27 April 2004	Tuesday	06 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1425

KARACHI, April 26: Trading on the cotton market on Monday resumed on a higher note as spinners and mills made fresh covering purchases against their forward sales of cotton yarn and cloth.

Although physical business was well below the daily average figure at this time of the season, leading spinners continued to indulge in big-lot business, bulk of which confined to fine lots, brokers said.

Contamination-free lots from the southern Punjab cotton belt remained the centre of activity as most of the spinners purchased it for higher counts of cotton yarn around an average rate of Rs2,900 per maund, they said.

Fearing pressure on local supplies and consequent increase in prices, spinners are out to grab the floating stock below Rs3,000 per maund after leading ginners have slashed their asking prices.

The current highly volatile price movements on the world markets also worried spinners as it was pretty difficult to make long-term planning in fluctuating market.

But much will depend on the final crop figures expected to be released by the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) by the first week of the next month as total supplies in the shape of unsold stocks with the ginners are expected to influence prices possibly on the higher side, market sources said.

The local cotton situation as far as supplies are concerned is unclear and spinners and mills are worried over the rising world prices and the pressure on local supplies, they said.

Despite having already imported a million bales from various sources mills may still need further imports before the new crop from the lower Sindh cotton belt arrives sometime late July.

Meanwhile, reports coming from the major crop areas including upper Sindh and the southern Punjab cotton belt show that new crop sowing is expected to resume from May 15, and will be completed by the end of June, considered ideal time for a good and free from pest attack, ginners said.

Official spot rates were, therefore, firmly held at the last levels, although some of the deals were done well above them. Ready offtake was active as till late in the evening about 8,000 bales changed hands, the following being some of the notable deals: 200 bales, Nawabshah at Rs2,690, 2,000 bales, Haroonabad at Rs2,750, 800 bales, Liaquatpur at Rs2,900, 1,400 bales, Setharja at Rs2,950 and 1,700 bales, Rahimyar Khan at Rs2,900.