Average spot cotton quotations were 43 points higher than the previous week, according to the USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service’s Cotton Program. Quotations for the base quality of cotton (color 41, leaf 4, staple 34, mike 35-36 and 4349, strength 27.0-28.9, uniformity 81.0-81.9) in the seven designated markets averaged 81.69 cents per pound for the week ended Thursday, March 22, 2012. The weekly average was up from 81.26 cents last week, but down from 197.86 cents reported the corresponding period a year ago. Daily average quotations ranged from a low of 80.77 cents on Friday, March 16 to a high of 82.91 cents on Thursday, March 22. Spot transactions reported in the Daily Spot Cotton Quotations for the week ended March 22 totaled 24,278 bales. This compares to 11,916 bales last week and 4,329 bales reported a year ago. Total spot transactions for the season were 753,757 bales, compared to 566,189 bales the corresponding week a year ago. The ICE May settlement prices ended the week at 89.58 cents, compared to 87.34 cents last week.
| Prices are in effect from March 23-29, 2012 |
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| Adjustment World Price (AWP | 76.46 | ELS Competitiveness Payment | 0.00 |
| Loan Deficiency Payment (LDP) | 0.00 | Fine Count Adjustment 2010 Crop | 0.24 |
| Coarse Count Adjustment (CCA) | 1.34 | Fine Count Adjustment 2011 Crop | 0.29 |
Source: Farm Service Agency, FSA, USDA
USDA ANNOUNCES SPECIAL IMPORT QUOTA #6 FOR UPLAND COTTON March 22, 2012
The Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Credit Corporation announced a special import quota for upland cotton that permits importation of a quantity of upland cotton equal to one week’s domestic mill use. The quota will be established on March 29, 2012, allowing importation of 14,594,057 kilograms (67,030 bales) of upland cotton.
Quota number 6 will be established as of March 29, 2012, and will apply to upland cotton purchased not later than June 26, 2012, and entered into the U.S. not later than September 24, 2012. The quota is equivalent to one week’s consumption of cotton by domestic mills at the seasonally- adjusted average rate for the period May 2011 through July 2011, the most recent three months for which data are available.
Future quotas, in addition to the quantity announced, will be established if price conditions warrant.
Regional Summaries
Southeastern Markets
Spot cotton trading was moderate. Supplies were moderate. Demand was moderate. Producer offerings were light. Average local spot prices were higher. Trading of CCC-loan equities was slow.
Unseasonably warm conditions prevailed during the period with daytime temperatures in the high 70s to low 80s in most areas. Portions of south Georgia received light scattered precipitation during the peri¬od. Outside activities were uninterrupted and land preparation was underway. The recent warm weather has encouraged weed growth and some local experts reported Palmer amaranth (pigweed) emerging in some fields in southwest Georgia. Entomologists in the Carolinas encouraged producers to monitor fields closely as insect pressure could be high this season, due to the mild winter. Strong thunderstorms brought one to two inches of beneficial moisture to the eastern Carolinas late week.
South Central Markets North Delta
Spot cotton trading was slow. Producer offerings and supplies were light. Demand was light. Average lo¬cal spot prices were higher. Trading of CCC-loan equities was inactive. No forward contracting was reported.
Heavy rain showers produced up to two inches of precipitation throughout the region. Overnight lows were mostly in the mid-60s and high temperatures ranged from mid-70s to the mid-80s. Soil tempera¬tures have risen due to the warm weather. Soil mois¬ture conditions remained adequate to surplus through¬out the region. Producers continued to ponder plant¬ing options while grain prices have remained strong. No outside activities were reported.
South Delta
Spot cotton trading was inactive. Supplies were mod-erate. Producer offerings were light. Demand was light. Average local spot prices were higher. Trading of CCC-loan equities was inactive. No forward con¬tracting was reported.
Rain showers throughout the week saturated soils and brought a halt to planting preparations. Severe weather late in the week spawned several tornadoes in parts of Louisiana and Mississippi, which resulted in moderate property damage, but no injuries were re-ported. High temperatures were mostly in the low 80s. Overnight lows ranged from the low 60s to the low 70s. No outside activities were reported. Since the optimal deadline for planting corn has past, local experts reported that some acreage intended for corn could be planted to cotton, due to recently saturated soil conditions.
