The latest data from the General Administration of Customs shows that in the early part of 2026, China's imports of cotton and cotton yarn increased significantly year-on-year, and there are clear signs of a recovery in market demand. 

The import of cotton has shown a trend of first increasing and then decreasing: In January, the import was 210,000 tons, with a month-on-month increase of 18.0% and a year-on-year increase of 38.5%; In February, the import was 170,000 tons, with a month-on-month decrease of 19.1% and a year-on-year increase of 44.1%. The cumulative import for January to February was 370,000 tons, with a year-on-year increase of 41.0%; Since the 2025/26 fiscal year, the cumulative cotton import has been 870,000 tons, with a year-on-year increase of 16.0%. 

Import of cotton yarn has been increasing steadily: 160,000 tons were imported in January, 130,000 tons in February, and the cumulative import for January-February was approximately 290,000 tons, representing a year-on-year growth of 40.2%. The cumulative import of cotton yarn for the 2025/26 fiscal year was 880,000 tons, with a year-on-year increase of 23.94%. The recovery of domestic and foreign demand has driven the continuous rise in raw material imports. 

The textile enterprises purchase raw materials as needed. Their orders are mainly aimed at disposing of the old stock of cotton.

At present, the purchasing sentiment of cotton textile enterprises is relatively cautious. Cotton textile factories and middlemen mostly adopt the approach of buying as needed and replenishing inventory based on orders. The market activity is not very active. 

Due to the significant price advantage of the Chen cotton in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 fiscal years, most domestic sales orders prefer to use Chen cotton for blending; only a few high-value-added and high-profit domestic and foreign sales orders use a combination of high-priced new cotton from the 2025/26 fiscal year. 

The market outlook is cautiously optimistic and the room for price increases is relatively limited. 

Multiple factors have constrained the significant increase in the price of long-staple cotton, and the market has raised prices in a relatively restrained manner. On one hand, the planting area of long-staple cotton in the three major production areas of Aksu, Bashi, and Kashgar is expected to increase year-on-year in 2026, and the supply-side pressure is gradually emerging; on the other hand, the shipment of high-count combed and plain combed yarns has slowed down, and the new orders in the traditional "Golden March and Silver April" peak season may be lower than expected. In addition, the inventory of old cotton still needs to be digested, and the quotations of ginning mills and traders have been raised cautiously. 

Overall, the current cotton market is characterized by high import growth, stable rising spot prices, and cautious demand from the downstream sector. In the short term, the price will mainly undergo moderate adjustments. In the future, it is necessary to pay close attention to the fulfillment of downstream orders and the progress of old cotton inventory reduction. 

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