ICE Cotton Futures Settle Limit Down At $1.3375 A Pound

Fears China will move to control price inflation pushedcotton futures prices on the ICE Futures U.S. exchange for December deliverylimit down again Tuesday, down 5 cents or nearly 4% at $1.3375 a pound. TheMarch contract, which many traders have been switching to, duplicated theDecember contract, falling limit down 5 cents or nearly 4% to $1.2920 a pound.Despite a major drop from the $1.4565 a pound close just a week ago, analystsand traders noted futures prices for the fibrous crop remain above the Oct. 29close of $1.2526--still higher than they've been since the end of the U.S.Civil War. But Sharon Johnson, senior cotton analyst with Penson Futures inAtlanta, added: "Once you take the steam out of the market, it's real hard toget it back. That's the kind of the position we're in."