Trading activity slowed down as ginners were reluctant in new purchasing because quality was not matching with their psychological levels causing decline in rates on the cotton market on Tuesday, dealers said.

The official spot rate after maintaining a stable trend for a long time came down modestly, shedding Rs 50 to Rs 6200. In Sindh, seed cotton prices were at Rs 2600-3250 while that in Punjab, phutti rates were at Rs 2800 and Rs 3500, as per 40 kg.

The ginners were also reluctant in new deals partly because of delay in payments with Christmas and New Year holidays. Cotton analyst, Naseem Usman said that bank closing also impacted the trading activity in the local market.

The following deals were reported by dealers to have changed hands: 1200 bales from Haroonabad sold at Rs 6325/6350, 400 bales from Hasilpur at Rs 6400/6450, 600 bales from Bahawalpur at Rs 6440 and 400 bales from Rahim Yar Khan at Rs 6475.

In the ready session, around 3,000 bales of cotton changed hands between Rs 6325-6475, dealers said.