June 22, 2008	Sunday	Jamadi-us-Sani 17, 1429

NEW YORK, June 21: Cotton futures finished firmer Friday on modest investor buying and spread trade, with analysts saying weather woes in the key growing state of Texas should keep fiber contracts well-supported in the days ahead.

The key December cotton contract rose 0.04 cent to end at 80.11 cents per lb, dealing from 78.45 to 80.98 cents. Spot July cotton added 0.23 cent to 71.67 cents, trading from 70 to 72.90 cents.

Volume traded in the December contract stood at 10,605 lots at 2:39 p.m. EDT (1839 GMT) while July volume amounted to 2,310 lots.

Sharon Johnson, cotton expert for First Capitol Group inAtlanta, Georgia, said the main feature of business was spread trade as the spot July contract is about to go into deliveries next Tuesday and some short covering in the market.

She said talk is swirling in the market that rains and blowing winds again hit cotton farms in Texas, the top growing state in the country.

We know they’re hurt. We just don’t know how much, (but) it’s not good, said Johnson.

Cotton industry sources in Texas said the state could lose up to 1.5 million acres from the horrid weather out of 4.7 million acres sown to cotton.

The market may also get some support from talk that consulting firm Informa Economics was said to have estimated US 2008 cotton plantings at 8.935 million acres. Informa officials were not available to comment on their figure.

The US Agriculture Department pegged US cotton sowings this year at 9.39 million acres.

Johnson and other analysts said cotton market participants will be tweaking their positions ahead of the release on June 30 of the annual USDA planted acreage report.

There is also concern in the trade how excessive rain will impact the crop in China, the world’s top consumer of cotton.

Traders said they see support in the December contract at 80.05 and 79.95 cents, with resistance pegged at 80.53 and 80.95 cents.

Volume traded Thursday hit 22,455 lots, exchange data showed. Open interest in the cotton market dropped 1,879 lots to 220,206 lots as of June 19.—Reuters