Fashion
ICE cotton slips despite higher US exports, strong dollar
ICE’s most active December 2025 contract settled at 66.90 cents per pound (0.453 kg), down 0.35 cent or 0.52 per cent. The contract has lost a total of 78 points over the last two sessions. Other contracts also closed lower, with losses ranging from 19 to 67 points.
ICE cotton futures declined as a stronger dollar and weak grain markets pressured prices.
December 2025 contract settled at 66.90 cents per pound.
USDA export sales rose 44 per cent weekly but missed expectations, and shipments were poor.
USDA’s September WASDE report left cotton forecasts unchanged.
US equities hit record highs, while crude oil and soybean prices added further downside pressure.
Trading volume was 36,204 contracts, compared with 38,237 in the previous session. ICE deliverable No. 2 cotton contract stocks remained unchanged at 15,474 bags as of September 17.
The US dollar rose 0.6 per cent, marking its second consecutive higher close, though it remains near 3.5-year lows. A stronger dollar makes dollar-denominated commodities such as cotton more expensive for buyers using other currencies. Crude oil futures declined by $0.59 on the day of the Fed decision, adding further pressure on cotton prices.
The Federal Reserve announced a 25-basis-point rate cut, which had been widely anticipated.
USDA’s weekly export sales report for the week ending September 11 showed a net increase of 186,100 bales—44 per cent higher than the prior week and 13 per cent above the 4-week average.
CBOT soybean futures fell for the second consecutive day, weighed down by weaker soyoil prices. Soyoil futures also dropped for the second session, pressured by the US EPA’s unclear proposal on redistributing biofuel blending obligations under the small refinery exemption programme. Market analysts said grain market weakness and a strong dollar are weighing on cotton. While USDA’s export sales report was ‘decent’, it fell short of export targets and shipments were poor, signalling that export demand remains lacklustre despite some increase in sales.
USDA’s September World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report kept forecasts unchanged for US cotton consumption, exports, and 2025-26 year-end stocks.
US equities moved higher, with all three major indices hitting new all-time highs both intraday and at close.
Currently, ICE cotton for December 2025 is trading at 66.83 cents per pound (down 0.07 cent), cash cotton at 64.90 cents (down 0.35 cent), the October 2025 contract at 65.50 cents (up 0.31 cent), the March 2026 contract at 68.74 cents (down 0.10 cent), the May 2026 contract at 70.14 cents (down 0.03 cent) and the July 2026 contract at 71.03 cents (down 0.05 cent). A few contracts remained at their previous closing levels, with no trading recorded today.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)