Cold, wet weather delayed fieldwork in the Southeast. Unwanted rain fell in the Delta. More cotton acres expected in the Texas Blacklands. Seedlings emerged in parts of Arizona. Planting neared completion in SJV.

Cotton futures settled lower in most contracts in slow dealings Monday, with only December eking out a small gain.

Most-active July eased off 13 points to close at 92.21 cents, just above the midpoint of its 120-point range from up 41 points at 92.75 to down 79 points at 91.55 cents.

Soon-to-mature May fell 48 points to 89.69 cents, widening its settlement discount to July to 252 points, more than conventional carry. December edged up five ticks to a new high close for the move at 81.99 cents, a tick off the high of its tiny 37-point range.

Volume slowed to an estimated 15,300 lots from 27,700 lots the previous session when spreads totaled 13,855 lots or 50%, EFS 2,298 lots, block trades 1,798 lots and EFP 444 lots. Options volume totaled 677 calls and 604 puts.

Talk circulated of Chinese mill closures. This followed the release of customs data showing ChinaΆs January-March cotton imports fell 44.3% from a year ago to 760,522 metric tons or 3.493 million 480-pound bales.

On the U.S. crop scene, a midweek cold front in the Southeast brought scattered showers last week from Alabama to Virginia, according to a review by the cotton division of USDAΆs Agricultural Marketing Service.

Precipitation totaled 1 to 4 inches and night temperatures dipped into the low 30s. The unbroken pattern of cold, wet weather continued to delay fieldwork. Sunny, cool, breezy conditions late in the week helped soft soils to firm, but standing water remained in low-lying areas.

Rain and freezing temperatures returned to the North Delta, bringing up to 3 inches of moisture to most areas. Unwelcome moisture also was reported in some already saturated fields in the South Delta where most areas got up to 4 inches of rain. The rain missed an area in northern Mississippi where abnormal dryness emerged.

In Texas, plants in the Rio Grande Valley were in the first to sixth true leaf stages and had light populations of aphids and fleahoppers. A cold front delayed planting in the Winter Garden and Upper Coastal areas.

An inch to 1-1/2 inches of beneficial rain had fallen in the Blackland Prairies, where fields north of Dallas were too saturated to support equipment. Planting was underway, however. Cool temperatures and additional rains at midweek intermittently delayed field activities. Local reports indicated lower prices for corn and sunflowers were expected to encourage cotton acreage increases of 25% to 35% from last season.

In the Desert Southwest, planting continued in Arizona under warm, sunny conditions. Stands were established around Yuma and seedlings had begun to emerge in other parts of the state.

Planting neared completion in CaliforniaΆs San Joaquin Valley. Producers and other industry people waited for announcements on water allocations. Some gins made operational decisions for next season because of the overall reduction in acres.

Weekend rain on the Texas High Plains was light in most areas, as reported earlier. The 10-day average soil temperature at the eight-inch depth was 62 degrees on Monday at Lubbock. Precipitation at Lubbock since Jan. 1 now has totaled 0.90 of an inch, 2.46 inches below normal.

Futures open interest fell 2,001 lots Thursday ahead of the holiday weekend to 174,220, with MayΆs down 7,966 lots to 10,621, JulyΆs up 4,498 lots to 105,254 and DecemberΆs up 1,424 lots to 52,654. Cert stocks grew 714 bales to 284,375. Awaiting review were 2,625 bales.