Comment for General CFTC Commodity Futures Trading Commission Strategic Plan, 2011-2015

Comment Text:

I applaud the Commission’s efforts to implement the Dodd-Frank Act as thoroughly as possible especially reforms aimed at limiting excessive speculation in food and energy commodities.

While many factors contribute to today’s highly volatile commodity prices, it is clear that excessive speculation is partially responsible, as shown in dozens of studies by members of respected institutions such as Princeton, MIT, Citigroup, Petersen Institute, University of London, Yale, UNCTAD, FAO, and the U.S. Senate.with disastrous results for the poor struggling with rising food prices.

I urge the Commission to implement the proposed rules regarding aggregate speculative position limits to prevent excessive speculation. At this time of fragile economic recovery, we cannot allow speculators to unduly affect our food and energy prices.

Congress called for exemptions from these limits for bona fide hedgers. I ask that the Commission define that term in the strictest sense possible, limiting exemptions to businesses that deal in physical commodities and use markets to hedge commercial risk in those commodities.
Banks, hedge funds, private equity and all passive investors in commodities should not be considered as bona fide hedgers. Institutions hedging price directional bets such as commodity index swaps, Exchange Traded Funds and Exchange Traded Notes also should not be considered as bona fide hedgers.

I hope you will be able to take this serious concern into consideration.

Jessica Gatty