EUR/US$: 1.1596
Cotton Rallies to Close August
Barchart: Cotton futures closed out August with a rally, posting 170-180 point gains across most front-month contracts on Friday - October settled at 91.70 cents, December at 93.14 cents, and March at 95.14 cents per pound. Falling oil prices and a weaker dollar supported the move. The weekly Crop Progress report showed 89% of the U.S. crop setting bolls and 29% with bolls opening, while condition ratings improved to 39% good-to-excellent, up 2 points from the prior week. The Cotlook A Index rose 300 points to 101.30 cents, and ICE certified stocks fell to 63,178 bales.
Source: Barchart
Calcot Daily Market Comment: Cotton Sets New Contract Highs to End August
Calcot (Cindy Walters): Cotton futures set new contract highs on Friday, with December settling at 93.14 cents/lb (up 176 points, an intraday high of 93.74) as the front five months posted monthly gains of over 11 cents (nearly 14%) in August. China's State Reserve logged its 31st straight sold-out auction, selling 8,002 tonnes (about 35,208 bales) Friday and over 1.09 million bales for the month - a mix of U.S., Brazilian and Xinjiang cotton. Analysts remain unsure what's driving the rally beyond technical follow-through and possible Texas abandonment/El Niño supply concerns, while markets also watch a planned September 24 Trump-Xi meeting that could yield a cotton-friendly trade deal. Renewed U.S.-Iran hostilities lifted oil prices; ICE certified stocks fell to 63,178 bales and open interest stood at 380,211 contracts, down 664.
Source: Calcot
Manbo Weekly Cotton Market Report: Prices Surge Nearly 7% on Weather Worries
Manbo (weekly market report): Cotton futures gained roughly 6.5-6.8% over the week to August 31 - the December contract rose from 87.60 to 93.55 cents, while the Cotlook A Index climbed 3.2% to 101.30 cents. The euro weakened slightly against the dollar, from 1.1667 to 1.1595. Adverse weather is pressuring several origins: flooding and extreme heat linked to El Niño in China, an erratic monsoon in India, yield stress in Texas, and inconsistent rainfall in West Africa. China's continued liquidation of reserve stocks and fund buying are also supporting prices, though spinning mills remain reluctant to fix prices at these elevated levels, leaving much New York cotton unpriced. Analysts describe the near-term outlook as "reasonably optimistic."
Source: Manbo
PCCA Cotton QuickTake: Speculative Buying Drives December to Contract High
PCCA (Cotton QuickTake, Aug 31): December futures touched a life-of-contract high of 92.75 cents before settling at 91.38 cents, up 303 points for the week - a rally the report attributes mainly to speculative buying rather than fundamentals. U.S. crop conditions worsened for a fourth straight week, with drought persisting across Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas. Comments from the Fed chair pointing to possible rate hikes strengthened the dollar, a headwind for commodities, while the strong price run has prompted some mills to pause orders - making demand the key variable to watch going forward. Fifty percent U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods remain in place, with Canadian retaliation due September 8.
Source: PCCA
Crop Prices Post Biggest Monthly Gain Since 2012 on War, Weather
Bloomberg (via Financial Post): The Bloomberg Agriculture Spot Index, tracking 10 major crops, was up more than 13% in August - the steepest monthly gain since July 2012 - as war and extreme weather disrupt supplies. Wheat hit a three-year high after Black Sea port attacks curbed Ukrainian and Russian exports, while sugar and cocoa each rose about 20% on El Niño-driven weather worries. Renewed U.S.-Iran hostilities pushed oil higher and revived concerns over fuel and fertilizer flows. Cotton futures touched their highest level in almost two-and-a-half years on Friday, helped by rising oil prices making the fiber more price-competitive against polyester.
Source: Financial Post
Anea Raises Brazil Cotton Production Forecast to 4.18 Million Tons
Datamar (Anea): Brazil's cotton exporters association Anea raised its 2025/26 lint production forecast 4.3% to 4.178 million tonnes, up from 4.006 million in June, and nudged 2026/27 production up to 4.029 million tonnes. Export projections rose to 3.418 million tonnes for 2026 and 3.411 million tonnes for 2027 (up 5.6%), while end-of-2026 stocks are now seen at 2.914 million tonnes. Domestic consumption is forecast at 745,000 tonnes in 2026 and 753,000 tonnes in 2027. Brazilian cotton exports totalled 142,079 TEUs in the first half of 2026, up 29.6% year-on-year, per Datamar's DataLiner platform.
Source: Datamar
High Volatility Is Not a Threat but a Tool, Says Market Analyst
Agronews.gr (Giannis Papadogiannis): Cotton price volatility has surged since May, with daily swings of more than 2 cents common and several sessions hitting 3-cent limit moves, according to Cotlook data. Rather than a threat, the author argues volatility is an opportunity: low-volatility markets offer fewer chances to lock in favorable prices, so producers should use staged, gradual fixing strategies to build a strong average price. In a market swinging 2-3 cents a day, he says hesitation is costly and calls for swift, decisive action to capture rallies as they emerge.
Source: Agronews.gr
Greek Apparel and Textile Sector Under Pressure in First Half of 2026
Greekfashion.gr (SEPEE data): Greece's apparel and textile sector came under pressure in the first half of 2026. Domestic apparel retail sales grew a modest 1.3% to €1.73 billion, trailing inflation, while exports fell 3.8% to €814 million - clothing exports down 5% to €387 million and textile exports down 15%, though cotton exports bucked the trend with a 13% rise. Imports also fell 3.3% to €1.64 billion, with textile imports down 4.7% and apparel imports down 2.3%. SEPEE describes the sector as under "intense pressure" both domestically and internationally.
Source: Greekfashion.gr
USDA Crop Progress: Cotton Bolls Opening Advances, Condition Mixed
USDA (Crop Progress, week ending August 30): Cotton setting bolls reached 89% nationally, up from 81% the prior week, level with a year ago, and just below the 91% five-year average. Bolls opening stood at 29%, up from 20% the prior week and slightly ahead of both the year-ago figure (27%) and the 28% five-year average. Overall crop condition improved slightly to 39% good-to-excellent (33% good, 6% excellent), up from 37% the prior week but well below 51% a year ago. Texas was the weak spot, with 47% of its crop rated poor or very poor, against only 22% good-to-excellent, while California remained the strongest state at 90% excellent.
Source: USDA
Pakistan's Cotton Yield Crisis Deepens Amid Regulatory Hurdles
Dawn: Pakistan's national cotton yields have collapsed to 14-16 maunds per acre, down from a historical 40-50 maunds, pushing farmers toward more profitable crops like rice and sugarcane. Around 150 ginning factories have shut down in recent years for lack of raw cotton, a serious threat given textiles make up 55-60% of Pakistan's exports. Pakistani yields (about 734 kg of lint per hectare) lag far behind China's 2,125 kg and Australia's levels, and industry figures blame both a near two-decade-long bureaucratic block on importing higher-yielding foreign seed varieties and declining purity of existing local seed stock. Guard Agri's CEO argues Pakistan needs a faster, roughly three-year approval pathway for new genetics - versus the current seven years - pointing to hybrid maize and hybrid rice as successful models to replicate for cotton.
Source: Dawn
Weekly Cotton Review: Panic Buying by Textile Mills Sparks Sharp Price Rise
Business Recorder (Weekly Cotton Review): The Karachi Cotton Association raised its spot rate 300 rupees to 19,300 rupees per maund, with regional trading ranging 19,000-19,500 rupees per maund (phutti 8,500-9,500 rupees per 40kg). New York futures traded between 91 and 93 cents per pound. Mills engaged in panic buying amid growing complaints about cotton being adulterated with waste material, a quality crisis industry bodies say involves collusion between some ginning factories and testing labs; deals for nearly 20,000 bales at lower rates remain unsettled as a result. USDA data showed strong export demand for the 2026/27 season, with 95,700 bales sold (led by Vietnam, Guatemala and Bangladesh) and 181,000 bales shipped (led by Vietnam, Pakistan and India).
Source: Business Recorder