European Cotton and Allied Textiles Committee of the European Communities (EUROCOTON; Comité des Industries du Coton et des Fibres Connexes de l'U.E).

  European Cotton Rules (2008)

Cotton Classification

Cotton is grown all over the world thus quality is variable. Cotton quality, which determines commercial value and / or price, is a function of specific variety, growing conditions, harvesting and ginning (which varies from nation to nation and on an annual basis due to weather and soil conditions). Cotton classification is the objective assessment of cotton quality based on a number of physical standards.

Cotton grown in the United States is usually classified by the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), under the terms of the U.S. Cotton Statistics and Estimates Act. The classification is not mandatory but is essential for those producers who participate in USDA price support programs or for delivery into futures contracts under the auspices of the IntercontinentalExchange (ICE). The USDA maintains classing offices in Abilene, TX, Birmingham, AL, Corpus Christi, TX, Dumas, AR, Florence, SC, Lamesa, TX, Lubbock, TX, Macon, GA, Memphis, TN, Phoenix, AZ, Rayville, LA, and Visalia, CA.

USDA - Quality of Upland Cotton (Color, Leaf) by Classing Office (most recent week)   www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/mp_cn101.txt   (.txt format)

USDA - Quality of American Pima Cotton (Color, Leaf) by Classing Office (most recent week)   www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/mp_cn104.txt   (.txt format)

The Smith-Doxey Amendment of 1937 (7 U.S.C. 473a) to the Cotton Statistics and Estimates Act of 1927 (7 U.S.C. 471-476) provided authority for the USDA to perform cotton classification and market news services to producers at no cost. Prior to that time, authorization for classing services was provided through the Cotton Standards Act of 1923 (7 U.S.C. 51-65) and for statistical purposes through the Cotton Statistics and Estimates Act of 1927. The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 (Pub. L. 97-35) authorized the USDA to begin collecting user fees for their services and the classing fee structure was implemented through the Smith-Doxey Amendment.

Cotton produced in the United States being considered for use in international commerce is required to undergo High Volume Instrument (HVI) systems testing for quality as the USDA utilizes HVI classing data. HVI machinery can test several hundred samples on a daily basis. The machines are generally not as accurate as hand classing with respect to color, grade and leaf, however, the results are more objective and very effective for measuring, staple, strength, uniformity, short fiber content and elongation which have gained much more importance.

Cotton fiber is classified by the USDA based on:

Color grade: Measured in terms of brightness or reflectance and yellowness

Leaf grade: The amount of leaf particles within the fiber (7 possible grades)

Length: Measured in 32nds, the longer the length the stronger the yarn

Length uniformity: is varied due to the genetics of the particular seed crop and due to weather conditions

Micronaire: Reflects the finess of the fiber and the maturity of the cotton boll<

/dd>

Strength: Evaluated in terms of grams per tex (weight in grams per 1,000 meters of fiber); 31 (and higher) grams per tex is strong while 23 (and lower is considered weak; The greater the strength the faster the processing and finished yarn strength

The Official USDA Grading System:

Color Grade	Symbol	Color Class	Leaf Class
White
Good Middling	GM	11	1
Strict Middling	SM	21	2
Middling	Mid	31	3
Strict Low Middling	SLM	41	4
Low Middling	LM	51	5
Strict Good Ordinary	SGO	61	6
Good Ordinary	GO	71	7
Light Spotted
Good Middling	GM Lt Sp	12
Strict Middling	SM Lt Sp	22
Middling	Mid Lt Sp	32
Strict Low Middling	SLM Lt Sp	42
Low Middling	LM Lt Sp	52
Strict Good Ordinary	SGO Lt Sp	62
Spotted
Good Middling	GM Sp	13
Strict Middling	SM Sp	23
Middling	Mid Sp	33
Strict Low Middling	SLM Sp	43
Low Middling	LM Sp	53
Strict Good Ordinary	SGO Sp	63
Tinged
Strict Middling	SM Tg	24
Middling	Mid Tg	34
Strict Low Middling	SLM Tg	44
Low Middling	LM Tg	54
Yellow Stained
Strict Middling	SM YS	25
Middling	Mid YS	35

Cotton Ginning

After being harvested, seed cotton fibers are "ginned': the fibers are separated from the seed, leaf and plant residue and all foreign matter are separated out leaving only clean fiber. The fibers are then pressed together into a lint bale. The cotton seeds have their own use in being pressed to produce cottonseed oil. Upland cotton is primarily saw-ginned and pima cotton is primarily roller-ginned.

