Month: October 2012

Signs of slowing economic growth in China add to ongoing worries about sluggish activity in the US and Europe. Nevertheless, oil prices continue to creep higher. The clearest assumption is that tensions in or close to producing regions must be adding to fears of a potential supply disruption of some sort.… Read more

After breaking to as high as 93.66 on Wednesday, prices have moves back towards 92.00. A larger than expected rise in crude oil stockpiles was tempered by a sharp draw to distillate supplies, a harbinger of possible rising demand for the feedstock ahead of heating season.… Read more

NYMEX November WTI posted a new high off last Wednesday;s low, but retreated over $1.00 by settlement. Price action keep fluctuating as focus shifts between economic data and geopolitical events. Tensions in or close to oil producing regions are rising with escalation of martial clashes between Syria and Turkey adding to existing strife over Iran’s nuclear ambitions.… Read more

Crude oil prices surged above the upper-end of the recent $88-92 range, yesterday, as geopolitical tensions seemed to dominate sentiment. The market awoke to the implications surrounding Turkey’s potential involvement in the conflict in Syria. The oil supply from Northern Iraq, which transits through Turkey to Ceyhan is the new worry.… Read more

The balance between economics and geopolitics held in a narrow-range, low volume session yesterday. So far today, similar conditions appear to be dominating, illustrated by price action described by the 88.00-92.00 trading range. Ms. Merkel is about to arrive in Greece for talks with policymakers there.… Read more

Cries of foul that the BLS manipulated last week’s non-farm payrolls have been clearly declared absurd as market participants continue to shed risk assets as the week commences. Despite the unemployment rate falling there was little to cheer in the report, which implied the US economy is still struggling.… Read more

What a difference a day makes! Price action yesterday retook almost all the ground lost during the previous session. The headline causality was the most serious cross-border escalation of the 18-month uprising in Syria, as Turkey initiated artillery strikes on a Syrian border town.… Read more

Even though crude stocks fell much less than expected, market participants are apparently taking a more cautious view of energy demand growth prospects, as more length was shed yesterday. Successive pieces of macroeconomic data suggest a slowing global economy. Particularly troubling is contraction in China and developing countries which were supposed to be isolated bright spots.… Read more

November NYMEX WTI slid from the narrow-range, low-volume that persisted throughout yesterday’s session in the last hour of trading. Concerns about supply disruption consequent to the Iran nuclear dispute and a pressured dollar apparently took a back seat as participants considered burgeoning stockpile consensus as an indication of a faltering global economy and its effect on aggregate energy demand growth.… Read more

Price action for November NYMEX WTI was marginally firmer yesterday, contained within a relatively narrow trading range and lower than normal volume. The price of crude oil continue to be weighed down by slowing economic growth from Asia, Europe and the US.… Read more