The Crude Oil markets experienced a decline as investment sentiment receded midweek, causing a drop in West Texas Intermediate (WTI) US Crude Oil prices. WTI fell below $80.00 per barrel and halted a three-day bullish streak. The decline was attributed to a decrease in demand for US Treasuries and concerns about upcoming US Crude Oil production counts. Investors grew hesitant and pulled away from risk assets in search of safer options, causing a shift in market flows.
This week, the demand for US Treasuries decreased, with bid-to-cover ratios on key bond auctions showing a decline. Investors became jittery about the demand for US Treasuries and started moving towards safer investments. The bid-to-cover on Wednesday’s 7-year Treasury note auction dropped to 2.43 from the previous week’s 2.48, signaling a shift towards safer pastures among investors.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, OPEC+, are scheduled to have an online-only meeting on June 2nd. The energy markets are expecting OPEC+ to maintain voluntary production caps, totaling 2.2 million barrels per day, in an effort to support global Crude Oil prices by limiting the supply. At the same time, US Crude Oil production continues to pose a threat of oversupply, leading barrel traders to closely monitor US Crude Oil barrel counts scheduled for this week.
The EIA Crude Oil stockpiles report, released by the Energy Information Administration, provides a weekly measure of the change in the number of barrels of crude oil and its derivatives in stock. This report tends to have a significant impact on oil prices, affecting commodity-related currencies such as the Canadian dollar. While it may have a limited impact on currencies, the report does influence the price of oil itself, thus affecting WTI crude futures.
WTI US Crude Oil experienced a decline under $80.00 per barrel, crossing below the 200-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at $79.16. The decline marked the end of a four-day bullish streak for WTI, which is now down over 9% from its peak earlier in the year. The technical outlook for WTI suggests a bearish trend, with potential implications for future trading days. Investors and traders will closely monitor market developments in the coming days to gauge the impact on Crude Oil prices and market sentiment.
