Uzbekistan Cotton Output To Drop 8% In 2023-24 Season
Uzbekistan’s cotton production in the 2023-24 season is forecast to be 621,000 tons, a drop of 8 percent year on year, due to poor weather conditions.
Cotton cultivation acreage in the 2023-24 season in Uzbekistan will be 950,000 hectares, down 3 percent over the previous season.
A recent cotton report of the US Department of Agriculture attributed the reason for the acreage decline to the government reallocating land for other food crops to maintain the country’s food security.
Although investment in the Uzbek textile industry continues to grow, the country’s cotton consumption is expected to be 599,000 tons in 2023-24, down 8 percent over the earlier season.
USDA attribute the decline to reduced demand for cotton gauze and cotton fabrics and also due to reduced demand for garments from Turkey, Russia, the US and EU.
Uzbekistan’s cotton export volume dropped to just 3,000 tons in the previous season, and will maintain a decreasing trend in the future, as currently, all the cotton output is consumed by the local textile mills.
At the same time, the country’s exports of cotton yarn and cotton fabrics have increased significantly and are expected to continue to grow as investments increase in the textile industry.
