By CountingPips.com
Weekly CFTC Net Speculator Report
VIX Futures Contracts: Large traders and speculators slightly added to their overall bearish positions in the VIX futures market on December 31st, according to the latest data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) released on Monday. The VIX non-commercial contracts, traded by large speculators and hedge funds, totaled a net position of -39,992 contracts in the data reported for December 31st. This was a change of -1,867 contracts from the previous week’s total of -38,125 net contracts on December 24th. Speculators had reduced bearish positions for two straight weeks through December 24th and pushed contracts to the lowest bearish level since July before the slight increase in the bearish position last week.
Meanwhile, over the same time-frame, the VIX index rose from 12.48 on Tuesday December 24th to 14.28 on Tuesday December 31st, according to the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) Volatility Index.
Last 6 Weeks of Large Trader Positions
| Date | Net Non-Commericals | Change | VIX Score |
| 11/26/2013 | -60024 | -5169 | 12.81 |
| 12/03/2013 | -62050 | -2026 | 14.55 |
| 12/10/2013 | -73332 | -11282 | 13.91 |
| 12/17/2013 | -62637 | 10695 | 16.21 |
| 12/24/2013 | -38125 | 24512 | 12.48 |
| 12/31/2013 | -39992 | -1867 | 14.28 |
*COT Report: The weekly commitment of traders report summarizes the total trader positions for open contracts in the futures trading 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 – Forex News & Analysis
