Abdukarim Hikmatov, Tajikistan\'s deputy minister of industry, told Asia Plus-Blitz on May 18 that high domestic cotton prices are hurting Tajik producers. \"If one month ago a ton of cotton was sold for $948 to both domestic and foreign producers, the price has now gone up $109 for domestic producers,\" Hikmatov said. Hikmatov said that the price increase, which was intended to ease the debt burden on cotton growers, has put domestic textile producers at a disadvantage. Hikmatov also noted that only 12.4 percent of the cotton Tajikistan produces is processed into manufactured goods in Tajikistan, while the remainder is exported for manufacturing outside the country. He said that the pricing problem, which resulted from a decision by the Agriculture Ministry and the Antimonopoly Agency, must be resolved in a fashion that does not impact domestic producers negatively. (Asia Plus-Blitz)