Pakistan may allow its industry to import from India as Pakistan’s textile exporters have demanded 2.5 million bales to meet the shortfall caused by the calamitous floods that have washed away about half the country’s total crop.
Miftah Ismail, Pakistan’s Finance Minister, reportedly, hinted this.
As per media reports from Pakistan, the proposal to allow the import of cotton from India was discussed during a meeting between Finance Minister Miftah Ismail and a delegation from the Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA).
The Minister said that the country will allow the import of cotton to ensure its mills are able to fulfil their export orders. However, the import destination was yet to be decided.
In Pakistan, the floods, having washed away all the standing cotton crops, deemed the Ministry of Finance’s initial projections of 11 million cotton bales being produced improbable.
Revised estimates suggest that the production may remain around 5.5 million bales only.
The textile exporters, however, are keen to import cotton – their basic raw material – from India via land to save time and logistics cost.
