Cotton prices edged up in the third week of February on fresh demand from domestic yarn mills after prices declined in the previous week. Cotton yarn prices climbed during the week with offers regaining in Ludhiana while remaining flat in Indore. The rise explains the rebound in cotton prices, after progressively declining in the past weeks.

In Pakistan, cotton market eased a bit as leading spinners were away from the proceedings. A slump in cotton yarn and fabric markets depressed cotton trade, and leading spinners have already imported a substantial quantity of cotton. Cotton yarn prices in Pakistan mostly rolled over after cotton prices were revised down on the week due to poor demand. Eights and 30s carded yarn for weaving prices remained unchanged during the week.

The China cotton index fell 89 yuan to 12,219 yuan a ton on the week while cotton yarn markets witnessed scattered transactions, as many players were yet to resume operations, back from the holidays. Major producers were in slow recovery and most held a bearish outlook over future trends. Thus cotton yarn markets saw thin trades and transactions are likely to recover by the end of the month.