Speculators switched to a net long position in raw sugar on ICE Futures US for the first time since May in the week ended September 29, and held their most bullish position since July 2014, US Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showed on Friday. The noncommercial dealers trimmed their bearish bets in arabica coffee contracts, raised their net long position in cocoa and cut their bullish bets in cotton futures and options, the data showed.
The dealers added 44,447 lots of bullish raw sugar bets to switch to their first net long in more than four months. They held a net bullish bet of 13,940 contracts, the largest since July 2014, as prices rose sharply to their highest levels in more than two months. They trimmed their net short position in arabica coffee for the first time in six weeks, shedding 4,287 contracts for a bearish bet of 29,040 contracts, as prices rose to their highest levels in nearly four weeks.
The speculators boosted their cocoa bullish bet for the fifth straight week, adding 697 contracts for a net long of 40,143, the highest level since the week ended August 4. Prices remained near two-month highs hit the prior week early in the week, before beginning to fall. The dealers cut their cotton net long for the fifth straight week, shedding 78 contracts for a bullish bet of 11,200 contracts, as prices fell to seven-month lows. That was their most bearish position since the week ended February 3, when they held a net short of 4,069 contracts.