DTN Closing Cotton            04/15 13:29

   Cotton Loses Steam

   After holding triple-digit gains Sunday night and Monday morning, the cotton 
market suffered a selling setback mid-session.

Keith Brown
DTN Contributing Cotton Analyst

   After holding triple-digit gains Sunday night and Monday morning, the cotton 
market suffered a selling setback mid-session. Speculators and growers both 
sold into the higher prices based on their own specific trading situations.

   Earlier Monday, the Commerce Department released monthly retail sales for 
March. Expectations called for sales to be 0.4%, but they were actually 0.7%.

   May cotton will enter its notice period on April 24. Its delivery will run 
through the expiration of the contract, which occurs on May 8.

   Monday afternoon at 4 p.m. EDT, USDA will issue its planting progress data. 
Last week, the 2024 cotton crop was five percent planted versus its five-year 
average of six percent complete.

   Crude oil was lower Monday as traders breathed a sigh of relief after Israel 
fended off a large-scale air assault by Iran. The U.S. has emphasized it wants 
to avoid a wider war in the Middle East, but Israel's war cabinet is still 
weighing how it will respond to the attack.

   Monday, May cotton closed at 82.93 cents, up 0.31 cent, July was 85.15 
cents, up 0.56 cent, and December finished at 80.57 cents, 0.46 cent higher. 
Monday's estimated volume was 52,667 contracts.

   Keith Brown can be reached at commodityconsults@gmail.com




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