(Reuters) - China's state stockpiler said it had sold 40,119 tonnes of raw cotton in its first auction of the fibre since cutting the minimum bidding price as it looks to offload its massive reserves.

China sold nearly 80 percent of the 50,179 tonnes of cotton offered in its daily auction on Tuesday, the China National Cotton Reserves Corporation said in a statement late on Tuesday.

Cotton markets around the world are watching closely as China unwinds a stockpiling scheme under which it has amassed more than 10 million tonnes of the fibre - around 60 percent of global cotton inventories.