Crude Oil Futures: Rebound in the offing?

Pablo Piovano FXStreet

Open interest in crude oil futures markets shrank for the second session in a row on Friday, this time by just 692 contracts according to preliminary readings from CME Group. In the same line, volume went down for the second straight session, now by around 208.6K contracts.

WTI retargets the 2023 highs

Prices of WTI dropped for the second session in a row on Friday following Thursday’s YTD peaks. The daily drop came on the back of shrinking open interest and volume and could leave the door open to a near-term rebound with the immediate target on the 2023 top at $94.99 (September 28).

Author

Pablo Piovano

FXStreet

Born and bred in Argentina, Pablo has been carrying on with his passion for FX markets and trading since his first college years.

GBP/USD bounces off four-day lows, still below 1.3500

GBP/USD sticks to the bearish tone on Thursday, coming down to the 1.3480 region in the latter part of the NA session. In the meantime, Cable’s weakness comes as investors continue to assess mixed UK data, poor US results, and the persistent uncertainty surrounding the US-Iran conflict.

EUR/USD clings to gains near 1.1530

EUR/USD advances marginally, girating around the low-1.1500s on Thursday. Persistent uncertainty in the Middle East fuels risk aversion, limiting the US Dollar’s downside potential. Earlier in the day, both US Producer Prices and weekly Claims missed market consensus, adding to the buck’s soft tone.

Gold loses the grip, recedes toward $4,350

Gold extends its intraday pullback on Thursday, retesting the $4,350 zone per troy ounce, or three-day troughs. Meanwhile, the yellow metal continues to monitor developments from the Middle East as well as bets surrounding the potential Fed’s rate path.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP remain sluggish amid mixed ETF flows

The cryptocurrency market continues to trade sideways on Thursday, with Bitcoin struggling to reclaim the $64,000 level. Ethereum is attempting to build momentum near the key $1,900 resistance, while Ripple maintains support above $1.00, yet upward movement remains limited.

Week ahead – Summer lull could be tested by geopolitics and central bank expectations

US dollar stabilizes as September Fed hike bets remain subdued. Market volatility stays low, but thin liquidity could amplify movements. Key UK data could challenge pound strength; euro craves bullish catalysts.

Why is Crude Oil priced for a reopening the ships haven't made?

Fourteen vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday. Before the war, the count ran near 120 a day. In the sessions since the waterway was publicly declared open, Brent has drifted back to $87 and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) to $81, both a little lower again on Wednesday, with daily momentum on each unwound from the top of its range in late July to the low twenties now.