Cotton prices going down slightly

After experiencing an upward trend throughout last week, there was sudden change in the undertone of the market with willing sellers coming forward and the prices going down slightly on Tuesday.

Floor brokers said that the availability of quality lint is becoming difficult with each passing day and lower quality cotton is fetching lesser price. There are reports that very little phutti (seed cotton) is left in the cotton fields while the ginners’ stocks are also depleting fast.

Consequently, leading spinners are now largely depending on imports, with small- and medium-sized spinners being the only buyers in the domestic market.

The Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) left its spot rates unchanged at previous level, and trading on ready counter was moderate.

The following major transactions were reported to have changed hands on ready counter: 400 bales, Hasilpur, at Rs7,000 to Rs7,075; 600 bales, Shahdadpur, at Rs6,200; 600 bales, Shahdadpur (conditional), at Rs7,100; 1,000 bales, Daur (conditional), at Rs7,150; 200 bales, Lodhran, at Rs6,800; 200 bales, Tando Adam, at Rs6,000; 200 bales, Mianwali, at Rs7,200; 200 bales, Dera Ghazi, at 7,100; and 200 bales, Mian Channu, at Rs7,100.

On the global front, New York and other markets remained under pressure because of slower off-take of cotton and cotton yarn.

The weakening of Indian rupee against the US dollar put pressure on cotton prices. Similarly, New York cotton also moved lower due to slackness in cotton and cotton yarn demand. Chinese markets are presently closed for a week due to lunar year holidays.

With the world cotton markets remaining easy, the New York cotton finished with fresh falls for all future contracts.