Xinjiang to Build Fine Quality Cotton Yarn Production Base

The government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, northwest China, plans to build the region into China's fine cotton yarn production base in the next five years.

In accordance with the region's tenth five-year (2001-2005) development plan published recently, Xinjiang's industrial output value from textile industry will reach 6 billion yuan (US$723 million), with cotton yarn output increasing to 370,000 tons, and that of cotton cloth, 590 million meters. Export volume will reach 1.8 billion yuan (US$217 million).

Statistics show that the industrial output value of Xinjiang's textile industry reached 2.96 billion yuan (US$324 million) in 1999, accounting for 11 percent of the region's total and the export volume of textile industry amounted to 1.12 billion yuan (US$135 million).

Now 21 Xinjiang textile enterprises have been entitled the right to handle foreign trade themselves.

Xinjiang is the largest cotton producer in China. Last year, the region produced 1.4 million tons of cotton, about one third of the country's total.

People's Daily Online --- http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/