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Futures positioningNYMEX · Weekly CFTC report

CL Commitment of Traders (COT): Crude Oil Futures Positioning

A contract-specific view of managed money positioning in WTI Crude Oil futures: actual longs, shorts and net contracts; share of open interest; weekly changes; and price-aligned history.

This week's reading

As of the August 18, 2026 CFTC report, managed money are net long 87K CL contracts (4.63% of open interest). Positioning moved 8k toward long from the prior report and is near the middle of its three-year range.

Sources, methodology & freshnessLast updated 2026-08-18 · Open ↓
Source
CFTC Disaggregated; NYMEX continuous futures price via TradeStation
Methodology
Longs minus shorts for Managed Money; historical position translated against its trailing three-year net range
Updates
Weekly after the CFTC release (normally Friday; positions as of Tuesday)Last: 2026-08-18
Maintained & reviewed by Yuriy Matso — methodology shown on the page.
The answer · CL positioning2026-08-18
CL net long

Managed Money hold 87K net long contracts. Near the middle of its three-year range; the latest week moved 8k toward long.

Net position
+87K
Net % of OI
4.63%
Long contracts
+196K
Short contracts
+108K
Positioning describes the crowd; it does not predict the next price move.
01

CL net positioning and futures price

The red line is the actual managed money net—not a score. The price overlay answers the useful follow-up: did positioning build with the trend, resist it, or unwind into it?

Range:
Managed Money net contracts (left)CL continuous futures price (right)

Weekly CFTC positions are dated to the Tuesday they describe; the report is normally published Friday. Price is the aligned continuous front-month futures close and is shown for context, not as part of the positioning calculation.

02

What changed, and how stretched is it?

One week
8K toward long
Since 2026-08-11
Four weeks
24K toward long
Since 2026-07-21
Thirteen weeks
11K toward short
Since 2026-05-19
Three-year most short
−38K
2025-10-21
Three-year most long
+302K
2023-09-26
03

How to interpret CL positioning

Managed-money positioning in CL is closer to a directional speculative read than equity-index leveraged-fund positioning, but spreads, curve trades, and changing open interest still prevent a one-for-one sentiment interpretation.

  • Level: +87K net contracts is the actual reported position.
  • Stretch: Near the middle of its three-year range translates that level against its own recent history.
  • Timing: Tuesday positions arrive Friday, so COT is weekly context rather than an entry trigger.

How CL COT Positioning Works

  1. 1
    Read the actual position
    Managed Money longs minus shorts gives the current net CL position; open-interest share makes it comparable through time.
  2. 2
    Measure the weekly move
    One-, four-, and thirteen-week changes show whether the crowd is adding risk, reducing it, or merely sitting on an old position.
  3. 3
    Put it beside price
    The aligned CL futures price shows whether positioning confirms the move or diverges from it. Neither relationship is a standalone forecast.

Pro Tips

01
Changes often matter more than levels
A large structural position can be normal. A rapid shift from that baseline can contain more information.
02
Respect the reporting lag
The Friday release describes Tuesday. Never present it as live intraday positioning.

Common Issues & Solutions

Why can the crowd be net short during a rising market?▾
Managed-money positioning in CL is closer to a directional speculative read than equity-index leveraged-fund positioning, but spreads, curve trades, and changing open interest still prevent a one-for-one sentiment interpretation.
Why not use the normalized 0–100 reading as the answer?▾
A percentile is useful for cross-market comparison, but traders need the actual net, open-interest share, and direction of change first. This page translates the range position into words and keeps the raw contracts visible.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the current CL Commitment of Traders position?▾
As of the August 18, 2026 CFTC report, managed money are net long 87K CL contracts (4.63% of open interest). Positioning moved 8k toward long from the prior report and is near the middle of its three-year range.
Who does this CL COT page track?▾
The headline series tracks Managed Money in the CFTC Disaggregated report for WTI Crude Oil futures. Long and short contract counts are reported separately; net is longs minus shorts.
Is a large CL short or long a trading signal?▾
No. Managed-money positioning in CL is closer to a directional speculative read than equity-index leveraged-fund positioning, but spreads, curve trades, and changing open interest still prevent a one-for-one sentiment interpretation. Positioning can remain stretched for months, and the report is delayed because Tuesday positions are normally published Friday.
How often does the CL COT report update?▾
Weekly. The CFTC report normally publishes Friday and describes positions held as of the preceding Tuesday. Holiday schedules can shift publication.

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Last updated: 2026-08-18