KARACHI, Oct 7: Cotton market on Thursday turned in an improved performance as ginners held on to their positions followed by reports of an active buying by the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) to ensure competitive price to the growers.

Most of the deals in the ready section were finalized about Rs25 per maund higher as compared to the overnight ones at which large physical business was done, dealers said.

The market sentiment in part was also influenced favourably on reports that some of the private sector exporters were active and covered positions below Rs2,000 per maund against their forward sales, they said.

"I don't think the TCP owing to its technical limitations could rescue the market being the victim of an expected production glut", says a leading cotton analyst "it will be the holding capacity of the grower and the ginners which will finally prevail".

According to reports reaching here from the central Sindh cotton belt indicate that some of the leading ginners complain of rejection of their lots by the TCP staff for not conforming to their quality standards.

This has created some doubts among the ginners about TCP role as a market stabilizer after the recent decline in prices well below its support rates of Rs2,159 per 40 kg.

What seems to have changed the future market outlook was the prevailing panic among the growers who are not inclined to hold on to their positions amid fears of further fall in prices, he said. But an air of optimism prevailed among the spinners as the lower prices of lint has enabled them to recoup in part losses of the previous season when prices soared to Rs3,650 per maund.

Official spot rates were, however, further marked down in line with the overnight prices but on the other hand New York cotton futures recovered from the recent lows, up by 1.48 and 1.24 cents at 50.35 and 48.47 cents per lb for both the ruling October and the forward December contracts respectively. Ready off-take was active as till late in the evening about 15,000 bales changed hands, the following being some of the notable deals:

SINDH VARIETY: 1,000 bales, each Nawabshah and Khairpur at Rs1,900, 600 bales, Oderolal at Rs1,800, 800 bales, Tando Adam at Rs1,775 to Rs1,825, 400 bales, Sanghar at Rs1,725 to Rs1,775 and 500 bales, Mirpurkhas at Rs1,750.