U.S. prospective plantings pegged at 11.9 million acres in Bloomberg survey. Slowdown again expected in torrid U.S. weekly export sales.
Cotton futures settled higher Wednesday, with spot May trading on either side of the prior-day range and regaining on the close a point more than what it had lost.
May closed up 50 points to 77.34 cents, trading from down 17 points at 76.67 to up 134 points at 78.18 cents. It rallied from a point below the prior-session low to above TuesdayΆs high and settled just below the midpoint of the 151-point range.
July finished up 41 points to 78.50 cents, trading within a 135-point range from 77.95 to 79.30 cents. December gained 28 points to close at 75.16 cents, trading within an 87-point span from 74.75 to 75.62 cents.
In the grains, May corn closed down 0.7% and December corn down 0.6%. Soybeans dipped 0.2% in the May contract and eked up a tad in November. May Chicago wheat closed down 1% and May Kansas City wheat down 1.3%.
Cotton volume slipped to an estimated 29,266 lots from 33,313 lots the prior session when spreads accounted for 14,169 lots or 43%, EFP 367 lots and EFS 60 lots. Options volume declined to 3,939 lots (2,353 calls and 1,586 puts) from 6,461 lots (3,534 calls and 2,927 puts).
Looking ahead, recent futures gains for 2017-crop cotton have promoted expectations for U.S. plantings to exceed earlier estimates.
Cotton traders and analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News pegged prospective plantings at 11.9 million acres, up from 10.07 million acres seeded last year.
That would be the largest cotton area since producers planted 12.31 million acres in 2012. Relative prices have favored cotton over alternative crops.
The USDAΆs prospective plantings report, based on its first survey of producer intentions, is scheduled for release a week from Friday. At its Agricultural Outlook Forum in February, USDA pegged plantings at an analytical 11.5 million acres.
The National Cotton CouncilΆs earlier survey had forecast 11 million acres, based on producer responses received from mid-December through mid-January.
Meanwhile, U.S. export sales are generally expected to show a slowdown from the recent torrid pace in the USDA report for the week ended March 16, a period in which May futures ranged on a closing basis from 76.87 to 78.17 cents.
The report is set for release at 7:30 a.m. CDT Thursday. Net U.S. upland sales the prior week topped expectations — as has happened frequently this season — at 316,500 running bales for shipment this season. Upland sales for next season were 141,700 RB.
Net upland sales for 2016-17 the last four weeks have averaged 353,500 RB, upland shipments have averaged 381,700 RB, and sales for 2017-18 have averaged 137,100 RB. Upland exports were 337,900 RB the week ended March 9.
Futures open interest fell 2,610 lots Tuesday to 278,130, with MayΆs down 3,069 lots to 155944, JulyΆs down 327 lots to 47,532 and DecemberΆs up 576 lots to 66,252. Cert stocks were unchanged at 326,221 bales.