Cotton ginning is seasonal. It begins with the maturing of the cotton crop, which varies by region, and ends when the crop is finished. Each year the cotton ginning season starts in the lower Southwest region in midsummer, continues through the south central and other geographical regions in late summer and early autumn, and ends in the upper Southwest region in late autumn and early winter. Overall, U. S. cotton is ginned between October 1 and December 31, with the bulk of the crop from each geographical region being ginned in 6 to 8 weeks. During the remainder of the year, the gin is idle.

The USDA indicates that "moisture management is critical to cotton cleaning, handling, and fiber quality preservation at the gin. Cotton with too high a moisture content will not easily separate into single locks, but will form wads that may choke and damage gin machinery or entirely stop the ginning process."

The Ginning Process:

Module trucks and trailers transport cotton from the field to the gin. A pneumatic system removes the cotton from the trailers, and either a pneumatic system or a module feeder removes the cotton from modules. A combination conveyer and pneumatic system conveys the cotton to a separator and feed control unit.

Seed cotton module is introduced into the Module Feeder that employs a dispersing head with spiked rollers for breaking apart the module.

Seed cotton enters a Dryer.

Seed cotton enters a Cylinder Cleaner, which break up large wads and generally condition the cotton for additional cleaning and drying.

Seed cotton enters a Stick Maching, which removes larger foreign matter, such as burs and sticks, from the cotton.

A extractor feeder feeds the cotton to the Gin Stand.

Cotton enters the gin stand through a huller front. The saws grasp the cotton and draw it through widely spaced ribs known as huller ribs. The locks of cotton are drawn from the huller ribs into the bottom of the roll box. The actual ginning process--separation of lint and seed--takes place in the roll box of the gin stand. The ginning action is caused by a set of saws rotating between ginning ribs. The saw teeth pass between the ribs at the ginning point. Here the leading edge of the teeth is approximately parallel to the rib, and the teeth pull the fibers from the seed, which are too large to pass between the ribs.

The cleaned cotton is compressed into bales in the Bale Press, which must then be covered to protect them from contamination during transportation and storage. Three types of bales are produced: modified flat, compress universal density, and gin universal density (only Gin-Universal bales are deliverable under the regulations of the ICE Cotton No. 2 Futures Contract).

The cottonseeds are removed from the raw cotton during the cotton ginning process. Cottonseed by-products include cottonseed oil for the food industry, whole Cottonseed, cottoseed hulls and cottonseed meal (primarily used as nutritional ingredients in the livestock feed), and cotton linters, which are Short fibers that were not removed by ginning and remain on the cottonseeds (primarily paper making, industrial products). Small, immature cottonseeds are known as motes. Motes with attached fiber that are removed at a different stage of the gin stand than the mature seeds. The fiber can be removed from the motes using a delinting machine. This fiber is called gin mote fiber and is used in nonwoven products.

Cotton Merchants

Cotton merchants have, historically, functioned as an intermediary between cotton producers and cotton consumers by sourcing raw cotton and supplying it to textile markets. These companies from large international opeations to small family-owned operations. Merchants are also further categorized by the geographical capacity of the company's operations (international, regional or local) and by specific growth (ELS). FOB merchants / brokers usually handle cotton on commission.

The Seam

The Seam is an Internet-based cotton trading exchange that allows cotton growers in the United States to market their cotton directly to cotton merchants and textile mill operators (grower-to-business / G2B) for immediate delivery, and also allows mill operators to sell cotton to each other anonomously (business-to-business / B2B) for immediate delivery. The Seam’s International Marketplace, which commenced operations in 2003, allows forward contracts.

