Global Cotton Inventories Can Be 100 Billion T-Shirts.

By the end of 2015, the US Department of Agriculture said that global cotton stocks were "extremely high". They estimate that by the middle of 2016, nearly 50 billion pounds of cotton (480 pounds, one pack, and 104 million packets) will be stored in warehouses around the world.

U.S.A

The association points out that these cotton stocks are enough to make about 127 billion T-shirts and distribute them to 17 residents on this planet.

Obviously, in the next twelve months, we won't be needing so many T-shirts, nor can we need so many sheets, towels, jeans or any other cotton fabrics.

The Ministry of Agriculture said that the current cotton inventory is equivalent to 94% of the total cotton consumption in the world, more than two times the average from 1980 to 2010.

"The scale of cotton in warehouses is amazing."

Stephen MacDonald, a senior economist at the Ministry of agriculture, explained to Quartz that the last time the stock consumption ratio was so high was at the end of the Second World War, when the US government rewarded cotton growers with encouragement, while the development of textile production in peacetime had not yet begun.

So, how did this happen?

The answer is largely in China.

In 2011 and 2013, China implemented the reserve plan, and once the price falls below the lowest level, it is directly purchased by the state.

Why is China, or any other country, willing to hoard so many cotton? There are several possibilities.

In China, such a plan is a price support mechanism for cotton farmers.

It not only ensures the minimum income of China's cotton farmers, but also creates an artificially tight supply, which has objectively promoted the rise of cotton prices at the global level.

After that, China abandoned such a plan, but a large number of stocks are still there.

According to the International Cotton Advisory Council data, by 2014, China's cotton

It accounts for nearly 60% of the world's total.

Most of the time, commodity hoarding people will wait patiently and sell them at a higher price.

But for today's cotton, this is an expensive and dangerous game.

Storage itself is also money, and cotton may not be as bad as grain, but for a long time, quality is also a problem.

"Cotton storage for such a long time is clearly not a good thing."

Macdonald pointed out that in reality, supply is more than demand, so the cotton in the warehouse can not be sold.

This is also largely due to the growing popularity of polyester, nylon, spandex and so on.

All of this is squeezing cotton space in our clothing and all the products around us.