Energy Futures Are Attempting To Rally To Start The Week
Energy futures are attempting to rally to start the week, after surviving a test of the low end of their July trading range. Both RBOB and ULSD futures had moments in the past few days of looking like they’d break down on the charts and spark another big wave of selling, but both contracts managed to find enough buying to keep them in a sideways pattern for a while longer.
It’s not just gasoline futures that have been dealing with heavy selling in July. Most regional basis values in the US have dropped 20 cents or more since the July 4th holiday, suggesting that the demand slowdown is not just a theoretical issue anymore. Severe backwardation in the futures market also seems to be contributing to the negative values in prompt basis, as prices will drop 20 cents or more once the September RBOB contract takes the pole position, incenting sellers to discount barrels to the August contract while they can, and taking a big bite out of refinery margins that hit record highs in the past few months.
Baker Hughes reported that the US oil rig count held steady last week, while the natural gas rig count increased by 2. With supply & labor bottlenecks keeping the pace of drilling relatively subdued compared to previous booms in the energy market cycle, the global thirst for US natural gas may suddenly be influencing the amount of oil production as drillers have to compete for workers and other assets. The Dallas FED predicts that Texas Job growth will hold north of 4% this year after surging north of 7% in June, with new well permits and other energy related activities a key indicator of strong job growth continuing in the state.
The EIA reported this morning that the US became the world’s largest LNG exporter this year, as new capacity came online at the (only) 7 facilities in the country equipped to freeze and ship natural gas overseas. US natural gas prices have surged from $5.50 July 5th to $8.50 this morning, with the record setting heatwave hitting large parts of the country getting the blame. Those prices are still less than a third of what European and Asian spot markets are trading at, which will most likely keep the export demand high for years to come.
Money managers seem to be getting more comfortable betting on higher petroleum prices, increasing their net length across the board for a 2nd week. European grades are seeing the most activity, with Brent net length held by large speculators increasing by almost 50% last week alone, while Gasoil contracts increased by 37% on the week. Open interest remains near 5 year lows, so if the big money funds continue to pour money into these contracts, it could have a larger influence on prices than when liquidity is higher.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.
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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.