Cotton Pricing

There is a cotton spot (cash) price (what is being paid at delivery points) and a futures price (based on the spot price and future expectations of demand, weather, crop yield).

USDA, U.S. Daily Cotton Spot Price   www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/mp_cn001.txt   (.txt format)

USDA, U.S. Weekly Cotton Spot Price   www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/mp_cn207.txt   (.txt format)

for the 2007 / 2008 season (August to August) the National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA, reports (August 11, 2008) that in the United States:

 

Spot cotton quotations for color 41, leaf 4, staple 34, mike 35-36 and 43-49, strength readings of 26.5-28.4 grams per tex, uniformity of 81 units in the designated spot markets averaged 61.50 cents per pound for the 2007-2008 season, up sharply from 48.67 cents for the 2006-2007 season. The season’s lowest daily average quotation for the base quality occurred on August 16, 2007 at 50.34 cents per pound and the season’s highest daily quotations was 79.16 cents on March 5, 2008. The lowest monthly average for the marketing year was 53.46 cents per pound in August 2007 and the highest was 69.27 cents per pound in March 2008.

 

Quotations for color 31, leaf 3, staple 34, mike 35-36 and 43-49, strength readings of 26.5-28.4 grams per tex, uniformity of 81 units in the designated spot markets averaged 63.47 cents per pound for the 2007-2008 season, up from 50.83 cents for the 2006-2007 season.

 

The average price received by farmers for Upland cotton was 53.50 cents per pound (preliminary average) for the 2007-2008 marketing year. This compares with 46.50 cents for the 2006-2007 marketing year and 47.70 cents for the 2005-2006 marketing year.

 

www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/cnaacps.pdf   (.pdf format)

Cotton prices are effected by:

World cotton production level

Weather condition in specific growing regions

Expanded use of new technologies, including GM cotton

Textile industry demand (cotton is converted primarily into yarns and threads for use in the production of fabrics and downstream products in the textile and apparel sectors)

United States Agricultural Policies

The price for cotton, and exporting patterns, is distorted by government subsidies paid by the U.S. government to U.S. farmers. The subsidies are designed to make the farmers more competitive by allowing them to sell cotton at prices lower than the actual cost of production, which depresses global prices and allows for increased market share for U.S. producers.

There is also a tariff schedule for cotton exported into the United States. The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (2008) Supplement 1, prepared by the United States International Trade Commission (USITC), includes cotton Chapter 52. The U.S. Harmonized Tariff Schedule, like Harmonized System tariff schedules generally, classifies a good (assigns it a ten-digit tariff classification number) based on such things as its name, use, and/or the material used in its construction.   hotdocs.usitc.gov/docs/tata/hts/bychapter/0810htsa.pdf   (.pdf format, 9.5MB)

In sub-Saharan Africa, cotton production is primarily rain fed and dominated by small-holder farmers with very small acreage, some planting as little as 0.5 of an acre. The African Growth and Opportunity Act / AGOA (Title I of the Trade and Development Act of 2000, Pub. L. 106–200) provides preferential tariff treatment for imports of certain textile and apparel products of beneficiary sub- Saharan African countries. The textile and apparel trade benefits under the AGOA are available to imports of eligible products from countries that the President designates as "beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries," provided that these countries (1) have adopted an effective visa system and related procedures to prevent unlawful transshipment and the use of counterfeit documents, and (2) have implemented and follow, or are making substantial progress toward implementing and following, certain customs procedures that assist the Customs Service in verifying the origin of the products.
http://otexa.ita.doc.gov/AGOA-CBTPA/Title_I.pdf   (.pdf format)

Cotton Futures Contract

  ICE Cotton No. 2 Futures Contract

There is a very active futures market for cotton that is utilized by producers, merchants, ginners and textile mills to manage the risk of price fluctuation due to weather conditions, crop volume and demand. The most traded contract, the Cotton No. 2 Futures Contract, is traded on the ICE (In 2007, The New York Board of Trade was acquired by The Intercontinental Exchange and is now ICE Futures U.S., Inc.).

Basis Grade is Strict Low Middling with a staple length of 1 1/16 inches. Delvierable origins are US Origin only.

The trading unit is approximately 100 bales (50,000 pounds net weight), the active trading months are March, May, July, October, and December, and contracts are listed in cents per pound.

Contract quotation is in cents and hundredths of a cent per pound.

Designated Delivery Points in the continental United States are Galveston, TX; Houston, TX; Memphis, TN; Greenville, SC: New Orleans, LA.

Bales net weight must be from 400 pounds minimum to 650 pounds maximum (only Gin-Universal bales are deliverable under the regulations of the ICE Cotton No. 2 Futures Contract; Please see Bale Dimensions and Cotton Ginning above).

In the United States, cotton futures contract trading on the ICE is regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), an independent agency of the U.S. government. The CFTC reported that despite the relative abundance of cotton stocks, cotton futures prices also rose sharply beginning in mid-February similar to other agricultural commodity prices (wheat, corn, soybeans) although it was unclear the the fundamentals (plantings, crop yield, demand, existing stocks) were in place to warrant the increase. In early 2008, the futures price reached an all time high (USD $1.09 per pound), which is primarily attributed to average daily open interest in cotton futures and option contracts more than doubling between January 2006 (209,040 contracts) and February 2008 (429,942 contracts) as the result of speculators entering several commodities markets in 2008.
www.cftc.gov/marketreports/commitmentsoftraders/cot_historical.html   (CFTC Historical Commitments of Traders Reports)
www.cftc.gov/stellent/groups/public/@newsroom/documents/speechandtestimony/oeajeffharristestimony052008.pdf   (Testimony of Chief Economist of the CFTC before the U.S. Senate, May 20, 2008)

Cotton Outlook A-Index

  Cotlook Indices (seasonal) from 1998 to 2008

The Cotton Outlook (Cotlook) A-Index is a cotton price index compiled by Cotton Outlook, a private consulting company in the cotton industry domiciled in the United Kingdom. The index is compiled to represent the price level on the international raw cotton market. "It is an average of the cheapest five quotations from a selection (at present numbering nineteen) of the principal upland cottons traded internationally."

Basis grade of the A-Index is Middling with a staple length of 1-3/32 in. As from August 1, 2004, the geographical basis of the quotations used in the A Index is the Far East (previously, the geographical basis was North European ports however the Cotlook North European A and B Indices were discontinued as from August 1, 2008), and the terms quoted are Cost, Insurance and Freight (CIF). This price is quoted daily (2.30 pm UCT) and the average is of the five lowest quotes (offered to final consumers) of the following descriptions (all 1-3/32"):

Memphis / Eastern

California / Arizona

Memphis / Orleans / Texas

Tanzanian Type 1 SG

Turkish S. Eastern Std 1 RG

Indian H-4 / MECH / BUNNY

Uzbekistan

Paraguayan

Pakistani 1503

Ivory Coast BEMA

Burkina Faso RUDY

Benin BELA

Mali KATY

Greek

Australian

Mexican

Syrian

Brazilian

Chinese 328

Source: Cotton Outlook

Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) / Farm Service Agency (FSA)

  Daily LDP Rates - USDA, Farm Service Agency (FSA)

USDA, U.S. Cotton Program, Weekly World market price for Upland cotton / Upland Spot Price Quotations   www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/mp_cn208.txt   (.txt format)

In the United States, the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) provides financing to cotton farmers. U.S. Government payments consist of Direct Payments (DP), countercyclical Payments (CCP) (DP and CCP are payments that are decoupled from current production and are paid on historic base acres and payment yield), Loan Deficiency Payments (LDP), Marketing Loan Gains (MLG). The 2008 Farm Bill generally extends the existing upland cotton and ELS cotton programs with some changes in calculations of the adjusted world price (AWP) and loan schedules for upland cotton. Please see the Agriculture Page for a complete description of the CCC's operations.

