Price volatility top agenda at cotton conference

Price volatility of cotton and financial constraints for its purchase will be among other issues to be discussed at the All India Conference on Cotton beginning here from August 19.
The two-day conference will see the participation of 400 delegates from across India and foreign countries, the organising chairman of the conference, P Nataraj told reporters here today.
The main theme of the event will be "Indian Cotton Scenario in 2016-17".
The price fluctuation of cotton during April to June, adversely affecting the entire textile value chain will be some of the issues discussed during the conference, he said.
President of Indian Cotton Federation J Thulasidharan claimed that lack of exact statistics on consumption and availability of cotton, particularly in the initial stage of season (October-September) was a major reason for the fluctuation.

He said there was a need for funds to the tune of Rs 50,000 crore, annually, for ginners and spinners to buy and stock cotton at the beginning of the season, which was done by multi-national companies, leading to speculation.
Situation would be easy for the stakeholders if the banks came forward to provide funds at a reasonable interest rate of 7 per cent, he said.
Considering this, the conference will address the real situation of cotton acreage, demand-supply equations, price situation and sustainable management, Thulasidharan said.