* Fiber touches nine-month low as Indian, U.S. supplies weigh

* Mills see no buying urgency as harvest come on -futures dealer

* USDA to release remaining delayed export data on Thursday

NEW YORK, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Cotton futures eased to a nine-month low on Monday as building harvest pressure and concerns over excess inventories weighed.

The most-active December cotton contract on ICE Futures U.S. edged down 0.43 cent, or 0.5 percent, to settle at 78.65 cents a lb.

Prices touched as low as 78.52 cents, the weakest level for the spot contract since January.

Fiber performed in line with broader commodities markets, with the Thomson Reuters/Core Commodity CRB index down on the day.

Harvests have begun in key producers in the Northern Hemisphere, leaving fiber under seasonal pressure as the cotton industry awaits another season of excess inventories.

"The mills see the harvests coming in, so they are waiting for lower prices. There's no urgency" to buy, said John Flanagan of Flanagan Trading Corp in North Carolina.

U.S. government data due later on Monday was largely expected to show the crop in the world's top exporter has continued to improve, following delays and concerns over yields earlier in the season.

No 2 producer India is expected produce a bumper crop this year.

"It's becoming a pretty good season, with no real problems," Flanagan said.

Meanwhile, U.S. government export data released last week stoked concerns that high prices have dented demand.

This week's export data will combine all export sales activity for the weeks ending Oct. 10, Oct. 17 and Oct. 24, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Export reports were delayed this month by a partial U.S. government shutdown.

Exchange stocks continued their climb, adding pressure.

ICE inventories reached 114,769 bales on Friday, the highest since end-July. Another 30,628 bales were awaiting review by the USDA on Monday.

The stocks include both old crop and now newly classed bales, dealers said.

Availability of last season's supplies has added pressure to prices and pushed the market into a contango.

The December contract fell to a discount of 1.8 cents a lb below the March contract, from 1.51 cents a lb previously and a slight premium as recently as the start of the month.

The front-month contract is poised to finish the month at a slight loss. (Reporting by Chris Prentice; Editing by James Dalgleish)