Wind advisory issued for the Texas High Plains. Most cotton reported holding in the bur thus far. Consumer prices climbed 0.2% in October.

Cotton futures settled mixed Tuesday, with most-active March trading inside the prior-day range and settling just above unchanged.

• March closed up six points to 62.67 cents, near the low of its 82-point range from down six points at 62.55 — touched in the early minutes of overnight dealings — to up 76 points at 63.37 cents. December, the only loser, settled down 21 points to 61.53 cents.
• Volume slowed to an estimated 38,037 lots from 62,774 lots the previous session when spreads accounted for 32,418 lots or 52%, block trades 3,000 lots, EFS 1,011 lots and EFP 814 lots. Options volume totaled 2,508 calls and 2,170 puts.

A wind advisory is in effect Tuesday for the Texas High Plains, with sustained velocities forecast at 30 to 35 miles per hour and gusts to near 55 mph. Localized areas are expected to experience low visibility because of blowing dust.

Though loosened, most cotton appears to have held in the bur through earlier strong winds — gusts to 70 mph were reported Monday night — and pounding rain. Loosened cotton can affect harvesting efficiency.

“I haven’t seen a lot of cotton on the ground yet, but every day (of winds and rain) works it over a little more and may start knocking it out if it doesnΆt let up and let us get back in the fields,” Ty Stark, Lynn County producer of Tahoka, commented.

Rainfall overnight ranged from about one-half to three-quarters of an inch in the Tahoka area following about two-tenths inch a couple of days earlier, he said.

“The fields are muddy and I donΆt know if we can get back in there tomorrow (Wednesday),” he said, adding that it might be Thursday before harvesting can be resumed. He estimated that about 50% to 60% remains on the stalk in his area.

Sunny to mostly sunny skies are forecast for the Lubbock area into early next week, with weather conditions expected generally to favor a quickened harvest pace later this week.

Rainfall Monday night ranged from 0.1 of an inch to 1.27 inches and averaged slightly less than half an inch at 26 of the 36 National Weather ServiceΆs reporting sites from which measurements were received.

LubbockΆs official rain gauge caught only 0.11 inch. Rainfall since Sept. 1 has totaled 4.89 inches, compared with the normal of 4.93 inches and 10.27 inches through the corresponding period last year.

In background news, U.S. consumer prices rose 0.2% in October, reflecting across-the-board uptick in a variety of services and major categories, but the underlying trend remained weak, Dow Jones Newswires reported.

The consumer-price index, which measures what Americans pay for everything from medical services to meat, rose a seasonally adjusted 0.2% in October after two months of declines, the Labor Department said. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, so-called core prices grew 0.2%, same as in September.

Core prices have risen 1.9% on the year, led by increases in the cost of shelter and medical care. A strong dollar has made imports cheaper, lowering the price American consumers pay for many goods made overseas.

Increases in the price index for a variety of services drove up core inflation, offsetting declining prices for goods like apparel.

Futures open interest fell 1,940 lots Monday to 182,285, with DecemberΆs down 12,739 lots to 20,739 and MarchΆs up 10,300 lots to 125,004. Cert stocks grew 1,458 bales to 53,208. There were 3,983 newly certified bales, 2,525 decertified bales and 1,846 bales awaiting review.