Yesterday, the ICE cotton December contract settled at 71.26 cents per pound (0.453 kg), up by 0.64 cents. Earlier, it had hit its lowest level since September 18 on Tuesday.

The US dollar strengthened as investors speculated that the Federal Reserve would not implement a significant rate cut in its next meeting. Additionally, speculation regarding the potential re-election of Donald Trump contributed to the dollar's strength.

The trading volume reached 32,929 contracts, slightly higher than the 30,813 contracts cleared the previous day. As of October 15, ICE's No. 2 cotton futures contract inventory remained unchanged at 174 bales.

With around 30 per cent of the US cotton crop harvested, the reduced selling pressure from hedgers allowed traders to start buying as prices dropped to sufficiently low levels. However, analysts predict continued volatility with a downward trend in the market.

While there were some speculations of improved US crop conditions, they did not have any significant negative impact on cotton prices. Traders are now waiting for the export sales report due today to gauge the demand situation.

Currently, ICE cotton for December 2024 is trading at 70.82 cents per pound, down 0.44 cents. Cash cotton is trading at 65.76 cents (up 0.64 cents), the March 2025 contract at 72.91 cents per pound (down 0.43 cents), the May 2025 contract at 74.35 cents (down 0.44 cents), the July 2025 contract at 75.26 cents (down 0.44 cents), and the October 2025 contract at 74.00 cents (up 0.64 cents). A few contracts remained unchanged, with no trading activity today.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)