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Cotton remains up

NEW YORK: NYCE nearby cotton futures were locked up their two-cent limit at midday, bolstered by heavy speculative buying and background concerns about pest damage to this year's crop, dealers said.

Most-active December was locked limit up at 80.55 cents a lb, with October up the same at 82.75 cents at 1149 EDT.

Traders put the synthetic price for December futures at 82.50 to 82.75 cents, based on options activity.

Worries about beet armyworm infestation in southern Texas and pest damage in Alabama and Georgia underpinned the bullish sentiment, they said.-Reuter