Cotton production continues to decline; national total output in 2015 was 5.605 million tons

Data on national cotton output published by the National Bureau of Statistics show that in 2015 the national total cotton output was 5.605 million tons, a decrease of 574,000 tons from 2014, down 9.3%.

The decline in cotton output was mainly due to a reduction in area. In 2015 the national cotton sown area was 3,799.0 thousand hectares (56.984 million mu), a decrease of 423.4 thousand hectares (6.351 million mu) from 2014, down 10.0%; the reduction in sown area cut output by 619,000 tons. By region, the cotton sown area in Xinjiang decreased by 49.0 thousand hectares (735,000 mu) from 2014, down 2.5%; other regions decreased by 374.4 thousand hectares (5.616 million mu), down 16.5%, a larger decline than the previous year.

By region, the major cotton areas in the Yellow River and Yangtze River basins saw relatively large output declines. Among them, the cotton area in the Yellow River basin decreased by 182.9 thousand hectares (2.744 million mu), down 14.8%; yield per hectare decreased by 30.5 kg (2.03 kg/mu), down 2.8%; total output decreased by 231,000 tons, down 17.2%. The cotton area in the Yangtze River basin decreased by 170.5 thousand hectares (2.558 million mu), down 17.8%; however, yield per hectare increased by 63.3 kg (4.2 kg/mu), up 5.8%, resulting in a total output decrease of 136,000 tons, down 13.1%.

Xinjiang's position as the main producing area was further consolidated. In 2015 Xinjiang's cotton output was 3.503 million tons, accounting for 62.5% of the national total, 3.0 percentage points higher than in 2014, further enhancing the locational advantages of cotton production. Among them, Xinjiang's cotton sown area accounted for 50.1% of the national total, up 3.9 percentage points; yield per hectare was 1,839.6 kg (122.6 kg/mu), 24.6% higher than the national average.