Cotton Starting Friday with Gains

Group 1 - Cotton prices have increased by 8 to 11 points on Monday, with futures showing gains heading into the weekend, particularly December contracts which were up 11 points last week [1] - The US dollar index decreased by $0.370 to $97.845, while crude oil futures rose by 22 cents [1] - Managed money in cotton futures and options increased their bearish positions by 2,943 contracts as of September 23, bringing their net short to 62,004 contracts [1] Group 2 - Export Sales data indicated that 4.059 million RB of cotton were sold by September 18, representing an 18% decrease from the previous year, which is only 37% of the USDA export target and below the 53% average pace [2] - An online auction from The Seam recorded 1,561 sales at an average price of 59.3 cents per pound [3] - The Cotlook A Index fell by 45 points to 77.70 cents on September 25, while ICE cotton stocks remained steady with certified stocks at 15,474 bales [3] Group 3 - USDA's Adjusted World Price (AWP) decreased by 41 points last week to 54.38 cents per pound [3] - Cotton futures closed as follows: October 25 at 63.95 (up 12 points), December 25 at 66.4 (up 12 points), and March 26 at 68.26 (up 7 points) [3]