At least it is in the U.S. South. While production increased last year in Pakistan and Brazil, USDA predicts that most of the increase in global production in 2024/25 will be due to the expansion in U.S. output. The area under production is forecast to expand by 8 percent. Production in India and China, the two largest consumers, will again drop. With 95 percent of the cotton production in China in the controversial Xinjiang province, output is dropping by Middle Kingdom textiles manufacturing is increasing.    World consumption of cotton will rise 3.1 percent, its highest in 3 years. And while production this year will increase 900,000 bales more than demand, the stocks-to-use ratio for cotton will fall from 74.5 percent to 72.9...