Similar to the Cotlook A Index, in May 2008 the CCC revised the Upland Cotton regulations to use Far East prices instead of Northern Europe prices in determining the upland cotton adjusted world price (AWP). The change is being made because of changes in the market and in the available price data. At one time, northern Europe was a center of cotton trade. However, in recent years much of the focus of world trade in cotton has moved to the Pacific Rim countries, especially China. Now, the vast majority of U.S. cotton exports are destined for the Far East, with smaller shares to South Asia, Mexico, and Turkey. Less than one percent of U.S. cotton exports are now bound for Northern Europe. The AWP is the prevailing world market price for the commodity (adjusted to United States quality and location), is used to determine repayment rates for marketing assistance loans (MAL) and to establish loan deficiency payments (LDP).

The switch to FE as the basis for determining the cotton AWP is expected to generate modest savings as lower transportation costs to Asia. The net effect will likely raise the AWP, reducing CCC's exposure on marketing loan benefits. Annually, CCC conducts a survey of transportation costs for delivering U.S. cotton to foreign ports. In the February 2008 survey, shippers were asked to estimate their costs for delivery to FE as well as NE ports, resulting in NE costs of 14.52 cents per pound and FE costs of 12.41 cents per pound. The difference, 2.11 cents per pound, more than offsets the historical average of 1.07 cents per pound by which FE quotes exceed NE quotes. As a result, the AWP on an FE basis will be 1.04 cents per pound higher (2.11 cents minus 1.07 cents) than it would be on an NE basis, and marketing loan benefits (when available) will be 1.04 cents per pound lower. Based on a 20-million bale crop (the average of recent years), marketing loan benefits (when available) would be $104 million per year lower using Far East quotes. Counter-cyclical payments are not affected because the change to FE quotes does not affect the marketing year average price that triggers counter-cyclical payments.

The Adjusted world price (AWP) is the price level calculated by USDA on a weekly basis, in which the Cotlook- A Index is adjusted for the average U.S. location, and the basis grade of strict low middling (SLM) is adjusted to a staple length of 1-1/16 in. The AWP is used to determine the rate at which marketing assistance loans must be repaid. When the AWP is below the loan rate, eligible producers who agree to forego CCC loans may receive Loan Deficiency Payments (LDP).

Federal Register, Vol. 73, No. 215, Wednesday, November 5, 2008; 7 CFR Part 1427; Cotton Program Changes for Loans, Loan Deficiency Payments, Upland Cotton, and Extra Long Staple Cotton; Farm Service Agency and Commodity Credit Corporation, USDA   www.fsa.usda.gov/Internet/FSA_Federal_Notices/cottonrule.pdf   (.pdf format)

To receive loans or loan deficiency payments (LDP) for a crop of cotton, a producer must execute a note and security agreement or loan deficiency payment application on or before May 31 of the year following the year in which such crop is normally harvested. To receive direct payments, an individual or entity must be a producer on a farm with base acres enrolled in the Direct and Counter-cyclical payment Program (DCP). Producers may elect to receive a 22% advance payment when they enroll in the DCP. Base acres are established on a farm for covered commodities based on historical plantings. For instance, for each covered commodity, the direct payment in 2008 equaled 85% of the farm's base acreage for the crop, times the direct payment yield for that crop, times the direct payment rate for that crop. The 2008 rate for upland cotton was $0.0667 per pound. The USDA's Farm Service Agency distributes direct payments for the CCC.

Marketing assistance loans provide producers interim financing at harvest time to meet cash flow needs without having to sell their commodities when market prices are typically at harvest-time lows. Loans for covered commodities are non-recourse because the commodity is pledged as loan collateral and producers have the option of delivering the pledged collateral to the CCC in satisfaction of the repayment of the outstanding loan at maturity. A settlement value is determined and applied to the outstanding loan principal and interest.

Cotton producers who have pledged as collateral baled cotton for CCC marketing assistance loans often authorize merchants to repay their loan obligations and redeem the cotton using form CCC-605, “Designation of Agent – Cotton.” The USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) maintains an internal-use only national registry to help cotton merchants efficiently redeem cotton held as collateral by USDA. The purpose of the registry is to inform FSA county staff if an individual has authorization to request redemption of a cotton loan by a cotton merchandising company. Cotton merchants mail or fax the form to one of 300 FSA county offices that process cotton loans.

