Cotton yarn prices steady in south India as demand remains weak

11 Jun '24

3 min read

Cotton yarn prices steady in south India as demand remains weak

Pic: Adobe Stock

Insights

South Indian cotton yarn prices are experiencing a bearish trend due to demand uncertainty.
Spinning mills are maintaining current prices despite weak demand from power looms and downstream industry.
In Mumbai and Tiruppur, prices remain stable, though the market sentiment is cautious.
Cotton prices in Gujarat have declined, influenced by ICE cotton trends.

South Indian cotton yarn prices exhibited a bearish trend amid demand uncertainty. Spinning mills are trying to maintain cotton yarn prices at the current level. The intermediary product traded steadily in the Mumbai and Tiruppur markets of south India. The declining trend in natural fibre and slow demand from the downstream industry were bearish factors for the yarn market. Traders felt that the current market scenario would delay the revival of seasonal buying in the industry. Due to uncertainty regarding demand, power looms and other fabric manufacturers are purchasing cotton yarn only for immediate needs.

Cotton yarn prices hovered at previous levels in the Mumbai market. Demand from power looms was very weak as they did not expect encouraging demand in the coming weeks. A trader from Mumbai told Fibre2Fashion, "There is no positive mood in the textile value chain. Buyers prefer to secure export orders before making purchases. They do not want to gamble on potential demand from the garment industry. Mills are facing the heat of slow buying, but they do not want to cut their mill rates.”

In Mumbai, 60 carded yarn of warp and weft varieties were sold at ₹1,410-1,460 (approximately $16.88-$17.47) and ₹1,280-1,360 per 5 kg (approximately $15.32-$16.28) (excluding GST), respectively. Other prices include 60 combed warp at ₹329-333 (approximately $3.94-$3.99) per kg, 80 carded weft at ₹1,360-1,400 (approximately $16.28-$16.76) per 4.5 kg, 44/46 carded warp at ₹257-262 (approximately $3.08-$3.14) per kg, 40/41 carded warp at ₹252-260 (approximately $3.02-$3.11) per kg, 40/41 combed warp at ₹290-295 (approximately $3.47-$3.53) per kg, and 30/32 carded warp at ₹245-248 (approximately $2.93-$2.97) per kg, according to trade sources.

The Tiruppur market also witnessed weaker demand for cotton yarn. Prices remained stable in the market. Trade sources said that the current scenario is not encouraging for buyers, who are very cautious about new purchases. The continued fall in ICE cotton prices also discouraged buying.

In Tiruppur, knitting cotton yarn prices were noted as 30 count combed cotton yarn at ₹267-273 (approximately $3.20-3.27) per kg (excluding GST), 34 count combed cotton yarn at ₹276-281 (approximately $3.30-3.36) per kg, 40 count combed cotton yarn at ₹288-295 (approximately $3.45-3.53) per kg, 30 count carded cotton yarn at ₹240-247 (approximately $2.87-2.92) per kg, 34 count carded cotton yarn at ₹245-251 (approximately $2.87-2.93) per kg and 40 count carded cotton yarn at ₹251-256 (approximately $3.00-3.06) per kg.

In Gujarat, cotton prices have declined by around ₹1,000 per candy of 356 kg in the last couple of days. The decreasing trend in ICE cotton dragged down local cotton prices. Although the Indian market will see lower arrivals in the coming months, it is still following the declining trend of ICE cotton. Trade sources said that uncertainty regarding demand from the downstream industry and the export market were also causes of concern for the textile value chain.

Cotton arrivals were recorded at 12,000-13,000 bales of 170 kg in Gujarat, with all-India arrivals estimated at 38,000-40,000 bales. In Gujarat, the benchmark Shankar-6 cotton was quoted between ₹55,600-55,900 (approximately $665.45-$669.04) per candy of 356 kg, while southern mills were looking to buy cotton at ₹56,500-57,000 (approximately $676.23-$682.21) per candy.