Crude Oil Breaks Through Strong Support Giving Crude Bears Downside Momentum

Get our Free Trading Videos, Lessons and eBook today!

Crude oil [August contract now] closed down $3.18 a barrel at $81.16 today. Prices closed near the session low today and hit a fresh 8 1/2 month low. A bearish weekly DOE report, a firmer U.S. dollar index and a downbeat assessment of the U.S. economy by the Federal Reserve combined to sink the crude oil market today. The crude bears have the solid overall near term technical advantage and gained fresh downside momentum today.

Natural gas closed down 1 1/2 cents at $2.559 today. Prices closed nearer the session low today after hitting a fresh four week high early on. Bulls have gained upside near term technical momentum recently to suggest a market low is in place. Bulls and bears are on a level near term technical playing field.

Gold futures closed down $7.00 an ounce at $1,616.00 today in volatile trading. Prices closed nearer the session high and moved well up from the daily low of $1,590.50 following the FOMC statement. After an initial bearish reaction to the FOMC statement, traders digested the wording and reckoned the Fed has indeed laid the groundwork for more aggressive easing of monetary policy in the near future. The key “outside markets” were bearish for gold today as the U.S. dollar index was near steady but up from lower levels early today.

The September U.S. dollar index closed up 22 points at 81.81 today. Prices closed nearer the session high today and saw support on some fresh safe haven demand after the FOMC's downbeat assessment of the U.S. economy. Bulls have the overall near term technical advantage but are fading as prices have been trending lower for nearly three weeks.

It’s Easy, get started trading options today. Let’s us show you how!

Project Sponsors are Seeking Federal Approval to Export Domestic Natural Gas

FREE "Controlling Your Trades, Money & Emotions" Guide

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) project sponsors have been applying to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for authorization to export LNG produced from domestic natural gas and to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for approval to build liquefaction facilities to serve export markets (see map below). A higher price for LNG in international markets is a major motivation for these applications (see chart below).

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration

The United States currently only ships LNG overseas through re-exports of imported LNG from the Freeport terminal in Texas, and the Sabine Pass and Cameron terminals in Louisiana. In 2011, LNG re-exports totaled about 53 billion cubic feet (Bcf), up from about 33 Bcf in 2010. The Kenai LNG terminal in Alaska, the only terminal that exported LNG produced from domestic natural gas, has been inactive since December 2011.

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration

For more details visit the EIA website

How To Set the Right Profit Target and Stop Loss Levels

Commodity Corner: Crude Oil Declines Despite Lower Inventories

Concerns about global oil demand on Wednesday trumped a U.S. Department of Energy report that stockpiles of oil and gasoline were down last week.

Crude oil for December delivery fell $1.90 to settle at $80.44 Wednesday as traders anticipated China's pending actions to rein in inflation. China is expected to raise interest rates to in an effort to stabilize rising prices, and the country's government on Wednesday emphasized its focus on boosting the availability of oil and other commodities.

The DOE's Energy Information Administration reported Wednesday that U.S. commercial crude oil stocks fell by 2 percent as of November 12, 2010, to 357.6 million barrels. Last week's 7.3 million-barrel decline marked the second straight week of lower oil inventories as reported by the EIA.

December crude oil traded from $80.06 to $82.67 Wednesday.

The EIA also reported that gasoline stocks fell 1.2 percent last week. However, front-month gasoline settled flat at $2.16 a gallon Wednesday. According to the DOE agency, total U.S. gasoline inventories stood at 207.7 million barrels as of November 12.

The gasoline futures price ranged from $2.16 to $2.18 during Wednesday's trading.

Thanks to cooler weather, coupled with speculation that the DOE will report a drop in inventories Thursday, December natural gas settled at $4.03 per thousand cubic feet a .21 cent day on day increase. Natural gas traded from 3.80 to 4.04 Wednesday.


Watch: How to Spot Winning Trades

Share

Oil Market Absorbs Bearish DOE Report, Closes Higher

Crude oil closed slightly higher on Wednesday after the market absorbed today's bearish DOE stocks report. The high range close sets the stage for a steady to higher opening on Thursday. Stochastics and the RSI are overbought but remain neutral to bullish signaling that sideways to higher prices are possible near term.

If September extends the rally off July's low, the reaction high crossing at 74.25 is the next upside target. Closes below the 20 day moving average crossing at 65.76 would confirm that a short term top has been posted.

