DTN Closing Cotton            01/23 05:59

   Cotton Frozen in Time

   Despite its massive open interest (total participants), the cotton market 
remains locked in the winter doldrums, essentially trading about the price 
location they were last Thanksgiving. 

Keith Brown
DTN Contributing Cotton Analyst

   Despite its massive open interest (total participants), the cotton market 
remains locked in the winter doldrums, essentially trading about the price 
location they were last Thanksgiving. However, the slant is negative. Traders 
are hoping for positive market-moving news in the days to come.

   Weekly export sales will be released Friday at 8:30 a.m. EST, having been 
delayed by the observance of the Martin Luther King Day holiday. Last week's 
business reflected a marketing-year-high sales number of some 340,000 bales. 
Shipments were up 1% weekly with 156,000 bales exported.

   Also on Friday, the CFTC will update its Commitment of Traders information. 
Last Friday's numbers showed that the managed-money funds had net sold some 
2,600 positions, increasing their net short carry to 50,392 contracts.

   Traders continue to keep vigil for the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on the 
legality of Trump's tariffs, although such an announcement doesn't seem to be 
forthcoming any time soon. If the tariffs are invalidated, the Trump 
administration says it has other "legal options" to keep them in place, 
although there will likely be ensuing financial chaos.

   For Thursday, March 2026 went out at 63.88 cents, off 42 points; July was 
66.97 cents, down 43 points; and December 2026 closed at 68.97 cents, minus 19 
points. Thursday's estimated volume was 61,373 contracts.

   Keith Brown can be reached at [email protected]




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