Cotton futures were mostly steady on Friday, with contracts in the front months down 4 to 5 points. The March contract was 25 points higher for the week. Crude oil futures rose 11 cents per barrel to $59.30. The US dollar index increased by $0.063 to $99.195.
Markets will be closed on Monday for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday. Trading will resume on Monday evening.
The CFTC's Commitment of Traders report from Friday showed managed money increasing their net short position in cotton futures and options by 2,600 contracts to 50,372 contracts as of Tuesday.
Export Sales data indicates cotton export commitments at 6.937 million RB, which is 14% below last year. This represents 60% of the USDA projection for exports, trailing the 79% average sales pace. Exports are at 3.142 million RB, or 27% of USDA's estimate, lagging the 32% average shipping pace.
The January 15 online auction from The Seam recorded sales at 59.12 cents per pound on 11,430 bales. The Cotlook A Index remained unchanged on January 15 at 75.05 cents. ICE certified cotton stocks were unchanged on Thursday, with the certified stocks level at 11,029 bales. The Adjusted World Price was updated to 51.17 cents per pound on Thursday, up 20 points from the previous week.
March 26 Cotton closed at 64.66, down 5 points. May 26 Cotton closed at 66.23, down 4 points. July 26 Cotton closed at 67.65, down 4 points.