NEW YORK, Feb 1: NY cotton futures vaulted to a strong close Friday as a better-than-expected US cotton annualized consumption number provided the catalyst for a robust surge in the market.

Key March cotton jumped 0.93 cent to settle at 52.36 cents a lb, just a hair below the session peak of 52.39 cents. The intraday trough was at 51.60 cents.

May gained the same to end at 56.32 cents, having touched a lifetime high for the second day running of 56.35 cents. Except for two contracts, the rest increased 0.85-0.95 cent.

According to monthly data from the US Census Bureau, the National Cotton Council of America (NCC) said the country’s annualized cotton consumption was calculated at 7.88 million (480-lb) bales, compared with the USDA’s estimate in 2002/03 of 7.5 million bales.

Most of the trade had been expecting the Census report to peg US cotton consumption around 7.5 million, or even 7.6 million bales.

That is a pretty friendly number, said Jobe Moss of brokers and merchants MCM Inc. in Lubbock, Texas.

The rally enabled back months to post new contract highs and Moss said this meant a further rise seems in the cards next week. Technically, the market looks like it is going higher, he said.

The initial spark came from the consumption number, said Frank Weathersby of brokers Affinity Trading in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.

Futures vaulted higher from the opening bell and never looked back as robust speculative and fund buying pushed cotton contracts to higher ground, floor sources said.

Once second position May raced past 56 cents, scale-up trade selling sought to cap its advance.

Weathersby said the trade also seemed to back away from the market as it ran higher.

Sharon Johnson, cotton expert for Frank Schneider and Co. Inc. in Atlanta, said the buying should further boost the already massive net long position by funds in the market.

Technicians said resistance in the March cotton contract would now be at 52.50 and 53.25 cents, with support at 51 and 50.50 cents.

Floor traders said estimated final volume reached 20,000 lots, against the prior tally of 15,425 lots.—Reuters