March 23, 2007	Friday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 3, 1428

KARACHI, March 22: Cotton market on Thursday maintained firm trend as ginners are not inclined to lower their positions and firmly held on to their unsold positions. Stray lots did change hands around Rs2,575-2,700 per maund as a section of spinners were willing to offer a bit more for fine lots.

“Despite erratic mill intake, we are least worried over our unsold stock,” said a leading ginner, adding “they have to come to us after having probed the foreign markets”.

Most ginners say unsold stocks held by them totalling around a million bales are manageable and no one among us is worried over the overheads including bank interest. “But we have to sell lint at our parity rates”.

According to market sources some of the leading ginners had purchased phutti at the fag-end of season at much higher rates above Rs1,200 and were now inclined to sell lint around their parity levels.

Although spinners and mills are keeping local supply outlets open but at the same time are making forward deals with the foreign exporters as the local crop is too short to meet their annual consumption needs.

“The total crop figure is around 12m bales, while we need at least 15m bales to keep the wheel moving before the arrival of new crop from the lower Sindh cotton belt,” spinners said.

Official spot rates were again held unchanged at the overnight level of Rs2,600 per maund but in the ready section some of the deals were done well above them.

New York cotton futures on the other hand turned mixed and while the ruling May contract fell by 0.19 cents at 53.11, the distant July showed a fractional rise of 0.04 cents at 54.24 cents per lb.

Ready business was light amounting to 4,000 bales, the following being some of the notable deals: 2,200 bales, Dharki at Rs2,650 to Rs2,700, 1,000 bales, Ghotki at Rs2,650 and 1,000 bales, Rahimyar Khan at Rs2,675.