Forecast jolts cotton, orange futures

Orange juice and cotton futures surged as Hurricane Irma strengthened to become a Category 5 storm and remained on track to reach the U.S. later this week, threatening crops in Southern states.

Orange juice for November delivery jumped as much as 6.1 percent to $1.448 a pound on Intercontinental Exchange Futures U.S. on Tuesday, the biggest intraday gain for the contract since June 26. Cotton for December delivery climbed as much as 3.5 percent to 74.36 cents a pound. The trading volumes for both commodities were above their respective 100-day averages, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Florida, the nation’s top orange producer, has declared a state of emergency as Irma approaches the Caribbean. All of the state’s crop is at risk of moderate to severe damage, with trees already full of fruit, Donald Keeney, meteorologist with MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Weather Services in Gaithersburg, Md., said in a telephone interview.

The Sunshine State is also the biggest U.S. sugar producer. Cane crops there may be knocked down and lose sugar content from heavy rains, Keeney said.

The risk from Irma comes as other cotton areas around the Gulf Coast struggle to recover from flooded fields caused by Hurricane Harvey. Cotton surged 5.5 percent last week after Harvey wreaked havoc to parts of Texas and growing regions around the Mississippi Delta. Cotton crops in parts of Georgia and South Carolina will be at risk of yield losses from Irma, according to the weather data service.