April 22, 2006	Saturday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 23, 1427

KARACHI, April 21: Cotton market on Friday maintained a steady trend as ginners held on to their unsold positions despite the fact that the TCP has sold 31,500 bales at the lower rates as compared to open market.

But there was no negative impact on the local prices as some of the fine lots were sold as higher as Rs2,500, while the TCP has sold 17,500 bales to local spinners grade 3 lint at Rs2,372 and 2,337 per 40 kg, brokers said.

However, foreign sales of 14,000 bales at 45.17 cents for the lower grade fob and 48.66 cents for the fine types were in line with the prevailing international prices for various staple lengths, they said.

According to TCP sources it has so far sold 1.415m bales out of its total procured stocks of 1.6m bales mostly to local spinners followed by foreign buyers.

Floor brokers said ginners appear to be in optimistic mood amid hopes that spinners and mills would remain active buyers on the open market and they hope to sell their unsold at competitive prices in the coming sessions.

The increase in prices reflects that spinners are still short of their annual consumption requirements and may opt for local buying in a bigger way if there is no other tender by the TCP, they added.

Their interesting feature was that the local market did not entertain the negative fallout of the falling New York cotton futures, which have fallen to 50 cent per lb for the ruling contract on local trade selling.

New York cotton futures fell by 1.67 and 1.14 cents per lb at 50.88 and 52.81 cents for both the ruling May and the distant July contracts, respectively.

Local official spot rates on the other hand were firmly held at the overnight levels of Rs2425 per maund but in the ready section some deals were reported well above them.

These are some of the deals which have gone through: 1,900 bales, upper Sindh at Rs2,400, 200 bales, Dharki at 2,500 and 1,100 bales, Khanpur also at this rate.