Cotton futures experienced a notable rally on Thursday, with contracts rising between 80 to 159 points across most maturities. This upward movement coincided with a supportive backdrop in outside markets, including a weaker US dollar and a rebound in crude oil prices, which gained $4.06. The USDA’s latest balance sheet maintained the US carryout at 4.4 million bales, while the world balance sheet increased by 0.65 million bales to 77.04 million bales, indicating a tightening global supply.

The USDA’s Export Sales report highlighted a total of 319,580 RB of cotton sold for the 2025/26 season, with Vietnam leading as the top buyer. However, new crop business was notably low at just 14,051 RB, marking the weakest performance since early January. This could signal potential challenges for future shipments, which were also down to a three-week low.

Market professionals should monitor the cotton futures closely, as the recent price uptick may reflect broader supply-demand dynamics, especially in light of the export trends and USDA data.

Source: nasdaq.com