KARACHI, Feb 18: The cotton market closed the weekend session with a firm note as some of the leading spinner groups made active covering followed by reports of lower arrival figures of phutti for the fortnight ending Feb 15.

As a result, some of the deals were finalized as higher as Rs2,600 per maund and some analysts predict further increase in prices in the backdrop of fresh increase in New York cotton futures and their sympathetic impact on the world markets.

Although ginners still hold an unsold stock of over 2m bales, leading among them appeared to be in no hurry to sell apparently eyeing further increase in prices based on supply and demand factors, leading brokers said.

According to fortnightly arrival figures released by the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA), total arrival up to Feb 15 amounted to 12.208m bales, showing a decline of 13 per cent over the previous total, out of which mills have purchased about 11m bales against their projected annual consumption of about 15m bales, they added.

Market sources said indications were that the total crop could be around 12.5m bales as the 13 per cent decline showed that the ginners might not be holding more than 0.2m bales in their ginneries and that was far below the mill annual consumption needs.

According to them, the TCP, which is still holding an unsold stock of half a million bales, could come to the aid of the textile sector after selling it to the mills.

Import of the commodity is said to be expensive as New York cotton futures are being quoted well above 57 cents per lb and are progressively rising to 60-cents mark, they added.

It was perhaps in this background that local official spot rates were quoted further higher by Rs10 at Rs2,545, but in the ready section fine lots were sold well above them.

New York cotton futures rose by 0.97 and 0.72 cents per lb for both the maturing March and forward May contracts at 57.43 and 57.34 cents, respectively.

Ready offtake was modest as about 10,000 bales changed hands as under: 5,000 bales, upper Sindh at Rs2,500 to Rs2,585 depending on quality; 1,000 bales, Rahimyar Khan at Rs2,575 to Rs2,600; 2,000 bales, Sadiqabad at Rs2,525 to Rs2,600; and 600 bales, Alipur at Rs2,575.