CFTC
Commodity prices fallPosted by RJ and Makay on May 16, 2012 |
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Bullish bets on commodities by hedge funds and other managers fell by 20%, or $18 billion, last week as commodity prices dropped to four-month lows, according to Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data last Friday. As speculators continued liquidation of long positions in oil, metals and agricultural markets, the CFTC is expected to report a further drop in long commodity positions in its May 18 report, analysts said.
U.S. Regulators told lawmakers last week that they will adjust prohibitions on banks’ proprietary trading per Volcker rule restrictions, but will resist calls to altogether drop the measure that sprang from the Dodd-Frank Act. Federal Reserve Governor Daniel Tarullo, along with top officials from four other agencies, defended the rule at a House Financial Services joint subcommittee hearing in Washington.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the appointment of Pamela A. Gibbs to head the agency’s recently created Office of Minority and Women Inclusion. The move is in line with a Dodd-Frank mandate that calls for the creation of diversity-monitoring offices at various regulatory agencies including the Treasury Department, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and at all 12 Federal Reserve banks.
