Persistent demand for quality lint, helped the rates to maintain stable trend on the cotton market on Friday in the process of trading activity, dealers said. The official spot rate unchanged at Rs 8,600, they added. In the ready session, about 11,000 bales of cotton changed hands between Rs 7400-8800, they said.
Prices of seed cotton in Sindh were at Rs 3000-3500, in Punjab seed cotton prices at Rs 3000-3600 and in Balochistan prices were at Rs 3200-3500, they said.
According to some brokers, mills and spinners were in fresh buying of fine cotton to replenish their stock. They said that the country has already imported cotton to keep a balance between demand and supply.
Cotton analyst Naseem Usman said that it looks that country may be able to fulfil export consignments, if gas and power supply normalises in days to come. Other positive development is revival of cotton yarn buying, which is easing tension among the traders, he added.
Besides, Indian traders have signed contracts to ship 800,000 bales of cotton to China as demand surged from the world's biggest consumer of the fibre due to a rally in prices in China, industry officials told Reuters.
The exports from the world's biggest cotton producer will help China in augmenting supplies, but could weigh on global prices.
Additionally, reports showing that Bangladesh's cotton imports in 2019 are likely to fall 15 percent from the previous year as lower yarn prices are forcing spinners to cut overseas purchases, head of a trade body said on Thursday. The world's biggest fibre importer bought 7.2 million bales of cotton in 2018.
Yarn prices have fallen around 10 percent in local market and with reduced margins of spinners, imports have become less lucrative, said Mehdi Ali, president of Bangladesh Cotton Association, on a sidelines of Cotton India conference in Mumbai. Bangladesh buys most of cotton from India, the world's biggest cotton producer.
Adds Reuters: ICE cotton futures slipped more than 1 percent to a near one-week low on Thursday, hit by a stronger dollar and weak US export sales data.
The most active cotton contract on ICE Futures US, the May contract, settled down 1.1 cents, or 1.48 percent, at 73.11 cents per lb.
Total futures market volume rose by 2,583 to 32,409 lots. Data showed total open interest fell 2,951 to 220,339 contracts in the previous session.
The following deals were reported: 600 bales of cotton from Ghotki at Rs 8800, 1800 bales from Kotri at Rs 8250/8500, 4600 bales from Rahim Yar Khan at Rs 8800, 1500 bales from Sadiqabad at Rs 8750, 1915 bales from M.P. Deewan at Rs 8500, 200 bales from Liaquatpur at Rs 7800, 400 bales from Chistian at Rs 7550, 400 bales from Chichawatni at Rs 7500 and 400 bales from Haroonabad at Rs 7400, they said.
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The KCA Official Spot Rate for Local Dealings in Pakistan Rupees
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FOR BASE GRADE 3 STAPLE LENGTH 1-1/16"
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MICRONAIRE VALUE BETWEEN 3.8 TO 4.9 NCL
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Rate Ex-Gin Upcountry Spot Rate Spot Rate Difference
For Price Ex-Karachi Ex. KHI. As Ex-Karachi
on 07-03-2019
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37.324 kg 8,600 160 8,760 8,760 NIL
Equivalent
40 kgs 9,217 171 9,388 9,388 NIL
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