COT: Record gold short while oil sees no selling appetite COT: Record gold short while oil sees no selling appetite COT: Record gold short while oil sees no selling appetite

COT: Record gold short while oil sees no selling appetite

Ole Hansen

Head of Commodity Strategy

To download your copy of the Commitment of Traders: Forex report for the week ending August 14, click here

Commodities have experienced a couple of bruising weeks with the Bloomberg commodity index seeing all its gains for the year wiped out at one point last week. This came in response to increased worries about the direction of global growth and demand given the ongoing China-US trade war and the Turkey crisis highlighting the risk to emerging market economies challenged by high levels of dollar debt, a stronger USD, and rising costs of funding. 

Despite of these headwinds, the total net-long futures and options position held by hedge funds across 26 major commodities only dropped by 3% in the week to August 14. In energy, the selling of crude oil and products was off-set by a big jump in natural gas while the metals sector continued to see broad-based selling. The grains sector was mixed while all four soft commodities were sold. 

Fund positioning
Hedge funds continued to reduce bullish oil and product bets in response to increased worries about an EM slowdown. Since hitting a record above one million lots (one billion barrels) on March 30, the combined long in WTI and Brent has now seen a 37% reduction. Given its role as the global benchmark, Brent crude oil has seen the biggest reduction to 336,000 lots, down 47% since March. 

Despite the deteriorating outlook it is worth noting that both long and short positions were reduced last week. The gross-short in WTI and Brent of just 66,000 lots, however, remains close to the lowest in five-years. This highlights the limited selling appetite ahead of the expected Iranian supply drop but also how unprepared funds are should oil break below key support (i.e. the 200-day moving average). 
Brent and WTI crude oil managed money position

Gold remained under pressure last week from the stronger dollar and EM weakness. In response to the technical break below support at $1,205/oz, the net-short jumped by 13% to a fresh record of 77,000 lots. The market is currently transfixed by the negative impact on those EM economies maintaining large external debt in dollars at a time where both the dollar and funding costs are rising.

With such an elevated short, the risk of a snap recovery has risen and on that basis the market will be pay extra attention to the dollar, which has weakened a bit in response to new low level trade talks between the US and China, as well as Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell speech on Friday at the Fed’s annual Jackson Hole conference.

Should Powell unexpectedly blink and signal a slowdown in the tightening process, the dollar could get sold and potentially send gold on a path to recovery. In silver the net-short jumped by 61% last week but at just 20,000 lots it remains just half of the record from April.

COMEX gold and silver

Copper, often seen as a gauge of the global economy’s health given its diverse usage profile, has falling by more than 20% from the four-year high reached just a few months ago back in June. Last week saw copper troubled by news that a potential supply disruption from the world’s largest mine in Chile that had been looming for weeks showed signs of being averted. Hedge funds, however, remained undecided in the week to August 14 with reductions in both long and short positions helping to cut the net-short by just 2% or 507 lots. The cut-off day, though, was just before the price slumped by 4% last Wednesday in response to Chinese growth worries.

Grains were net-bought despite the bearish WASDE report on August 10 which sent soybeans and corn sharply lower before recovering later in the week. The net-long in CBOT wheat reached a fresh eight-year high at 67,000 lots.
Fund positioning
All four soft commodities were sold as the price outlook continued to deteriorate, not least sugar and coffee as EM currency weakness hit the BRL The net-short in coffee hit a fresh record of 98,000 lots while the above mentioned WASDE and much weaker Turkish lira helped reduce the cotton net-long for a second week.
Soft commodities
Disclaimer

Saxo Capital Markets (Australia) Limited prepares and distributes information/research produced within the Saxo Bank Group for informational purposes only. In addition to the disclaimer below, if any general advice is provided, such advice does not take into account your individual objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider the appropriateness of trading any financial instrument as trading can result in losses that exceed your initial investment. Please refer to our Analysis Disclaimer, and our Financial Services Guide and Product Disclosure Statement. All legal documentation and disclaimers can be found at https://www.home.saxo/en-au/legal/.

The Saxo Bank Group entities each provide execution-only service. Access and use of Saxo News & Research and any Saxo Bank Group website are subject to (i) the Terms of Use; (ii) the full Disclaimer; and (iii) the Risk Warning in addition (where relevant) to the terms governing the use of the website of a member of the Saxo Bank Group.

Saxo News & Research is provided for informational purposes, does not contain (and should not be construed as containing) financial, investment, tax or trading advice or advice of any sort offered, recommended or endorsed by Saxo Bank Group and should not be construed as a record of our trading prices, or as an offer, incentive or solicitation for the subscription, sale or purchase in any financial instrument. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. All trading or investments you make must be pursuant to your own unprompted and informed self-directed decision. No Saxo Bank Group entity shall be liable for any losses that you may sustain as a result of any investment decision made in reliance on information on Saxo News & Research.

To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, such content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, would be considered as a marketing communication.

None of the information contained here constitutes an offer to purchase or sell a financial instrument, or to make any investments.Saxo Capital Markets does not take into account your personal investment objectives or financial situation and makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the information nor for any loss arising from any investment made in reliance of this presentation. Any opinions made are subject to change and may be personal to the author. These may not necessarily reflect the opinion of Saxo Capital Markets or its affiliates.

Please read our disclaimers:
- Full Disclaimer (https://www.home.saxo/en-au/legal/disclaimer/saxo-disclaimer)
- Analysis Disclaimer (https://www.home.saxo/en-au/legal/analysis-disclaimer/saxo-analysis-disclaimer)
- Notification on Non-Independent Investment Research (https://www.home.saxo/legal/niird/notification)

Saxo Capital Markets (Australia) Limited
Suite 1, Level 14, 9 Castlereagh St
Sydney NSW 2000
Australia

Contact Saxo

Select region

Australia
Australia

The Saxo trading platform has received numerous awards and recognition. For details of these awards and information on awards visit www.home.saxo/en-au/about-us/awards

Saxo Capital Markets (Australia) Limited ABN 32 110 128 286 AFSL 280372 (‘Saxo’ or ‘Saxo Capital Markets’) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Saxo Bank A/S, headquartered in Denmark. Please refer to our General Business Terms, Financial Services Guide, Product Disclosure Statement and Target Market Determination to consider whether acquiring or continuing to hold financial products is suitable for you, prior to opening an account and investing in a financial product.

Trading in financial instruments carries various risks, and is not suitable for all investors. Please seek expert advice, and always ensure that you fully understand these risks before trading. Saxo Capital Markets does not provide ‘personal’ financial product advice, any information available on this website is ‘general’ in nature and for informational purposes only. Saxo Capital Markets does not take into account an individual’s needs, objectives or financial situation. The Target Market Determination should assist you in determining whether any of the products or services we offer are likely to be consistent with your objectives, financial situation and needs.

Apple, iPad and iPhone are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the US and other countries. AppStore is a service mark of Apple Inc.

The information or the products and services referred to on this website may be accessed worldwide, however is only intended for distribution to and use by recipients located in countries where such use does not constitute a violation of applicable legislation or regulations. Products and Services offered on this website is not intended for residents of the United States and Japan.

Please click here to view our full disclaimer.