Tuesday, 17 March 2015 02:09
NEW YORK: Cotton on ICE Futures US eased on Monday after trading on either side of unchanged for much of the session amid a broader sell-off in energy and grains markets.
The front-month May cotton contract on ICE closed down 0.01 cent, or 0.02 percent, at 60.49 cents as it relinquished earlier gains in late-session trade.
Fiber was largely range-bound not far from Thursday’s five-week low of 60.26 cents for much of the session.
The bellwether Thomson Reuters/Core Commodity CRB index decline, led by a slide in crude oil prices.
That broader selling pressure pulled fiber prices back from limited gains seen on a weaker dollar. The dollar eased off 12-year highs against a basket of major currencies, underpinning greenback-traded commodities as it makes them less expensive to holders of other currencies.
“Late in the day, we just couldn’t hold on. There’s some buying down here, but not much. Today was all about crude oil,” said Sharon Johnson, broker for Wedbush Securities in Atlanta. Even so, mill buying and demand for high-grade cotton was expected to keep prices range-bound. Exchange inventories were near their lowest level since late 2012, the most recent ICE data showed.
Traders broadly expected weekly US export sales data to show bales booked in line with last week’s increase, as low prices have stirred demand.
Copyright Reuters, 2015
