The National Grain and Feed Association submitted comments today supporting the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s review of its Commitments of Traders Reporting Program while recommending significant updates to better serve agricultural market participants.
The association emphasized that COT reports serve as a critical information source for producers, cooperatives, grain handlers, processors, exporters and other commercial users who depend on futures markets to manage price risk in today’s volatile agricultural economy.
Current system shows its age
While COT reports remain among the CFTC’s most downloaded resources, NGFA noted the program was designed decades ago for a very different market structure. Today’s markets operate with algorithmic trading, cross-asset connections and global interconnectedness that have outgrown parts of the existing framework.
The association pointed out that current COT report data is collected on Tuesday and published on Friday, creating a three-day lag that can make the information backward-looking rather than actionable as markets reposition during that window.
Twice-weekly reporting recommended
Among its key recommendations, NGFA urged the Commission to publish COT reports twice each week and reduce the current three-day lag between data collection and publication. The association stressed these improvements should maintain data accuracy and integrity as bedrock principles.
NGFA also encouraged the CFTC to add aggregated intraday volume to capture positions that open and close within the same day, which current end-of-day open interest reporting misses entirely.
The association believes increased granularity, particularly for non-commercial participants, would improve members’ ability to manage risk and adjust positions while potentially reducing market volatility.
Technology offers solutions
NGFA supports CFTC efforts to embrace technology and automation to update reporting formats and enhance data integrity while reducing time-consuming verification work performed by Commission staff.
“Commitments of Traders reports are an important transparency tool for agricultural markets,” said NGFA President and CEO Mike Seyfert. “NGFA applauds the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s efforts to review and strengthen the program and looks forward to working with the Commission as it considers opportunities to enhance the usefulness and accessibility of market data for all participants.”
The association represents companies operating over 8,000 facilities that employ 175,000 Americans and support more than 1.16 million associated jobs nationwide with an annual economic impact of $401.7 billion.
