26.05.202608:37 Forex Analysis & Reviews: GBP/USD: COT Report on BRITISH POUND (CME) as of May 26, 2026

Over the course of one week, the pound demonstrated a sharp deterioration in positioning among speculators: the net short positions of non-commercial participants deepened from -43,059 to -64,307 contracts—a nearly one-and-a-half-fold increase in bearish pressure. In parallel, hedgers executed a mirror maneuver: they increased longs and reduced shorts.

Open Interest: 285,647 contracts (each contract = £62,500). Increased by +2,004 (down from +7,500 the previous week—growth has slowed).

Non-Commercial Traders (Speculators)

• Long: 68,075 (23.8%) — sharp decrease of -11,530 (previous week: 79,605 / +17,032)
• Short: 132,382 (46.3%) — significant increase of +9,718 (previous week: 122,664 / -3,817)
• Spreads: 2,288 (0.8%) — decrease of -5,203

The turnaround compared to last week is striking: speculators, who aggressively bought and covered shorts last week, are now doing the exact opposite—liquidating longs and opening new shorts. The net position deteriorated to -64,307 contracts (from -43,059 the previous week)—this indicates a notable deepening of bearish positioning.

Commercial Traders (Hedgers)

• Long: 190,244 (66.6%) — sharp increase of +20,715 (previous week: 169,529 / -11,403)
• Short: 121,546 (42.6%) — decrease of -3,332 (previous week: 124,878 / +9,630)

Here, too, there is a complete turnaround compared to last week: hedgers actively bought and reduced shorts. Their net position became confidently long (+68,698 contracts), which is traditionally interpreted as a signal that "smart money" expects a rebound in the pound. Number of traders: 25 long / 46 short.

Total

• Long: 260,607 (91.2%)
• Short: 256,216 (89.7%)

The overall dominance of longs is minimal—the market remains in a state of equilibrium.

Non-Reportable — Small Traders

• Long: 25,040 (8.8%) — decrease of -1,978
• Short: 29,431 (10.3%) — increase of +821

Small participants have slightly shifted toward shorts, which aligns with the overall sentiment of speculators.

Over the past week, the pound market has shown a sharp deterioration in positioning among speculators: the net short of non-commercial participants deepened from -43,059 to -64,307 contracts—nearly a one-and-a-half-fold increase in bearish pressure. Notably, this same group was aggressively buying last week (+17,032 longs), creating an illusion of a reversal—now it is clear that this was merely a tactical closure of some shorts, rather than a trend change. In parallel, hedgers executed a mirror maneuver: they increased longs by +20,715 and reduced shorts, which is formally a bullish signal from "smart money." However, this divergence between hedgers and speculators creates high market uncertainty—two major groups are on opposite sides —and until this standoff is resolved, it is difficult to expect clear directional movement.

In combination with the increasing bearish positioning of speculators, this creates an environment where any negative news—be it escalation of conflict or disappointing data on the British economy—could accelerate the decline of GBP/USD.