Dec. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Pakistan, the fourth-largest grower of cotton, may buy as much as one million bales through state- run Trading Corp. to support prices, the spokesman for the countryΆs ginnersΆ group said today.

“Our group is meeting the prime minister today to settle the details of the deal,” Arshad Islam, spokesman for Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association, said in a phone interview from Karachi. “We are expecting to sell one million bales and above. The last time the government bought from us was in 2005, when they bought 1.6 million bales.”

Cotton prices in Pakistan have declined 42 percent in the financial year started July 1, tracking weak international rates as demand from China waned and global production rose. Cotton in New York has tumbled 59 percent since reaching a record $2.197 per pound on March 7.

Pakistan is hoping to grow 12.7 million bales in the year that began July 1 on better yields, the association said on Dec. 13. This is higher than the 12.2 million bales estimated by the government in October. A bale in Pakistan weighs 170 kilograms (375 pounds).