Chinese Cotton Crops Impacted by Extreme Heat Wave
August 15, 2013 Cotton output in China may drop this year amid a deadly heat wave across much of the country, Bloomberg reports.
The Hangzhou, Chongqing, and Fuzhou provinces across the center of the nation are experiencing temperatures regularly above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) while Shanghai is expected to reach 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius). These extreme conditions have killed at least 11 people since July.
Even cotton, which is generally regarded as a heat-tolerant plant, will be negatively affected by the extreme climate conditions. Cotton plants across the Yangtze River basin are becoming dryer, causing bud shedding, according to a report by broker INTL FCStone.
Li Qiang, managing director at Shanghai JC, said any losses will be negligible, though, due to oversupply in the country. China is expected to harvest 7.22 million metric tonnes in the 12 months that start Aug. 1, more than the 7.05 million forecast in June. Global production will exceed demand by 2.14 million tons, or 5% more than forecast last month.
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