DTN Cotton Close: Sharply Higher on Outside Support

The cotton market was sharply higher Friday as the stock markets came alive on a strong jobs report and friendly comments from Federal Reserve Chair Powell. The December jobs report showed a stunning 312,000 non-farm jobs created for last month. Such data indicates a bustling U.S. Economy. Fed Chairman Powell made comments in Atlanta on Friday that the Fed may not be so automatic in raising interest rates during 2019. Both of those events were deemed bullish by trade. Thus, the Dow zoom up 700 points, and to some degree, carrying cotton with it.

Next week the U.S. and China will meet to discuss, and hopefully resolve, their trade differences. The potential for an agreement has generated a new level of optimism in the market. However, there will be no supply-demand report next week, the continued government shutdown has closed that informational part of USDA.

March cotton settled at 72.52 cents, up 1.69 cents, July was 75.29 cents, up 1.64 cents and December finished at 73.84 cents, up 1.25 cents. For the week March cotton was up a mere 0.33 cent. Friday’s estimated volume was 36,200, contracts.