CFTC Positioning Report: GBP net shorts kept building during last week

These are the main highlights of the CFTC Positioning Report for the week ended on July 30.

• Speculators added shorts to their already negative position in GBP, taking net shorts to the highest level since April 25 2017. Brexit concerns and rising speculations of a ‘no deal’ outcome have been weighing on the Sterling in past weeks, particularly after Boris Johnson was elected UK PM.
• Net longs in USD rose to multi-month highs ahead of the critical FOMC event. Speculations of an ‘insurance cut’ and the dovish tilt in the rest of the G-10 central banks continued to support the demand for the buck. However, it will be interesting to see how the somewhat hawkish tone from Chief Powell and the subsequent announcement of US tariffs impacted on the speculative community during last week.
• EUR net shorts climbed to fresh 5-week tops as investors kept factoring in the likely implementation of fresh monetary stimulus by the ECB at the September event.
• Crude oil net longs receded to the lowest level in the last 5 weeks on rising concerns on the demand side coupled with omnipresent uncertainty over the US-China trade war and the impact on global growth prospects.