Soft futures - Cotton rallies to 9-month high on demand hopes
Investing.com
Published Mar 05, 2013 08:03AM ET
On the ICE Futures U.S. Exchange, cotton futures for May delivery traded at USD0.8702 a pound, up 0.9% on the day.
The May contract climbed as much as 1% earlier in the day to hit a session high of USD0.8703 a pound, the strongest level since May 8.
Cotton prices have rallied sharply in recent weeks amid indications of strong demand from top consumer China and concerns over U.S. supplies.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said last week that U.S. farmers sold 152,900 bales of cotton for shipment in the current marketing year, 5% above the prior four-week average.
Meanwhile, sugar futures for May delivery traded at USD0.1816 a pound, up 0.4% on the day. The May contract rose by as much as 0.6% earlier in the day to hit a session high of USD0.1818 a pound.
Prices moved further away from the lowest level since August 2010 as traders re-entered the market amid speculation last month’s sell-off was overdone.
The sweetener fell to USD0.1788 a pound on last Friday, the lowest level since August 2010.
Sugar futures prices have been under heavy selling pressure in recent weeks as sentiment on the sweetener was dampened amid the view that global supplies are more than ample to meet world demand.
In Brazil, sugar-cane harvesting in the country’s center south, the main growing region of the world’s largest producer, will start earlier this year because of a record crop.
The South American country is the world’s largest sugar producer and exporter, with the USDA estimating the nation accounts for nearly 20% of global production and 39% of global sugar exports.
Elsewhere, Arabica coffee for May delivery traded at USD1.4697 a pound, up 0.5% on the day.
The March contract gained as much as 0.8% earlier in the session to hit a daily high of USD1.4738 a pound, the strongest level since February 4, amid fresh fears over coffee crop conditions in Central America.
Coffee prices have been on an upward trend since falling to a two-and-a-half-year low of USD1.3647 a pound on February 15, as traders closed out bets prices would fall further.
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Written By: Investing.com
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