Oct 21, 2010 (Dow Jones Commodities News via Comtex) -- 1449 EDT [Dow Jones] - Cotton futures rose Thursday as the USDA's weekly export sales report showed continued high global demand for the fiber. The Department of Agriculture said 499,300 running bales of upland cotton were sold for the week ending Oct. 14, with China accounting for 163,000 of it. Industry newsletter Cotlook said buying remains strong despite advancing futures prices, but there are signs those outside of cotton-strapped China might begin to back off. It pointed especially to Pakistan, where mills are close to exhausting their credit lines. ICE December cotton settled 1.45 cents, or 1.3%, higher at $1.1571 a pound.