No business was witnessed on the cotton market on Friday as vehicles were off the roads following Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) announcement of one-day mourning against the latest surge in violence in the country's financial and commercial hub.
The Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) was closed and did not issue rates. So, the official spot rate was unchanged at Rs 6,800, market men said.
Seedcotton (phutti) rates stabilised in Sindh at Rs 2800-2900, while prices were up by Rs 100 in Punjab to Rs 2600-3000, they said. In the upcountry markets and in the Punjab, cotton traders did not take part in trading activity as most of them observed Friday as a holiday, they said.
In Karachi, police and paramilitary troops were ordered to shoot on sight after several people were killed in three days of political violence. Most of the commercial centres and fuel stations were shut and public transport was idle. According to a report, India has released quota to 270 exporters to export 1 million bales of cotton.
In the meantime, some brokers said that Indian cotton exporters are trying to attract Pak mills, but the millers have refused due to last year's bad experience. It may be recalled that Indian exporters had backed out of their contracts to supply cotton last year, causing huge losses to Pakistani buyers. On Thursday, the US cotton futures recovered slightly due to improvement in demand by buyers, brokers said.