On October 30, 2008, the CCC approved new regulations for implementing cotton programs authorized by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 Farm Bill). These regulations govern several programs for the 2008 through 2012 crops of upland and extra-long staple (ELS) cotton, specifically marketing assistance loans (MAL) and loan deficiency payments (LDP); recourse seed cotton loans; and the ELS cotton competitiveness payments. The regulations also revise the calculation of the Adjusted World Price (AWP) transportation adjustment, and reduce by 10% the maximum rates used for calculating any storage payments for the 2008 through 2011 crops. The 2008 Farm Bill authorizes the reduction of the upland cotton AWP for any United States premium factor for cotton qualities higher than Middling 1 3/32-inch. Starting with the upland cotton AWP that becomes effective Friday, Oct. 31, CCC will adjust the price by the average cost to market upland cotton to the Far East, including average transportation costs as determined from survey results. This adjustment will replace use of a 52-week rolling average calculation method.

Under the Upland Cotton Economic Adjustment Assistance Program, the CCC will make payments to a "Domestic User" to cover costs incurred for purchase(s) of land or the acquisition, construction, installation, modernization, development, conversion, or expansion of depreciable fixed assets directly attributable to the purpose of manufacturing upland cotton into eligible cotton products in the United States as per section 1207 (c)(3) of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008. On December 12, 2008, the USDA indicated that the payment would be $.04/pound for eligible cotton through July 21, 2012.
www.fsa.usda.gov/Internet/FSA_File/upland_cover_letter.pdf

Cotton Mill Spinning & Weaving

Cotton spinning is the process by which loose fibers of raw cotton is turned into yarn and/or thread. Yarn quantities are usually measured by weight in ounces or grams. In the United States, balls of yarn for handcrafts are usually sold in three-ounce, four-ounce, six-ounce, and eight-ounce skeins. In Europe, yarn is often sold in increments of 25 grams, with 25 g, 50 g, and 100 g being common quantities.

Yarn manufacturing and preparation equipment include Air-Jet Spinning, Card, Coiler, Comber, Doubler, Drawing, Friction Spinning Machine, Lap Winder, Open End Spinning, Opening-Cleaning, Piecer, Ring Spinning, Roving, Sliver Can, Twister 2/1, Twister Ring, Winder.

Weave manufacturing and preparation equipment include Beam - Section, Beam-Loom, Beamer, Creel, Dobby, Draw-in, Jacquard, Knotting Machine, Loom, Slasher, Warp Typing, Warper.

The typical cotton spinning process flow is Blow Room, Contamination Sorter, Card, Draw Frame, Comber, Simplex, Ring Frame, Autoconer, Yarn clearers, Twister / Doubling, Conditioning.

Cotton is usually first passed through cleaning and blending machines, and then to the Card, which removes foreign matter (trash), knots (neps) and short fibers, forms the cotton tufts into parallel aligned strands and then into a rope-like form known as a sliver. A single, uniform sliver is produced from several card slivers.

Textile spinning, knitting and weaving machines are produced by Bigagli, Chandni, Cherry Hara, Cognetex, Faza, Howa, Lakshmi, Luwa, Marzoli, Olsdat, Padmatex, Platts-Sacco Lowell, Murata Machinery, Rieter, Schlafhorst, Seussen, Staubli, Texmaco-howa, Toyoda, Trutzschler, Vouk, Zinser.

Cotton Industry

Cotton industry participants include seed providers, individual farms, farmer's cooperatives, marketing cooperatives, trade associations, ginners, gin equipment manufacturers, warehouses, merchants and traders.

Textile Industry

Participants include mill operators, yarn and thread manufacturers and wholesale suppliers. Products include woven fabrics for apparel, linens and batting consisting of 100% cotton, synthetic and blended yarns manufactured both open-end and ring spun for a variety of applications. Textile products include hand, face and bath towels; flat and fitted bed sheets, pillow cases, linens, duvet and quilt covers; draperies; upholstery fabrics; medical supplies (absorbent roll, bandages, swabs, eye patch, abaorbent sheet, absorbent ball, ortho roll, delivery pad); industrial thread; apparel (socks, underwear, t-shirts); automotive (towels, wash mitts, applicator pads, polishing and finishing cloths); paper making.

