October 21, 2022

Ship backlog progress.

The queue of ships waiting to unload at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach fell from a peak of 109 ships in January to four vessels this week, according to the Marine Exchange of Southern California. Bottlenecks continue to delay cargo at other major U.S. seaports and at inland freight hubs, but the end of the backup at the big ports in California signals broader supply-chain tangles that have been troubling retailers and manufacturers are unwinding.

Jim Wiesemeyer

India cotton output seen rising 12%.

India is likely to produce 34.4 million bales of cotton in the 2022/23 season that started on Oct. 1, up 12% from a year ago after farmers expanded the crop area, a trade body said on Tuesday.

The rise in output in the world’s biggest producer of cotton could weigh on global prices that have corrected sharply after rising earlier this year to their highest in a decade.

Reuters

Fabric makes up 78.75% of China’s total textile shipment.

Fabric constituted 78.75% of the total textile exports of the world’s largest textile exporter China during the first half (H1) of 2022. It exported fabric worth $37.183 billion in this period, while its total textile exports were valued at $47.217 billion. 

China’s cotton textiles exports were valued at $10.218 billion (21.64%) in the period under review. The exports of textiles made from wool and animal hair were at $1.175 billion (2.49%), silk at $482.902 million (1.02%), flax at $384.881 million (0.82%), true hemp at $2.527 million (0.01%) and others at $4.364 billion (9.24%).

Fibre2Fashion

Falling cotton prices may lower prices for fashion.

Looking ahead, with this month’s revisions to the demand side of the balance sheet, the increase in production is enough to result in a surplus of production beyond consumption, according to economist Jon Devine. While stocks in the U.S. are forecast to be low by historical standards, an increase in warehouse supply is predicted to be at the world level.

One can conclude that the high levels of inventory and the likely promotional efforts of retailers during the holiday season will combine to reduce the prices to the consumer.

Forbes

Farmers can now change election and enroll in the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs for the 2023 crop year. 

These programs are part of a broader safety net provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which includes crop insurance and marketing assistance loans. 

ARC provides income support payments on historical base acres when actual crop revenue declines below a specified guaranteed level. 

PLC provides income support payments on historical base acres when the effective price for a covered commodity falls below its reference price. 

Producers have until March 15, 2023 to enroll in one of these two programs. 

– Southwest Farm Press 

The 18th cohort of the Texas Agricultural Lifetime Leadership (TALL) Program spent this week in West Texas.

Jeremy Brown, producer in Dawson County, addressed TALL students and alumni at the welcome reception on Tuesday, October 18th.

“Hopefully, whatever you do, you go back and get actively involved in your voice for agriculture,” he said. “Whatever that looks like in your sphere of influence.” 

Stay Tuned!

Next week’s issue of Cotton News will feature TALL student Jayci Bishop, PCCA director of Corporate Communications. We’ll talk about her perspective of the TALL program overall and the week she spent with the group touring West Texas agriculture companies.

The following is a summary of the cotton classed at the Lubbock and Lamesa USDA Cotton Division Cotton Classing Offices for the 2021 production season.

Farmers Worry as Cotton Price Tumbles

Aid for Financially Distressed FSA Farm Loan Borrowers

Tough Lessons for Cotton Farmer’s with This Year’s Drought and Heat