Spinning mills in Gujarat and North India have started buying of cotton from regions around Raichur in Karnataka and Adoni in Andhra Pradesh, where the quality appears to be good. This is even as the ongoing spell of rains across several States has raised concerns over crop and quality among the stakeholders.

“Currently, arrivals are good in Raichur and surrounding areas. The quality is also good. Most of the Gujarat mills and also from North mills are buying from areas surrounding Raichur and Adoni,” said Ramanuj Das Boob, a sourcing agent in Raichur.

Das Boob said the early sown crop has hit the markets now and since the past month, arrivals around Raichur have been good, “which we had never seen in the earlier years”. While there have been rains recently, there’s not much of an impact, except for some delay, he said. Raw cotton prices are ranging from ₹7,000-7,500 per quintal in the region, he said.

Rains cause concern

While the crop has been delayed this year by close to a month in the key producing regions of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana, there has not been much delay in North Karnataka.

“Good arrivals will start from November 10 onwards in these States. Now mostly low RD (degree of reflectance) kapas (unprocessed cotton) is coming in all other States. Except Raichur, there are no quality arrivals in India all over, which is attracting the buyers interest from other States,” Das Boob said.

The colour of cotton is expressed by the RD value. The higher the RD value, the whiter is the cotton.

Meanwhile, the continuous rains across key cotton belts are raising concerns about quality and crop size. “The excess rainfall has significantly altered the condition of the crop and it seems that the production may decrease by at least 10 lakh bales due to the weather,” said Anand Popat, a broker in Gujarat, in his weekly Cotyarn newsletter.

High moisture

“The arrival of seed cotton is increasing slowly due to the rainfall, and the quality of the cotton is declining. In most areas, the RD value has decreased. The high moisture content is making it difficult to spin the cotton. It appears that the quality may improve after about a month,” Popat said.

“Ginners in North and Central India are facing difficulties operating their factories due to the rainfall, while this issue is less severe in South India. The high moisture content is preventing ginners from achieving proper RD values after ginning. It is challenging for ginners to keep their factories running and make a profit in the current situation,” Popat said.

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