Cotton futures fell on Thursday, as widespread selling in US equities and agricultural commodity markets more than offset an encouraging cotton weekly export sales report, traders said. The most-active July cotton contract on ICE Futures US closed down 0.34 cent, or 0.4 percent, at 90.36 cents a lb.
"The market today is reacting to the nervousness in global markets as the Dow and S&P are off sharply. There is an air of uncertainty across markets and cotton can't operate on its own," said Ron Lawson, partner at commodities investment firm LOGIC Advisors. US equities measured by the S&P 500 index slid after disappointing earnings from bellwether retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc fuelled economic uncertainty, overshadowing positive economic reports.
On Thursday, US data showed new applications for unemployment benefits hit a seven-year low last week while consumer prices recorded their largest increase in 10 months in April, pointing to a firming economy. Lawson, however, said that decent US cotton sales, reflected by Thursday's upland cotton weekly sales, signalled underlying demand in the agricultural commodity.