The Commitments of Traders Bible: How To Profit from Insider Market Intelligence

The content may seem complicated, but measured by the complexity of the connections in a COT report, the author has achieved an outstanding achievement. The details are not only very well explained, but the writing style is also fun.
On websites, information about COT is often presented in a simplified (and correspondingly incomplete) manner; this book is the best example of how you can’t find/get everything on the Internet.
A tiny downside arises from the fact that “only” the Legacy Report or its basis is discussed and the “new” TIFF report is left out, but with your own transfer effort, you can also elicit valuable information from it.

For me, the most valuable book on the subject of futures trading!

reading the book made me clear and simple concepts to me first unknown.
I apply what I learn in a personal way, it’s amazing!

You will learn how is the sirious world of tranding linked to the stock market. It is not easy of reading and I only recomend it if you have a good knowledge of math (statistics) and if you deal or a planning to do with the stock in commodities.

I found myself refering back to this book more than once even after reading it cover to cover. It’s a great resource for those looking to better understand the world of COT data.

As a former editor of Futures Magazine, I have read a lot of trading books and find Briese’s “bible” a great resource for analyzing the actions of commercials, the real drivers in many markets. Evaluating the meaning of the COT report requires more than just looking at the numbers. Briese’s long experience in this area makes him one of the best I know for analyzing and interpreting the significance of buying and selling patterns of various market participants. This book provides a necessary basic background to understand what COT positions reveal, but you really need to also get Briese’s weekly Bullish Review newsletter to see how he applies this knowledge to current market situations. Knowing what the big money is doing won’t guarantee trading success, but insight into what is happening to their positions relative to current price charts and cycles can be very helpful for individual traders.

I still remember the impact Steve Briese’a ideas had on me when I first encountered them a dozen years ago. There are three groups of futures traders – hedgers (the true insiders!), big speculators (supposed to be smart but not always…), and the rest – small specs. The US government publishes reports about their relative positions. When you see a situation where the bulk of hedgers is squaring off against the bulk of small specs, you have the makings of an explosive move. In whose favor? Who do you think is likely to win – the insiders or the small fry?

This analysis is further complicated by the fact that hedgers tend to be on the short side of the market (you may want to look up my latest book Sell & Sell Short). Briese discovers their true bias by comparing their current position to the historical norm. A beginner may look at the numbers, see that hedgers are 70% bearish and decide that the insiders expect a decline. In fact, if their bearish norm in this market is 90%, then 70% is wildly bullish!

Briese’s book covers everything you need to know about COT )Commitments of Traders Reports) – including technical patterns, currencies, metals, oil, and much more. If you trade futures, you sure need this book!

I like Briese’s breezy writing style (pardon the pun!) but dislike the arrogant title of the book. I know of only one Bible, and Briese is definitely not its author. This minor quibble aside, I highly recommend his book to every serious futures trader.

Perfect

A good read explains the use of the cot report

Felt a bit old and dated for a modern technical trader. However there was some valuable insights, but I think the book shifted from talking about the psychology or positioning of the raw data, into talking about his personal COT indicators. While these indicators are interesting, they ended up becoming the focal point of the book until halfway through when he discusses the nuances of the data and indicators. As someone looking to use this as part of my overall strategy I found some of the signals he talks about to be inconsistent. Sometimes a sharp increase means it’s time to change positions…. Only when it’s not…. Although, despite some of these grievances, the first 1/3 of the book was interesting and offered ways to look at COT data (plotted onto an indicator) that goes beyond just the standard line crossing signals. For this I appreciate the book. And may be worth it, haven’t read other COT books yet to compare it to.

too much Chicago, not enough NY in this one. This is just 2 steps from chart reading. People can just make stuff up. The bottom line here is, look for discloation

If you have struggled with the nuances of the COT report, you will treasure this book. It clearly illustrates the crux of the matter which is price action and the reasons behind it. I would not recommend this for beginners, however. There is a subtlety in evaluating trend shifts and unless you have actually gotten your hands dirty digging into FX and traded for awhile could you appreciate the clarity of Steve Briese’s explanations. I have been an active Forex trader for over 5 years and this book I consider to be one of my most valuable on the subject. Forex is not a get rich quick vehicle. There is a steep learning curve as most FX traders will honestly tell you–but this market can be most rewarding for those who spend the time and effort to learn.