Purchases in the first week of China’s cotton auctions are already well ahead of total sales for 2015. Pro Farmer’s First Thing Today reports that in the first week of daily cotton auctions that began May third, China sold 120,350 metric tons of the fiber. The sales, which largely entailed imported supplies, equated to nearly the entire amount put up for sale in 2015 and have already nearly doubled last year’s total sales. USDA says this indicates a critical shortage of high-grade cotton for China’s textile sector. China plans to auction two million metric tons of cotton between May and August. China will likely raise the daily sales rate of 30,000 metric tonnes, according to the USDA office in China, as China appears buyers are welcoming this year’s offer price.