US cotton output this year is forecast at nearly 12 per cent above the final 2016 estimate.Area for both upland and extra-long staple cotton is forecast to expand in 2017. For the upcoming season, upland acreage is projected higher in each of the cotton belt regions.

The southwest upland area is estimated at 7.4 million acres, above last year’s six million acres. The southwest is forecast to account for 62 per cent of the upland area in 2017. Cotton acreage in the southeast is expected to approach 2.5 million acres in 2017, nearly 14 per cent above last season.

In the delta, 2017 cotton area is forecast to increase for the second consecutive season to 1.8 million acres. The delta is expected to account for 15 per cent of the US upland acreage in 2017. In the west, improved irrigation supplies for the 2017 spring-planted crops—in addition to favorable prices—are expected to boost cotton area there.

US cotton harvested area for 2017 is projected at nearly 11.4 million acres, 20 per cent above the 2016 estimate of 9.5 million acres. The national yield is projected at 810 pounds per harvested acre and is based on the 2012-16 crop average yields, weighted by region.