Turkey: Cotton and Products Update
The MY 2016 Turkish cotton crop now estimated at 425,000 hectares and 700,000 MT (3.2 million bales); up about 20 percent compared to last crop year. Even though minor replanting was necessary in the Aegean and GAP regions, ample irrigation water and high quality seeds used in recent years affected yields positively. Presently, the crop is developing very well with no major insect attack, pushing yields higher in all regions. Domestic cotton consumption for MY 2015 was about 1.47 MMT (6.7 million bales), in spite of the narrowing export opportunities due to due to political problems in the export markets. The Government of Turkey (GOT) has finalized the antidumping investigation on U.S. cotton and applied a three percent antidumping duty on U.S. cotton imports starting from April 2016. Total cotton imports during the first eleven months of MY 2015 were 857,000 MT (3.9 million bales) of which 300,000 MT (1.37 million bales) were U.S. cotton.