Gold Physical Delivery & Positioning Brief — October 13, 2026

Executive summary

Physical delivery activity in GC (Gold) on COMEX has slowed to a virtual trickle mid-month, with just 1 contract issued and stopped on October 13, 2026. This brings month-to-date (MTD) cumulative deliveries to 12,512 contracts. The heavy front-loaded delivery volume observed during the first week of October—which saw regular daily issuance in the hundreds, peaking at 1,021 total contracts across standard and micro contracts on October 2—has fully dissipated. Concurrently, COT cross-checks indicate heavily skewed spec length, setting up a clear divergence between elevated speculative bullishness and tapering physical delivery uptake.

Delivery intentions (today + MTD context)

• Today's Activity (October 13, 2026):
  • OCTOBER 2026 COMEX 100 GOLD FUTURES: 1 contract issued and stopped at a settlement price of $4,152.90/oz (delivery date: October 15, 2026).
  • Total Daily Issued/Stopped: 1 contract.
  • Month-to-Date (MTD): 12,512 contracts.
• Trend & Context:
  • Daily delivery volume has collapsed over recent sessions: falling from 785 contracts on October 8 to 138 on October 9, 44 on October 12, and 1 today.
  • October delivery demand was concentrated in the initial roll window: 1,021 contracts were delivered on October 2 (161 COMEX 100 Gold and 860 Micro Gold), and 785 contracts on October 8 (255 COMEX 100 Gold and 530 Micro Gold).
  • The current MTD run rate (12,512 contracts) comfortably exceeds September's total delivery activity (which concluded at 4,183 contracts on September 25), reflecting stronger baseline quarterly settlement interest, though new incremental demand has now flattened.

Warehouse stocks

CME does not publish warehouse stocks for this metal in the provided feed (warehouse stocks reported as null). Physical availability cannot be verified against warrant or eligible inventory counts from this dataset.

COT cross-check

As of the October 9, 2026 reporting date: * Open Interest: 396,109 contracts. * Managed Money: 127,101 longs vs. 16,114 shorts, yielding a net long position of +110,987 contracts (an ~7.9:1 long-to-short ratio). * Commercials (Producer/Merchant): Net short -19,501 contracts (18,860 longs vs. 38,361 shorts).

Divergence Analysis: Managed Money maintains an aggressive net-long stance, reflecting elevated speculative momentum. However, physical delivery momentum has ground to a halt following the early-month wave. While high early-October deliveries confirmed baseline physical transfer, the speculative cohort is holding substantial paper length into an environment where prompt physical absorption has decelerated rapidly.

Risks and watchpoints

• Speculative Positioning Overhang: With Managed Money net long by over 110,000 contracts and daily deliveries stalling to single digits, paper pricing ($4,152.90 settlement) is vulnerable to long liquidation if macro tailwinds soften.
• Lack of Inventory Visibility: The absence of reported warehouse stock levels limits visibility into whether declining deliveries stem from tight COMEX warrant availability or simple buyer satiety.
• Roll Dynamics: Monitor subsequent intent notices into late October to see if commercial buyers step back in or if the remaining open interest simply rolls into the next active benchmark contract.