First resistance is Monday's high crossing at 72.20
Second resistance is the reaction high crossing at 74.25

First support is the 10 day moving average crossing at 68.54
Second support is the 20 day moving average crossing at 65.76

How To Spot Winning Futures....Watch Video NOW

Natural gas closed higher on Wednesday as it extends this week's rally. The high range close sets the stage for a steady to higher opening on Thursday. Stochastics and the RSI are bullish signaling that additional strength is possible near term.

If September extends the rally off July's low, June's high crossing at 4.716 is the next upside target.

First resistance is Monday's high crossing at 4.16
Second resistance is June's high crossing at 4.72

First support is the 10 day moving average crossing at 3.81
Second support is the 20 day moving average crossing at 3.74

How to Use Money Management Stops Effectively

The U.S. Dollar closed lower on Wednesday as it extends this month's decline below trading range support crossing at 78.83. The mid range close sets the stage for a steady to lower opening on Thursday. Stochastics and the RSI are oversold but remain bearish signaling that sideways to lower prices are possible near term.

If September extends this month's decline, weekly support crossing at 75.73 is the next downside target. Closes above last Wednesday's high crossing at 79.81 are needed to confirm that a short term low has been posted.

First resistance is the 10 day moving average crossing at 78.65
Second resistance is the 20 day moving average crossing at 79.15

First support is Tuesday's low crossing at 77.55
Second support is weekly support crossing at 75.73

Crude Oil Falls as Equities Decline, Oil Workers Seem To Be Kept On The Job, OPEC Unlikely To Announce New Cuts

"Crude Oil Falls as Equities Decline, Signaling Lower Demand"
Crude oil fell as declining equity markets signaled that the recession in major energy consuming countries will prevent demand from rebounding. Prices retreated from the highest level this year as a drop in telephone and technology companies snuffed out an early stock rally. The Energy Department said yesterday that U.S. crude oil supplies climbed to the highest level since 1990 as fuel consumption tumbled.

“We’re just tracking equities,” said Tim Evans, an energy analyst with Citi Futures Perspective in New York. “The recent demand data are so weak that we could have a remarkable increase in demand.....Complete Story

"Oil Workers Stay Put In a Downturn"
The recent oil boom spurred the largest expansion in offshore drilling since the 1970s. Diamond Offshore Drilling (DO) particularly cashed in on the huge demand for its 45 deepwater oil rigs that it contracts to oil companies such as ExxonMobil (XOM), Chevron (CVX) and Conoco-Phillips (COP). During the past three years, Diamond's average annual growth rate was 41%, and in 2008 it increased profits by 55%,to $1.3 billion. But when the economy took a nosedive and oil prices plummeted last year, drilling activity saw a precipitous drop, too. While Diamond is still growing, the pace has slowed: On Apr. 23 the Houston company announced a 13% revenue increase in the first quarter of 2009. In 2008, revenue had grown by nearly 30% compared to the same period the year before.....Complete Story

Today’s Stock Market Club Trading Triangles

"OPEC Unlikely to Announce New Output Cut in May, Barclays Says"
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, supplier of about 40 percent of the world’s oil, is unlikely to announce a further output cut at its next meeting as prices “stabilize,” according to Barclays Capital. OPEC will probably keep production targets unchanged as long as crude prices remain around current levels and inventory growth continues to slow, according to Barclays’s head of commodities research, Paul Horsnell. The group meets on May 28 in Vienna.

“If they held the meeting today, there’s no reason to change” quotas, Horsnell said in a telephone interview from London. “Prices are stabilizing and starting to nudge up in the direction they want.....Complete Story



Do you think OPEC cuts have an influence on the price of oil anymore? Let's us know what you think, please feel free to leave a comment!


-

Crude Oil Closes Near The Session Lows Again

May crude oil closed up $0.12 at $49.53 a barrel today. Prices closed nearer the session low again today. Trading has turned choppy. A bearish weekly DOE storage report did limit gains in crude and kept prices under pressure most of the day. Crude oil bulls and bears are still on a level near term technical playing field.

The U.S. stock indexes closed mixed but nearer their session highs today following more weak U.S. economic data. However, there were some minor positives in the data that gave stock traders some confidence the worst of the economic crisis is past. Stock index futures prices are still in uptrends from the March lows.

The June U.S. dollar index closed up 32 points at 85.25 today. Prices closed near mid range today. Bulls and bears are back on a level near term technical playing field. Bulls' next upside price objective is to close prices above solid technical resistance at 86.61.


-