Australian Cotton Production Forecast To Reach 4.5mn Bales

Australian cotton production is expected to total 4.5 million bales in the 2023-24 season beginning in March, which is at the top of the previously estimated range.

“The outlook for Australia’s cotton crop has improved following good rains across cotton growing regions, which prompted farmers to boost cotton acreage,” Cotton Australia, a trade body had said earlier.

“Cotton Australia had warned in October, prior to rains, that the outlook was mixed due to the onset of El Niño, which typically brings drier conditions,” Bloomberg reported.

Vast parts of eastern Australia have been inundated by heavy rains and flooding since October, including a tropical cyclone that damaged various crops in Queensland.

The heavy rains however benefited dryland cotton producers, which rely on rain and stored soil moisture to support plant growth.

Cotton is primarily grown in Queensland and New South Wales, and the harvest typically begins around March or April.