Cotton Futures: Largest 2-day slide in over 4 years

Economy

Cotton Futures: Largest 2-day slide in over 4 years

On the back of Cotton Association of India’s announcement of a better than expected output of cotton for the season 2013-14, cotton futures tumbled on the Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (ICE) Futures U.S. in New York. On Tuesday, December cotton fell by 4 cents to 88.86 cents a pound. The decline of 4.3% marked the biggest for a most-active contract since June 21, 2012. The drop was limited by the exchange's daily limit of four cents.

The limit was increased to five cents in yesterday’s session, according to trading rules, and the free fall continued washing out all the gains made in the last fortnight: December cotton tumbled another 5.2% to 84.24 cents a pound on ICE Futures. Prices have plunged 8.62 cents, or 9.3%, over the last two days posting their largest two-day slide since December 2008 as technical signals and an improving production outlook prompted waves of long liquidation, dealers said.

Tuesday’s fall was prompted by India’s expectation of a bumper crop, while strong U.S. crop report and warmer weather in the Southeast cotton growing areas of the U.S. helped continue the slide on Wednesday. These reports had eased concerns that heavy rains will further reduce crops in the key growing region. If the current trends and forecast hold fort, the world is expected to have record levels of inventories at the end of crop’s season in July, 2014. How much of it will end up in China’s warehouses remains to be seen.