Editorial: Local cotton exports are very welcome
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / May 21, 2007China's purchase of $400 million of West Texas cotton - with the intent to buy more in the future - is fantastic news for our region.
Agriculture has long been the backbone of our local economy. Yes, we have manufacturing and medicine and other industries here, but the importance of agriculture is crucial, and the opening of a huge market for the region's key crop is very exciting.
A delegation representing the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Textiles traveled to Austin to announce the huge purchase. Wang Shenyang, chairman of the chamber and head of the delegation, said they hope to import more Texas cotton in the future.
A recent study by the Cotton Economics Research Institute at Texas Tech indicates worldwide demand for cotton is expected to grow by 20 million bales. That is going to have an enormously positive effect on the cotton market.
China is a huge cotton producer itself - to the tune of about 26 million bales a year. However, that amounts to only about half of its textile industry's annual need of 50 million bales. It is the largest cotton importer in the world, according to Roger Haldenby, vice president of operations for Plains Cotton Growers Inc.
The cotton exports from West Texas will help offset the United States' annual trade imbalance with China, which is a significant consideration.
Also, Rep. David Swinford, R-Dumas, noted China's big purchase establishes that our cotton has the quality the world wants.
The cotton West Texans so often see growing in fields in our area will soon be shipped to an important new market. It is an exciting new development for the South Plains' most important crop.
On the Internet: An article about China's interest in West Texas cotton can be found on The Avalanche-Journal Web site at: www.lubbockonline.com/stories/051207/loc_051207051.shtml
Davis College NewsCenter
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