NYMEX · Energy · Futures
NYMEX WTI Crude Oil (CL) is the world's most traded oil future: 1,000 barrels, physically delivered at Cushing, Oklahoma, traded nearly 24 hours a day.
| Symbol | Contract | Per $1 | Tick value | Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CL | Crude Oil (WTI) | $1,000.00 | $10.00 | This contract |
| MCL | Micro WTI Crude Oil | $100.00 | $1.00 | 1/10 of CL (own expiry calendar) |
Source: CME Group contract specifications · reviewed Sep 30, 2026
| Contract | Roll date | First notice | Last trading day | Days left |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLX26 Nov 2026 Active | Tue, Oct 13, 2026 | n/a | Tue, Oct 20, 2026 | 21 |
| CLZ26 Dec 2026 | Fri, Nov 13, 2026 | n/a | Fri, Nov 20, 2026 | 52 |
| CLF27 Jan 2027 | Mon, Dec 14, 2026 | n/a | Mon, Dec 21, 2026 | 83 |
| CLG27 Feb 2027 | Tue, Jan 12, 2027 | n/a | Wed, Jan 20, 2027 | 113 |
| CLH27 Mar 2027 | Fri, Feb 12, 2027 | n/a | Mon, Feb 22, 2027 | 146 |
| CLJ27 Apr 2027 | Mon, Mar 15, 2027 | n/a | Mon, Mar 22, 2027 | 174 |
Roll. Volume moves to the next month roughly a week before expiry. The date shown is five business days before the last trading day.
First notice day. No separate first notice day – delivery is scheduled after the last trading day. Brokers require positions to be closed or rolled before expiry, usually several days earlier.
Last trading day. 3 business days before the 25th of the month before the contract month (4 if the 25th is not a business day). The December contract therefore expires in November.
US exchange holidays ahead: Nov 26 · Dec 25 · Jan 1 · Jan 18 · Feb 15
Calculated from exchange rules and the US exchange holiday calendar. Confirm with the CME Group expiration calendar.
| Session | Eastern (ET) | Central (CT) | Your time |
|---|---|---|---|
| CME Globex (electronic) | Sun–Fri 6:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Sun–Fri 5:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. | – |
| Daily maintenance break | Mon–Thu 5:00 – 6:00 p.m. | Mon–Thu 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. | – |
| US day session (reference) | Mon–Fri 9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. | Mon–Fri 8:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. | – |
| Daily settlement | 2:30 p.m. | 1:30 p.m. | – |
Holiday hours differ – check the CME holiday calendar before trading around US holidays. ET is New York time, CT is Chicago time (always one hour behind ET).
| Contract | Long position | Short position |
|---|---|---|
| CLX26 Nov 2026 Active | $8,632 | $9,097 |
| CLZ26 Dec 2026 | $7,723 | $7,736 |
| CLF27 Jan 2027 | $6,842 | $6,726 |
| CLG27 Feb 2027 | $6,239 | $5,841 |
Exchange margins are the minimum your clearing firm must collect for positions held overnight. Brokers may require more – and usually offer much lower day-trading margins for positions closed before the session ends. A neutral broker day-margin comparison is coming soon.
+302,900 net contracts
−4,509 vs. prior week · +16.4% of OI
Movement (6 wk): −9
Producers, merchants, processors and users hedging physical business – the classic commercials. They tend to buy weakness and sell strength.
−472,789 net contracts
−522 vs. prior week · −25.7% of OI
Movement (6 wk): +0
Swap dealers – banks hedging OTC swaps, including commodity index money. Often structurally positioned; read against their own range, not the sign.
+101,828 net contracts
−4,451 vs. prior week · +5.5% of OI
Movement (6 wk): +7
Managed money – CTAs, commodity pools and hedge funds. Trend followers; their positioning tends to peak near turning points.
| Group | Long | Short | Net | Δ 1 wk | Δ 4 wk | Index 26 wk | Index 3 yr | Move 6 wk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Producers / Merchants | 607,458 | 304,558 | +302,900 | −4,509 | −2,354 | 14 | 76 | −9 |
| Swap Dealers | 111,924 | 584,713 | −472,789 | −522 | −11,289 | 90 | 36 | +0 |
| Managed Money | 223,190 | 121,362 | +101,828 | −4,451 | +17,808 | 80 | 42 | +7 |
| Other Reportables | 137,620 | 98,342 | +39,278 | +9,652 | −151 | 28 | 28 | +14 |
| Nonreportables | 76,346 | 47,563 | +28,783 | −170 | −4,014 | 34 | 58 | −3 |
| Group | Long | Short | Net | Δ 1 wk | Δ 4 wk | Index 26 wk | Index 3 yr | Move 6 wk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercials | 847,389 | 1,017,278 | −169,889 | −5,031 | −13,643 | 48 | 65 | −12 |
| Non-Commercials | 360,810 | 219,704 | +141,106 | +5,201 | +17,657 | 52 | 33 | +14 |
| Nonreportables (small) | 76,346 | 47,563 | +28,783 | −170 | −4,014 | 34 | 58 | −3 |
| Report date | Producers / Merchants | Swap Dealers | Managed Money | Other Reportables | Nonreportables | Open interest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 22, 2026 | +302,900 | −472,789 | +101,828 | +39,278 | +28,783 | 1,841,811 |
| Sep 15, 2026 | +307,409 | −472,267 | +106,279 | +29,626 | +28,953 | 1,955,764 |
| Sep 8, 2026 | +308,916 | −475,101 | +111,731 | +24,848 | +29,606 | 1,939,911 |
| Sep 1, 2026 | +309,402 | −465,407 | +94,281 | +35,630 | +26,094 | 1,921,085 |
| Aug 25, 2026 | +305,254 | −461,500 | +84,020 | +39,429 | +32,797 | 1,906,740 |
| Aug 18, 2026 | +315,517 | −468,604 | +87,479 | +34,611 | +30,997 | 1,888,960 |
| Aug 11, 2026 | +339,197 | −468,834 | +79,916 | +19,280 | +30,441 | 1,892,429 |
| Aug 4, 2026 | +334,920 | −488,695 | +86,958 | +25,485 | +41,332 | 1,886,816 |
| Jul 28, 2026 | +351,790 | −510,612 | +92,943 | +27,165 | +38,714 | 1,859,795 |
| Jul 21, 2026 | +383,350 | −491,951 | +63,979 | +17,710 | +26,912 | 1,864,487 |
| Jul 14, 2026 | +399,298 | −484,386 | +61,974 | +709 | +22,405 | 1,875,496 |
| Jul 7, 2026 | +390,293 | −494,915 | +64,041 | +11,708 | +28,873 | 1,905,761 |
Source: CFTC Public Reporting Environment · contract market code 067651 (WTI-PHYSICAL - NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE)
Before commissions and exchange fees. Prices round to the nearest tick of 0.01.
One tick is $0.01 per barrel, worth $10.00 per contract. A $1.00 move is worth $1,000 on CL and $100 on Micro WTI (MCL).
Trading ends 3 business days before the 25th of the month before the delivery month – so the December contract expires in November. If the 25th is not a business day, it is 4 business days before.
Most traders roll about a week before expiry, when volume shifts to the next month. Brokers usually force-close positions a few days before the last trading day.
CL trades on CME Globex Sunday to Friday from 6:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET with a daily one-hour break. Settlement is at 2:30 p.m. ET.
The COT Index places a group's current net position within its own range over a lookback window: 100 = the most net long in that window, 0 = the most net short. It measures positioning extremes, not timing.