Cotton Prices Gain As West Texas Weather Concerns Persist

Reuters) - Cotton futures rose on Wednesday supported by concerns that dry weather in West Texas, the largest U.S cotton-producing region, may weigh on U.S supplies of the crop.

* Cotton contracts for May  rose 0.54 cent or 0.7% to 79.76 cents per lb by 2:10 p.m EDT (1810 GMT). It traded within a range of 78.84 cents and 80.64 cents a lb.

* The market is likely waiting for some further developments with cotton planting and weather, especially in West Texas, said Jon Marcus, president of Lakefront Futures and Options brokerage in Chicago.

 "You are basically seeing some consolidation (in cotton) ... until we settle over about 81.05 cents in that market - you'll probably see lower to sideways trade," Marcus added.

* Also boosting sentiment for cotton were gains in the U.S. corn and soybean markets.

* "The May (cotton) contract should experience resistance near 81.00-82.00 and support near 77.00–78.00 over the near- to medium-term," Louis Rose, director of research and analytics at Tennessee-based Rose Commodity Group, said in a note.

 Increased volatility and drought conditions in Texas could move December cotton futures into the high 80s or low 90s, Rose added.

* Total futures market volume fell by 13,874 to 34,965 lots. Data showed total open interest gained 985 to 229,592 contracts in the previous session.

(Reporting by Nakul Iyer in Bengaluru Editing by Jonathan Oatis)