DTN Closing Cotton            03/20 13:32

   Cotton Market Closest Slightly Lower Friday

   After a couple of corrective sessions, the cotton market closed ever so 
slightly lower today.

Keith Brown
DTN Contributing Cotton Analyst

   After a couple of corrective sessions, the cotton market closed ever so 
slightly lower today. The market was registering an overbought condition, a 
result of it spiking higher since last Friday. With that, traders and producers 
continue to stress over super dry field conditions, inordinately high fuel and 
fertilizer costs, the upcoming Trump/Xi trade meeting, and the possibility of 
less acres.

   Today at 3:30 p.m. EDT, the CFTC will update its Commitment of Traders 
information. At last count, the managed-money funds were net short a hefty 
66,700 contracts. However, given the big volume of Monday and Tuesday, their 
bearish position may have lessened.

   USDA will issue its Planting Intentions report on March 31 at noon EDT. This 
will be the first official look at 2026 acres.

   The National Weather Service said it expects the current La Nina event to 
transition to neutral during April/May. Then, the service is looking for an El 
Nino to emerge in June-August and persist at least through the end of 2026. The 
shift of an El Nino could bring more rain to the U.S. Cotton Belt. Currently, 
the U.S. Drought Monitor showed that 89% of U.S. cotton production is suffering 
varying levels of drought conditions. Last year at this time, the drought 
coverage was 33%.

   For Friday, July closed at 69.33 cents, down 28 points; December 2026 closed 
at 71.96 cents, minus 3 points; and March 2027 finished at 72.98 cents, 8 
points higher. Friday's estimated volume was 58,424 contracts.

   Keith Brown can be reached at commodityconsults@gmail.com




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