Keith Brown DTN Contributing Cotton Analyst    

The cotton market was lower Wednesday, albeit on moderate volume, as traders get ready for the reports of Thursday and Friday. Interestingly, the Dow, the dollar, and the energies were all up.    

Thursday, USDA will issue its weekly export-sales report. Last week, sales were a strong 267,000 bales, with China in as the buyer of 221,000 bales. Shipments of 283,000 were slightly off.    

On Friday, options for the spot July contract will expire at the closing bell. The contract will enter delivery on June 26.    

Also on Friday, USDA will publish its June WASDE. Current expectations are for higher U.S. 2023-24 production, increased domestic ending stocks, greater world carry is expected. That information will be out at High Noon.    

West Texas appears to be headed for some light rain in its one- to five-day forecast. Interestingly, the once-promising six- to 10- and the eight- to 14-day outlooks now suggest above-normal temperatures and below-normal precipitation.    

China reported shrinking exports for the month of May. Additionally, her imports also fell, but at a slower pace. Chinese manufacturers are struggling to find demand abroad, all the while domestic consumption remains sluggish. It would appear that its long-awaited, post-pandemic recovery is rapidly running out of steam. This twist raises concerns about the risks for the global economy.    

Wednesday, July settled at 85.01 cents, down 0.33 cent and December 2023 ended at 81.23 cents, 0.55 cent lower. Estimated volume was 59,106 contracts.    

Keith Brown can be reached at commodityconsults@gmail.com 

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