Positions of large speculators according to the COT report as at 5/11/2021

Total net speculators positions in the USD index rose by 400 contracts last week. This change is the result of a 1,100 contract increase in long positions and a 700 contract increase in short positions.

The increase in total net speculators positions occurred last week in the euro, the Australian dollar, the Canadian dollar, the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen.

Declines in total net positions occurred in the British pound and the New Zealand dollar.

In the euro, speculators total net positions moved into positive territory, which a bullish signal. In contrast,  speculators total net positions in the British pound have moved into a negative bearish range.
 

The positions of speculators in individual currencies

The total net positions of large speculators are shown in Table 1: If the value is positive then the large speculators are net long. If the value is negative, the large speculators are net short.
 

	12/11/2021	5/11/2021	29/10/2021	22/10/2021	15/10/2021	8/10/2021
USD index	35,400	35,000	34,500	36,000	35,100	32,000
EUR	3,800	-6,100	-11,300	-12,100	-18,400	-22,300
GBP	-12,100	15,000	15,000	1,600	-12,000	-20,000
AUD	-63,400	-75,500	-75,200	-76,100	-87,600	-90,000
NZD	12,900	13,900	8,900	6,400	8,700	8,100
CAD	-5,100	4,200	3,300	-10,900	-27,900	-26,900
CHF	-17,000	-20,600	-19,400	-17,600	-13,000	-15,700
JPY	-105,400	-107,600	-107,000	-102,700	-76,600	-63,700

_{Table 1: Total net positions of large speculators}

 

Notes:

Large speculators are traders who trade large volumes of futures contracts, which, if the set limits are met, must be reported to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Typically, this includes traders such as funds or large banks. These traders mostly focus on trading long-term trends and their goal is to make money on speculation with the instrument.

The total net positions of large speculators are the difference between the number of long contracts and the number of short contracts of large speculators. Positive value shows that large speculators are net long. Negative value shows that large speculators are net short. The data is published every Friday and is delayed because it shows the status on Tuesday of the week.

The total net positions of large speculators show the sentiment this group has in the market. A positive value of the total net positions of speculators indicates bullish sentiment, a negative value of total net positions indicates bearish sentiment.

When interpreting charts and values, it is important to follow the overall trend of total net positions. The turning points are also very important, i.e. the moments when the total net positions go from a positive value to a negative one and vice versa. Important are also extreme values of total net positions as they often serve as signals of a trend reversal.

Sentiment according to the reported positions of large players in futures markets is not immediately reflected in the movement of currency pairs. Therefore, information on sentiment is more likely to be used by traders who take longer trades and are willing to hold their positions for several weeks or even months.
 

Detailed analysis of selected currencies

Explanations:
 

Purple line and histogram in the chart window: this is information on the total net position of large speculators. This information shows the strength and sentiment of an ongoing trend.

Green line in the indicator window: these are the bullish positions of large speculators.

Red line in the indicator window: indicates the bearish positions of large speculators.

If there is a green line above the red line in the indicator window, then it means that the overall net positions are positive, i.e. that bullish sentiment prevails. If, on the other hand, the green line is below the red line, then bearish sentiment prevails and the overall net positions of the big speculators are negative.

Information on the positions of so-called hedgers is not shown in the chart, due to the fact that their main goal is not speculation, but hedging. Therefore, this group usually takes the opposite positions than the large speculators. For this reason, the positions of hedgers are inversely correlated with the movement of the price of the underlying asset. However, this inverse correlation shows the ongoing trend less clearly than the position of large speculators.

Charts are made with the use of www.tradingview.com.
 

The Euro

Date	Weekly change in open interest	Weekly change in total net positions of speculators	Weekly change in total long positions of speculators	Weekly change in total short positions of speculators	Sentiment
12/11/2021	300	9,900	1,000	-8,900	Bullish
5/11/2021	-2,400	5,200	-5,300	-10,500	Weakening bearish
29/10/2021	1,000	800	3,600	2,800	Weakening bearish

 

Total net speculator positions rose by 9,900 contracts last week. This change is due to an increase in long positions by 1,000 contracts and a decrease in short positions by 8,900 contracts.

The euro continues to move in a downtrend. The price broke the support at 1.15 and reached the price of 1.1350, where the next support boundary is.

Long-term resistance: 1.1500 - 1.1520
Long-term support: 1.1300 - 1.1350

 

The British pound

Date	Weekly change in open interest	Weekly change in total net positions of speculators	Weekly change in total long positions of speculators	Weekly change in total short positions of speculators	Sentiment
12/11/2021	20,100	-27,100	-3,300	23,900	Bearish
5/11/2021	10,300	0	5,300	5,300	Bullish
29/10/2021	-2,500	13,400	2,800	-10,600	Bullish

 

Last week, the total net positions of speculators fell by 27,100. This state of total net positions over the past week is the result of a decrease in long positions by 3,300 and an increase in short positions by 23,900 contracts.

The pound continues to be in a downtrend and continued to weaken last week, reaching the 1.3350 support. Here the price bounced and the pound formed a bullish engulf on the daily chart, which is a long signal.

Long-term resistance: 1.3600-1.3610
Long-term support: 1.3350-1.3400

 

 

The Australian dollar

Date	Weekly change in open interest	Weekly change in total net positions of speculators	Weekly change in total long positions of speculators	Weekly change in total short positions of speculators	Sentiment
12/11/2021	-5,600	12,100	4,700	-7,400	Weakening bearish
5/11/2021	2,900	-300	1,700	2,000	Bearish
29/10/2021	1,500	900	5,900	5,000	Weakening bearish

 

Last week, the total net positions of speculators rose by 12,100 contracts. This change is due to an increase in long positions by 4,700 contracts and a decrease in short positions by 7,400 contracts.

The Australian dollar weakened last week and fell below the SMA 100 moving average. This is a bearish signal. On the other hand, the price is moving in a rising channel on the daily chart and a higher high and higher low have formed. On Friday, a bullish engulf formed as well, which is also a bullish signal.

Long-term resistance: 0.7550-0.7600
Long-term support: 0.7270-0.7290

 

The New Zealand dollar

 

Date	Weekly change in open interest	Weekly change in total net positions of speculators	Weekly change in total long positions of speculators	Weekly change in total short positions of speculators	Sentiment
12/11/2021	-1,900	-1,000	-2,200	-1,200	Weakening bullish
5/11/2021	2,400	5,000	3,000	-2,000	Bullish
29/10/2021	5,300	2,500	3,500	1,000	Bullish

Last week, total net positions fell by 1,000 contracts. The change in total net positions is the result of a decrease in long positions by 2,200 contracts and a decrease in short positions by 1,200 contracts. 

The New Zealand dollar weakened last week and reached a level near 0.7000 where new support formed. Price also got to the SMA 100, which is often strong support. The EMA 50 moving average is above SMA 100 on the daily chart, which is a bullish constellation. At the same time, price has formed a higher high and a higher low on the daily chart, which from a price action perspective is also a bullish signal.

Long-term resistance: 0.7200-0.7220
Long-term support: 0.7000-0.7020