WTI Crude Oil Non-Commercial Speculator Positions:
Large energy speculators once again cut back on their bullish net positions in the Crude Oil WTI Futures markets this week, according to the latest Commitment of Traders (COT) data released by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on Friday.
The non-commercial futures contracts of WTI Crude Oil futures, traded by large speculators and hedge funds, totaled a net position of 493,229 contracts in the data reported through Tuesday October 16th. This was a weekly decrease of -34,822 contracts from the previous week which had a total of 528,051 net contracts.
The speculative bullish position has declined for three straight weeks and for five out of the previous six weeks. The current standing is now below the 500,000 net contract level for the first time since October 24th of 2017 when the position totaled 446,827 contracts.
WTI Crude Oil Commercial Positions:
The commercial traders position, hedgers or traders engaged in buying and selling for business purposes, totaled a net position of -537,187 contracts on the week. This was a weekly gain of 31,469 contracts from the total net of -568,656 contracts reported the previous week.
WTI Crude Oil Futures:
Over the same weekly reporting time-frame, from Tuesday to Tuesday, the WTI Crude Oil Futures (Front Month) closed at approximately $71.92 which was a loss of $-3.04 from the previous close of $74.96, according to unofficial market data.