Trading will be thin today as the oil markets will be closing at 1:30 EST. However, this didn’t prevent the bears from showing up after the Thanksgiving holiday.
Earlier this morning, Reuters reported that Saudi Arabia will not be attending a non-OPEC meeting in Vienna on Monday, two days before the OPEC meeting. The market interpreted this as bad news because if OPEC was planning a cut, they would surely attempt to encourage non-OPEC producers to cut as well. Volatility will surely pick up early next week as the OPEC representatives begin to arrive in Vienna and speak with the media. We urge caution to our customers who are thinking about longer term buys before the meeting, especially with OPEC and Russia still producing at record rates. Current odds in the industry indicate a 50% chance of a production cut agreement. Does anyone have a coin to flip?
Crude prices are also under pressure from the strength in the dollar index. Despite being down today, it’s still trading at a 13-year high at 101.445. WTI crude oil last trades at $46.78/bbl, down $1.18/bbl on the day.
Enjoy your leftovers!
