Mumbai - Tracking sharp overnight losses in the US cotton amid general commodities weakness, cotton futures on both the domestic exchanges went into negative area amid renewed selling by traders and speculators during initial hours of session Saturday. While NCDEX April cotton lost Rs 5.50/20kg, MCX April cotton dipped Rs 2.20/20kg.

ICE Futures US cotton fell Friday amid general commodities weakness on a softer US dollar, ending a week of position-squaring ahead of the upcoming US Department of Agriculture 2008-09 acreage estimates. May cotton ended 122 points lower at 71.68 cents a pound and the July contract settled down 108 points at 75.11 cents. For the week, the May contract lost 66 points.

At the spot markets Friday, cotton lint traded up slightly amid slow business across north India. Around 4,000 bales of kapas arrived in the entire northern region today. Across western India, cotton lint traded almost steady amid sluggish business. Most of the traders are busy clearing their account books at the end of the fiscal year.

At 10.43 am IST, NCDEX benchmark April cotton contract traded down Rs 5.50 at Rs 513.00/20kg, after fluctuating between Rs 511.20 and 515.10/20kg. Open interest in April cotton was 2,337 lots. Trading in NCDEX March cotton contract had not begun till the filing of this report. Open interest in March cotton was 15 lots.

MCX April-08 contract traded down Rs 2.40 at Rs 492.00/20kg.