The Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) is securing cotton supplies from the United States following an increase in the price of the raw material on the international market which exceeded US$1 per pound for the first time in almost a decade. Director of the Textile, Leather and Footwear Industry of the Ministry of Industry Elis Masitoh said domestic cotton importers have cooperated with US exporters regarding the supply of cotton for garment needs.

 "We are negotiating so that supply remains smooth, so that it also supports garments in the United States so that it becomes a kind of barter," said Elis, Wednesday (10/13/2021).

Elis said the Ministry of Industry is also exploring opportunities to supply cotton from a number of exporters in India and Vietnam to meet the needs of the domestic industry. It's just that, he said, the national textile industry has been taking raw materials from China because of low prices.

"Indonesia takes a lot of cotton from Xinjiang because the price is cheap, like it or not, now we want to look to other cotton producers, for example India or Vietnam if you want to sell the cotton, not just for your own needs," he said.

Earlier, cotton futures shot past $1 a pound for the first time in nearly a decade as bad weather and shipping bottlenecks threatened supply, driving up clothing costs around the world. In New York, the contract for delivery in December 2021 rose to $1.005 a pound, the highest since November 2011.

Tuesday (28/9/2021), cotton prices have jumped 28 percent so far this year due to tight demand, especially from China, coupled with supply disruptions due to the pandemic and logistical chaos triggered by rising shipping costs.

The higher the price of fiber means the cost of making clothes will increase. Retailers may try to pass these costs on to customers, resulting in inflation for everything from T-shirts to jeans. This can curb demand and squeeze margins for apparel makers like Levi Strauss & Co.