March 5 (Bloomberg) -- Cotton futures climbed to the highest in almost 10 months as output is set to decrease in the U.S., the worldΆs top exporter, just as global demand gains.

American farmers may sow 9.4 million acres of cotton in 2013, as they switch to more profitable crops, Macquarie Group Ltd. said today in a e-mailed report. That compares with 12.3 million a year earlier, government data show. On March 8, the U.S. Department of Agriculture may boost its estimate for global demand as mills in India, Pakistan and Turkey increase use, according to a Bloomberg News survey.

“The Macquarie estimate is another signal along the story that producing countries are decreasing plantings,” Chris McGowan, a trader with Newedge Group in New York, said in a telephone interview.

Cotton for delivery in May jumped 0.8 percent to 86.98 cents a pound at 2:30 p.m. on ICE Futures U.S. in New York, after touching 87.45 cents, the highest since May 8.

While the projected drop for plantings “adds to the speculative bullish sentiment, to get above 90 cents we will probably need another catalyst,” McGowan said.