March 11, 2007	Sunday	Safar 21, 1428

KARACHI, March 10: Cotton market on Saturday showed firm trend as prices were quoted higher by Rs50 per maund after spinners and mills made near-panic buying for no immediate bullish reason, floor brokers said.

But in the ready market some of the big lots from the southern Punjab ginneries changed hands at the seasons’s so far highest rate of Rs2,700 per maund, they said.

As the unsold stock of about a million bales with the ginners show there could be another price flare-up in sympathy with Indian cotton where prices had also risen sharply higher.

Spinning sources said some of the forward deals signed with the Indian exporters by the spinners may not be honoured by them because of an increase in prices and a standoff on the issue is feared.

“In the backdrop of a short crop, ginners were awaiting the return of the spinners to the market and confidently held on to their unsold positions believing that a price flare-up is long overdue,” cotton analysts said.

Spinners and mills have been playing hide and seek game with the ginners for the last couple of weeks in an apparent effort to force them to lower their asking prices but in vain, the ginner is now too shrewd to be deceived on the price front, they said.

However, the current price flare-up in lint prices would add to the existing problems of the textile sectors having negative impact on the already falling exports, they added.

Official spot rates were revised upward by Rs50 at Rs2,575 per maund, although in the ready section fine lots were traded well above them.

Mill ready off-take was on the higher side as about 20,000 bales, changed hands including some big lots mostly from the southern Punjab ginneries, the following being some of the notable deals: 6,000 bales, Khanpur at Rs2,700, 6,000 bales, Sadiqabad at Rs2,565 to Rs2,640, 2,500 bales, Mian Channu at Rs2,600 to Rs2,640, 2,000 bales, Khanpur at Rs2,650, 600 bales, Shujaabad at Rs2,640 and 800 bales, Rohri at Rs2,600.