Corn Futures COT Report: Week Ending September 18, 2026

This analysis is based on the Disaggregated Commitments of Traders (COT) data published by the CFTC for Corn (ZC) futures.

Executive summary

Speculative funds maintained their massive net long position, holding near multi-month highs despite a price pullback during the reporting week. While the net position was virtually unchanged, the underlying flow showed a reduction in both gross longs and shorts, suggesting some profit-taking and consolidation. Commercials, who hold a very large net short hedge, used the price dip to reduce their short exposure slightly, adding more long positions than shorts. Overall market participation increased significantly, with open interest rising by over 40,000 contracts on a down week, a potentially bearish signal indicating new sellers are entering the market.

Positioning

• Managed Money (Speculators): Funds hold a substantial net long position of +414,460 contracts (483,738 long vs. 69,278 short). This position is effectively unchanged from last week's +414,459 contracts and remains at the most bullish level seen in the provided data stretching back to late 2025.
• Producer/Merchant (Commercials): Commercials are positioned with a large net short of -770,306 contracts (327,624 long vs. 1,097,930 short). While still a massive hedge, this is a reduction from last week's net short of -780,916 contracts and is off the recent peak short of -800,143 contracts from September 4.
• Swap Dealers: This group holds a significant net long position of +293,461 contracts (328,816 long vs. 35,355 short). This is a decrease from their prior week's net long of +310,311 contracts.

Flows and week-over-week changes

• Managed Money: Speculative activity was muted on a net basis. Funds reduced gross longs by 7,296 contracts and simultaneously cut gross shorts by 7,297 contracts, resulting in a negligible net change of +1 contract. This indicates a degree of two-way squaring of positions rather than a strong directional shift.
• Producer/Merchant: Commercials were active buyers, adding 36,355 new long contracts while also adding 25,745 short contracts. The net effect was a reduction in their net short position by 10,610 contracts.
• Swap Dealers: Swaps were net sellers, reducing their net long exposure by 16,850 contracts. They liquidated 9,127 long contracts and added 7,723 short contracts.

Commercials vs speculators

The classic positioning divergence in Corn remains stark. Speculators are positioned for higher prices with one of their largest net long positions in recent history, while Commercials are heavily hedged against a price decline. - Speculators showed conviction by not liquidating their bullish bets en masse during a week of falling prices. The equal reduction in both long and short positions suggests consolidation rather than a loss of confidence. - Commercials reducing their net short position into price weakness can be interpreted as seeing value at current levels or fulfilling physical offtake requirements. Their short position still represents 59.5% of total open interest, highlighting the scale of producer hedging.

Open interest and participation

• Open Interest: Total open interest saw a significant increase, rising by 40,501 contracts to a total of 1,843,824. An increase in open interest during a week of falling prices often suggests that new money is coming in on the short side, which can be a bearish technical signal.
• Trader Participation: The market included 894 total reporting traders. The speculative camp is heavily skewed bullish, with 120 Managed Money participants reported as long versus only 41 on the short side.
• Concentration: The largest traders hold considerable sway. The top 4 traders by net position control 10.1% of the short side versus 8.9% of the long side. This expands to 16.8% of the short side and 15.7% of the long side for the top 8 traders, reflecting the concentrated nature of commercial hedging.

Price context

The price of the front-month Corn futures contract (ZC) declined during the reporting period. The market closed at 527.25 on Friday, September 18, down from a close of 532.0 on the prior reporting date of September 11. Speculators held their bullish exposure steady through this price drop, while commercials slightly reduced their hedges.

Risks and watchpoints

• Crowded Speculative Long: The primary risk is the extreme net long held by Managed Money. This positioning is crowded and vulnerable to a sharp downside correction if the market narrative shifts, as a large number of participants would be rushing to exit.
• Stale Longs: With prices falling this week, the large speculative long position did not grow. This may create a pool of "stale" longs who could become anxious sellers if prices fail to rally soon, potentially adding to downside pressure.
• Rising Open Interest on Price Decline: The combination of falling prices and rising open interest is a point of caution for bulls. It indicates that selling pressure was met by new sellers rather than just long liquidation, suggesting fresh bearish conviction entering the market.

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Disclaimer: This report is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. All data is sourced from the CFTC's public reports.