By Keith Brown, DTN Contributing Cotton Analyst 

The cotton market was slightly higher Monday, albeit on slow volume. Most of the trading centered around position squaring ahead of Tuesday’s supply and demand report.

Tuesday at noon, USDA will release its data and traders will likely focus on the consumption categories for 2019-20, but will also key in on new crop (2020) usage projections. It’s no secret that demand for cotton has been hammered globally due to COVID-19.

Monday afternoon, USDA will report on the planting pace for the 2020 crop. Currently, there does not seem to be any weather adversity to slow planting efforts.

On Thursday, USDA will report on weekly export sales. Recent reports have displayed huge swings with big cancellations one week, followed by massive sales the next. There are rumors that China may yet cancel some U.S. cotton if the Trump Administration levies new tariffs.

The talk of new penalties stems from the administration’s suggestions that China caused the coronavirus outbreak. According to the Trump Administration, China’s bungling of the illness led to a pandemic causing unnecessary loss of life and a shuttering of the global economy.

For Monday, July cotton closed at 56.63 cents, up 0.36 cent, December finished at 57.63 cents, up 0.01 cent and March ended at 58.32 cents, up 0.12 cent. Estimated volume was 20,678 contracts.