PCCA 50th comments

The marketing staff of Plains Cotton Cooperative Association (PCCA) reviews the Cotlook A-Index price level, changes and composition on a daily basis as part of our price discovery process in order to answer the following questions:

• Which growths are quoted, and which growths have gone nominal?
• Which of the quoted growths are available for prompt shipment or delayed?
• Where are our prices relative to the growths represented in the A-Index quotes?
• Does the A-Index, along with other signals, help provide any clues to predict pricing/basis level trends?

The Cotlook A-Index has been the benchmark used for loan repayment calculations under the Marketing Assistance Loan program since the beginning of the 1985 Farm Bill.  Since then, PCCA has used the A-Index quotes as a market signal to know when to redeem cotton from the loan program in order to maximize benefits to our members.