BEIJING: China, the world's top cotton consumer, imported 378,200 tonnes of the fibre in November, a rise of 199.6 percent from a year.

The November figure brings the country's total imports in the first 11 months to 2.57 million tonnes, up 8.4 percent year on year, the data showed.

China increased imports after global cotton prices fell sharply from record high levels early in the year. New York cotton futures finished at a 16-month low on Monday on expectation of lower global demand amid recession fears.

Import growth was largely driven by government purchases for state reserves. Analysts estimate that Beijing has bought between 800,000 and 1 million tonnes to refill depleted reserves.

The government has also been stockpiling domestic cotton to shore up prices and protect farmers.

By Monday, China National Cotton Reserves Corp had purchased a total of 1.43 million tonnes of a domestic harvest estimated at 7.2-7.6 million tonnes this year. The company said it had capacity to store as much as 4.1 million tonnes of cotton.