Cotton in figures

Cotton is grown in around a hundred countries on 33 million hectares, amounting to 2% of the global cultivated area. The production of cotton lint amounts to 23 million tons (Cotton Statistics ICAC, 2016) for a world consumption of 24 million tons in 2016. More than 7 million tons of lint are traded on international markets, at a value of more than US$12 billion. Worldwide, cotton production directly provides nearly 350 million jobs (cropping, transportation, ginning, packaging, storage). Despite a wide geographical distribution, production is concentrated in just a few countries. In 2015, India, China, USA, Pakistan and Brazil produced 78% of all cotton lint, compared to 70% ten years earlier. These five countries account also for more than 55% of the world's exports of cotton lint. With regard to imports, the main importers are China, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Turkey and Pakistan, with more than 65% of the world total.

  • Cotton markets

    Economic news on cotton markets is selected from external available online sources at national, regional and international levels. Updated information is accessible on identified websites.

  • Cotton stats

    Since 2015, India has been the world's largest producer, catching up with China, which had been in the top position for more than 30 years. China remains the world's largest importer and user. India is the world's second largest consumer and second largest exporter behind the United States, which enjoy a market share of nearly 30%. In the USA, export surpluses are growing, with up to three-quarters of production, because of the decline in the textile industry, which is dominated by Asian countries that account for more than 80% of total world production.

    The West and Central Africa zone is only the sixth largest producer in the world, but the second largest exporter. Its cotton, which is hand-picked and well-appreciated for its quality, is produced by family smallholdings. The African textile industry, however, remains very little developed, amounting to only 1% of world cotton use.

  • Economic files

    Special reports, overviews and economic studies on cotton sectors in the world and Sub-Saharan Africa.