WASHINGTON, DC – The financial impacts of the global coronavirus shutdown hit many sectors hard, and for some industries, they still struggle to get back on their feet – much less return to profitability. According to the Economic Research Service, one industry that affects both exports and imports is the cotton industry. Raw cotton harvested across the southern states of the U.S., especially in Texas, Georgia, and Mississippi, is exported to other countries – primarily in China and Southeast Asia. Once there, textile mills incorporate high-quality cotton fiber into apparel, which is then shipped back into the United States for consumers to purchase. Since March, cotton product imports have fallen precipitously and by the month of May were averaging about 40 percent of the three-year moving average. As countries reopen and consumers begin to return to more normal behavior, the ERS says imports are now just 15 percentage points off the three-year average. The demand for cotton imports supports the demand for cotton exports as the U.S. remains the world’s third-largest grower of the natural fiber.
(SOURCE: All Ag News)