KARACHI, Aug 2: Cotton market on Friday showed firm trend as ginners were not inclined to lower their asking prices because of pressure on ready supplies.

Stray new crop lots did change hands but mostly at ginners options and the spinners needing immediate supplies were in an obliging mood. As a result, a deal of 100 bales was reported at the season’s so far highest rate of Rs2,000 per maund.

With the current crop unsold stocks falling each day, ginners seem to have read the developing situation in the broader term of a bull market and refrained from making hasty selling.

A big-lot of the current crop from an upper Sindh ginnery was sold at the peak level of Rs2,025, the highest so far in the current season indicating spinners needing fine lots are willing to pay more for them, brokers said.

According to market sources ginners now may not have unsold stocks in the godowns more than 30,000 bales and that is perhaps why they are not in haste and sell only those lots, which ensure them a fair price.

Floor brokers said spinners are fully aware of the future demand and supply factors but are weighed down by the sudden rise in international prices and have no option to cover positions from the local market.

“Prices may rise further during the next couple of weeks ahead of the resumption of picking operations in the Punjab cotton owing to an expected pressure on ready supplies fuelled by higher world rates”, they added.

Although spinners during the current season have imported 1.2m bales of lint from various countries and have purchased a million bales from the local market, higher consumption projections keep them in the arena. Hence the current price flare-up.

The other contributory aiding factor was reports of slow arrivals of phutti into the lower Sindh ginneries as growers are asking higher prices well above the official rate of Rs800 per 40 kg. Most of the deals are finalized between Rs815 and Rs825 per maund, dealers said.

The official spot rates did not show any change for the third session in a row but New York cotton future recovered from the recent lows as both the contracts were quoted higher by 0.31 and 0.40 cents per lb at 47.26 and 48.89 cents for both the ruling October and the distant December settlements.

Ready business was modest totalling 1,500 bales as under: 100 bales, new crop Sultanabad at Rs1,990 and 100 bales, Pithoro at Rs2,000 and 1,000 bales, K-68, Dharki at Rs2,025.