The prices of lint and raw cotton plunged due to demand for cotton dropping on Friday as arrivals improved. The price of Gujarat Sankar-6 cotton decreased by Rs 200 to Rs 42,800-43,000 for a candy of 356 kg. Though sellers demanded Rs 43,500 a candy, buyers were not ready to purchase at this price. Kapas, or raw cotton, declined Rs 10 to Rs 1,080-1,125 for a maund of 20 kg in Rajkot.

About 55,000 bales of cotton arrived in Gujarat against 35,000 bales at the beginning of this week. A Rajkot-based cotton broker said that buyers are out of the market at this price level and are looking to further fall in prices.

According to the Cotton Association of India, cotton production in the country is estimated to increase 5 per cent to 376 lakh bales of 170 kg each during the current season ending September. Cotton arrivals in the country till December 2013 increased by 16.8 per cent to 119.7 lakh bales compared with 102.5 lakh bales during the same period a year ago.

Cotton price is likely to see a downward trend in coming days.