From Bloomberg:

Cotton futures climbed to a record for the second straight day after exports jumped from U.S., the world’s leading shipper.

In the week ended Feb. 3, export sales rose 26 percent from a week earlier, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said today. Global output will be 115.25 million bales in the year ending July 31, down 0.2 percent from a January forecast, with demand at 116.55 million, the USDA said yesterday. Prices have more than doubled in the past 12 months.

“The future prices are being pushed up by physical demand,” said Andy Ryan, a senior risk-management consultant at FCStone Fibers & Textiles in Nashville, Tennessee. “We could see usage being rationed because of scarcity and not because of prices, as China is consuming whatever they are able to buy.”

Cotton Surges to Record for Second Day on U.S. Export Sales