Good afternoon and welcome to Markets Desk.
The dollar index climbed to a two-week high on Thursday, finishing up nearly three-tenths of a percent. A solid April retail sales report came in exactly as expected, reinforcing the view that the American consumer is holding firm, and optimism around US-China trade talks added further fuel to the greenback's move higher.
Turning to energy, natural gas futures rebounded Thursday after the EIA reported a storage build of eighty-five billion cubic feet for the week ended May eighth — a smaller injection than markets had anticipated. That tighter-than-expected supply picture was enough to push June Nymex contracts up roughly one percent, recovering losses from earlier in the session.
Cotton futures, meanwhile, are feeling the dollar's strength. Contracts were down between one hundred ninety and two hundred seventy-one points at midday, though they did claw back from their worst levels. The firmer dollar makes dollar-denominated commodities more expensive for foreign buyers, and that demand concern is weighing on the fiber market even as crude oil held relatively steady.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