Southwestern Markets
East Texas-Oklahoma
Spot cotton trading was slow. Supplies were moder¬ate. Demand was light. Average local spot prices were weak. Producer offerings were light. No for¬ward contracting was reported. Trading of CCC-loan equities was slow. No domestic mill activity was re¬ported. Foreign mill interest was moderate. Interest was best from China, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
In southern Texas, planting gained momentum and expanded around the Coastal Bend, Upper Coast, and Lower Valley. A band of storms early in the week swept across the region and deposited one-half of an inch to one inch of rainfall that delayed planting activ-ities. In central Texas, fieldwork was interrupted by a significant rain event that dropped two to seven inches of precipitation. Soils were too wet to support heavy equipment. In Kansas, beneficial rainfall was re¬ceived in the central and eastern parts of the state. The moisture bypassed southwestern Kansas, which continued as the driest area. Producers booked seed and prepared seedbeds. In Oklahoma, seedbed prepa-ration advanced to 43 percent completed, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service. Soil moisture improved in the southwestern part of the state with more than one inch of beneficial rainfall received. Planting season is May and June, and some producers will plant cotton following the harvesting of wheat.
West Texas
Spot cotton trading was moderate. Supplies were moderate. Demand was moderate. Average local spot prices were weak. Producer offerings were light. No forward contracting was reported. Trading of CCC-loan equities was slow. Foreign mill interest
was moderate. Interest was best from China, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
Several rain events moved through the region and deposited around a few tenths of an inch to two inches of precipitation. The beneficial moisture reduced droughty conditions, but gusty winds lessened gains by drying out the topsoil. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, drought conditions improved to 20.54 percent from 41.29 percent in the exceptional drought category in a three-month period since December 13, 2011. Daytime tempera¬ture highs were in the 50s to 80s, and nighttime temperatures were in the 30s to 40s. Some organic cotton pro¬ducers were busied with compost applications and incorporating it into the soil. Rows were built to help control erosion caused by gusty winds. The beneficial rainfall bypassed most organic fields, and reports indicated that more moisture is needed to fortify subsoil conditions.
Western Markets Desert Southwest (DSW)
Spot cotton trading was inactive. Supplies and demand were light. Average local spot prices were higher. No forward contracting or domestic mill activity was reported. Foreign mill inquiries were light.
Ginning continued in Arizona. Abundant sunshine was the norm for most of the region. Temperatures were in the low 80s. Cotton planting gained momentum in Yuma, Arizona. Fieldwork continued throughout Arizona, New Mexico, and El Paso, Texas. Droughty conditions persisted in New Mexico and El Paso, Texas.
San Joaquin Valley (SJV)
Spot cotton trading was slow. Supplies were moderate. Demand was light. Average local spot prices were high¬er. No forward contracting or domestic mill activity was reported. Foreign mill inquiries were light.
The last winter storm of the season packed a punch with hail, winds, and rain for the Central Valley early in the period. The region received one and one-half to two and one-quarter inches of rain. Approximately three to four feet of snow was received in the Sierra Mountains. Measurements indicated that the Sierra snowpack was 45 percent of average. The last official snowpack measurements will be taken around April 1. No field activity was observed. Planting was set to begin early next week. Long-term weather conditions are favorable.
American Pima (AP)
Spot cotton trading was slow. Supplies were moderate. Demand was light. Average local prices were lower. No forward contracting or domestic mill activity was reported. Foreign mill inquiries were light. A few new sales were reported. Prices remained under pressure.
Planting continued in Yuma, Arizona. Producers worked fields in Arizona and New Mexico. Heavy rains de-layed planting in the San Joaquin Valley (SJV). Planting was set to begin early next week. The long-range fore¬cast showed sunny conditions. Ginning was completed in the SJV.
Textile mill
Domestic mill buyers purchased a moderate volume of color 41, leaf 4, and staple 34 for November through March 2013 delivery. Mill buyers also inquired for a moderate volume of color 42 and 51, leaf 5, and staple 32 and longer for June through September delivery. No additional sales were reported. Demand for ring-spun poly¬ester-cotton yarn blends had improved; open-end yarn was moderate. Mill buyers continued to report sluggish finished product demand and some planned up to two weeks of down time for the approaching Easter holiday. Demand for organic yarn has been intermittent and limited to specialty orders; no additional sales were reported for the near term.
