Consumer advocate wants CFTC to reject trader bailouts, pursue position limits revamp

Capitol Crude: The US Energy Policy Podcast

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission will soon get an infusion of four new voices, as the Senate voted March 28 on nominations that will bring the derivatives regulator back to a full complement of five members. Some hope this will jumpstart action at the agency after a year of being relatively quiet on energy derivatives regulation.

Tyson Slocum, energy program director at Public Citizen, is among stakeholders pushing the agency to engage publicly on the implementation of its regulation setting federal speculative position limits on physical commodity markets. He also recently authored a letter urging the CFTC to reject any bailouts for commodity traders, in light of wild price swings in energy, metal, and agricultural commodity prices that have stressed the markets.

He joined senior editor Jasmin Melvin on the podcast to discuss that letter and what he’d like to see from this latest composition of the CFTC. He also gave his take on the new US-EU task force working to send more US gas to Europe and the Biden administration’s latest efforts to ease pain at the pump for US consumers.

Stick around after the interview for Jordan Blum with the Market Minute, a look at near-term oil market drivers.