KARACHI, Nov 20: Cotton market on Tuesday maintained a firm outlook as prices remained stable around the previous levels amid an actively traded session.

About 30,000 bales changed hands including a big deal of 6,000 bales from central Sindh ginneries at Rs3,200 per maund as spinners and mills continued to build up long positions at the prevailing prices, floor brokers said.

“The credit of containing price flare-up despite short crop goes to spinners who have regulated their daily intake,” they said. The reports of larger imports by the spinners and mills to meet the shortfall halted fresh surge in the lint rates, they added.

According to official data about 0.2m bales of lint were imported by the spinners during October 2007 alone which in turn have a stabilising impact on the local prices, they said.

For the last couple of sessions most of the deals in the Sindh type were being done at Rs3,200 to Rs3,250, while Punjab variety between Rs3,250 to Rs3,275 per maund which said to be in line with their export parity levels.

The interesting feature was that the local lint prices were not influenced by the international rates so far and were essentially based on local supply and demand factors, some others said.

Official spot rates were, therefore, firmly held at the overnight level of Rs3,175, but ready business was done at higher rates.

New York cotton futures on the other hand were marked down by 0.87 and 0.52.cents per lb at 60.03 and 65.62 cents for both the ruling December and the forward March contracts respectively.

Mill ready off-take totalled about 30,000 bales, the following being some of the notable deals:

SINDH TYPE: 6,000 bales, Jhole at Rs3,200 (Karachi delivery), 600 bales, each Sultanabad and Khanpur at Rs3,250 and 400 bales, Dadu at Rs3,225.