Forexpros - Cotton futures held steady in range bound trade on Thursday, hovering at the highest level in nearly two months as market participants readjusted positions ahead of a pair of closely-watched U.S. government reports on cotton plantings and global fiber supplies.

On the ICE Futures U.S. Exchange, cotton futures for May delivery traded at USD0.9413 a pound during early U.S. morning, easing up 0.11%.

It earlier rose by as much as 0.4% to trade at USD0.9439 a pound, the highest since February 9.

Cotton traders were looking forward to a pair of highly-anticipated reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Friday.

The USDAΆs World Supply & Demand Estimates report for the first quarter is likely to show an upward revision to estimates on U.S. export figures, which could lead to a further drawdown in a tightly supplied market.

In its March supply report, the agency forecast U.S. 2011-12 cotton exports at 11 million bales. Market analysts expect an upward revision of 100,000 to 300,000 bales.

The USDA will release weekly cotton exports sales data later in the day, which will allow investors to gauge the strength of demand for U.S. supplies.

The USDA is also scheduled to release a report on cotton plantings Friday. The Prospective Plantings report is based on a poll of farmersΆ planting intentions and is closely watched by the cotton futures market.

Market analysts are expecting the data to show a 13% decline in U.S. cotton sowings from last year, or about 12.74 million to 12.76 million acres, as U.S. farmers planted more grains, such as corn and soybeans to take advantage of higher prices.

In early February, the National Cotton Council, an industry group, had pegged U.S. 2012 cotton sowings at 13.63 million acres, down 7.4% from 2011 cotton plantings of 14.72 million acres.

Market talk of heavy speculative fund buying ahead of the USDA data provided further support to prices.

Cotton prices have been trading higher in recent sessions, rallying almost 8% since March 16 amid speculation a ban on cotton exports from India will boost demand for U.S. supplies.

India is the world's second largest cotton producer. It is also the second biggest exporter of the fiber, trailing only the U.S.

While the export ban was partially lifted in mid-March, less than a week after it was imposed, registration for additional cargoes wonΆt be allowed until further notice.

The ban could prompt top consumer China to buy more cotton from the U.S.

Zhang Hongxia, the president of ChinaΆs biggest cotton-textile manufacturer, Weiqiao Textile said earlier that Chinese cotton consumption could rise to 9.58 million metric tons this year from an estimated 9 million tons in 2011.

China, which uses about 40% of the worldΆs cotton, will import 18.5 million bales this season, the most in six years and 54% more than a year earlier, according to a USDA estimate on March 9.

Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange, coffee futures for May delivery tumbled 1.15% to trade at USD1.7947 a pound, while sugar futures for May delivery eased down 0.1% to trade at USD0.2434 a pound.