ICE futures sharply lower

ICE futures opened on a mixed note today and traded in a sideways manner for the next several hours. The May ’22 delivery reached a high of 123.17 cents/lb at around 0510 GMT before sliding downward. Speculative selling forced the most-actively traded contract lower, but light buying on the way down slowed losses. At around 1300 GMT, renewed pressure drove front months to their lows, with May ’22 hitting 120.36 cts at around 1500 GMT. The December ’22 delivery opened at its high and traded in a tight price range for most of the early session. As pressure increased, the new crop delivery began falling, dropping to a low of 102.82 cts at around 1500 GMT. Light support at the bottom halted losses across the board, but the market remains sharply lower at around midday.

Total open interest fell by 8,703 contracts to 255,330, with March ’22 decreasing by 15,681 contracts to 26,501, while increases were reported in the remaining deliveries. Interest in May ’22 and July ’22 rose by 4,400 contracts and 774, respectively, to 109,671 in the former and 52,695 contracts in the latter. December ’22 increased by 1,497 contracts to 50,690. First Notice Day for March ’22 will be February 22.

Certificated stocks remained unchanged at 617 bales, and there were zero bales awaiting review as of February 11.

Futures were sharply lower, trading as follows at around 1525 GMT:

Related Links

• ICE No. 2 cotton settles under pressure
• USDA forecasts raises US production at 14.41 million bales
• Wintry weather rules across most of Texas and Delta
• US: cotton product imports in November
• ICE cotton modestly lower
• US export shipments post marketing-year high

Posted in: Cotlook Headlines News