Testimony of a precious metals COMEX trader

http://www.capitolconnection.net/capcon/cftc/032510/Presentations/Panel%202/CFTC_Metal_Testimony_Epstein_2010-03-25_final.pdf

The size of the open interest in COMEX silver is irresponsibly large, given the reality of world inventories and production. Additionally, there is a significant imbalance between the largest long positions and the largest short positions, with the shorts being heavily concentrated. In a physically delivered futures contract for a commodity of finite-supply, this also exposes the marketplace to an unnecessary risk of failure-to-deliver. Such an event could destroy the COMEX silver market.