WTI: Consolidates recent gains below $64.00 amid risk-off mood

• WTI begins the week on a back foot amid sober sentiment.
• S&P 500 Futures drop 0.25% amid fears of Fed tapering, Iran prepares to end UN watchdog’s access to nuclear sites.
• Virus woes in Japan, fears of another round of US-China tussle and geopolitical tension in Belarus also weigh on mood.

WTI remains pressured, down 0.23% intraday around $63.70, amid the early Monday morning in Asia. In doing so, the oil benchmark portrays the market’s risk-off mood amid a lack of major catalysts.

Among many, chatters over the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) tapering could be cited as the key to stop the oil buyers. The black gold benefited from the upbeat PMIs during Friday but the commodity sellers seem to recollect that these activity numbers do pose a risk to the easy money and put a bid under the US dollar, which in turn threatens the commodities.

Also souring sentiment could be Iran’s readiness to end the United Nations (UN) access to camera images of its nuclear sites, at the end of the three-month agreed period. “A deal allowing the International Atomic Energy Agency to inspect images of nuclear facilities won’t be renewed,” said The Guardian.

Elsewhere, comments from the US suggesting some doctors from China’s Wuhan virology lab got sick during late 2019 could push Beijing towards hitting back on the allegations for virus escape, which in turn could renew the tussle among the world’s top two economies. Furthermore, airplane hijacking in Belarus and virus woes in Asia also test the sentiment.

Amid these plays, S&P 500 Futures drop 0.25% by the press time, extending the sober mood of the US traders portrayed the last Friday.

Looking forward, a lack of major data/events in Asia could keep WTI traders searching for the risk headlines for fresh impulse.

Technical analysis

Unless bouncing back beyond the 21-day SMA level of $64.45, WTI sellers can aim for a two-month-old support line near $61.75.