Vietnam: Cotton and Products Update

Despite negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam’s spinning mills have successfully managed their operations and captured China’s increasing demand for cotton yarn. Vietnam’s cotton yarn exports to China in marketing year (MY) 2020/21 increased 13 percent to 984 TMT year on year. Vietnam’s cotton imports also increased 12 percent in MY 2020/21 to meet with the larger production and exports, reaching roughly 7.3 million bales [or 1.59 million metric tons (MMT)]. However, U.S. cotton exports to Vietnam in MY20/21 decreased 20 percent in volume, to 673 thousand metric tons (TMT), due to larger purchases from China and tough competition from Brazil and Australia. Post estimates that Vietnam’s cotton imports for MY21/22 to increase 7 percent over the previous year, to 7.8 million bales or about 1.7 MMT.