KARACHI, Aug 25: Trading activity on the cotton market on Wednesday was relatively slow as ginners and spinners remained locked in a price war amid light ready offtake.

The market witnessed a hide-and-seek game between them as spinners withdrew to the sidelines after ginners raised their asking prices during the mid-session, brokers said.

While ginners attempted to raise prices above Rs2,300 per maund, spinners were not inclined to bid above this level keeping in view their export parity levels, they said.

The chief victim was ready business as unlike the previous sessions, spinners and mills were not inclined to go all-out for the offered stuff. However, brokers predicted a large business late in the evening as usual both came to terms and resumed trading afresh at the rates suited to the both.

The interesting feature of the trading was that grower too was dumping his phutti into the ginneries as he was not inclined to take even a calculated risk amid reports of a good crop.

Growers of the lower Sindh and central Punjab cotton belt were selling phutti at an average rate of Rs1,000 per 40 kg, which incidentally was considered competitive by the spinners, market sources said.

They said because of dry weather and no reports of fresh rain in any part of the entire cotton belt, the condition of the crop was in line with official projections amid predictions of a large crop.

Cotton analysts said in the absence of reports of serious pest attack on the standing crop in the major growing areas, both prices of phutti and lint were stable around the current levels for the last couple of weeks.

Meanwhile, reports coming from the textile sector indicated that the local spinners were getting out of the recent sluggishness on the world markets after the recent eight cents rise in New York cotton futures and exports of yarn and cloth were getting smooth, they said.

Official spot rates were lowered by Rs50 per maund at Rs2,250 but in the ready section lint prices remained stable around the previous levels. New York cotton futures on the other hand posted modest gains ranging from 0.35 and 0.57 cents for both the ruling October and the distant December settlements at 50.95 and 51.99 cents per lb.

Ready business was light totalling about 3,000 bales as under: 1,200 bales, Tando Adam at Rs2,300, 800 bales, Shahdadpur also at Rs2,300 and 400 bales at Rs2,275.