Cotton prices increase for 7th consecutive month this Jan in Brazil

04 Feb '22

3 min read

Pic: shutterstock.com

Cotton prices increased sharply in the Brazilian market in January, which was the seventh consecutive month of rise. The low supply, mainly of high-quality cotton, in the national spot market led the purchasers with urgent needs to pay more for the product. International valuations too influenced prices in Brazil, pushing up the export parity value.

In January 2022, the CEPEA/ESALQ Index for cotton set new nominal records in the series of CEPEA, hitting the highest level of BRL 7.0845/pound on January 20.

“Many farmers have made cash flow and did not have urgent needs to sell batches from the 2020-21 season in January. Traders bought batches to accomplish contracts previously closed. As for trading companies, some agents purchased and sold cotton too – however, some buyers opted for working with the product in stock, claiming difficulties to pass on cotton prices to by-products,” the Center for Advanced Studies on Applied Economics (CEPEA) said in its latest fortnightly report on the Brazilian cotton market.

In the last days of January, agents from processors were focused on sales – which were low – and, thus, were not interested in buying cotton. This context added to the dollar depreciation against the real weakened prices, the report added.

In January, the CEPEA/ESALQ Index for cotton rose by almost 9 per cent, ending the month at BRL 6.9822/pound. The monthly average in January, at BRL 6.8121/pound, is the highest in the series of CEPEA, in nominal terms. In real terms (IGP-DI from December 2021), the average is 7.08 per cent higher than that in December 2021, 37.68 per cent above that in January 2021, and the highest since April 2011.

In dollar terms, the monthly average in January closed at $1.2313/pound, 6.6 per cent lower than the Cotlook A Index ($1.3181/pound), but 3.2 per cent higher than the first contract at ICE Futures ($1.1932/pound). In January, the average price for cotton in Brazil was 7 per cent higher than the export parity.

Meanwhile, cotton sowing in the 2021-22 season had reached 52 per cent of the estimated area until January 20, according to ABRAPA, the Brazilian association of cotton producers. In Bahia, cotton sowing activities are complete in 84 per cent of the area, while it is 40 per cent in Mato Grosso, 84 per cent in Goiás, 85 per cent in Minas Gerais, 98 per cent in Mato Grosso do Sul, 67 per cent in Maranhão, 81 per cent in São Paulo, and 81 per cent in Piauí. Sowing is over in Paraná.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RKS)

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