WTI edges higher, $55.00 just around the corner

Pablo Piovano FXStreet

Crude oil prices have climbed to fresh multi-day tops on Tuesday, lifting the barrel of West Texas Intermediate to the vicinity of the critical $55.00 mark.

WTI stronger on OPEC cuts

Prices for the WTI have picked up extra pace today after news emphasized that the planned OPEC output cuts have tightened oil supply.

WTI is gaining nearly 2% on Tuesday despite the general sentiment continues to favour the buck, taking the US Dollar Index to fresh highs in the mid-101.00s for the time being.

Crude oil remains well underpinned by the speculative positioning at the same time, with net longs advancing to record levels above 500K contracts during the week ended on February 14 according to the latest CFTC report.

Looking ahead, the FOMC minutes and Fedspeak should keep the interest around the Dollar, while the usual weekly reports by the API (tomorrow) and the EIA (Thursday) should drive the sentiment around oil in the very near term at least.

WTI levels to consider

At the moment the barrel of WTI is gaining 1.77% at $54.73 and a surpass of $54.85 (high Feb.21) would open the door to $55.24 (2017 high Jan.3) and finally $56.79 (high Jul.6 2015). On the other hand, the immediate support is located at $53.73 (low Feb.20) followed by $53.27 (20-day sma) and then $52.68 (low Feb.16).

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.

EUR/USD recedes to daily lows near 1.1850

EUR/USD keeps its bearish momentum well in place, slipping back to the area of 1.1850 to hit daily lows on Monday. The pair’s continuation of the leg lower comes amid decent gains in the US Dollar in a context of scarce volatility and thin trade conditions due to the inactivity in the US markets.

GBP/USD resumes the downtrend, back to the low-1.3600s

GBP/USD rapidly leaves behind Friday’s decent advance, refocusing on the downside and retreating to the 1.3630 region at the beginning of the week. In the meantime, the British Pound is expected to remain under the microscope ahead of the release of the key UK labour market report on Tuesday.

Gold looks inconclusive around $5,000

Gold partially fades Friday’s strong recovery, orbiting around the key $5,000 region per troy ounce in a context of humble gains in the Greenback on Monday. Additing to the vacillating mood, trade conditions remain thin amid the observance of the Presidents Day holiday in the US.

Bitcoin consolidates as on-chain data show mixed signals

Bitcoin price has consolidated between $65,700 and $72,000 over the past nine days, with no clear directional bias. US-listed spot ETFs recorded a $359.91 million weekly outflow, marking the fourth consecutive week of withdrawals.

The week ahead: Key inflation readings and why the AI trade could be overdone

It is likely to be a quiet start to the week, with US markets closed on Monday for Presidents Day. European markets are higher across the board and gold is clinging to the $5,000 level after the tamer than expected CPI report in the US reduced haven flows to precious metals.

XRP steadies in narrow range as fund inflows, futures interest rise

Ripple is trading in a narrow range between $1.45 (immediate support) and $1.50 (resistance) at the time of writing on Monday. The remittance token extended its recovery last week, peaking at $1.67 on Sunday from the weekly open at $1.43.