Fire weather conditions prompted a red flag warning for the Texas High and Rolling Plains. National retail sales up 2.9% so far this month, Redbook says.
Cotton futures closed mixed in slow dealings Tuesday, with current-crop deliveries finishing on the plus side and new-crop contracts settling in the minus column.
Spot May gained 20 points to settle at 58.37 cents, near the high of its 82-point range from down 55 points at 57.62 to up 27 points at 58.44 cents. July closed up nine points to 58.17 cents and December slipped 15 points to finish at 57.76 cents.
Volume slowed to an estimated 16,402 lots from 23,633 lots the previous session when spreads accounted for 8,832 lots or 37% and EFP 39 lots. Options volume totaled 767 calls and 1,682 puts.
A red flag warning went into effect Tuesday afternoon and continues into the evening for the Texas High and Rolling Plains where wind gusts as high as 40 miles per hour, record high date temperatures and relative humidity of 15% or less elevated fire dangers.
The National Weather Service in Lubbock also issued a fire weather watch for Wednesday afternoon through Wednesday evening. West winds Wednesday are expected to range from 25 to 35 MPH with humidity falling to 5% to 8% in the South Plains and northern Rolling Plains.
Temperatures were expected to reach 89 degrees Tuesday at Lubbock, eclipsing the prior record of 86 degrees set during the Dust Bowl era in 1935. The normal is 68 degrees.
Soil moisture has continued to diminish. The USDAΆs weekly crop progress and condition report rated topsoil moisture as short to very short in 67% and 64% of the northern and southern Texas High Plains, respectively.
Precipitation at Lubbock has totaled only 0.59 of an inch since Jan. 1, compared with a normal of 2.11 inches and 2.51 inches last year. The total for the month is 0.20-inch, 0.51-inch below normal.
While the traditional optimum cotton planting period for the High Plains doesnΆt begin until May 5, weather lately is a reminder of extreme conditions that can erupt on the crop scene.
Elsewhere, frequent small weather events and slack drying conditions between rains are expected to keep soils wet in much of the Delta for the next couple of weeks.
Meanwhile, national retail sales have risen 2.9% so far this month from the comparable period in February, helped by warmer weather, according to Redbook Research.
The growth fell short of a 3.3% target. The Johnson Redbook Sales Index showed seasonally adjusted sales for the period rose 0.7% from a year earlier, below expectations for growth of 1.1%.
Some retailers reported a pickup in business for the latest week as temperatures across the country turned warmer, Redbook said. Sales of spring apparel were brisk, boosted by students gearing up for spring break. Many retailers anticipated a sales boost later as a result of an early Easter.
Futures open interest fell 1,698 lots Monday to 211,723, indicating short-covering fueled that rally, with MayΆs down 2,738 lots to 112,657 and JulyΆs up 591 lots to 47,461. Cert stocks were unchanged at 49,067 bales.
