December cotton posted a new high and a new high close Tuesday as traders continue to buy into the bullish intentions theme. Last Friday, USDA somewhat stunned the world of cotton with its Prospective Planting report, indicating 13.80 million acres, which was under all industry guesses.

Of course, with Easter quite late this year, the possibility for wet and cold weather continues to linger. To that end, if the 2019 crop is partially delayed it would be vulnerable to late season adversities. Thus, with the likelihood for a Chinese trade deal this summer, plus less than expected acreage, the 2019 crop should stay bullishness till the end of the planting season.

Old crop cotton ended slightly lower Tuesday, but at one time was sharply lower. On the close that market pared its losses and is anticipating Thursday’s weekly sales and exports. Another strong round of weekly sales will nudge 2018-19 even closer to USDA’s five year average pace of 92% for this time of year. It will be interesting to see if China again emerges as a net buyer in both crop years.

For Tuesday, May cotton settled at 77.27 cents, down 0.09 cent, July finished at 78.03 cents, down 0.18 cent, but December closed at 76.27 cents, up 0.35 cent. Tuesday’s estimated volume was 37,000 contracts traded.