NEW YORK, June 1 (Reuters) - U.S. cotton futures finished
at a fresh four-week high Wednesday as a severe drought in the
key growing state of Texas easily wiped out early losses from
poor U.S. economic data, brokers said.

Forecaster Telvent DTN said Texas, the biggest
cotton-growing area in United States, will remain hot and dry
through Sunday.

'That's what's holding it up -- this drought in Texas,'
said Jobe Moss, senior analyst for brokers and merchants MCM
Inc in Lubbock, Texas, in the heart of the U.S. cotton belt.

The benchmark December cotton futures on ICE Futures
U.S. went up 1.77 cents to finish at $1.3727 per lb, dealing
from $1.3194 to $1.3848. It was the highest settlement for the
third-position cotton contract since May 4.

Spot July cotton climbed 2.30 cents to conclude at
$1.6097 per lb.

Total volume traded reached almost 26,000 lots, almost 50
percent above the 30-day norm, Thomson Reuters preliminary data
showed.

Traders said some Texas farmers are coming up on deadlines
to abandon their plants and just collect insurance payments.

The worst drought in a century in Texas may force farmers
there to abandon up to a third of the crop unless rains start
pounding the area for several days soon.

(Graphic of Texas cotton harvested:
http://r.reuters.com/cyq79r)

A weekly report by the Texas Agri Life extension service
said most of the state continued to suffer from exceptional
drought.