Old-crop contracts settled ahead on strong weekly export sales, with March closing midrange. U.S. 2013-14 export commitments climbed to 85% of the USDA estimate.
Cotton futures again finished mixed Thursday, with current-crop deliveries closing ahead on robust weekly export sales and traded new-crop contracts settling lower.
Spot March closed up 48 points to 86.03 cents, in the middle of its 156-point range from down 30 points at 85.25 to up 126 points to 86.81 cents. It first hit the high about 15 minutes after release of the weekly export report and touched it several times during the morning.
The May contract gained 63 points to 86.87 cents and July rose 34 points to 86.64 cents, while December slipped 22 points to 76.60 cents.
Growing stocks in deliverable position and the widening March discount to May restrained the advance.
Volume totaled an estimated 30,000 lots, against 30,472 lots the previous session when spreads totaled 14,127 lots or 46% and EFP 56 lots. Options volume totaled 8,706 calls and 3,504 puts.
Net all-cotton export sales for shipment this season of 487,500 running bales during the week ended Jan. 23 boosted 2013-14 commitments to 8.692 million RB, 85% of the USDA estimate. A year ago, commitments were about 79% of final shipments.
The sales, second largest of the marketing year behind only 504,800 bales the previous week, narrowed the margin behind export commitments a year ago by 335,000 bales to 1.354 million.
Commitments trailed year-ago bookings by about 13%. The USDAΆs January supply-demand report estimated exports would fall 19% from last season.
All-cotton shipments at a marketing year high of 325,600 running bales boosted exports for the season to 3.976 million. This is about 39% of the USDA estimate, compared with about 37% of final shipments at the corresponding point last season.
To achieve the USDA forecast, shipments now need to average roughly 238,800 running bales a week, while weekly sales averaging only 57,400 bales would match the estimate.
Sales for shipment next season of 51,900 running bales brought the weekly total for both crop years to 539,400 bales, against 562,000 the previous week for a bulging two-week total of 1.101 million bales.
Commitments for 2014-15 rose to 419,000 running bales, tightening the gap behind forward bookings a year ago to 157,100 bales.
Futures open interest fell 760 lots Wednesday to 183,878, with MarchΆs down 1,991 lots to 99,819 and MayΆs up 333 lots to 42,185.
Certificated stocks grew 9,880 bales to 146,537 bales on 12,003 newly certified bales and decertification of 2,123 bales. Awaiting review were 3,481 bales at Greenville.
World values as measured by the Cotlook A Index gained 120 points Thursday morning to 92.25 cents. The index premium to WednesdayΆs March futures settlement was unchanged at 6.70 cents.
