⛽ Energy Futures Positioning
CFTC weekly report · Report Date: 2026-03-17
WTI Crude Oil Futures
BEARISH2-year weekly history · Speculator, commercial, and small trader positioning
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Flow Signal
BEARISH
Distribution phase — commercials selling WTI Crude Oil into speculator demand.
Spec:
218,688
(-9,327)
·
Comm:
-262,629
3Y Percentile
63%
Latest Week
Speculator Net
218,688
Commercial Net
-262,629
Small Trader Net
43,941
Long/Short Ratio
2.31
Open Interest
2,081,576
Total Traders
329
Brent Crude Futures
BEARISH2-year weekly history · Speculator, commercial, and small trader positioning
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Flow Signal
BEARISH
Distribution phase — commercials selling Brent Crude into speculator demand. Open interest surging — unusual volume.
Spec:
-22,557
(-9,411)
·
Comm:
20,577
3Y Percentile
62%
Latest Week
Speculator Net
-22,557
Commercial Net
20,577
Small Trader Net
1,980
Long/Short Ratio
0.77
Open Interest
283,788
Total Traders
67
Natural Gas Futures
SQUEEZE2-year weekly history · Speculator, commercial, and small trader positioning
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Flow Signal
SQUEEZE
Short squeeze in Natural Gas — specs covering extreme short positions. Distribution phase — commercials selling Natural Gas into speculator demand.
Spec:
-178,029
(+8,827)
·
Comm:
157,406
3Y Percentile
4%
Latest Week
Speculator Net
-178,029
Commercial Net
157,406
Small Trader Net
20,623
Long/Short Ratio
0.55
Open Interest
1,560,291
Total Traders
299
RBOB Gasoline Futures
BULLISH2-year weekly history · Speculator, commercial, and small trader positioning
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Flow Signal
BULLISH
Commercials accumulating RBOB Gasoline while speculators exit — smart money positioning bullish.
Spec:
76,595
(+3,642)
·
Comm:
-94,682
3Y Percentile
92%
Latest Week
Speculator Net
76,595
Commercial Net
-94,682
Small Trader Net
18,087
Long/Short Ratio
4.45
Open Interest
380,579
Total Traders
238
Heating Oil Futures
BEARISH2-year weekly history · Speculator, commercial, and small trader positioning
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Flow Signal
BEARISH
Distribution phase — commercials selling Heating Oil into speculator demand. Open interest collapsing — unusual volume.
Spec:
15,431
(+2,361)
·
Comm:
-38,322
3Y Percentile
51%
Latest Week
Speculator Net
15,431
Commercial Net
-38,322
Small Trader Net
22,891
Long/Short Ratio
1.56
Open Interest
266,684
Total Traders
168
How to Read COT Data
Speculators (Non-Commercial)
Hedge funds, CTAs, and momentum traders. They follow trends and amplify moves. When their positioning reaches extremes, it often signals the trend is crowded and vulnerable to reversal.
Commercials (Hedgers)
Producers, refiners, and consumers who use futures to hedge their business. They tend to be contrarian — selling into rallies and buying dips. At extremes, they're historically on the right side.
The Percentile Bar
Shows where current speculator positioning ranks vs. the past 3 years. Above 80% = historically bullish, below 20% = historically bearish. Extremes (top/bottom 10%) are the highest-signal readings.
What To Watch For
The best signals come from extreme positioning + divergence: when speculators are max long but commercials are max short, it often precedes a reversal. The weekly change shows who's adding or liquidating.
Source: U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Commitments of Traders reports. Data is published weekly with a 3-day lag.