Nov 15 (Reuters) -ICE cotton futures dropped more than 2% to a three-month low on Friday, weighed down by a stronger U.S. dollar, poor weekly export sales report and downbeat sentiment across financial and commodity market space.
* Cotton contracts for December CTZ4 fell 1.59 cents, or 2.33%, at 66.73 cents per lb at 12:10 p.m. ET (1635 GMT)
* The U.S. dollar .DXY was set for its biggest weekly gain in over a month against its rivals, making cotton more expensive for other currency holders. USD/
* "Fresh speculative selling seems to be the bulk of the volume with charts remaining in sell signals all week long. Farmer selling pressure for cotton about to leave foreign ports is also contributing, while the USDX continues to rise and WTI crude slides," said Valentin Olah, risk management consultant at StoneX Group.
* Oil prices slipped and were bound for a weekly loss. Lower oil prices make cotton-substitute polyester less expensive. O/R
* The United States Department of Agriculture's weekly export sales report showed net sales of upland cotton totaling 153,300 running bales for 2024/2025, down 33% from the previous week and 18% from the prior 4-week average. EXP/COT
* Meanwhile, Wall Street's main indexes tumbled on Friday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said there was no need to rush interest-rate cuts. .N
* Elsewhere, Chicago wheat futures remained near a 2-1/2 month low against a backdrop of improving crop conditions and stiff export competition. GRA/
Reporting by Brijesh Patel and Anjana Anil in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore