U.S. Cotton: Futures Close Mixed on Wednesday

Barchart: Cotton futures ended Wednesday mixed, with the front months up 15 to 21 points and the deferred contracts down 2 to 35 points. Crude oil and the U.S. dollar both moved higher. In the cash market, The Seam reported 675 bales sold on October 13 at an average of 74.80 cents/lb, while the Cotlook A Index rose 10 points to 91.25 cents. ICE certified stocks were unchanged at 17,756 bales, and the Adjusted World Price fell another 135 points last week to 63.81 cents/lb. December closed at 80.66 cents (+15), March at 84.00 (+17) and May at 85.69 (+21).
Source: Barchart

U.S. Cotton: December Fails at Its Highs as CPI Lifts the Dollar

Calcot: December rallied to an intraday high of 82.25 cents around the release of the September U.S. Consumer Price Index, but retreated quickly to settle at 80.66 cents (+15), keeping the market in its seventh straight sideways session. Headline inflation rose to 3.7% year on year, above expectations, reviving speculation about another Fed rate hike and pushing the dollar index to an 18-month intraday high, a headwind for export-dependent markets. Crude oil gained about 1% for a fifth straight higher close amid Middle East supply concerns. Open interest set its 21st all-time record at 395,640 contracts, and the Dec/March spread widened to a record 334 points March premium. November options expire on Friday.
Source: Calcot

Spain: Cotton Area at a Record Low, but Output Seen Higher on Better Yields

USDA FAS (Madrid): Spanish cotton area for 2026/27 is forecast at 45,600 hectares, a new all-time low and down more than 2% on the year, as disappointing farm-gate prices and rising input costs pushed growers toward less input-intensive sunflower; area peaked at 66,100 ha in 2019/20. Ample winter and spring rainfall has secured irrigation water in the Guadalquivir basin of Andalucía, where virtually all Spanish cotton is grown, so seed cotton production is forecast up 7% to about 120,700 tonnes, or 193,000 lint bales, with yields at 914 kg/ha. Weather and localized pest pressure, particularly from Earias, could still trim the crop. Spain exports nearly 90% of its lint; 2025/26 exports topped 40,000 tonnes, led by Pakistan. Greece remains the EU’s largest grower, with Spain accounting for just over 20% of EU output.
Source: USDA FAS

Brazil: Now 34% of World Cotton Trade

Revista Cultivar: Brazil now accounts for 34% of global cotton trade, up from 7% less than a decade ago, according to the National Association of Cotton Exporters (Anea), which presented its figures in Istanbul ahead of the ICA Trade Event. Exports reached 3.374 million tonnes in 2025/26, 73% more than in 2019/20, earning US$5.3 billion, and Anea projects about 3.4 million tonnes for 2026/27. China took 23% of shipments, followed by Bangladesh (17%), Turkey (13%), and Pakistan and Vietnam (12% each); monthly shipments averaged 279,000 tonnes and peaked at 452,000 tonnes in December. Abrapa puts 2025/26 lint output at 4.144 million tonnes (−2.5%) from about 2 million hectares (−8%), with a record yield of 2,076 kg/ha, and expects 3.8–4.4 million tonnes in 2026/27, while monitoring El Niño risk and higher input prices.
Source: Revista Cultivar

China: CCA Raises Crop Estimate to 7.26 Million Tonnes

CCFGroup: The China Cotton Association’s September survey puts 2026 production at 7.263 million tonnes, down 2.0% from last year but 109,000 tonnes above its previous estimate, with planted area down 2.5% at 43.69 million mu and yield up 0.5% at 166.2 kg/mu. By September 30, 17.3% of the crop had been picked, 12.2 points ahead of last year, and 12.6% had been sold. The average seed cotton price was 7.4 yuan/kg, up 16.9% from a year earlier; in Xinjiang machine-picked seed cotton traded mostly at 7.3–7.5 yuan/kg and hand-picked at 8.1–8.3 yuan/kg. Lower output, higher planting costs and firm cotton prices lifted new-crop opening prices above last year’s levels, while mid-to-late September rain in the Yangtze basin hurt quality and slowed harvest.
Source: CCFGroup

Brazil: Cotton Pesticide Market Grows 14% to a Record

Revista Cultivar: Spending on crop protection products for Brazilian cotton hit a record R$8.217 billion (US$1.478 billion) in 2025/26, up 14% in reais and 10% in dollars, according to Kynetec’s FarmTrak Cotton study. The increase came from both more applications (+13%) and a higher average cost per application (+21%); the total treated area, counting every application, rose 6% to 209 million hectares. Insecticides made up half the market (R$4.1 billion, +14%), mainly against boll weevil, which required an average of 18 applications per farm and cost about R$2 billion, while caterpillar control rose 15% to R$928 million. Fungicides posted the fastest growth (+19%, R$1.98 billion) and herbicides rose 6.3% to R$1.14 billion.
Source: Revista Cultivar

Togo: Cotton Farmers Turn to Regenerative Agriculture

African Trade Chamber: Togo’s cotton company NSCT, with support from Olam Agri, has been promoting regenerative practices since 2023 to tackle soil degradation, erratic rainfall and rising costs. Average yields have risen from 570 kg/ha four years ago to more than 1 tonne/ha in 2025/26, with some field-school participants reporting 1.4–2 t/ha, although the exact role of regenerative practices is hard to isolate. In the latest season 40 farmer field schools were set up, more than 37,000 farmers were trained in zero tillage and 36,650 in crop rotation. Cotton provides about 20% of Togo’s export earnings, involves nearly 79,000 growers and generated about US$50 million in raw cotton exports in 2024. Water shortages, insecure land tenure and labor costs remain obstacles.
Source: African Trade Chamber

Pakistan: Cotton Arrivals Up 5.4% by End-September

Fibre2Fashion: Seed cotton arrivals at Pakistani gins reached 3.21 million bales (of 170 kg) by September 30, up 5.39% on the year, according to the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association. Punjab rose 6.91% to 1.22 million bales and Sindh 4.48% to 1.99 million bales, accounting for 62% of the total. Of the 2.82 million bales sold, domestic mills bought 2.73 million, and unsold stocks fell to 385,000 bales from 540,000 a year earlier. However, arrivals slowed in the second half of September to 820,000 bales against 1.04 million last year, and 459 gins were operating compared with 501.
Source: Fibre2Fashion

U.S. Cotton: Diesel Tax Relief Welcomed by Growers

Cotton Grower: The National Cotton Council welcomed President Trump’s executive order deferring the federal excise tax on dyed diesel used on-road through year-end and taking steps to secure fuel supplies during periods of peak demand. NCC Chairman Nathan Reed said farm diesel prices have doubled since January, adding almost $40 per acre in costs for cotton growers, especially at harvest time.
Source: Cotton Grower

The article summaries were generated using ΑΙ.