Cotton prices driven high by Chinese demand

Cotton prices driven high by Chinese demand    China's exploding cotton production industry could drive rates for imported cotton sky-high because the country's domestic producers can match demand, according to the China Cotton Textile Association.
   Xu Wenying, head of the CCTA, told the Xinhua news agency that the nation would consume 24 million tons of cotton to produce 36 million tons of yarn by 2010 while domestic cotton output would be merely 7 million tons, so there would be a 17-million-ton gap between supply and demand.
   “This is incredible because other countries cannot supply China with 80 percent of the world’s total cotton output,” he said.
   In June, the cotton price on the Chinese market rose 3 percent over May, while cotton prices rose 9.3 percent on the international market.