U.S. supply-demand estimates came in mostly unchanged, while world ending stocks dipped slightly as production fell more than consumption. Crop estimate for India cut a million bales.

Cotton futures finished with modest losses Wednesday, showing relatively little reaction to USDA’s monthly 2015-16 supply-demand report featuring mostly unchanged U.S. estimates and a cut of 0.71% in world ending stocks.

• Spot May extended the prior-day loss, settling down 27 points to 56.59 cents but closing in the upper half of its 90-point range from up four points at 56.90 to down 86 points to 56 cents. It closed back below its declining nine-day moving average.
• July slipped 23 points to close at 56.58 cents and December dipped 19 points to 56.59 cents. December closed above July, though by just a single point, for the first time since Feb. 12 and finished even with May.
• Volume rose to an estimated 27,533 lots from 25,548 lots the previous session when spreads accounted for 12,835 lots or 50%, EFP 1,035 lots and EFS 55 lots. Options volume totaled 1,519 calls and 978 puts.

U.S. estimates were mostly unchanged from last month, about as expected, with the projected carryout remaining at 3.6 million bales.

Marginal reductions in harvested area and yield reflected the National Agricultural ServiceΆs resurvey of the South Carolina crop where excessively wet conditions had resulted in unharvested acreage.

U.S. production stayed at 12.94 million bales off 8.058 million harvested acres, down 19,000 acres from the previous estimate in January, and a per-acre yield of 771 pounds, up two pounds. The yield is 58 pounds below the five-year average.

The marketing year average price at the farm level is estimated by USDA to range from 58 to 60 cents per pound, with the midpoint of 59 cents down from 59.50 cents foreseen a month ago, 61.30 cents last season and 77.90 cents in 2013-14.

U.S. all-cotton ginned to March 1 totaled 12,523,850 running bales, NASS reported. An estimated 16,600 RB were yet to be processed. No estimates for the comparable date were made for previous crop years.

Ginning figures indicated final production will be very close to the current NASS estimate in statistical 480-pound bales.

Globally, with lower mill use partially offsetting lower production, world ending stocks were revised down 740,000 bales to 103.34 million, down 830,000 bales from the beginning level.

Production fell 1.16 million bales from a month ago to 100.22 million, largely on a million-bale cut to 26.80 million in India, now the worldΆs top cotton producer. Crop estimates declined 200,000 bales to 7 million in Pakistan but rose by 100,000 bales to 2.5 million in Australia.

Consumption eased 390,000 bales to 109.21 million, based mainly on lower available supplies in Pakistan where estimated domestic mill use dropped 200,000 bales to 9.6 million.

World ending stocks are projected at 94.6% of consumption, compared with 95% foreseen last month and 101.7% in 2014-15.

Meanwhile, an additional 143 delivery notices were issued on the matured March contract, bringing the total for the period to 441.

Futures open interest dipped 91 lots Tuesday to 208,512, with MayΆs down 664 lots to 120,942, JulyΆs down 720 lots to 43,731 and DecemberΆs up 964 lots to 33,575. Cert stocks dropped 85 bales to 71,922. There were 12 newly certified bales and 97 bales decertified. A single bale awaited review.