Pivotal Test For The Energy Complex In The Back Half Of The Week
Buy the dip was the theme of Tuesday’s session as nickel losses for refined products in the morning were wiped out in the afternoon. So far today we’re seeing a similar pattern, with 4 cent losses overnight being cut nearly in half this morning. This back and forth action after prices hit fresh 7 year highs Monday sets up a pivotal test for the energy complex in the back half of the week. Reports that the Chinese government was planning to intervene to halt the surge in electricity prices had coal prices dropping sharply, and was getting credit for sell-off overnight.
If the bulls can continue surviving these selloff attempts, the charts continue to favor higher prices, and a run towards $90 for crude seems like the path of least resistance. If they can’t regain the upward momentum this week however, expect to see products drop by about a dime in short order and make a more serious test of the upward sloping trend lines.
The API was said to show decreases of 3 million barrels for both gasoline and diesel last week, while crude stocks increased more than 3 million barrels. Based on the market reaction, that report didn’t mean much as refined products are leading the slide lower, further compressing crack spreads that have come under pressure this week, after a strong rally earlier in October. A Reuters article this morning highlighted how stronger crack spreads are encouraging refiners globally to increase run rates, which are expected to continue increasing through the winter.
The DOE’s weekly status report is due out at its normal time this morning. A few things to watch for in today’s report: US Crude production may have climbed back to Pre-Ida levels last week, even though roughly 250mb/day of production capacity in the Gulf of Mexico remains offline, showing the ramp up in onshore output the past two months. Also watch refinery runs to see how facilities are recovering from a rash of unplanned maintenance events over the past month that have contributed to tighter than normal supplies in many markets. Last, look at the swings between PADD 3 and PADD 1 refined product inventories to see the impact of the Plantation pipeline shutdown. The backwardation in NY Harbor spot prices through the end of Thanksgiving has shrunk by nearly a nickel this week suggesting the squeeze is behind us.
While refined product prices have stalled out this week, ethanol prices continue to surge, with spot prices on the East and West coasts both rallying north of $3/gallon this week. That strength in ethanol seems to be contributing to strength in the RIN markets, which are at their highest levels since Labor day.
Surging natural gas & coal prices have been front page news over the past month, and have contributed heavily to the rally in oil and refined products. An EIA note this morning highlighted the expected growth in natural gas demand from non-OECD countries in Asia (primarily China and India) and how US exports are set to double in the next decade to help meet that demand.
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Gasoline Futures Are Leading The Way Lower This Morning
It was a volatile night for markets around the world as Israel reportedly launched a direct strike against Iran. Many global markets, from equities to currencies to commodities saw big swings as traders initially braced for the worst, then reversed course rapidly once Iran indicated that it was not planning to retaliate. Refined products spiked following the initial reports, with ULSD futures up 11 cents and RBOB up 7 at their highest, only to reverse to losses this morning. Equities saw similar moves in reverse overnight as a flight to safety trade soon gave way to a sigh of relief recovery.
Gasoline futures are leading the way lower this morning, adding to the argument that we may have seen the spring peak in prices a week ago, unless some actual disruption pops up in the coming weeks. The longer term up-trend is still intact and sets a near-term target to the downside roughly 9 cents below current values. ULSD meanwhile is just a nickel away from setting new lows for the year, which would open up a technical trap door for prices to slide another 30 cents as we move towards summer.
A Reuters report this morning suggests that the EPA is ready to announce another temporary waiver of smog-prevention rules that will allow E15 sales this summer as political winds continue to prove stronger than any legitimate environmental agenda. RIN prices had stabilized around 45 cents/RIN for D4 and D6 credits this week and are already trading a penny lower following this report.
Delek’s Big Spring refinery reported maintenance on an FCC unit that would require 3 days of work. That facility, along with several others across TX, have had numerous issues ever since the deep freeze events in 2021 and 2024 did widespread damage. Meanwhile, overnight storms across the Midwest caused at least one terminal to be knocked offline in the St. Louis area, but so far no refinery upsets have been reported.
Meanwhile, in Russia: Refiners are apparently installing anti-drone nets to protect their facilities since apparently their sling shots stopped working.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.
The Sell-Off Continues In Energy Markets, RBOB Gasoline Futures Are Now Down Nearly 13 Cents In The Past Two Days
The sell-off continues in energy markets. RBOB gasoline futures are now down nearly 13 cents in the past two days, and have fallen 16 cents from a week ago, leading to questions about whether or not we’ve seen the seasonal peak in gasoline prices. ULSD futures are also coming under heavy selling pressure, dropping 15 cents so far this week and are trading at their lowest level since January 3rd.
The drop on the weekly chart certainly takes away the upside momentum for gasoline that still favored a run at the $3 mark just a few days ago, but the longer term up-trend that helped propel a 90-cent increase since mid-December is still intact as long as prices stay above the $2.60 mark for the next week. If diesel prices break below $2.50 there’s a strong possibility that we see another 30 cent price drop in the next couple of weeks.
An unwind of long positions after Iran’s attack on Israel was swatted out of the sky without further escalation (so far anyway) and reports that Russia is resuming refinery runs, both seeming to be contributing factors to the sharp pullback in prices.
Along with the uncertainty about where the next attacks may or may not occur, and if they will have any meaningful impact on supply, come no shortage of rumors about potential SPR releases or how OPEC might respond to the crisis. The only thing that’s certain at this point, is that there’s much more spare capacity for both oil production and refining now than there was 2 years ago, which seems to be helping keep a lid on prices despite so much tension.
In addition, for those that remember the chaos in oil markets 50 years ago sparked by similar events in and around Israel, read this note from the NY Times on why things are different this time around.
The DOE’s weekly status report was largely ignored in the midst of the big sell-off Wednesday, with few noteworthy items in the report.
Diesel demand did see a strong recovery from last week’s throwaway figure that proves the vulnerability of the weekly estimates, particularly the week after a holiday, but that did nothing to slow the sell-off in ULSD futures.
Perhaps the biggest next of the week was that the agency made its seasonal changes to nameplate refining capacity as facilities emerged from their spring maintenance.
PADD 2 saw an increase of 36mb/day, and PADD 3 increased by 72mb/day, both of which set new records for regional capacity. PADD 5 meanwhile continued its slow-motion decline, losing another 30mb/day of capacity as California’s war of attrition against the industry continues. It’s worth noting that given the glacial pace of EIA reporting on the topic, we’re unlikely to see the impact of Rodeo’s conversion in the official numbers until next year.
Speaking of which, if you believe the PADD 5 diesel chart below that suggests the region is running out of the fuel, when in fact there’s an excess in most local markets, you haven’t been paying attention. Gasoline inventories on the West Coast however do appear consistent with reality as less refining output and a lack of resupply options both continue to create headaches for suppliers.