Oct. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Cotton futures fell after a report showing slower U.S. exports raised concern that a three-day rally may have pushed prices higher than justified by current demand.

Net cotton exports fell to 88,600 bales in the week ended Sept. 29, 60 percent lower than the figure a week earlier that helped spark the rally, according to Department of Agriculture data. The U.S. is the worldΆs largest shipper.

“The export numbers were a little disappointing,” Tom Reardon, the president of Delta Brokerage in New York, said in a telephone interview. “People are seeing that demand may not be picking up as much as they thought it was, and demand is key right now.”

Cotton for December delivery fell 0.7 percent to $1.0198 a pound at 2:31 p.m. on ICE Futures U.S. in New York. The fiber rose 3.5 percent in the previous three days and 1.8 percent for the week.

A bale weighs 480 pounds (218 kilograms).

“There seems to be a point at which demand perks up, but when prices got high enough a lot of the fundamental buying runs away,” Louis Barbera, a broker at VIP Commodities in New York, said in a telephone interview.