Plant diseases caused concern in Southeast. Insects required multiple treatments in North Delta. Rains boosted Texas crop. Yields expected similar to last year in Arizona. No heat damage seen in SJV.
Cotton futures traded both sides of unchanged and settled mostly flat to slightly higher Monday as thin, narrow-range dealings persisted.
Benchmark December closed up a single tick at 86.19 cents. It edged above FridayΆs high to up 24 points at 86.42 cents, fell to a 63-point loss to 85.55 cents and settled near the upper quarter of the 87-point range. October settled with the only loss, down 13 points to 86.39 cents, while March gained 30 points to close at 84.82 cents.
Volume slowed to an estimated 8,700 lots from 11,800 lots the previous session when spreads totaled 1,836 lots or 16% and EFP 55 lots. Options volume totaled 868 calls and 820 puts.
Sunny weather helped soggy soils to firm last week in some areas of the Southeast that had received excessive rainfall in recent weeks, according to a review by the cotton division of USDAΆs Agricultural Marketing Service.
Producers were concerned about the potential for cotton diseases where wet conditions had left many fields water-logged and delayed the application of fungicides. Target spot Corynespora cassiicola has been confirmed in fields in Southwest Georgia and the Florida Panhandle.
Growers in the North Delta were irrigating at full capacity when late-week thunderstorms brought up to 3 inches of much-needed moisture to the region and up to an inch of beneficial rain in the South Delta.
Growers continued to battle weeds in the North Delta where canopies hadnΆt covered rows. Insect pressure was heavy in northern areas. Most growers have made multiple treatments for this and other pests. Pressure from spider mites was heaviest in dry areas of the South Delta.
Light, gentle rain in TexasΆ drought-stricken Rio Grande Valley was expected to improve yields and help the top crop mature. More than 1.5 inches of beneficial rain fell in the Upper Coast. In East Texas, most of the area got 1.5 to 2.5 inches of rain. The moisture was expected to lift yields beyond a bale per acre. Dryland production dominates that area.
Slow, soaking rain fell over multiple days in the West Texas Plains and brought around one-half of an inch to 6 inches of precipitation. The moisture improved standing crop conditions substantially. The crop was in various stages of progress and some fields had begun to bloom.
In the Desert Southwest, producers around Yuma, Ariz., applied the final irrigation for the shorter-season cotton. Defoliation will be underway in about four weeks. Insect pressures were low and no significant heat stress was reported. Yields are expected to be similar to last year with an average of three bales per acre.
Longer-season varieties around Parker, Ariz., had begun to bloom and canopies closed the row. Central Arizona cotton reached peak bloom. Insect pressure was light and easily controlled.
Cooler temperatures brought relief to heat-stressed fields in the San Joaquin Valley. No significant damage occurred from earlier above-average temperatures. Irrigation was expected to sustain the crop to harvest. Yields were expected to be about average.
Futures open interest expanded 2,379 lots as the market posted strong gains Friday, with DecemberΆs up 1,842 lots to 142,255 and MarchΆs up 359 lots to 14,724.
Certificated stocks fell 21,066 lots to 447,856. There were 35 newly certified bales, 21,101 bales decertified and 1,125 bales awaiting review.
World values as measured by the Cotlook A Index gained 135 points Monday morning to 93.50 cents. The premium to FridayΆs December futures settlement widened two points to 7.32 cents.