We get US oil inventory data later today and there's a big risk of a bearish report. That said, the market appears ready to shrug it off as crude gets a bid. Perhaps this is a delayed reaction to some bullish comments from the Saudis yesterday and hints the White House will buy back SPR oil at $80.
API data from late yesterday showed:
- Crude +6040K vs +833K expected
- Gasoline -3230K vs -858K expected
- Diistillates +1750K vs +600K expected
A big part of that was a massive 8.4m weekly release from the SPR so if you strip that out it's a different story.
In any case, oil held up fairly well in yesterday's carnage and it's bounced right back to pre-CPI levels today. Priced in almost any currency other than USD, it's up over the past two days.
Natural gas is making a very strong move today and it's now erased the Sept 6 rout. There is a risk of a head-and-shoulders top here and US dry gas production has been rising so be careful. At the same time, Freeport will come back online in November and add a bid.
