Closely followed investor Dennis Gartman on Tuesday further clarified his position on crude oil after overturning his longstanding bearish call Friday and then admitting he was wrong after Monday's selloff.
Gartman explained that he turned bullish because the term structure—the way crude is priced at present versus in the future—had begun to change. But he said Monday's sharp market downturn, which saw the Dow plunge more than 1,000 points at the open and ultimately shed nearly 600 points, had sapped his appetite for risk.
"I was wrong for one day," "The Gartman Letter" editor and publisher told CNBC's "Squawk Box." "Am I still wrong? I'm on the sidelines. Do I think I'm going to be bullish on crude oil from this point forward? Yes-no question."
He admitted he was now in the difficult situation of having to buy crude at a higher price than the position he closed.
U.S. light crude closed down $2.21, or 5.5 percent, to $38.24 a barrel on Monday which was the lowest since February 2009. Tuesday, it recovered to trade above $39.
Friday—just two days after Gartman cautioned that the bear market in oil would continue to the point of a "panic liquidation"—he announced he had turned bullish on oil.
Gartman then told CNBC's "Fast Money" on Monday evening he had been wrong to change his outlook.
Read More Gartman: It was a mistake to go bullish on oil
—CNBC's Karma Allen contributed to this story.