Cotton output boost: Govt must take steps on a war footing: KCA

The Karachi Cotton Association has called on the government to act urgently to raise domestic cotton output, a move it says would reduce costly imports, according to Business Recorder. Speaking at an event marking World Cotton Day, KCA Chairman Muhammad Atif Shakoor said local supply regularly falls short and the fibre grown at home is of inferior grade, which leaves exporters dependent on foreign purchases.

Shakoor argued that higher yields and better quality would cut the need for imports and preserve foreign exchange for the country. Other speakers, representing several segments of the cotton trade, asked the KCA, APTMA and PCGA to take the matter up jointly with authorities and called for quality seed imports to be allowed.

Another proposal was a dedicated slogan to promote cotton. A broker suggested the KCA approach the Prime Minister and the federal ministers for commerce and finance, arguing that cotton's contribution to GDP and higher output would considerably narrow the trade deficit.