Credit Analysis Issues

The price at or near harvest is always substantially different than at planting time.

Purchased input costs (fertilizer, seed, chemicals, irrigation) have become expensive, and price fluctuations have been volatile at times. Some of the increase in the cost of inputs is realted to recent record high fuel prices.

The strength of a nation's currency relative to other currencies can also affect the competitiveness of a product in foreign countries.

Drought, disease, and insect infestation can drastically reduce crop yield. In response to these problems the farmer can incur additional costs but still end up having a low yield.

Crop insurance, which provides coverage for damage to crops before and during harvest, is available to producers at competitive pricing (insurance does not extend beyond the period during which the insured commodity is in the field) and is covered under U.S. Code 7, Chapter 36, and is available from private companies and the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (USDA).

Crop revenue coverage provides protection against lost revenues caused by low yields, low prices, or both, poor quality, late planting.

Multiple-peril coverage protects against yield and/or quality losses from several possible conditions including drought, excess moisture, cold and frost, wildlife, disease and insects.

Revenue assurance provides coverage if a shortfall in production (adverse weather conditions such as hail, frost, freeze, wind, drought, and excess moisture; insects; plant disease; failure of irrigation water supply) or low crop prices result in the dollar value of production falling below the revenue guarantee. Available for cotton through the Risk Management Agency, USDA.

Hail insurance provides indemnification based on actual lost crop and the policy holder replants at their own expense or covers the actual cost to replant less a deductible.

Farm Credit Administration (FCA) is an independent financial regulatory agency in the executive branch of the U.S. Government, which examines and regulates the Farm Credit System in order to provide a dependable source of credit and related services for agriculture and rural America

Cotton Information Resources

Central Institute for Cotton Research (India)   www.cicr.org.in/

Cotton Board   www.cottonboard.org/

Cotton, Inc.   www.cottoninc.com/

Cotton Genome Database   www.cottondb.org/

Cotton Research & Development Corporation (Australia)   www.crdc.com.au/

International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) (Comité Consultatif International du Coton)   www.icac.org/

International Cotton Association   www.ica-ltd.org/

Journal of Cotton Science   www.cotton.org/journal/

National Cotton Council of America   www.cotton.org/

National Cottonseed Products Association (NCPA)   www.cottonseed.com/

Oklahoma Boll Weevil Eradication Organization (OBWEO)   www.obweo.org/

Sustainable Cotton Project, Inc.   www.sustainablecotton.org/

Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation   www.txbollweevil.org/

Texas Tech University, Fiber and Biopolymer Research Institute   www.itc.ttu.edu/

U.S. Census Bureau, Consumption on the Cotton System and Stocks   www.census.gov/cir/www/313/m313p.html

USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Office of Cotton Technology Transfer and Education   msa.ars.usda.gov/gintech/

USDA, Aphis, Boll Weevil Eradication   www.aphis.usda.gov/lpa/pubs/fsheet_faq_notice/faq_phbweevil.html
USDA, Aphis, Cotton Pests - Boll Weevil   http://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/plant_pest_info/cotton_pests/index-bw.shtml

USDA, Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), Cotton: World Markets and Trade Archives   www.fas.usda.gov/cotton_arc.asp

USDA, Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), Registry for Cotton Merchants  
www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/newsReleases?area=newsroom&subject=landing&topic=pfs&newstype=prfactsheet&type=detail&item=pf_20060201_insup_en_cotreg06.html

USDA, Warehouses Licensed Under the U.S. Warehouse Act As of December 31, 2007   www.fsa.usda.gov/Internet/FSA_File/whselst2007.pdf   (.pdf format)

World Trade Orgnization (WTO) Cotton Sub-Committee   www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/agric_e/cotton_subcommittee_e.htm
World Trade Orgnization (WTO) Cotton Sub-Committee News Archive   www.wto.org/english/news_e/archive_e/cott_arc_e.htm