Energy Futures Tread Water
Energy futures are treading water to start Thursday’s trading with diesel and oil prices on the cusp of multi-month highs. So far buyers seem reluctant to keep pushing bids higher with warning signs for demand flashing around the country as shutdown orders continue to expand from coast to coast.
ULSD futures settled north of $1.26 for the first time in July, and are now threatening the $1.30 level that’s kept a lid on all rallies since March. If $1.30 breaks, next stop will be 1.38 which is where the diesel chart gapped during the price meltdown last spring when the first round of stay-at-home orders hammered prices.
It’s no coincidence this relative strength in diesel prices coincides with an improving supply/demand balance as yesterday’s DOE report showed total U.S. inventories returned to their five year seasonal range for the first time since April. The weekly demand estimate for diesel was actually slightly above the five year average for this time of year, and just 100,000 barrels/day below year-ago levels. Steeply backwardated diesel markets into December suggests that cash traders aren’t believing this strength can last through the holidays.
Basis values for distillates rallied in most regional markets Wednesday as the temporary tightness pushed up bids. Group 3 diffs were pushed to a multi-year high as inventories in the region reached a new eight year low. That rally was overshadowed by an even larger move by the notoriously volatile Chicago spot market, with rumors that the largest refiner in the area may soon be idling some units. The only cash markets not moving higher on the day were in Northern California and the PNW which had been trading at lofty premiums and started their seasonal return to reality.
While distillates are enjoy a resurgence, gasoline is staring at an ugly fundamental reality, as stocks look like they’ve started their annual build while demand faces the combination of the typical seasonal slowdown on top of a growing list of shutdown orders throughout the country. The DOE’s weekly gasoline demand estimate fell to a 22 week low last week, and evidence at the terminal level suggests we are likely to see more declines ahead. This diverging fundamental path for the two major refined products suggests refiners will be forced to make another shift in their production to favor distillates over gasoline, similar to what we saw in the spring.
Total refinery runs increased last week, led by a large move higher in the Gulf Coast. Ordinarily we’d expect refinery run rates to continue moving steadily higher through the end of the year, but with two shutdowns coming in November, and so much uncertainty surrounding demand this winter, it seems like we may be seeing U.S. run rates close to peaking until spring.
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Week 17 - US DOE Inventory Recap
The Energy Complex Is Trading Modestly Lower So Far This Morning With WTI Crude Oil Futures Leading The Way
Energy Futures Are Drifting Quietly Higher This Morning
Refined Products Holding Close To Break Even While Oil Prices Are Losing Just Under 1%
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Week 17 - US DOE Inventory Recap
The Energy Complex Is Trading Modestly Lower So Far This Morning With WTI Crude Oil Futures Leading The Way
The energy complex is trading modestly lower so far this morning with WTI crude oil futures leading the way, exchanging hands $1.50 per barrel lower (-1.9%) than Tuesday’s settlement price. Gasoline and diesel futures are following suit, dropping .0390 and .0280 per gallon, respectively.
A surprise crude oil build (one that doesn’t include any changes to the SPR) as reported by the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday is taking credit for the bearish trading seen this morning. The Institute estimated an increase in crude inventories of ~5 million barrels and drop in both refined product stocks of 1.5-2.2 million barrels for the week ending April 26. The Department of Energy’s official report is due out at it’s regular time (9:30 CDT) this morning.
The Senate Budget Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing at 9:00 AM EST this morning regarding a years-long probe into climate change messaging from big oil companies. Following a 3-year investigation, Senate and House Democrats released their final report yesterday alleging major oil companies have internally recognized the impacts of fossil fuels on the climate since as far back as the 1960s, while privately lobbying against climate legislation and publicly presenting a narrative that undermines a connection between the two. Whether this will have a tangible effect on policy or is just the latest announcement in an election-yeardeluge is yet to be seen.
Speaking of deluge, another drone attack was launched against Russian infrastructure earlier this morning, causing an explosion and subsequent fire at Rosneft’s Ryazan refinery. While likely a response to the five killed from Russian missile strikes in Odesa and Kharkiv, Kyiv has yet to officially claim responsibility for the attack that successfully struck state infrastructure just 130 miles from Moscow.
The crude oil bears are on a tear this past week, blowing past WTI’s 5 and 10 day moving averages on Monday and opening below it’s 50-day MA this morning. The $80 level is likely a key resistance level, below which the path is open for the American oil benchmark to drop to the $75 level in short order.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.
Energy Futures Are Drifting Quietly Higher This Morning
Energy futures are drifting quietly higher this morning as a new round of hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas seem to show relative promise. It seems the market is focusing on the prospect of cooler heads prevailing, rather than the pervasive rocket/drone exchanges, the latest of which took place over Israel’s northern border.
A warmer-than-expected winter depressed diesel demand and, likewise, distillate refinery margins, which has dropped to its lowest level since the beginning of 2022. The ULSD forward curve has shifted into contango (carry) over the past month as traders seek to store their diesel inventories and hope for a pickup in demand, domestic or otherwise.
The DOE announced it had continued rebuilding it’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve this month, noting the addition of 2.3 million barrels of crude so far in April. Depending on what the private sector reported for last week, Wednesday’s DOE report may put current national crude oil inventories (include those of the SPR) above the year’s previous levels, something we haven’t seen since April of 2022, two months after Ukraine war began.
The latest in the Dangote Refinery Saga: Credit stall-out, rising oil prices, and currency exchange.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.