Cotton futures settled slightly firmer Tuesday in subdued dealings, with most players content to monitor the weather and crop conditions across the US cotton belt for leads on the next move, analysts said.
The New York Board of Trade's May cotton contract added 0.24 cent to end at 52.81 cents a lb, in a band from 52.40 to 53.10 cents. July rose 0.10 to 54.67 cents. The rest gained 0.05 to 0.33 cent.
"We've gone to sleep," said Keith Brown, president of commodity firm Keith Brown and Co in Moultrie, Georgia. "We're just watching crop and field developments."
Brown added most players appear to be biding their time waiting for news to filter into the ring. Some switch deals were done, but the amount was modest.
Open interest in the May contract fell 2,496 lots to 77,541 lots as of April 3 while interest in the July contract went up 1,887 to 36,406 lots. The May contract goes into delivery on April 24 and expires on May 8.
The market was again stuck in a range, with most players looking ahead to the weekly export sales report of the US Department of Agriculture on Thursday to provide leads for fibre contracts.
"It was slow all around. No one was interest in doing anything major and the bigger houses were conspicuously on the sidelines," a broker said.
The players were also keeping tabs on the lack of rain in the prime cotton growing areas of Texas, the top growing state in the country.
The only other thing analysts were looking at is the visit of a Chinese delegation to the US in the coming weeks which may spur the sales of cotton to the Asian giant.
Brokers Flanagan Trading Corp put resistance in May delivery at 53.30 and 53.80 cents, with support at 52.75 and 52.10 cents.
Floor dealers said final trading volume was estimated at 14,000 lots, off from Monday's count of 16,778 lots. Open interest fell 376 lots to 137,633 contracts as of April 3.
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