"It's nothing but rolling today and tomorrow. We get into deliveries Tuesday and see what the deal is," said Keith Brown of commodity firm Keith Brown and Co in Moultrie, Georgia.
The market will be closed Monday in observance of US Presidents Day. Trading will resume on Tuesday.
Market players have been transferring their positions out of the March contract and into the back months because they do not want to take delivery of cotton when first notice day starts on February 22.
Open interest in the March contract fell 4,749 lots to 8,107 lots as of February 16.
Brown said once the delivery period starts, the market can reassess the fundamentals and see where prices will head for next.
The market barely reacted to the weekly US Department of Agriculture weekly export sales data.
USDA said US cotton sales hit 263,700 running bales (RBs, 500-lbs each), slightly above trade belief of 150,000 to 250,000 RBs.
US cotton shipments of previously booked orders stood at 308,600 RBs, against trade belief of 200,000 to 300,000 RBs.
"The pace of sales slowed down a bit because of the (Lunar) New Year holidays in China and other parts of Asia," a broker for a trading house said.
Brokers Flanagan Trading Corp put resistance in the March contract at 46.60 and 47.50 cents, with support at 46 and 45.35 cents.
Floor traders said final estimated volume stood at 20,000 contracts, off from Wednesday's tally of 20,869 lots. Open interest fell 2,703 contracts to 89,344 lots as of February 16.