WTI treads water near $72.70 after recent gains on optimistic OPEC's monthly report

Source Fxstreet
  • WTI price received upward support from a positive OPEC report.
  • OPEC forecasted oil demand to grow by 2.25 and 1.85 million bpd in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
  • US announced to re-designate the Houthis on its list of "specially designated global terrorists”.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) price hovers around $72.70 per barrel during the Asian session on Thursday. Crude oil prices experienced an upward trend, supported by the optimism generated by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). According to OPEC's monthly report, there is an expectation of robust growth in oil demand for 2024 and 2025. The report forecasts a growth of 2.25 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024, consistent with the predictions made in December, and anticipates a growth of 1.85 million bpd in 2025.

From a geopolitical perspective, the persistent supply disruption in the Red Sea is serving as a deterrent to a more substantial decline in crude oil prices. The attacks on ships in the Red Sea, orchestrated by Iran-led Houthi forces, have prompted many companies to redirect their cargoes around Africa, resulting in heightened journey times and increased costs. In response to these attacks on shipping, the United States conducted another round of strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen on Wednesday.

Additionally, on Wednesday evening, Yemen's Houthi rebels reportedly targeted a US-owned cargo ship with a kamikaze drone in the Red Sea. This incident occurred after the United States announced its intention to re-designate the Houthis on its list of "specially designated global terrorists," as reported by the BBC. The new designation by Washington would require US financial institutions to freeze Houthi funds, and members of the group would be prohibited from entering the United States.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a surprising increase in Weekly Crude Oil Stock to 0.483 million barrels for the week ending on January 12, contrary to the expected decline of 2.4 million barrels. The previous reading had indicated a decline of 5.215 million barrels in crude oil stock. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) is set to release the Crude Oil Stocks Change report later in the North American session. Market expectations are for a decline of 0.313 million barrels, reversing the previous stock figure of 1.338 million barrels.

 

Disclaimer: For information purposes only. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
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Author  Mitrade
13 hours ago
Bitcoin has dropped back below $88,000 after rolling over from $90,500, with price still trading under the 100-hour Simple Moving Average. The sell-off found a floor at $85,151, and BTC is now consolidating near that base, but rebounds are facing pressure from a bearish trend line around $89,000. Bulls need to retake $88,000–$89,000 to ease downside risk; failure to do so keeps $85,500–$85,000 and then $83,500 in play, with $80,000 as the deeper “line in the sand.” Bitcoin (BTC) is back in damage-control mode after a sharp pullback wiped out recent gains. The price failed to reclaim the $90,000–$90,500 band, rolled over, and slid through $88,500 before briefly dipping under $87,000. Buyers did show up around $85,000, but the rebound so far looks more like stabilization than a clear trend reversal. Bitcoin dips hard, finds a bid near $85,000(h3) BTC’s latest move lower began when it couldn’t build follow-through above $90,000 and $90,500. Once that upside stalled, sellers took control and pushed price down through $88,500. The slide accelerated enough to spike below $87,000, but the market didn’t free-fall. Bulls defended the $85,000 zone, printing a low at $85,151. Since then, Bitcoin has been consolidating below the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement of the drop from the $93,560 swing high to the $85,151 low — a clue that the bounce is still shallow and that sellers haven’t fully backed off yet. Structurally, BTC is still on the back foot: It’s trading below $88,000, and It remains below the 100-hour Simple Moving Average, keeping short-term trend pressure pointed downward. Resistance is layered, and $89,000 is the problem area(h3) If bulls try to turn this into a recovery, they’ll have to climb through multiple ceilings in quick succession. First, BTC faces resistance around $87,150, followed by a more meaningful barrier near $87,500. From there, the market’s attention snaps back to $88,000 — the level BTC just lost and now needs to reclaim. A close back above $88,000 would improve the tone, but it doesn’t solve the bigger issue: there’s a bearish trend line on the hourly BTC/USD chart (Kraken feed) with resistance near $89,000, which also lines up with the next technical hurdle. If BTC can push through $89,000 and hold, the rebound could extend toward $90,000, with follow-through targets at $91,000 and $91,500. But until price clears that $88,000–$89,000 zone, rallies are at risk of being sold rather than chased. If BTC fails to reclaim resistance, the downside path is clear(h3) The near-term bear case is simple: if Bitcoin can’t climb back above the $87,000 area and keep traction, sellers may attempt another leg lower. Support levels line up like this: Immediate support: $85,500 First major support: $85,000 Next support: $83,500 Then $82,500 in the near term Below that, the major “don’t break this” level is still $80,000. If BTC slips under $80,000, the risk of acceleration to the downside increases significantly — not because it’s magic, but because it’s the kind of psychological and structural level that tends to trigger forced de-risking. Indicators: momentum still leans bearish(h3) The intraday indicators aren’t offering much comfort yet: Hourly MACD is losing pace in the bearish zone. Hourly RSI remains below 50, suggesting sellers still have the upper hand on short timeframes. So while the $85,000 defense held for now, the market hasn’t flipped bullish — it’s just stopped bleeding.
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Author  FXStreet
14 hours ago
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Author  Mitrade
Yesterday 05: 48
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