Cotton futures continued their tract to new contract lows to close out the week. March cotton traded nearly 50 points lower overnight to a low of 63.11 cents a pound. Prices had accelerated below the Oct. 14 low over the past week as bearish pressure left buyers on the sideline.

While the CFTC has yet to catch up on releasing its Commitment of Traders report, speculators are assumed to be holding a record net short position at these levels. Speculative short-covering could help futures rally once the market signals a bottom.

Meanwhile, there has been a lack of bullish news to help prop the market up. Bearish crude oil prices are negative for the cotton market. Additionally, the rising U.S. dollar is making U.S. cotton less attractive in an already competitive trade environment.

Yesterday’s USDA export sales report showed that cotton export sales totaled 199,000 bales during the week ending Oct. 2. Sales were above the five-year average for the week and strong for the marketing year, though total commitments remained at multi-year lows.

Overall, sales could have been worse over the past couple of report releases. Vietnam has been a steady buyer over the past year. China also did step in with some sales during the week, with purchases totaling 26,500 bales.

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PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT INDICATIVE OF FUTURE RESULTS. FUTURES TRADING INVOLVES SUBSTANTIAL RISK AND IS NOT SUITABLE FOR ALL INVESTORS.