- WTI fails to extend the corrective pullback from $59.88, prints three-day losing streak.
- Venezuela’s oil exports rose in February, OPEC output falls on Saudi’s production cut.
- Exports from US supertanker port crash to zero from record, oil executives suggest more energy demand.
- API weekly crude oil stock data, market sentiment eyed ahead of the OPEC meeting.
Alike others on the commodity bench, WTI is also pressured despite market optimism. The oil benchmark drops for the third consecutive day, currently around $60.00, during the initial Asian session trading on Tuesday.
While tracing the clues, the US dollar’s sustained recovery gains major attention as the supply-demand matrix still favors the bulls.
The US dollar index (DXY) rose for the second consecutive day to 91.00 on Monday as global market sentiment shrugged off the reflation fears amid hopes of $1.9 trillion US stimulus and the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine news, mainly the one-shot cure from Johnson and Johnson.
On the other hand, oil exports from Iraq and Venezuela rose in February, to 2.96 million barrels per day (bpd) and over 700,000 bpd respectively, per Reuters. However, the supplies from the Crude exports from Louisiana’s offshore supertanker port tumbled to zero on lack of shipments during the previous month, per Bloomberg. Also portraying the supply outage is the Reuters survey saying, “OPEC oil output fell in February as a voluntary cut by Saudi Arabia added to agreed reductions under a pact with allies.”
It should be noted that the demand outlook was also upbeat as Reuters quoted the oil company executives, who spoke at CERAWeek by IHS Markit, to suggest that the crude demand will rise over the coming decade.
Looking forward, the US dollar moves and the weekly private oil inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute (API), prior 1.026M, will offer immediate direction to the WTI traders. However, major attention will be given to this week’s OPEC meeting, on March 04.
Technical analysis
A two-week-old rising support line currently probes WTI sellers ahead of 21-day SMA support of $59.45.
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