Prices maintained firmness on the cotton market on Saturday as mills gave up the hopes of more fall in the rates and finalised the deals at the present levels, dealers said. The Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) official spot rate was unmoved at Rs 4,575, dealers said.
Cautious buying was seen by the mills as most of them were trying to cover the near-term needs and some were still hoping that prices may come down due to better crop, experts said. Under the circumstances, it is very difficult to predict about the direction of the market, but it appeared that the prices may not fluctuate sharply in the coming days, they said.
On Friday, the NY cotton futures ended lower on investor liquidation before a holiday break and the weak technical outlook could lead to further losses next week, brokers said. The cotton market will be shut Monday for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. Trading resumes on Tuesday. The key March cotton contract fell 0.83 cent to close at 72.08 cents per lb, dealing from 71.93 to 72.91 cents.
Volume traded in the March contract hit 8,701 lots at 2:33 pm EST (1933 GMT). The following deals were reported : 400 bales of cotton from Shahdadpur sold at Rs 4550, 200 bales from Sanghar at Rs 4500, 200 bales from Mirpur Khas at Rs 4450, 1000 bales from Khan Pur at Rs 4600, 1000 bales from Rahim Yar Khan at Rs 4700, 400 bales from Rahim Yar Khan at Rs 4675 and 1000 bales from Liaquat Pur at Rs 4575, 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 4,575.00 100 4,675.00
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Equivalent
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40 Kgs 4,903.00 100 5,003.00
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