Bloomberg – Hedge funds and other money managers cut bullish bets on Brent crude to their lowest level in four months for a third consecutive week, according to data from ICE Futures Europe.<\/p>\n
Speculative bets that prices will rise, in futures and options combined, outnumbered short positions by 99,127 lots in the week ended April 23, the London-based exchange said today in its weekly Commitment of Traders report. The reduction of 8,973 contracts, or 8.3 percent leaves so-called net-longs at their lowest since Dec. 11.<\/p>\n
Bearish positions by producers, merchants, processors and users of Brent outnumbered bullish positions by 279,959, up by 26,396, or 10.4 percent. Net-shorts in this category are at the highest January 2011, the starting point for the data.<\/p>\n
Brent crude advanced 1.8 percent to $101.73 a barrel in the week to April 23 on the ICE exchange, and traded for $103.10 a barrel as of 12:28 p.m. London time today.<\/p>\n
Swaps dealers were net-long 228,225 lots, up 39,608 or 21 percent from a week earlier, in a 10th straight increase to their highest level since the data began.<\/p>\n