Commitments of Traders Report

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Weekly CFTC data showing who holds positions in US futures markets.

Overview

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission publishes the Commitments of Traders report each Friday afternoon, with positions as of the preceding Tuesday. The disaggregated version splits open interest among producers and merchants, swap dealers, managed money and other reportable traders, with small traders as a residual nonreportable group, while the legacy report keeps the older commercial and noncommercial split. Analysts watch managed money net positions in crude, gold, grains and other markets as a sentiment gauge, since crowded speculative positions can unwind sharply. Publication has been suspended during US government shutdowns, leaving traders without the data for weeks at a time.

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