ICE cotton futures climbed to a two-week peak on Wednesday as stock markets gained on hopes the novel coronavirus outbreak was close to its peak, while investors await the USDA's monthly supply-demand report and the weekly export sales data.
The cotton contract for May rose 0.77 cent, or 1.46%, at 53.67 cents per lb by 2:11 p.m. EDT (1811 GMT).
Earlier in the session the contract hit a high since March 25 at 54.13 cents per lb.
“Cotton seems to be following the optimism on the equities market," said Bailey Thomen, cotton risk management associate with INTL FCStone, adding it is uncertain if the optimism around coronavirus leveling off will continue.
“Though it is little bit higher today it's still mostly trading sideways direction for now… It's not really moving too far out of the recent range."
Investors await the release of the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) monthly World Agriculture Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report, due on Thursday, along with the weekly export sales data.
“I feel the more important number tomorrow is shipments. It will definitely drop off from the weeks before, but to what degree? A big drop in shipments would weigh on the market," said Peter Egli, director of risk management at British merchant Plexus Cotton. Meanwhile, Wuhan, the Chinese city where the new coronavirus emerged ended its more than two-month lockdown on Wednesday, even as a small northern city ordered restrictions on its residents amid concern about a second wave of infections.
A Reuters tally shows more than 83,000 coronavirus-related deaths globally and nearly 1.4 million infections.
There are signs of a plateau in hospitalisations in New York, with some European countries planning to start easing their lockdowns with fatalities declining.
Total futures market volume fell by 9,206 to 44,848 lots. Data showed total open interest gained 656 to 188,501 contracts in the previous session.
Certificated cotton stocks deliverable as of April 8 totaled 28,394 480-lb bales, unchanged from 28,394 in the previous session.
