Oct 8 (Reuters) -ICE cotton futures slipped more than 2% to a near three-week low on Tuesday, weighed down by lower oil prices and downbeat sentiment in the wider financial market.
* Cotton contracts for December CTZ4 fell 1.52 cent, or 2.1%, to 72.01 cents per lb at 12:46 p.m. EDT (1646 GMT), its lowest level since Sept. 18.
* The risk-off note in the cotton market is due to a domino effectfrom Chinese commodities opening lower and equities losing momentum, said Valentin Olah, risk management consultant at StoneX Group.
* "Demand (for cotton) has been spotty and limited to hand-to-mouth fixations, albeit better than some other days. There was long-covering and proprietary trading selling earlier this morning, which added pressure," Olah said.
* A gauge of global stocks slipped on Tuesday after details over China's stimulus disappointed. MKTS/GLOB
* Brent crude futures, the international oil benchmark, fell $4 a barrel on Tuesday as fears of supply interruptions from the conflict between Israel and Iran and a massive Gulf of Mexico hurricane eased. O/R
* Lower oil prices make cotton-substitute polyester less expensive.
* Elsewhere, Chicago soybeans and corn eased as brisk U.S. harvest progress and forecasts for rain in drought-hit Brazilian crop belts bolstered expectations of abundant global supplies. GRA/
* In a weekly crop progress report, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said 29% of the cotton crop was in good-to-excellent condition, compared with 31% a week ago.
Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore
