The latest Commitment of Traders (CoT) data released this morning by trading platform ICE show that speculative investors have trimmed their net long exposure in EUAs for a fourth consecutive week, as long positions declined further and short positions continued to build.

Net long holdings (long positions minus short positions) stood at 82.4 million allowances as of last Friday, marking a 12.3% weekly decline and the lowest level since early October. This level is well below the all-time high of 126 million allowances recorded a month earlier.

Speculative investors had been building net long positions since mid-July, amid expectations of tightening supply starting this year. According to analysts, these sizable holdings were a key driver behind the rally that pushed EUAs to their highest level since June 2023 in mid-January.

“Previously, heavily crowded speculative long positions helped boost EUA prices earlier this year,” said carbon analyst Danylo Babkov, quoted by S&P Global, adding that “these positions started unwinding quickly following political comments about possible reform or a delay to the EU ETS.”

The bearish sentiment reflected in ICE’s report was also evident in market activity, with EUA Dec-26 futures declining by around 15% over the past week.