Brazil Cotton Exports Hit Record 2.83 Mln T in 2024/25, Keep Top Spot Globally

Brazilian cotton exports in the 2024/25 marketing year hit a new record high. From August 2024 to July 2025, the country shipped 2.83 million tonnes of lint, representing a 6% increase from 2.68 million tonnes in the previous year.

With this, Brazil retained its position as the world’s largest cotton exporter, reaffirming the success of the Cotton Brazil program, created by the Brazilian Cotton Producers Association (Abrapa) in 2020 in partnership with the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) and supported by the National Cotton Exporters Association (Anea).
Through technical events, trade exchanges, and an advanced office in Singapore, Cotton Brazil promotes the product globally, strengthening ties between Brazilian producers and Asian buyers. “We grew in practically all priority countries.

This is a very positive sign that the strategy we adopted is delivering concrete results. If the goal is to remain the top exporter, we need to maintain and expand our actions,” said Abrapa president Gustavo Piccoli.
India, home to the world’s second-largest textile industry, was the fastest-growing buyer of Brazilian cotton in 2024/25, with imports up 1,777% from the previous cycle. Egypt, which began importing from Brazil only in 2023, raised purchases by 332%, followed by Pakistan (+200%). The only exception was China. The world’s largest cotton importer in 2023/24 cut its global purchases by 65% this season, including from Brazil, mainly due to a strong domestic harvest.

Abrapa attributes the growth in priority markets to Cotton Brazil’s global outreach. In 2024, the program carried out nine international missions—five in Asia, three in Europe, and one in Brazil (Buyer’s Mission, which brings importers to visit farms, gins, labs, and offices). In addition, the program’s technical meeting agenda spanned 16 countries, including China, India, Vietnam, Turkey, Egypt, and Bangladesh.
Participation in industry trade shows also helped strengthen ties with textile manufacturers, retailers, and governments.

This year, Cotton Brazil visited India and Pakistan in February, the UK, Belgium, and the U.S. in April, China and South Korea in May, and Turkey in June. In July, Brazil hosted delegations from buyers, industry leaders, executives, producers, and environmentalists from Australia, Bangladesh, China, Colombia, Spain, the U.S., Greece, India, Israel, Pakistan, Switzerland, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

“Building this network of contacts in key buying countries is crucial to understanding industry needs and building trust. At the same time, we bring partners to Brazil to see firsthand the quality of our production and the innovations we are implementing. This exchange is essential for us to evolve together and deliver what the market expects,” said Marcelo Duarte, Abrapa’s International Relations Director.

Top destinations
Vietnam led Brazilian cotton imports in 2024/25, accounting for 532,500 tonnes (19% of the total), followed by Pakistan (494,100 tonnes, 17%) and China (458,900 tonnes, 16%).

According to Duarte, who coordinates Cotton Brazil from its Singapore office, the results confirm the solid growth of Brazil’s cotton industry. “We are expanding our market in all buying countries. This diversity gives us greater autonomy and shows we still have room to grow,” he said. In terms of revenue, Brazilian exports totaled US$4.8 billion, down 6% from 2023/24.

“We surpassed the remarkable threshold of US$4 billion, which is worth celebrating, especially since the global market faced downward trends throughout the marketing year,” Duarte added. Another milestone was the record shipment volume in January 2025: 416,000 tonnes, compared to the monthly average of around 200,000 tonnes.

“This is clear evidence of Brazil’s logistics system evolution, as we overcame the 400,000-tonne barrier without setbacks. This provides more reliability and security for importers,” he said.

The Cotton Brazil program is carried out by Abrapa in partnership with ApexBrasil and supported by Anea.

Source: Agrolink

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