WTI consolidates near weekly top, just below mid-$76.00s amid Middle East tensions

Source Fxstreet

  • WTI maintains its bullish bias after Israel rejected Hamas's ceasefire deal.
  • A combination of factors keeps a lid on any further appreciating move.
  • The black liquid remains on track to register strong weekly gains.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) US Crude Oil prices struggle to capitalize on strong weekly gains registered over the past four days and oscillate in a narrow trading band through the first half of the European session on Friday. The commodity, however, holds steady above the $76.00/barrel mark, or the weekly top and remains well within the striking distance of a technically significant 200-day Simple Moving Average (SMA).

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected a proposal to end the war in the Palestinian enclave, raising the risk of a further escalation of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East – the major Oil producing region. This comes on top of the continuous US strikes against Iran-backed Houthi targets in Yemen, which has been fueling supply concerns and is seen acting as a tailwind for Crude Oil prices. That said, a combination of factors is holding back traders from placing aggressive bullish bets and capping the upside.

Investors remain concerned about a weaker demand outlook in the wake of slowing economic growth in China – the world's top Oil importer. Adding to this, output from Norway and Guyana is increasing, while Russia is exporting more crude in February in the wake of damage to refineries from Ukraine's drone attacks and technical outages. This, to a larger extent, offsets the US refinery maintenance, which, along with a bullish US Dollar (USD),  bolstered by hawkish Federal Reserve (Fed) expectations, keeps a lid on Crude Oil prices.

Nevertheless, the black liquid remains on track to register strong weekly gains as market participants look forward to the crucial US consumer inflation figures next week for cues about the Fed's rate-cut path. In the meantime, the lower US output growth forecast by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), along with persistent geopolitical risks, might continue to lend some support to Crude Oil prices.

Technical levels to watch

 

Disclaimer: For information purposes only. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
placeholder
October hike odds climb toward 60% as Goldman and BofA both flip — what Warsh's "dose of accommodation" really changedRate futures now price roughly 55% to 62% for a 25bp hike at the October 27-28 FOMC, up from about 30% before Chair Warsh's post-meeting framing that the Fed is merely "removing some accommodation." Goldman Sachs has added an October hike to its forecast and Bank of America now sees moves in both October and December. Here is the repricing, the language behind it, and the two data points that decide it.
Author  Irene Q.
Sep 23, Wed
Rate futures now price roughly 55% to 62% for a 25bp hike at the October 27-28 FOMC, up from about 30% before Chair Warsh's post-meeting framing that the Fed is merely "removing some accommodation." Goldman Sachs has added an October hike to its forecast and Bank of America now sees moves in both October and December. Here is the repricing, the language behind it, and the two data points that decide it.
placeholder
Four jobs reports in five days: what JOLTS, ADP, claims and the September payrolls mean for the October Fed decisionThe US labour market faces its densest data week of the month. JOLTS job openings land Tuesday (7.2 million expected), ADP on Wednesday (70,000 expected), initial claims on Thursday and the September non-farm payrolls on Friday (100,000 expected, down from 162,000). Markets price a 64%-70% chance of another quarter-point Fed hike on October 28. The dollar index sits at 100.77 and the S&P 500 at 7,729.8.
Author  Mitrade
Sep 28, Mon
The US labour market faces its densest data week of the month. JOLTS job openings land Tuesday (7.2 million expected), ADP on Wednesday (70,000 expected), initial claims on Thursday and the September non-farm payrolls on Friday (100,000 expected, down from 162,000). Markets price a 64%-70% chance of another quarter-point Fed hike on October 28. The dollar index sits at 100.77 and the S&P 500 at 7,729.8.
placeholder
Nvidia's $150 billion buyback landed — and the AI sector fell anyway. That's the signal worth tradingNvidia closed up 1.68% at $228.86 on 28 September after announcing a $150 billion share repurchase authorisation, the largest single corporate buyback on record, while the rest of the AI complex sold off: AMD -3.6%, Micron -2.6%, Meta -4.8% and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index -1.61%. The divergence is not noise. Capital is rotating toward cash-flow certainty, not abandoning the AI theme. With Micron reporting after the close on 30 September, here is what the split means.
Author  Irene Q.
Sep 29, Tue
Nvidia closed up 1.68% at $228.86 on 28 September after announcing a $150 billion share repurchase authorisation, the largest single corporate buyback on record, while the rest of the AI complex sold off: AMD -3.6%, Micron -2.6%, Meta -4.8% and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index -1.61%. The divergence is not noise. Capital is rotating toward cash-flow certainty, not abandoning the AI theme. With Micron reporting after the close on 30 September, here is what the split means.
placeholder
【Daily Brief】30-year Treasury tops 5.59%, S&P 500 slips to 7,670 and gold holds $4,180 — PCE lands tonightThe 30-year Treasury yield closed at 5.59%, its highest since June 2002, and the Dow fell 131.59 points to 51,349.92. US consumer confidence dropped to 81.9, a 12-year low, and JOLTS job openings fell to 7.1 million. August PCE and Q3 GDP both land at 8:30am ET tonight.
Author  Suzie
Sep 30, Wed
The 30-year Treasury yield closed at 5.59%, its highest since June 2002, and the Dow fell 131.59 points to 51,349.92. US consumer confidence dropped to 81.9, a 12-year low, and JOLTS job openings fell to 7.1 million. August PCE and Q3 GDP both land at 8:30am ET tonight.
placeholder
Gold falls to near $4,150 as higher Treasury yields, oil prices outweigh softer PCE inflationGold price (XAU/USD) tumbles to near $4,150 during the early Asian session on Thursday, pressured by elevated US Treasury bond yields. Traders await the US September employment data for fresh impetus, which will be released later on Friday. 
Author  FXStreet
12 hours ago
Gold price (XAU/USD) tumbles to near $4,150 during the early Asian session on Thursday, pressured by elevated US Treasury bond yields. Traders await the US September employment data for fresh impetus, which will be released later on Friday. 
goTop
quote