WTI weaker, extends the drop below 39.00

Prices of the WTI return to the sub-$39.00 area on Thursday.
Demand fears stemming from the pandemic keep weighing on prices.
US oil rig count comes up next on Friday.

Pablo Piovano FXStreet

Prices of the WTI extends the erratic performance so far this week and now recede to the sub-$39.00 region per barrel.

WTI hurts by weak demand prospects

Crude oil prices fade Wednesday’s uptick and are back to the area below the key $40.00 mark per barrel on Thursday, as traders continue to gauge the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the demand for the commodity.

Prices of the West Texas Intermediate edge lower in the second half of the week despite the EIA reported a larger-than-expected drop in US crude oil supplies. In fact, the agency said inventories went down by almost 2 million barrels on the week ended on September 25, prolonging the downtrend for the third straight session so far.

On Friday, Baker Hughes will close the weekly calendar after it publishes its report on the US drilling activity.

WTI significant levels

At the moment the barrel of WTI is losing 2.45% at $38.95 and a break below $38.44 (weekly low Sep.29) would aim for $36.15 (monthly low Sep.8) and then $31.16 (low May 28). On the upside, the next hurdle is located at $41.46 (weekly high Sep.18) seconded by $43.75 (monthly high Aug.26) and finally $48.64 (monthly high Mar.3).

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 flirts with tops near 1.3470

GBP/USD manages to regain composure and challenge the area of daily highs around 1.3470 on Friday. Cable picks up pace despite marginal gains in the Greenback in a context of swelling geopolitical tensions and rising global oil prices.

EUR/USD trims losses, back above 1.1500

EUR/USD picks up some pace and bouces off earlier lows, reclaiming the 1.1500 threshold and beyond at the end of the week. The pair’s modest pullback follows a persistent risk-averse market mood and renewed buying interest for the US Dollar.

Gold: The $4,000 mark holds the downside for now

Gold faces renewed selling pressure, falling sharply toweard the $4,000 mark per troy ounce as the US Dollar regains momentum. Escalating US-Iran tensions are keeping inflation concerns and expectations of further Fed rate hikes alive, weighing further on the yellow metal.

Bitcoin eyes 50-day EMA breakout, Ethereum consolidates, XRP steadies

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Ripple trade near key technical levels on Friday as the broader cryptocurrency market pauses following last week's recovery. BTC is approaching the 50-day Exponential Moving Average while ETH continues to consolidate between two major EMAs.

Warsh needs to restore his reputation

We were glad to see our deeply negative reaction to the Warsh press conference was not some personal peculiarity. Just about everybody in the financial press felt the same way. The consensus is building it’s not the Fed in the dog-house but only Warsh. Today the WSJ changed it tune and blasted Warsh—"the honeymoon is already over..”

9-3: Is the Federal Reserve’s vote tally Warsh's new forward guidance?

The rate did not move. Neither did the statement, and that’s the more interesting fact. Set the July 29 Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) statement beside the one issued on June 17, and the two documents are identical apart from a single verb and a paragraph at the bottom naming three dissenters.