Egypt's cotton exports have fallen by 26.8 percent to 232 metric tons during the period from March to May 2012, down from 317 metric tons in the previous agricultural season, according to a quarterly report by the Central Agency for Public Mobility and Statistics.
CAPMAS attributed the drop to rising world cotton prices that are impacting the local rate.
Between March and May of this year, 353 metric tons of Egyptian cotton were consumed on the local market, down by 39 percent from 577 metric tons during the same period last year.
The report blamed the waning local consumption of Egyptian cotton on the decreasing production capacity of spinning plants, brought on by the current economic instability.
Egyptians consumed 2.3 metric tons of imported cotton during March-May 2012, down by 89.9 percent from 21.8 metric tons in March-May 2011.
