Speculators increased their net short position in arabica coffee contracts on ICE Futures US in the week to April 3, lifting it to a record as prices fell to a nine-month low, US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data showed on Friday. The speculators raised their net long position in cocoa futures and options, cut it in cotton, and trimmed their net short position in raw sugar, the data showed. In coffee, they increased their net short position by 5,708 contracts to 61,685 contracts, the highest since data became publicly available in 2006.
The bearish move came as total open interest in arabica coffee futures rose to a record. Meanwhile, prices were pressured by expectations for a large crop from top grower Brazil, with the spot contract dropping to a nine-month low at $1.16 per lb on April 3. In cocoa, they raised their net long position by 2,772 lots to 37,855 lots, the biggest since May 2016, as the spot futures contract extended gains to a 1-1/2-year high at $2,647 per tonne. Speculators cut their net long position in cotton by 3,511 lots to 76,238 lots, while they reduced their net short position in sugar by a slight 905 lots to 170,926 lots, CFTC data showed.