Cotton Posts Slight Thursday Gains

Group 1 - Cotton futures experienced gains of 8 points across the front months at the close on Thursday [1] - Crude oil futures increased by 8 cents per barrel, reaching $56.02 [1] - The US dollar index rose by $0.093 to $98.095 [1] Group 2 - Export Sales data indicated that 135,886 RB of cotton were sold during the week of 11/27, marking a 4-week low [1] - Total export sale commitments for cotton are at 5.72 million RB, which is 16.53% lower than the same period last year [2] - Shipments have increased by 7.61% during the marketing year, totaling 2.3 million RB [2] Group 3 - An online auction from The Seam on Thursday reported sales of 14,934 bales at an average price of 60.84 cents/lb [3] - The Cotlook A Index decreased by 90 points to 73.00 cents on 12/17 [3] - ICE certified cotton stocks remained unchanged at 12,396 bales as of December 17 [3] Group 4 - The Adjusted World Price was updated to 49.99 cents/lb, reflecting a 40-point drop from the previous week [3] - March 26 Cotton closed at 63.51, May 26 Cotton at 64.61, and July 26 Cotton at 65.66, each up 8 points [3]