April 9, 2003	Wednesday	Safar 6, 1424

KARACHI, April 8: Trading activity picked up on the cotton market on Tuesday as spinners resumed covering purchases and lifted all the lots offered for sales by the ginners irrespective of quality of lint in trade.

“Spinners appear to be indulging in moping operations in a bid to corner the floating stock lying with the ginners before the mad rush for meagre unsold stock turn into a price flare-up,” brokers said.

An idea of the buying operation may well be had from the fact some of the deals, notably for inferior lots were done at Rs2,250 per maund and at Rs2,625 for the fine lots, signalling the worries on both sides of the divide.

“A difference of Rs400 per maund between the selling prices reflects that ginners are out to sell their unsold stock of inferior lint at the current attractively higher rates, while spinners are inclined to balance their inventories after buying as much local lint as they could,” brokers said.

But ginners still believe that spinners are playing hide-and-seek game with them apparently in a bid to contain any future price flare-up feared to be cause by the lower unsold stock, they added.

After a conspicuous absence from the market for a couple of sessions, spinners and mills appear on the scene after a tactical gap and indulge in panic buying apparently obliging the awaiting ginners.

But spinners say owing to Iraq war and the consequent economic uncertainties associated with the post-war scenario, they are making guarded purchases despite the fact that unsold stocks are significantly lower than their actual annual demand.

Official spot rates resisted fresh declines but indications are that they may be further lowered on Wednesday in line with the transactions carried out on Tuesday evening.

New York cotton futures on the other hand suffered modest decline on trade selling and fell 0.37 and 0.23 cents per lb at 57.32 and 58.87 cents per lb for both the ruling May and the distant July settlements, respectively.

Ready offtake was active as till late in the evening about 20,000 bales changed hands, the following being some of notable among them:

SINDH TYPE: 1,160 bales, Khipro at Rs2,250; 700 bales, Mipurkhas at Rs2,350 to Rs2,400; 4,200 bales, Panoakil at Rs2,460 to Rs2,475; 400 bales, Mandodaro at Rs2,575; and 200 bales, each from Gothki and Dharki at Rs2,550.

PUNJAB VARIETY: 500 bales, Nurpur at Rs2,600; 4,000 bales, Lodhran at Rs2,625; 1,500 bales, Haroonabad at Rs2,600; 1,000 bales, Ahmedpur East at Rs2,600; and 1,000 bales of Bahawalpur also at Rs2,600.