With improved demand for better grades and tight cottonseed arrival to ginneries due to dull picking and slower arrival of fine grades kept trading in Punjab and Sindh stations selective on grade issue, while volumes of second grade of lint remained on higher side, besides prices of all grades remained at the hands of sellers on back of shrinking stocks, traders said.

The ginning units remained confident on paucity of better cottonseed arrival that pushed general prices on firm footing, said floor brokers.

During the trading session, mills bought better grades of lint at Rs 6,725 per maund to Rs 6,775 per maund while spinners bought second grades for immediate use and blending purpose at around Rs 6,650 per maund, floor brokers said.

Traders at Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) also made sizeable deals during trading activity. KCA kept the spot rate at Rs 6,050 per maund in order to provide support to raw grade sellers for getting better prices.

While, at the Karachi Cotton Exchange on Thursday, while spot rates remained firm at Rs6,050/maund (37.324kg) and Rs6,484/40kg. Ex-Karachi rates also stood firm at Rs6,185/maund and Rs6,629/40kg after an addition of Rs135 and Rs145 as upcountry expenses, respectively. Normal trading activity was witnessed.

KCE recorded eight transactions changes hands of around 5,500 bales from Sindh in the range of Rs6,200/maund to Rs6,250/maund. Of these, 200 bales of Hala, 400 bales of Mirpurkhas, 400 bales of Kotri, 600 bales of Hyderabad, 1,000 bales of Sanghar, 200 bales of Golarchi, 1,000 bales of Tando Adam and 1,400 bales of Shahdadpur were traded in the market.

According to Shakeel Ahmad a fibre analyst, grade issue would remain intact, while weather is suitable for standing crop besides cottonseed would not be in plenty however some stations were producing fine grade cottonseed in limited quantity.