May 4th – By CountingPips.com – Receive our weekly COT Reports by Email
VIX Non-Commercial Speculator Positions:
Large volatility speculators added to their record high bearish net positions in the VIX 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 VIX futures, traded by large speculators and hedge funds, totaled a net position of -180,359 contracts in the data reported through Tuesday April 30th. This was a weekly change of -2,605 net contracts from the previous week which had a total of -177,754 net contracts.
The week’s net position was the result of the gross bullish position (longs) declining by -6,256 contracts to a weekly total of 89,777 contracts that overcame the gross bearish position (shorts) which also fell this week by -3,651 contracts to a total of 270,136 contracts.
The net speculative bearish position has increased for five straight weeks and by a total of -62,189 contracts over that period. Rising for the eleventh time out of the past thirteen weeks, the bearish speculator sentiment has accelerated rapidly from earlier in the year. Net positions have now advanced from a total of -38,599 contracts on February 5th to the highest bearish level on record with -180,359 contracts this week as speculators continue to bet on a lower VIX score.
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VIX Commercial Positions:
The commercial traders position, hedgers or traders engaged in buying and selling for business purposes, totaled a net position of 183,724 contracts on the week. This was a weekly boost of 3,116 contracts from the total net of 180,608 contracts reported the previous week.
The commercials also notched a new record high bullish position for a second straight week with a total of +183,724 net contracts this week.
VIX Futures:
Over the same weekly reporting time-frame, from Tuesday to Tuesday, the VIX Futures (Front Month) closed at approximately $14.42 which was an increase of $0.30 from the previous close of $14.12, according to unofficial market data.
*COT Report: The COT data, released weekly to the public each Friday, is updated through the most recent Tuesday (data is 3 days old) and shows a quick view of how large speculators or non-commercials (for-profit traders) as well as the commercial traders (hedgers & traders for business purposes) were positioned in the futures markets.
The CFTC categorizes trader positions according to commercial hedgers (traders who use futures contracts for hedging as part of the business), non-commercials (large traders who speculate to realize trading profits) and nonreportable traders (usually small traders/speculators).
Find CFTC criteria here: (http://www.cftc.gov/MarketReports/CommitmentsofTraders/ExplanatoryNotes/index.htm).
Article By CountingPips.com – Receive our weekly COT Reports by Email
