PUNE : Cotton exports from the country are likely to touch seven million bales this marketing year started October 2017, up about 27 per cent from the earlier estimate, due to a surge in demand, particularly from China, as Indian cotton is selling at discount.

“Indian cotton is trading at huge discount not seen in many years. A lot of export inquires are coming mainly because of the discounts,” said Naveen Chaurasia, vice president at Olam Agro India , a Gurgaon-headquartered agricultural products exporter and distributor.

With Indian cotton selling at discounts of 7-10 cents per pound, there is demand for all qualities of cotton, traders said. Traders have exported more than 1.5 lakh bales of cotton to China during last 10 days as China took counter actions after the US imposed trade restrictions on the Asian giant. “We started getting inquiries right from the day the news of US taxes on China was announced,” said Atul Ganatra, president of Cotton Association of India (CAI).