MUMBAI, Oct 22 (Reuters) - India's cotton production in 2024/25 is likely to fall by 7.4% from a year ago to 30.2 million bales because of lower area and as excessive rainfall damaged the crop, a leading trade body said on Tuesday.

Lower production will reduce exports from the world's second biggest cotton producer in the current marketing year started on Oct. 1 and force the country to increase imports, supporting global prices .

India's cotton imports are likely to rise to 2.5 million bales in the new year from 1.75 million bales a year ago, the Cotton Association of India (CAI) said in a statement.

The country's exports are expected to fall to 1.8 million bales from 2.85 million bales a year ago, the CAI said.

The country's production is declining mainly due to a substantial reduction in the planted area, which fell to 11.29 million hectares from 12.69 million hectares a year ago, said Atul Ganatra, president of CAI.

Farmers in the western state of Gujarat, the country's leading cotton producer, reduced the area under cotton to make space for groundnuts, which offered better returns, traders said.

India's cotton demand in 2024/25 is likely to remain steady at last year's level of 31.3 million bales, he said.

(1 bale= 170 kg)