Chart Support Survived A Big Wave Of Selling To Start The Week
Chart support survived a big wave of selling to start the week, and petroleum prices are now moving higher as buyers (or more likely the algorithms they’ve programmed) gain more confidence that a price breakdown is unlikely in the near future. RBOB gasoline futures are up more than 20 cents from Monday’s low trade, and back in the July trading range. ULSD prices are up 15 cents from Tuesday’s low, but need to get back above the $3.55 mark to break the descending triangle pattern that still threatens to push prices to $3 in the coming weeks.
Early (and unofficial) reports from the OPEC & Friends meeting suggest the cartel will make a modest increase of 100,000 barrels/day to its quota in September. Oil and product prices actually moved higher following those rumors as the increase is the smallest on record for the cartel, and is essentially meaningless given that actual output has lagged behind the allowed quotas for the entire year.
The API reported a build in crude stocks of 2 million barrels last week, while refined products were estimated to have small declines of less than ½ million barrels each. Keep in mind the build in oil stocks includes the ongoing drawdown of oil from the SPR, and all else being equal, would equate to a nearly 5 million barrel decline in US stocks if those barrels weren’t being released. The EIA’s weekly status report is due out at its normal time of 9:30 central.
While the shortage of refining capacity to meet fuel demand in the Western hemisphere has been well documented this year, the EIA on Tuesday published a note highlighting 9 new refinery projects slated to come online in the next 18 months, that will add nearly 3% to global refining capacity…all of which are in Asia and the Middle East, which will further shift the global flow of oil and its various products.
While backwardation remains a major theme in global energy markets, for the first time in many months 2 US regions have actually slipped into a contango price curve for distillates. Both Group 3 and Chicago ULSD prices are now trading higher for September delivery than they are for prompt barrels, which is a reflection of the lull in regional demand prior to the harvest season. This compilation of recent articles suggests you shouldn’t bet on this trend expanding to other markets.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.
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Week 48 - US DOE Inventory Recap
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Week 48 - US DOE Inventory Recap
The API Reported Gasoline Inventories Dropped By 898,000 Barrels Last Week
Gasoline and oil prices are attempting to rally for a 2nd straight day, a day ahead of the delayed OPEC meeting, while diesel prices are slipping back into the red following Tuesday’s strong showing.
The API reported gasoline inventories dropped by 898,000 barrels last week, crude inventories declined by 817,000 barrels while distillates saw an increase of 2.8 million barrels. Those inventory stats help explain the early increases for RBOB and WTI while ULSD is trading lower. The DOE’s weekly report is due out at its normal time this morning.
A severe storm on the Black Sea is disrupting roughly 2% of the world’s daily oil output and is getting some credit for the bounce in futures, although early reports suggest that this will be a short-lived event.
Chevron reported that its Richmond CA refinery was back online after a power outage Monday night. San Francisco spot diesel basis values rallied more than a dime Tuesday after a big drop on Monday following the news of that refinery being knocked offline.
Just a few days after Scotland’s only refinery announced it would close in 2025, Exxon touted its newest refinery expansion project in the UK Tuesday, with a video detailing how it was ramping up diesel production to reduce imports and possibly allow for SAF production down the road at its Fawley facility.
Ethanol prices continue to slump this week, reaching a 2-year low despite the bounce in gasoline prices as corn values dropped to a 3-year low, and the White House appears to be delaying efforts to shift to E15 in an election year.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.
Values For Space On Colonial’s Main Gasoline Line Continue To Drop This Week
The petroleum complex continues to search for a price floor with relatively quiet price action this week suggesting some traders are going to wait and see what OPEC and Friends can decide on at their meeting Thursday.
Values for space on Colonial’s main gasoline line continue to drop this week, with trades below 10 cents/gallon after reaching a high north of 18-cents earlier in the month. Softer gasoline prices in New York seems to be driving the slide as the 2 regional refiners who had been down for extended maintenance both return to service. Diesel linespace values continue to hold north of 17-cents/gallon as East Coast stocks are holding at the low end of their seasonal range while Gulf Coast inventories are holding at average levels.
Reversal coming? Yesterday we saw basis values for San Francisco spot diesel plummet to the lowest levels of the year, but then overnight the Chevron refinery in Richmond was forced to shut several units due to a power outage which could cause those differentials to quickly find a bid if the supplier is forced to become a buyer to replace that output.
Money managers continued to reduce the net length held in crude oil contracts, with both Brent and WTI seeing long liquidation and new short positions added last week. Perhaps most notable from the weekly COT report data is that funds are continuing their counter-seasonal bets on higher gasoline prices. The net length held by large speculators for RBOB is now at its highest level since Labor Day, at a time of year when prices tend to drop due to seasonal demand weakness.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.