Cotton Rallies into the Weekend

Cotton futures were in rally mode on Friday, with contracts up 228 to 275 points and nearing the 3 cent limit. In delivery May (where no limits apply), was up 457 points on the session. The rally back on Friday limited to the weekly losses for July to just 39 points. Crude oil prices were under pressure, down 80 cents as thoughts of a further OPEC output increase are gaining steam. The US dollar index was down $0.189 to $99.840Commitment of Traders data from Friday afternoon showed a total of 11,206 contracts cut back from the spec net short position to 26,231 contacts by Tuesday.Export commitments for cotton have totaled 10.968 million RB, a 4% drop from the same period last year. That is now 108% of the USDA export forecast, and ahead of the 106% average sales pace. The Thursday online auction from The Seam showed sales of 1,752 bales at an average price of 66.20 cents/lb. The Cotlook A Index was down 50 points on Thursday at 77.50. ICE cotton stocks were up 99 bales on new certifications on May 1 with a certified stocks level of 14,577 bales. USDA’s Adjusted World Price (AWP) was up 6 points on Thursday afternoon to 54.94 cents/lb. It is in effect through next Thursday.May 25 Cotton closed at 70.18, up 457 points,Jul 25 Cotton closed at 68.41, up 275 points,Dec 25 Cotton closed at 69.71, up 228 points On the date of publication, Austin Schroeder did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.