In the week ending 05 November, money managers added speculative length and removed shorts in their crude futures positions, mainly in WTI futures. As the Middle Eastern geopolitical risk sentiment deflates, traders redirected their focus towards the OPEC+ decision to roll over their voluntary cuts. However, unlike other risk assets including equities, the crude oil futures market lacked a directional axe ahead of the US election. Money managers added 38.0mb (+10%) of longs and removed 34.0mb (-19%) of shorts. As a result, net positions increased by 72.0mb, marking the first rise in 4 weeks. The long:short ratio is indicated at the 25th percentile for all weeks since 2013, so overall positioning remains relatively short on a historical basis.
