ZHENGZHOU, March 15 (Xinhuanet) -- Chinese farmers are likely to plant less cotton and grow more wheat this year due to price factors.

According to a report from the Grain Wholesale Market in central China's Henan Province, the market said that the cotton-growing area is expected to decrease by 10 to 20 percent from lastyear's figure. In 2004, China planted 5.7 million hectares of cotton.

A survey launched recently in 55 counties of Henan Province asked 5,550 farmers in the province about crop sowing plan this year. According to the results, the total cotton-planting acreage in the province will decrease 16.5 percent to 800,000 hectares, the lowest in the past three years. Farmers reluctant to grow cotton complain about the unstable price of cotton and comparatively lower profit from cotton growing.

China's cotton sowing period extends from April to May.

China is the world's largest cotton producer and consumer. In 2004, China yielded a record high of 6.32 million tons of cotton output, up 30 percent.