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Australia:Queensland Cotton returns improved result this year |
2004-9-16
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The results have shown marked improvement for 2004/05, confirmed Queensland Cotton.
The company said 476,000 bales had been ginned during the Australian ginning season, which exceeded expectations by 260,000 bales and was more than double the previous financial year''s volume.
Queensland Cotton chief executive officer Richard Haire attributed the boost in Australian ginning to an exceptional finish to the 2003/04 growing season and said he expected improved results in the following years.
"Specific improvements included the Darling Downs region, where Queensland Cotton ginned a near-record 288,000 bales, with our Cecil Plains gin producing 172,000 bales and our Dalby gin producing 116,000 bales," he said.
Mr Haire said current estimates put the 2003/04 Australian crop at approximately 1.53 million bales, giving Queensland Cotton a record 30 per cent market share of the national crop.
Queensland Cotton said that in anticipation of higher cotton production levels in coming seasons, its St George and Dirranbandi gins would re-open for the next ginning season.
It said growers would benefit from substantial upgrades to the St George gin, where the company would invest in excess of $2.0 million.
Queensland Cotton said its United States operations would start ginning this month, with the company expecting a 28 per cent increase in US ginning volumes over the previous financial year, which would deliver it a 16 per cent share of the western US market.
It said this increase was in part attributed to an 11 per cent increase in planted acreage in California and Arizona during the year. |
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