WASHINGTON — The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is gathering information on volatility in oil markets, after crude prices dropped $3 in less than a minute Monday afternoon.
CFTC member Bart Chilton said “our surveillance folks are on top of it and working to gather trading information.”
“Superfast price moves — like we saw in oil — put us on high alert,” he said in an e-mail Monday.
Such “rapid volatility” raises questions about what high-frequency traders are doing in the market, he said.
The oil-price decline pulled down stocks, copper, the euro and other markets. Traders expressed confusion about the oil tumble, with some pointing to the possibility of a trading mistake, or “fat finger” trade.
Oil futures settled Monday at $96.62, off 2.38, after falling below $95 during the sell-off.A spokesman for the CFTC declined to comment.
