SLINGSHOT…ENGAGED – April was met with a firm brick ceiling of selling, driven by a macro response to an untenable treasury situation as well as de-escalation of tensions that financial money sees very arbitrarily, i.e. either Max Long or get the hell out.
For the week to Apr 30, we saw similar positions adopted by bullish money managers across the two benchmarks, whilst their bearish counterparts took opposing approaches.
Jul Brent crude flat price was supported in the early morning from $83/bbl to $83.65/bbl at 11:30 BST (time of writing) with low volumes traded due to the UK Bank Holiday.
Technical indicators showed the major futures contracts falling into oversold territory on the back of a waning geopolitical risk premium and poor sentiment out of the US which exacerbated the sell-off. Bollinger bands have widened, indicating a sustained increase in volatility…
The July Brent Futures flat price has had a mixed afternoon. Between 12:00 BST and 13:30 BST it rose steadily to a high of $84.30/bbl before reversing this trend and declining to a low of $83.10/bbl at 15:45 BST.
HSFO was well supported this fortnight until the sell-off in crude from Apr 30 onwards catalysed
overwhelming bearishness in the complex, with this slightly more pronounced in European grades.
The Brent futures flat price for the prompt contract has witnessed a weaker morning. Price action initially strengthened to reach a peak of $84.13/bbl at 08:25 BST. However, since then prices have witnessed a downtick to back beneath the $84/bbl mark, reaching $83.61/bbl.
The July Brent Futures flat price has had a fairly volatile afternoon, rising to a high of $84.40/bbl at 13:05 BST, before sinking between 13:05 BST and 16:05 BST to a low of $83.10/bbl.
Crude prices were humbled this week and came back to earth as traders discounted geopolitical risk whilst macroeconomic headwinds lingered.
Following the significant retracement downwards yesterday, the prompt Brent futures contract has seen a steady morning, opening around high $83/bbl levels and gradually gaining to reach $84.39/bbl, before retracing to trade around $84.16/bbl at 10:00 BST.
