Spot rate, lint prices in ready dealings hit all-time high levels on the cotton market on Friday as mills showed interest in fresh buying to keep the industry wheels moving, dealers said. The Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) spot rate was Rs 10,800, they said.
Phutti prices in Sindh and Punjab were at Rs 4200-5000, they said. In the ready business about 15,000 bales of cotton changed hands between Rs 10,350-11,650, it was also reported that 600 bales of cotton from Upper Sindh sold at record high at Rs 12000, they added.
According to the market sources, the ginners who were on the sidelines due to strike, adopted flexible attitude after buying phutti in huge quantity but not below their psychological levels. On the other hand, the mills, who were hoping for decline in the soaring prices, started buying despite upward trend in prices, they said.
Commenting on the present trend in the market some experts said the mills were active mainly because of export obligations as many are waiting for next Indian strategy for cotton exports. In the absence of clear-cut Indian policy they are bound to keep on buying to meet their requirements, they said.
In the meantime, they said that prices may not move sharply due to slight dullness in the market in days to come in the absence of major buyers. Analysts said that Chinese cotton market players are disappearing from cotton trading as they leave for the Lunar New Year holidays early next month.
On Thursday the US cotton futures settled higher on renewed speculative and fund buying boosted in part by a government sales report. But profit-taking knocked the market off its new record highs, analysts said. The cotton market has risen over 22 percent since the middle of January, inspired by strong cotton prices in top consumer China and partly on tight deliverable stocks of cotton on the ICE Futures US exchange.
Cotton's fresh rally made it the early leader of commodities in the Reuters-Jefferies commodity index in 2011, as it rose 17 percent year to date. In 2010, cotton was the best performing commodity as it went up over 90 percent. The key March cotton contract on ICE Futures US rose 2.56 cents to finish at $1.6939 per lb, having traded up the six-cent limit at a new record top of $1.7283. The session low was at $1.6625. Total volume stood at over 35,000 lots, almost double the 30-day norm, Thomson Reuters preliminary data showed.
The following deals were reported: 1600 bales of cotton from Khair Pur sold at Rs 11000-11250, 1600 bales of cotton from Ghotki at Rs 11500, 1000 bales of cotton from Deharki at Rs 11500, 400 bales of cotton from Bahawal Nagar at Rs 10350, 600 bales of cotton from Hasil Pur at Rs 10500-10600, 400 bales of cotton from Burewala at Rs 10775, 400 bales of cotton from Haroonabad at Rs 10800, 400 bales of cotton from Layyah at Rs 10800, 200 bales of cotton from Rajan Pur at Rs 11000, 1100 bales of cotton from Lodhran at Rs 11000, 800 bales of cotton from Ahmed Pur at Rs 11000, 400 bales of cotton from Basti Malook at Rs 11000, 400 bales of cotton from Sardar Garh at Rs 11000, 400 bales of cotton from Mian Channu at Rs 11000, 600 bales of cotton from Yazman Mandi at Rs 11000, 400 bales of cotton from Sadiqabad at Rs 11000, 800 bales of cotton from Madrassa at Rs 11000, 400 bales of cotton from Shujabad at Rs 11150, 400 bales of cotton from Mianwali at Rs 11200, 1200 bales of cotton from Bahawal Pur (credit) at Rs 11650, they said.
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The KCA Official Spot Rate for Local Dealings in Pak Rupees
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FOR BASE GRADE 3 STAPLE LENGTH 1-1/32"
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MICRONAIRE VALUE BETWEEN 3.8 TO 4.9 NCL
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Rate Ex-Gin Upcountry Spot Rate Spot Rate Difference
For Price Ex-Karachi Ex. KHI. As Ex-Karachi
on 27.01.2011
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37.324 Kgs 10,800 120 10,920 10,720 +200
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Equivalent
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40 Kgs 11,574 120 11,694 11,480 +214
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