MarketsFarm — Large fund traders were betting that canola and soybean futures would move lower in late January, with the net managed money short position in both oilseeds rising in the latest commitment of traders (CoT) report from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

The net managed money short position in ICE Futures canola came in Tuesday at 37,445 contracts (3,492 long/40,937 short), an increase of about 17,000 contracts from the previous week.

Open interest in the canola market increased by about 3,500 contracts, to 191,502 during the week.

At the Chicago Board of Trade, the managed money net-short position grew to 55,446 contracts as investors put on more than 35,000 new short positions.

Meanwhile, corn traders continued to cover short positions, with the overall net-short position in the grain declining by about 40,000 contracts, to 25,390.

— Phil Franz-Warkentin reports for MarketsFarm, a Glacier FarmMedia division specializing in grain and commodity market analysis and reporting.