DTN Closing Cotton            10/21 13:35

   Cotton Hangs Sideways to Up

   The cotton market ended essentially sideways to up today.

Keith Brown
DTN Contributing Cotton Analyst

   The cotton market ended essentially sideways to up today. Its oversold 
condition and the hope for a trade deal with China next week encouraged some 
all-round buying.

   U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent said that he expects to meet with Chinese 
Vice Premier He Lifeng in Malaysia to try to forestall an escalation of U.S. 
tariffs on Chinese goods. Over the weekend, President Trump confirmed that he 
would meet with Chinese President Xi in South Korea in two weeks.

   For her part, China has not been a major buyer of U.S. cotton for the past 
couple of years. In fact, this year is the slowest pace in at least 10 years. 
The last U.S. export sales report released before the government shutdown 
showed that as of Sept. 18, China had purchased 70,000 bales thus far for 
2025/2026 versus the 462,000 bales bought at this in 2024/2025.

   The 6- to 10-day weather outlook (Oct. 26-30) calls for above-normal 
temperatures from Texas to Georgia. Rain-wise, Texas looks to have below-normal 
chances, while the Delta and the Southeast will see slightly above-normal 
opportunities.

   The U.S. government remains in shutdown mode. The U.S. Senate failed to pass 
the House's continuing resolution in its Monday vote. However, it now seems 
that some moderate Democrats are now wanting to end the shutdown due to massive 
constituent complaints.

   For Tuesday, December 2025 ended at 64.42 cents, up 26 points, while March 
2026 closed at 65.98 cents, plus 26 points. Tuesday's estimated volume was 
39,345 contracts.

   Keith Brown can be reached at commodityconsults@gmail.com




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