ULSD Wiped Out The 8 Cent Gains From Tuesday

Energy contracts were trying to bounce to start Thursday’s session after another heavy wave of selling knocked them sharply lower on Wednesday and saw ULSD wipe out the 8 cent gains from Tuesday.

WTI has traded lower for 6 consecutive trading sessions, but still doesn’t look overly bearish on the charts, as it remains above the lows set in each of the prior 3 months. That said, the contract is “only” $5 away from setting new lows for the past year, and if the December support near $70 breaks, there’s not much on the charts to stop a slide to $62. 

Russia is trying to stop the slide in oil prices, with reports suggesting plans to cut exports from Western ports by 25%, in excess of the already announced production cuts. The relative lack of reaction to that latest attempt to stir the oil pot is yet another sign of the weak market sentiment compared to a year ago when the war broke out.

ULSD still looks the most bearish on the charts, even though fundamentally there’s a strong argument that diesel stocks remain in the most precarious position. Even with today’s modest gains, ULSD prices are just 7 cents off of their lows for the past 12 months and if the $2.66 range fails to hold it looks like there’s a good chance, we’ll see a quick move towards $2.50.

The API reported another large build in US Crude stocks of nearly 10 million barrels last week, adding to last week’s estimate of a 10.5-million-barrel gain. The API’s figures seem to be catching up to the EIA’s data that showed stocks swelled by 16 million barrels last week as refiners cut runs due to heavy maintenance scheduled and numerous unplanned outages.  The API also estimated small builds in gasoline and diesel inventories, in line with seasonal expectations. The EIA’s report is due out at 11am Eastern.

California’s LCFS credits spiked to a 6 month high this week after CARB suggested it would propose accelerating its emissions reduction targets this week to prop up prices that have come under steady selling pressure over the past 2 years thanks to a surge in renewables production.  The $20 increase in credits this week adds roughly 2.5 cents/gallon to the cost of each gasoline and diesel (which create a deficit under the program) sold in the state but increases the value of Renewable Diesel by 10-13 cents/gallon depending on the CI value of the product. 

California’s Cap and Trade program credits (CCAs) didn’t move on this news, as that program has a set credit amount, rather than a mechanism for renewable producers to create credits.  The February CCA auction results are expected later this afternoon, which can be a market moving event depending on where prices settled out in the quarterly auction vs where they’ve been trading in the open market.

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