Nigeria, Feb. 23 -- Nigeria's cotton market has witnessed a marginal rebound almost two years after the Central Bank of Nigeria blocked traders from having official access to forex for the importation of textiles into the country.

The volume of production and consumption of cotton in the country rose by at least 7.5 per cent in 2020 after the figures dipped in 2019, according to data from the United States Department Of Agriculture (USDA), analysed by PREMIUM TIMES.

The rise was a far cry from figures recorded between 2006 and 2011.

In 2006, cotton production reached 1.8 million tonnes while consumption stood at 1.7 million tonnes, the data show. Both fell to 920,000 metric tonnes and 690,000 metric tonnes respectively by 2014.

By 201...