NEW YORK: ICE cotton futures nudged up on Thursday to their highest since mid-March, as worries over dry weather in the main growing state of Texas offset pressure from a dip in weekly exports.

The cotton contract for July was up 0.55 cent, or 0.65 %, to 85.38 cents per lb by 12:37 EDT (1637 GMT). It traded within a range of 84.48 and 85.79 cents a lb. The contract hit its highest level since March 18 earlier in the session. “We don’t have a lot of cotton right now, and that’s the reason export sales are not as robust as they have been over the last 20-24 weeks,” said Louis Barbera, partner and analyst at VLM Commodities Ltd, adding that the current pace of exports is unsustainable.—Reuters