Cotton prices
 

Just saw on the news that India has banned all cotton exports, that means fabric prices will probably be going up again. Good excuse to stock up ladies !!!

I just heard on the radio that cotton in this country is facing a weed that no weed-killer will kill. Apparently it has mutated to the point where it is resistant to herbicides. Not good news for cotton farmers.

And not good for fabric buyers.

And not good for fabric buyers.

Ladies .. the futures market on cotton had fallen to approx .94 per pound .. at one time it had hit an all time high of 2.21 per pound..... It will not be a 4 percent increase ( that is the market impact of India's ban currently) as the futures will still be trading well below the historical spike...And the raw cost of cotton actually only impacts a percentage of the costs. Just my opinion the most relevant indicator to watch is oil as it impacts all of the full cycle of our quilt goods .. from farm costs, manufacturing, fertilizers, all of the various points of transportion throughout the process... till it finally hits our cutting room tables.
But if you really feel like you needed a reason to aquire more... than this is as viable an excuse as any.

Oh, Lori, you're such an enabler!

I think you're right about oil prices as being a major factor in the cost of goods. Not just fabric, but everything else that we buy.

It's when I see threads like this one that I really long for the "good ol' days".......I used to live next door to a cotton field!

I love this, Lori S., discussion of futures and markets and what is the relevant product effecting the price of fabrics. This is awesome! Personally, I question if any prices are going down.

Once they go up, they never seem to come back down, at least not to where they were before.

Only about 15% of wholesale fabric cost is determined by the price of raw cotton. A lot of the rest of the cost is in petroleum and labor. Labor costs in China, where most of the weaving is done, are up substantially, and likewise in So. Korea and Japan, where much of the fine fabric is printed. Labor costs are also up substantially in Indonesia, where many of the batiks are made. Likewise there are huge increases in the cost of dyes, most of which are made from petroleum products. Finally, there are a lot of transportation costs connected with getting the fabric from the cotton in the field to the finished product on your sewing machine.

Think of all the steps involved and the transport involved, and you'll see why petroleum costs are the largest factor in driving higher fabric prices.