New York cotton settles mostly up

NYBOT cotton futures closed mostly firmer Friday as players rolled positions out of spot December, with the market looking forward to a key government report due out next week, brokers said. December cotton eased 0.01 cent to close at 43.36 cents a lb, dealing from 43.20 to 43.80 cents. March rose 0.74 cent to 43.74 cents. Distant months increased from 0.15 cent to 1.00 cent.
Sharon Johnson, cotton expert for Frank Schneider and Co Inc in Atlanta, said the new weekly low close in the December cotton contract "would suggest more downside" next week.
The finish in December meant the contract closed below the 43.85 cents low close it posted in August. The lifetime low in December stood at 42.60 cents.
Analysts said dealings were dominated by robust switch activity, with most of the running done by trade accounts rolling their longs into the back months.
On a fundamental note, the market must wrestle with a record cotton crop in the United States and harvest pressure could also put the hammer on prices in the weeks ahead, traders said.
There are also significant crops in places like China, the world's biggest producer and consumer of cotton.
Next week, the market will be turning its focus on the monthly supply/demand report from the US Department of Agriculture.
Johnson said in a report her estimate of the US crop is at 21.056 million (480-lb) bales, versus the USDA's estimate in October of 21.54 million bales.
"As good as the size of the crop looks, the quality is all over the board from very high to very low.
The rainy pattern during October into this month may not have lowered yields very much but colour and leaf content are being adversely affected with mike and staple also showing greater variance than desired," said Johnson.
Brokers Flanagan Trading Corp said resistance in December cotton was at 43.65 and 44.25 cents, with support at 43 and 42.60 cents.
Floor dealers pegged estimated final volume at 14,000 lots, from Thursday's 18,880 lots. Open interest in the cotton market rose 2,801 lots to 87,401 lots as of November 4.