Slight improvement was seen on the cotton market on Friday as both buyers and sellers moved cautiously in a bid to analyse the impacts of falling prices on their businesses, dealers said. The official spot rate was unmoved at Rs 3350, they said. The phutti prices in both the Punjab and Sindh were unchanged at Rs 1600-1700. In the ready business highest rate was at Rs 3400, they added.
Some mills took part in fresh buying amid rising uncertainties over the prices. It was also observed that ginners were keen to dispose off the unsold stock due to sharp decline in prices the world over, they added. The whole world is in grip of fears of world recession including cotton businesses, the local textile market was already under pressure due to contamination, they said.
Now it appeared that the local textile industry is suffering from huge losses following the world recession despite the cheaper rupee against the dollar, they said. Instead, according to the Federal Bureau of Statistic (FBS), during the seven months of fiscal year, the non-textile items showed a significant increase, apparently because of sharp devaluation of the rupee, they said.
On Thursday, the US cotton prices fell one percent, giving back all of the previous session's gains and bucking a broad rally in commodities as investors focused instead on a drop in equity prices. The key March cotton contract on ICE Futures US settled down 0.47 cent at 43.42 cents per lb, trading from 44.13 to 43.07 cents.
THE FOLLOWING DEALS WERE REPORTED: 400 bales of cotton from Khipro at Rs 3150, 600 from bales Shadadpur at the same rate, 1000 bales from Rahim yar Khan at Rs 3400, 4000 bales from Khanpur at Rs 3400, 800 bales from same station at Rs 3350 and 2000 from Ahmedpur at Rs 3280-3350, dealers 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"
MICRONAIRE VALUE BETWEEN 3.8 TO 4.9 NCL
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Rate Ex-Gin Upcountry Spot Rate Ex-Karachi
for Price Sales Tax @ 15%
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37.324 Kgs 3,350.00 100 3,450.00
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Equivalent
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40 Kgs 3,590.00 100 3,690.00
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