March 24 (Reuters) -

* China Grain Reserves Group Ltd, known as Sinograin, sees the country's cotton output totalling 5.95 million tonnes in 2020/21, the official Xinhua news agency said on Wednesday.

* The number is slightly higher than a 5.91 million tonnes forecast for the September-August crop year from China's agriculture ministry earlier this month and up from an estimated 5.8 million tonnes in 2019/20.

* With China's total cotton demand in 2020/21 set to reach 7.8 million tonnes, there will be an annual supply deficit of about 1.85 million tonnes, Xinhua said on social media platform Weibo, citing Sinograin.

* Top cotton consumer China has "expanded its import channels and strengthened cooperation with important cotton-producing countries such as Brazil and India to ensure stability of the domestic cotton supply chain," it added.

* Cotton from Xinjiang, which has been banned by the United States amid allegations of forced labour denied by Beijing, is seen at 5.2 million tonnes in 2020/21, accounting for 87% of China's total production, Xinhua added. (Reporting by Tom Daly)

© Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021.