Order flow
What is the COT (Commitment of Traders) Report and how do I track Commercial vs Non-Commercial positions?
By Easy Money Scanner · Educational reference · Not investment advice
The short answer
The CFTC's Commitment of Traders (COT) report discloses weekly aggregate futures (and futures-and-options) positioning of Commercial, Non-Commercial, and Nonreportable trader categories across regulated U.S. markets with 20+ large traders.
How it works
Released most Fridays at 3:30pm ET for the prior Tuesday's data, it helps gauge hedger versus speculator positioning extremes. Release timing is not perfectly fixed: federal holidays routinely push the release to the following Monday or Tuesday, and government shutdowns/lapses in appropriations have delayed publication by weeks, with the CFTC then issuing a catch-up schedule. Traders relying on a strict weekly cadence should check the CFTC's published release calendar rather than assume every Friday.
An example
Non-commercials hold net-long crude oil futures as of the prior Tuesday's close.
Risk & limitations
Data is several days old at release, reflects aggregated self-reported categories, excludes options nuance, and the Friday release date is sometimes delayed by holidays or agency shutdowns.
Examples are hypothetical, not trade recommendations. US contract and regulatory references do not automatically apply in Canada. Rules, margin requirements and broker policies can change; confirm them with the relevant authority and your broker.