Energy And Equity Markets Are Pointing Sharply Lower This Morning
So much for that rally. Energy and equity markets are pointing sharply lower this morning, after Tuesday’s big rally ran out of steam in the afternoon. For refined products, 15 cent morning gains were largely wiped out heading into Tuesday’s close, an ominous technical signal that encouraged more follow through selling overnight. For stocks, those that suggested Tuesday’s rally was a dead cat bounce are looking like they know what they’re talking about (for now) as the world continues to try and figure out what happens when we stop giving money away for free.
The US President is expected to call on congress to suspend federal gasoline & diesel taxes for 3 months today, and ask states to provide similar relief on their own taxes. If congress agrees on this plan (which seems almost comical) and the states follow suit, the average retail fuel price could drop by around 50 cents/gallon, which is a meaningful amount for consumers. That (theoretical) price drop could help spur demand, which given the tight supply situation may actually lead to higher prices later in the year than if they allowed high prices to heal themselves as they tend to do.
The IEA’s head warned that Russia could cut off natural gas supplies to Europe completely this winter, when that supply is most needed, in an effort to continue using the energy weapon to win the war in Ukraine. Those remarks coincided with the agency’s World Energy Investment report, which highlighted a record amount of spending on renewable fuels in 2022, while stating that the amount is still not nearly enough to reach the climate pledge goals around the world. The report also noted the near record refinery capacity retirement over the past 2 years and the impact it’s having on global supply/demand balances.
A drone attack on a Russian refinery overnight was another reminder that it’s a lot easier to destroy a refinery than it is to build one, which is a big reason why there are no short term supply solutions to the current situation.
The Dallas FED released a study on high fuel prices Monday and highlighted the expected drop in demand they will bring later this year.
Pent-up demand for travel (particularly foreign travel) amid easing COVID-19 restrictions could be a reason U.S. fuel consumption remains sticky. This may provide only a temporary uplift through August, when the summer travel season winds down. At the same time, a proliferation of work-from-home options gives many workers the ability to reduce their commuting fuel use—which is roughly 30 percent of gasoline consumption—relative to pre-COVID-19 levels. All told, fuel prices may be closer to consumers’ pain threshold than inflation-adjusted prices might suggest. And if prices climb higher, expect consumers to respond by cutting back on fuel consumption and overall spending sooner than later.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.
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View AllGasoline Futures Are Leading The Energy Complex Higher This Morning With 1.5% Gains So Far In Pre-Market Trading
Gasoline futures are leading the energy complex higher this morning with 1.5% gains so far in pre-market trading. Heating oil futures are following close behind, exchanging hands 4.5 cents higher than Friday’s settlement (↑1.3%) while American and European crude oil futures trade modestly higher in sympathy.
The world’s largest oil cartel is scheduled to meet this Wednesday but is unlikely they will alter their supply cuts regimen. The months-long rally in oil prices, however, has some thinking Saudi Arabia might being to ease their incremental, voluntary supply cuts.
Tropical storm Rina has dissolved over the weekend, leaving the relatively tenured Philippe the sole point of focus in the Atlantic storm basin. While he is expected to strengthen into a hurricane by the end of this week, most projections keep Philippe out to sea, with a non-zero percent chance he makes landfall in Nova Scotia or Maine.
Unsurprisingly the CFTC reported a 6.8% increase in money manager net positions in WTI futures last week as speculative bettors piled on their bullish bets. While $100 oil is being shoutedfromeveryrooftop, we’ve yet to see that conviction on the charts: open interest on WTI futures is far below that of the last ~7 years.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.
The Energy Bulls Are On The Run This Morning, Lead By Heating And Crude Oil Futures
The energy bulls are on the run this morning, lead by heating and crude oil futures. The November HO contract is trading ~7.5 cents per gallon (2.3%) higher while WTI is bumped $1.24 per barrel (1.3%) so far in pre-market trading. Their gasoline counterpart is rallying in sympathy with .3% gains to start the day.
The October contracts for both RBOB and HO expire today, and while trading action looks to be pretty tame so far, it isn’t a rare occurrence to see some big price swings on expiring contracts as traders look to close their positions. It should be noted that the only physical market pricing still pricing their product off of October futures, while the rest of the nation already switched to the November contract over the last week or so.
We’ve now got two named storms in the Atlantic, Philippe and Rina, but both aren’t expected to develop into major storms. While most models show both storms staying out to sea, the European model for weather forecasting shows there is a possibility that Philippe gets close enough to the Northeast to bring rain to the area, but not much else.
The term “$100 oil” is starting to pop up in headlines more and more mostly because WTI settled above the $90 level back on Tuesday, but partially because it’s a nice round number that’s easy to yell in debates or hear about from your father-in-law on the golf course. While the prospect of sustained high energy prices could be harmful to the economy, its important to note that the current short supply environment is voluntary. The spigot could be turned back on at any point, which could topple oil prices in short order.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.
Gasoline And Crude Oil Futures Are All Trading Between .5% And .8% Lower To Start The Day
The energy complex is sagging this morning with the exception of the distillate benchmark as the prompt month trading higher by about a penny. Gasoline and crude oil futures are all trading between .5% and .8% lower to start the day, pulling back after WTI traded above $95 briefly in the overnight session.
There isn’t much in the way of news this morning with most still citing the expectation for tight global supply, inflation and interest rates, and production cuts by OPEC+.
As reported by the Department of Energy yesterday, refinery runs dropped in all PADDs, except for PADD 3, as we plug along into the fall turnaround season. Crude oil inventories drew down last week, despite lower runs and exports, and increased imports, likely due to the crude oil “adjustment” the EIA uses to reconcile any missing barrels from their calculated estimates.
Diesel remains tight in the US, particularly in PADD 5 (West Coast + Nevada, Arizona) but stockpiles are climbing back towards their 5-year seasonal range. It unsurprising to see a spike in ULSD imports to the region since both Los Angeles and San Francisco spot markets are trading at 50+ cent premiums to the NYMEX. We’ve yet to see such relief on the gasoline side of the barrel, and we likely won’t until the market switches to a higher RVP.