Euronext investors slash French milling wheat longs to 95-week low

Investors in the French milling wheat complex slashed long positions to the lowest level since October 2020 in the week ended August 19, as the increasing flow of Ukrainian grain exports from deep-water ports on the Black Sea sent futures tumbling.

The commitment of trader data from the Euronext exchange showed that investors reduced their long positions by 23,604 lots in the week ended August 19, bringing the total to 263,052 – a 95-week low.

Shorts decreased by 16,037 positions, bringing the total to 194,888 – a 17-week high.

The decrease in both longs and shorts resulted in a net long decline of 7,567 positions, bringing the total to 68,164 – a 59-week low.

Investors bolstered both long and short positions in the European rapeseed complex.

Longs advanced by 2,701 lots to 20,572 – a nine-week high.

Shorts surged by 5,864 lots to 45,326 positions – a 45-week high.

Overall, the changes led to a 3,163-lot increase in the net short to 24,754 – the most in data going back to April 2018.

Finally, the data for corn contracts reported a decrease of 250 long positions, leaving the total to 6,755.

Corn short positions increased by 712 lots, bringing the total to 5,830 – a 15-week high.

The decline in longs combined with the large gain increase in shorts reduced the net long by 962 to 925 – a 15-week low.