LUBBOCK, Texas (RFD-TV) — China continues to play a decisive role in the international cotton market, even as it leads the world in production. For the 2025 crop year, Chinese output is projected at 31.5 million bales. However, the country still imported 5.3 million bales, ranking just behind Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Pakistan.
Import patterns are dictated by government quotas, which allow 894,000 tons at a low tariff rate of one percent, while additional imports face a 40 percent tariff.
“So, in the case of cotton, they don’t have a lot of other countries to turn to other than the United States; there aren’t that many countries that grow that cotton,” Midwest Marketing Solutions President Brian Hoops told RFD-TV News. “You look at where they can buy soybeans from—well, they have a monster crop out of South America, both Brazil and Argentina this year. Big corn crops out of Brazil, record-large there. They can buy corn and soybeans from other countries.”
Economists with the University of Georgia and the Georgia Cotton Commission explain that these policies, along with reserve stock programs, can cause dramatic swings in demand from year to year. Heavy purchases in 2023 lifted global demand, but reduced China’s need for imports in 2024 while boosting domestic output.
Past examples, including the 2012–2014 period, demonstrate that reserve build-ups followed by cutbacks can exert lasting pressure on global prices.
Tony’s Farm-Level Takeaway: For U.S. growers, the uncertainty adds risk during harvest and marketing. China’s buying decisions continue to be a critical factor in shaping cotton prices and export opportunities worldwide.
Record Australian exports and rising U.S. imports reflect continued tight domestic cattle supplies — a reminder that herd recovery remains key to balancing future beef prices.
October 23, 2025 11:56 AM
·
“Farmers for Free Trade” warns that disaster is brewing as President Trump’s trade policy is causing farm input costs to rise even more.
October 22, 2025 12:07 PM
·
NCBA CEO Colin Woodall says more conversations need to occur with stakeholders present surrounding President Trump’s proposal to lower consumer beef prices with Argentinian imports.
October 22, 2025 11:53 AM
·
Bubba and Amy Miller run Miller Cattle Company in Eros, Louisiana. After visiting other homesteading fairs, they decided to put on their own.
October 21, 2025 02:28 PM
·
API said it stands ready to work with Congress to develop a balanced approach to E15 legislation that promotes fuel choice, supports investment certainty, and contributes to a stable and fair marketplace for American consumers.
October 21, 2025 12:39 PM
·
Lawmakers are pressing for answers on how Washington’s “managed trade” approach — keeping leverage through long-term tariffs — will affect farmers, global markets, and future export opportunities.
October 21, 2025 12:17 PM
·
In the meantime, Senate Majority Leader John Thune is asking that farmers be allowed to use marketing assistance loans to help stay afloat.
October 21, 2025 11:57 AM
·
Cattle groups say additional imports would offer little relief for consumers but could erode rancher confidence as the industry begins to rebuild herds.
October 21, 2025 11:06 AM
·
Bioethanol is becoming a global standard. For growers, that boom comes as drops in Mississippi River levels and in soybean demand occur in tandem, leaving barge space for corn and wheat.
October 20, 2025 01:32 PM
·
