KARACHI: The cotton market on Monday continued to be lacklustre. A sharp fall in activity was recorded as buyers stayed away.

The latest phutti (seed cotton) arrival figures are not encouraging and textile millers are opting to stay away. Financial crunch along with harsh weather conditions is affecting cotton production hard and this must be addressed immediately, brokers said.

If the government does not address negative developments soon, the next cotton crop would be even more disastrous, they added.

The world leading cotton markets gave mixed trend with Chinese cotton closing firm and Indian cotton easy.

The Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) spot rates were firm at week-end level at Rs9,000 per maund.

The following deals were reported to have changed hands on ready counter: 1,000 bales, station Ghotki, at Rs9,150-9,200; 800 bales, Adilpur, at Rs9,200; 1,400 bales, Daharki, at Rs9,200; and 1,000 bales, Khairpur, at Rs8,650-8,750.

Published in Dawn, November 19th, 2019