ICE cotton futures fell 1 percent to their lowest in a month on Wednesday as traders remained wary and liquidated positions ahead of a federal crop plantations report later this week. The May cotton contract on ICE Futures US settled 0.96 percent lower at 76.14 cents per lb after hitting 76.10 cents, the lowest since late February.
"We are probably seeing some liquidation ahead of the prospective plantings report," said Louis Rose, an independent cotton trader and consultant with Risk Analytics in Memphis. "That report is probably going to be bearish. You are probably seeing a little risk being taken off the table," Rose added.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) will release its prospective plantings report on Friday. The May cotton contract on ICE Futures US settled down 0.74 cent, or 0.96 percent, at 76.14 cents per lb. It traded within a range of 76.10 and 77.08 cents a lb.
Total futures market volume rose by 1,286 to 28,490 lots. Data showed total open interest fell 274 to 281,653 contracts in the previous session. The dollar index was up 0.37 percent. The weekly US export sales data will be released on Thursday.