KARACHI: Chairperson of the Businessmen Group (BMG) Zubair Motiwala and President of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Muhammad Rehan Hanif on Saturday expressed grave concern over the continued closure and sealing of the historic Karachi Cotton Exchange (KCE) building on II Chundrigar Road, warning of its damaging impact on the cotton trade and Pakistan’s wider cotton economy.
In a joint statement, Motiwala and Hanif said the prolonged sealing of the building by federal authorities, following a joint operation by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) over disputed ownership claims, has disrupted the core functioning of the formal cotton market.
For the first time in 52 years, they said, the Karachi Cotton Association has been unable to issue its daily cotton spot rates -- the key benchmark for pricing in Pakistan’s cotton market. The absence of the daily spot rate has already created significant uncertainty among banks, insurers, ginners, textile mills, brokers, exporters and importers, stalling transactions and undermining confidence across the cotton value chain at a critical time.
The BMG chairperson and the KCCI president said the closure of the KCA building and the interruption of its price discovery mechanism was not merely a localised operational issue but carried systemic implications for Pakistan’s entire cotton economy, which supports thousands of farmers, traders, ginners, textile enterprises and allied sectors.
They warned that the lack of a daily spot rate was disrupting credit flows, stock valuation and international trade representation, with knock-on effects on growth, employment and foreign exchange earnings.
Calling for the protection of the cotton market’s integrity and the welfare of Pakistan’s vital cotton-textile sector, they urged the relevant federal and provincial authorities to urgently engage with the Karachi Cotton Association and all stakeholders to restore the building’s operations.
