May cotton closed down 0.05 Friday, easing back a fourth consecutive day with USDA’s Prospective Plantings report due out Thursday, at 11 a.m. CDT. Scattered showers fell over parched areas of northern Texas Monday with two more days of light rain possible.

May cotton prices pulled back a fourth consecutive day Monday, closing down 0.05 at 81.78 with volume staying light. Traders were cautious again Monday while trade tensions with China remain high and USDA’s Prospective Plantings report is set to be released Thursday, Mar. 29.

Scattered showers fell around northern Texas and Oklahoma Monday, offering limited relief to extreme drought areas with two more days of light rain possible. Heavier rain amounts are expected from eastern Texas to southern Illinois the next few days, hitting cotton’s Delta region once again where fields don’t need more rain. Southern Georgia and the Carolinas have chances for light to moderate rains this week.

Technically speaking, not much changed on Monday. May cotton remains in an uptrend with overwhelming support from noncommercial buyers, seen at 89% long in the CFTC’s most recent report for Mar. 20. That degree of bullishness among speculators is also a bearish concern, should May prices fall below support at 76.44. On the other hand, the 2017 high of 87.18 stands as formidable resistance as traders wait to see how the new U.S. growing season develops.

The ICE daily stocks report showed certified stocks unchanged on Friday at 60,218.

In cash online trading, The Seam showed 4,977 bales sold Friday at an average price of 63.58 cents. Average loan value was 43.36 cents and 87,405 bales were offered.

The Cotlook A Index of world values for Friday, Mar. 23 was down 0.40 at 91.55 cents, putting the premium over the May futures settlement at 9.72 cents.