Sun Huaibin, an analyst from the China Textile Industry Association, said some domestic cotton traders had begun to release their stocks under pressure from the government.

The extra supplies, together with increased cotton imports, would help stabilize prices, he added.

China's cotton price has jumped by about 70 percent over the past nine months, surpassing even international prices.

The unreasonably high prices, resulting from low cotton output in 2002 and opportunism by some cotton traders, have created a headache for China's textile industry.

Cotton usually accounts for 60 percent of the export-orientated industry's costs.

As a result, five ministries and commissions issued a notice in April warning cotton traders not to hoard their supplies, threatening to stop loans needed to buy this year's cotton to force them to sell their existing stockpiles.

The price monitoring centre under the State Development and Reform Commission said that cotton prices were just starting to decline and predicted that the trend would continue in the coming months.

An official from the centre said the price had dipped by an average of 400 yuan (US$48.33) per ton from 13,800 yuan (US$1,667) over the past month.

The official predicted the price would slide further as new cotton comes on the market in September. The fluctuating domestic cotton price has forced textile makers to import more.

Sun from the China Textile Industry Association predicted that this year's import quota would be used up.

Chinese manufacturers can import up to 860,000 tons of cotton this year, compared with 820,000 tons last year.

Last year, they imported just 208,000 tons - far less than the quota limit, but still 85 percent more than the previous year.

(China Daily May 20, 2003)Cotton Price Eases as Traders Sell Stockpiles

China's soaring cotton price is expected to ease in the following months as supply increases.

Sun Huaibin, an analyst from the China Textile Industry Association, said some domestic cotton traders had begun to release their stocks under pressure from the government.

The extra supplies, together with increased cotton imports, would help stabilize prices, he added.

China's cotton price has jumped by about 70 percent over the past nine months, surpassing even international prices.

The unreasonably high prices, resulting from low cotton output in 2002 and opportunism by some cotton traders, have created a headache for China's textile industry.

Cotton usually accounts for 60 percent of the export-orientated industry's costs.

As a result, five ministries and commissions issued a notice in April warning cotton traders not to hoard their supplies, threatening to stop loans needed to buy this year's cotton to force them to sell their existing stockpiles.

The price monitoring centre under the State Development and Reform Commission said that cotton prices were just starting to decline and predicted that the trend would continue in the coming months.

An official from the centre said the price had dipped by an average of 400 yuan (US$48.33) per ton from 13,800 yuan (US$1,667) over the past month.

The official predicted the price would slide further as new cotton comes on the market in September. The fluctuating domestic cotton price has forced textile makers to import more.

Sun from the China Textile Industry Association predicted that this year's import quota would be used up.

Chinese manufacturers can import up to 860,000 tons of cotton this year, compared with 820,000 tons last year.

Last year, they imported just 208,000 tons - far less than the quota limit, but still 85 percent more than the previous year.

(China Daily May 20, 2003)