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Brazil Cotton Growers Seek $372 Million Aid to Support Prices 
Brazilian cotton producers urged the government to spend 800 million reais ($372 million) in subsidies to support cotton prices as a global slowdown cuts consumption and prices, an industry official said.
Growers asked the Agriculture Ministry to ensure they receive 44.6 reais per arroba, or 1.35 real per pound, said Sergio de Marco, the head of a cotton association that includes growers and government officials. The subsidy would be enough to cover about 65 percent of Brazil’s total cotton crop, he said.
Cotton growers are seeking assistance as prices for the commodity trade at about 1.17 real a pound, 13 percent below the minimum price for government purchases and lower than production costs, de Marco said today in a telephone interview from Sao Paulo.
“The government signaled it will help the sector, but we still don’t know how much it will offer,” de Marco said after attending an event with Agriculture Minister Reinhold Stephanes.
Brazilian cotton growers this year cut by 21 percent the amount of land planted for the commodity and may reduce it further if prices stay down and the government fails to intervene, said Haroldo Cunha, the head of Brazilian Cotton Association.
“Growers are migrating from cotton to soybeans seeking higher yields,” Cunha said in a telephone interview from Sao Paulo.
De Marco said he expects the government to hold three auctions for cotton growers starting in May.
Brazil is the fifth-biggest cotton producer and the fourth-biggest exporter.

                            巴西棉花种植者寻求3.72亿美元援助
      由于经济放缓造成消费和价格下降，巴西棉花生产商敦促政府划拨8亿雷亚尔（约3.72亿美元）的补贴来支持棉花价格，一名官员说。
      种植者要求农业部确保他们每阿罗瓦获得44.6的补贴，或每磅1.35雷亚尔，塞尔吉奥 德 马尔科说，他是包括种植者和政府官员的巴西棉花协会的主席。他说，补贴将覆盖约65%的巴西棉花的总产量。
      棉花种植者请求协助，因为棉花交易价格在大约1.17雷亚尔每磅，比政府收购的低价还低13%，低于生产成本， 德马尔科今天在圣保罗接受电视采访时说。
      “政府暗示他将帮助该部门，但我们仍然不知道它会提供多少，”德马尔科与农业部部长Reinhold Stephanes一起出席一项活动时说 。
      巴西棉花种植者今年削减了百分之二十一的数量面积，如果棉价进一步下跌并且政府不干预的话，棉商有可能进一步降低种植面积，Haroldo Cunha，巴西棉花协会主席说。
      “棉花种植者现在改种大豆以寻求更高的收益， ”库尼亚说在圣保罗接受电话采访时说。
      德马尔科预计政府从5月开始将为棉花种植者举行三次大拍卖。巴西是第五大棉花生产国和第四大棉花出口国。