Inquiries through export channels were moderate. Representatives for mills in Thailand inquired for a mod¬erate volume of USDA Green Card Class, color 31, leaf 3, and staple 36 for April shipment. Taiwanese mill buy¬ers inquired for a moderate volume of color 42 and 51, leaf 5 and better, and staple 33 and longer for April/May shipment. No sales were reported.
Regional Price Information
Southeastern Markets
• Mixed lots containing color mostly 31 and 41, leaf 3-5, staple 34-37, mike 35-49, strength 28-30, and uniformity 80-82 sold for around 425 points off ICE May futures, FOB car/truck, Georgia terms (Rule 5, compression charges paid, 30 days free storage).
• A moderate volume of color mostly 41, leaf 2-4, staple 34-36, mike 43-52, strength 27-30, and uniformity 80-82 sold for 350 points off ICE May futures, FOB car/truck (Rule 5, compression charges paid).
• A moderate volume of color mostly 51 and better, leaf 5 and better, staple 34 and longer, mike 40 -50, strength 26-31, and uniformity 79-82 traded at around 85.00 cents per pound, same terms as above.
• A light volume of color mostly 41 and 42, leaf 3 and better, staple 33 and longer, mike 50-54, strength 26-30, and uniformity 79-82 traded at around 83.00 cents, same terms as above.
• A light volume of CCC-loan equities traded at around 27.00 cents.
South Central Markets
North Delta
• A light volume of color mostly 42, leaf 4 and better, staple 35-36, mike 43-52, strength 31-35, and uniformity 80-83 sold at around 71.25 cents per pound, FOB car/truck (Rule 5, compression charges paid).
South Delta
• No trading activity was reported.
Southwestern Markets
East Texas
• In Kansas, a moderate volume of color mostly 21 and better, leaf 2 and 3, staple 37, mike averag¬ing 36.0, strength averaging 31.5, and uniformity averaging 81.0 sold for around 89.00 cents per pound, FOB car/truck (compression charges not paid).
• In Oklahoma, a light volume of color 31, leaf mostly 2, staple 34 and 35, mike 44-45, strength 25-26, and uniformity 78-79 sold for around 84.50 cents, same terms as above.
• A light volume of color mostly 41, leaf 5 and better, staple 34 and longer, mike averaging 39.7, strength averaging 30.6, uniformity averaging 80.5, and 100 percent level 1 bark sold for around 72.00 cents, same terms as above.
• A light volume of CCC-loan equities traded for 16.00 to 22.00 cents.
West Texas
• A moderate volume of color mostly 21, leaf 2 and 3, staple 37, mike 34-41, strength 30-32, uni-formity 80-81, and 50 percent level 1 bark extraneous matter sold for around 88.00 cents per pound, FOB car/truck (compression charges not paid).
• A moderate volume of color mostly 21, leaf 2 and 3, staple 34, mike 41-47, strength 25-29, and uniformity 79-83 sold for around 79.00 cents, same terms as above.
Southwestern Markets cont.
West Texas
• A heavy volume of mixed-lots of color mostly 31 and better, leaf 4 and better, staple 35 and longer, mike 32-34, strength 29-31, uniformity 80-81, and 50 percent level 1 bark sold for around 78.00 cents per pound, FOB car/truck (compression charges not paid).
• A light volume of CCC-loan equities traded for 14.00 to 24.00 cents.
Western Markets
Desert Southwest
• No trading activity was reported.
San Joaquin Valley
• A moderate volume of roller-ginned Acala color 21 and better, leaf 2 and better, and staple 40 and longer was purchased for around 2000 points on ICE May futures.
American Pima
• A moderate volume of color 1, leaf 1, and staple 48 and longer traded for around 140.00 cents per pound, UD free, FOB warehouse.
• A moderate volume of green card class of color 2, leaf 2, and staple 46 and longer was sold to foreign mills for prompt shipment.
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