NYMEX · Energy · Futures

Micro WTI Crude Oil Futures (MCL)

NYMEX Micro WTI Crude Oil (MCL) is one tenth of the CL contract: 100 barrels, cash-settled against CL, traded nearly 24 hours a day.

Live MCL chart on TradingView Affiliate link

COT data as of Sep 22, 2026 · Margins as of Sep 30, 2026 · Roll & expiry dates checked daily

Tick size / value: 0.01 $/bbl = $1.00
Point value: $100 / $1
Active contract: MCLX26 Nov 2026
Next roll: Oct 12 in 13 days
Globex right now: Checking…

Contract specifications

Exchange: New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX, CME Group)
Underlying: West Texas Intermediate (WTI) light sweet crude oil
Contract unit: 100 barrels
Minimum tick: $0.01 per barrel = $1.00 per contract
Point value: $100.00 per $1.00 per barrel · 100 ticks per $1
Price quotation: U.S. dollars and cents per barrel
Contract months: Monthly, all 12 months
Settlement: Financially settled (cash)
Final settlement: Cash-settled to the settlement price of the WTI Crude Oil (CL) futures
Termination of trading: One business day before the last trading day of the corresponding CL contract
Globex code: MCL

Contract sizes compared
Symbol	Contract	Per $1	Tick value	Size
MCL	Micro WTI Crude Oil	$100.00	$1.00	This contract
CL	Crude Oil (WTI)	$1,000.00	$10.00	10× MCL

Source: CME Group contract specifications · reviewed Sep 30, 2026

Roll dates, first notice & expiration

Contract	Roll date	First notice	Last trading day	Days left
MCLX26 Nov 2026 Active	Mon, Oct 12, 2026	n/a	Mon, Oct 19, 2026	20
MCLZ26 Dec 2026	Thu, Nov 12, 2026	n/a	Thu, Nov 19, 2026	51
MCLF27 Jan 2027	Fri, Dec 11, 2026	n/a	Fri, Dec 18, 2026	80
MCLG27 Feb 2027	Mon, Jan 11, 2027	n/a	Tue, Jan 19, 2027	112
MCLH27 Mar 2027	Thu, Feb 11, 2027	n/a	Fri, Feb 19, 2027	143
MCLJ27 Apr 2027	Fri, Mar 12, 2027	n/a	Fri, Mar 19, 2027	171

Roll. The date shown is five business days before the last trading day.

First notice day. None – Micro WTI is cash-settled, so there is no delivery and no first notice day.

Last trading day. One business day before CL expires: 4 business days before the 25th of the month before the contract month (5 if the 25th is not a business day).

US exchange holidays ahead: Nov 26 · Dec 25 · Jan 1 · Jan 18 · Feb 15

Learn more: Futures roll dates explained · First notice day vs. last trading day

Calculated from exchange rules and the US exchange holiday calendar. Confirm with the CME Group expiration calendar.

Trading hours (ET / CT)

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).

Margins

CME Group maintenance margin per contract, outright position · as of Sep 30, 2026
Contract	Long position	Short position
MCLX26 Nov 2026 Active	$865	$912
MCLZ26 Dec 2026	$774	$776
MCLF27 Jan 2027	$686	$675
MCLG27 Feb 2027	$626	$586

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.

Learn more: Futures margin explained · Micro vs. E-mini futures

COT positioning

CFTC Disaggregated Report, futures only · positions as of Tue, Sep 22, 2026 · released Sep 25, 2026

Positioning shown for the full-size Crude Oil (WTI) (CL) contract. The CFTC reports MCL separately, but its positions are too small to read on their own. Full CL page.

Producers / Merchants

+302,900 net contracts

−4,509 vs. prior week · +16.4% of OI

COT Index 26 wk 14

COT Index 3 yr 76

Movement (6 wk): −9

Producers, merchants, processors and users hedging physical business – the classic commercials. They tend to buy weakness and sell strength.

Swap Dealers

−472,789 net contracts

−522 vs. prior week · −25.7% of OI

COT Index 26 wk 90

COT Index 3 yr 36

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.

Managed Money

+101,828 net contracts

−4,451 vs. prior week · +5.5% of OI

COT Index 26 wk 80

COT Index 3 yr 42

Movement (6 wk): +7

Managed money – CTAs, commodity pools and hedge funds. Trend followers; their positioning tends to peak near turning points.

Net positions, last 3 years contracts, long minus short

Producers / MerchantsSwap DealersManaged Money

COT Index, 3-year window 0 = most net short in 3 years, 100 = most net long · shaded: extreme zones

Producers / MerchantsManaged Money

Disaggregated Report · open interest 1,841,811 (−113,953 w/w)
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

Legacy Report · open interest 1,841,811 (−113,953 w/w) · WILLCO (26 wk, commercials vs. OI): 38
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

Weekly net positions, last 12 reports (Disaggregated Report)

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

Learn more: How to read the COT report · COT overview of all contracts

How to read these numbers

Net position = long minus short contracts (spread positions excluded).
COT Index = where today's net position sits within its range over the window: 100 × (net − min) / (max − min). It is a stochastic, not a percentile. Readings above 80 or below 20 are commonly treated as positioning extremes (after Stephen Briese and Larry Williams).
Movement Index = change of the 3-year COT Index over 6 weeks. Moves of ±40 points mark unusually fast repositioning.
WILLCO (Legacy report) = COT Index of commercials' net position as a share of open interest, 26-week window.
Positions are as of Tuesday and released Friday at 3:30 p.m. ET. COT data shows positioning, not timing – it is context, not a trading signal. Open-interest-based indicators are left out for stock index futures because quarterly expirations distort open interest.

Source: CFTC Public Reporting Environment · contract market code 067651 (WTI-PHYSICAL - NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE)

MCL profit & loss calculator

Learn more: Tick value and point value explained

Before commissions and exchange fees. Prices round to the nearest tick of 0.01.

FAQ

What is the tick value of Micro WTI (MCL)?

One tick is $0.01 per barrel, worth $1.00 per contract. A $1.00 move is worth $100. Ten MCL contracts equal one CL contract.

Does MCL expire at the same time as CL?

No – one business day earlier, and it is cash-settled, so there is no delivery risk.