KARACHI, Feb 9: Cotton market on Wednesday maintained bull trend owing to short supply and higher world prices, notably the New York cotton futures.

Barring some fine lots, which were traded around Rs12,000 per maund on cash and Rs12,450 on credit, others were sold between Rs10,400 and Rs11,500 per maund.

But local spinners were not inclined to go above their export parity levels and curtailed their daily intake just to balance their inventories purchased at the lower rates earlier in the season and the prevailing higher prices, floor brokers said.

Most of the lots both from the Sindh and the Punjab cotton belts were, therefore, of retail nature as spinners lifted only those lots which were in line with their export parity levels, they added.

Industry sources said the developing crisis on the supply front caused partly by a short local crop and partly to unprecedented rise in world prices.Hard-pressed weaker links are mostly operating on short-term basis because of financial constraints and some of them have already shut their operations, they added.Official spot rates were again firmly held at the overnight level of Rs11,500 per maund but the New York cotton futures
showed fresh gains of 0.78 and 2.88 cents at 175.29 and 173.70 cents per lb for both the matured March and the ruling May contracts respectively.

The following are some of the deals reported in the ready section by the Karachi Brokers Forum.

SINDH TYPE: 1,800 bales, Dharki at Rs12,000 and 400 bales, Mirpurkhas at Rs11,800.

PUNJAB VARIETY: 2,500 bales, Rajanpur at Rs12,450 (on credit), 400 and 600 bales, Sadiqabad and Rajanpur at Rs12,000, 600 bales, D.G. Khan at Rs11,500 to Rs12,000, 400 bales, Mian Channu at Rs11,500, 200 bales, each Pir Mahal and Rahimyar Khan at Rs11,200, 200 bales, Mongi Bungalow at Rs11,000, 200 and 400 bales, Haroonabad and Chistian at Rs10,400 and Rs10,500.