March traded within only a 64-point range and settled just above ThursdayΆs low close for the move. Talk of Chinese sales persisted.
Cotton futures settled slightly lower Tuesday, consolidating near the lows of the recent range in most-active March.
March eased 15 points to close at 77.56 cents, 10 points above ThursdayΆs low settlement for the move. It traded within a tight 64-point band, from down 27 points at 77.44 cents to up 37 points at 78.08 cents.
March bounced after slipping below lows of the previous two sessions, but the high stalled shy of the prior-day peak for the ninth time in a row as fund selling kept the upside limited.
December settled down 49 points to 75.88 cents, a new low finish since Nov. 5 and in the lower quarter of its 90-point range from 76.60 to 75.70 cents.
Volume increased to an estimated 21,600 lots from 17,039 lots the previous session when spreads totaled 9,732 lots or 57%, EFS 1,000 lots and EFP two lots. Options volume totaled 1,346 calls and 1,513 puts.
Traders have appeared preoccupied with ongoing talk of an impending announcement on reserve sales from ChinaΆs huge stockpile to its domestic market and with the approach of first notice day for December deliveries on Friday.
There has been talk that Chinese sales could feature a base price somewhere around the equivalent of 133 cents a pound on an unknown quantity of old-crop cotton of possibly questionable quality.
Unanswered questions, some observers say, include whether mills would prefer the old-crop domestic stocks or current-crop Indian or other foreign cotton at what arithmetically still could be a discount at prevailing world values even with the 40% import tax.
The complex math, others say, would suggest a competitive futures price would be roughly in the low 70s.
Futures open interest fell 2,237 lots Monday to 163,385, with DecemberΆs down 3,657 lots to 14,316 and MarchΆs up 1,193 lots to 111,402. The board total is the smallest since July 18.
Certificated stocks grew 6,006 bales to 208,471, largest since July 25. Awaiting review were 45,710 bales, including 14,128 bales at Galveston, 5,259 bales at Greenville and 26,323 bales at Memphis.
World values as measured by the Cotlook A Index fell 60 points Tuesday morning to 84.10 cents. The premium to MondayΆs March futures settlement narrowed 11 points to 6.39 cents.