Aug 12, 2026
Record watch: Managed-money net copper (COT) is the highest since Feb 2021.
Managed-money net copper hit 75,758 contracts, the highest since Feb 2021 and the 95th percentile of a 20-year record. Up 16.5% on the week and 26.9% over 30 days, the paper crowd is leaning in hard.
The physical copper board rhymes with the paper: COMEX copper stocks sit at a 7-mo high, up 7.4% on the month. But LME lead tells the louder story, parked at the 100th percentile of its 19-year record after a 45.2% monthly build; the level is maxed out yet the day was flat at -0.4%, so the extreme is a position, not a fresh move.
Two base metals pull apart underneath. LME zinc drained 15.4% over 30 days to the 15th percentile while lead flooded to the ceiling, warehouses moving in opposite directions.
In precious metals the divergence is quieter: COMEX gold sits at a 7-mo low and registered platinum at a 7-mo low, both drifting lower on the month, while SLV shares held the 88th percentile and added 0.7% on the day. SPR crude, meanwhile, is at its lowest since Jan 1983. The data shows a board of extremes with calm daily prints, the levels doing the talking.
Speculative funds are net long 75,758 copper contracts, the most since Feb 2021 and the 95th percentile of a 20-year record. Up 16.5% on the week and 26.9% over 30 days.
LME lead stocks sit at 420,300 mt, the 100th percentile of a 19-year record after a 45.2% build over 30 days. The day itself was nearly flat at -0.4%, so this is an extreme level rather than a fresh surge.
COMEX total gold stocks are 26.63M oz, a 7-mo low, down 1.8% over 30 days. The daily move was a negligible +0.1%.
COMEX copper stocks reached 728,159 short tons, a 7-mo high, up 7.4% over the month. The metal keeps building in the warehouses.
SPR crude fell to 298.7M bbl, the lowest since Jan 1983. Down 2.0% on the week and 6.5% over 30 days, the reserve keeps drawing down.
COMEX registered platinum sits at 193K oz, a 7-mo low, down 2.6% over 30 days. The day was essentially unchanged.
LME zinc stocks are 97,075 mt, the 15th percentile of a 19-year record, down 15.4% over 30 days. The steady drawdown runs opposite to lead's build.
SLV shares outstanding stand at 544.7M, the 88th percentile of a 20-year record, up 0.7% on the day and 3.0% over the month.
Sources: CME Group COMEX warehouse reports, LME warehouse data, EIA Weekly Petroleum Status Report, ETF issuer filings, and venue price quotes. Every figure is computed straight from the stored source data; percentiles rank today's level against the series' full record.