Energy Markets Trying To Move Higher

Market TalkWednesday, Dec 12 2018
Rare Red Day For Energy Markets

Energy markets are trying to move higher for a 2nd day, but still seem to be struggling with setting a definitive price floor as their overnight gains have been eroding this morning. A large decline in US crude oil inventories is taking credit for the move higher overnight while equity markets continue on their trade-induced rollercoaster ride.

The API seemed to surprise many Tuesday afternoon when it was said to report a 10 million barrel draw in US oil inventories last week. Then again, the API showed a 5 million barrel build a week ago while the EIA showed a 7 million barrel decrease, so this week’s move seems explainable as the voluntary industry report catching up with the mandatory government report, and perhaps not an indicator of what we might see from the DOE report this morning. The API also showed a decline of 2.4 million barrels of gasoline last week while distillates increased by 712 thousand barrels.

The EIA offered more insight to last week’s data point showing the US exported more oil and petroleum products than it imported for the first time in around 75 years in a new report this morning. Given the huge swings in the weekly flow of exports and imports to reach that milestone, don’t expect a repeat performance in today’s status report. If China returns as a buyer of US Crude however, that may finally tip the scales to make the US a net exporter on a more regular basis.

Speaking of which, volatility in both equity and energy markets remains high (as displayed by the VIX and OVX chart below) as uncertainty over Trade continues to roil markets depending on the latest headline. Tuesday we saw large early gains in stocks wiped out following reports that a Canadian was arrested in China, in an apparent retaliation for the Chinese executive arrested in Canada last week. Stocks are pointed higher ahead of the open this morning as the US Trader-in-Chief said he would intervene in the latter case if it meant getting a trade deal done with China.

OPEC released its monthly oil market report for December this morning, showing that the cartel’s production held flat last month, as an increase in Saudi Arabian output offset the large declines from Iran. Looking ahead to 2019, the ongoing trend of supply beating expectations while demand growth missing the estimates from earlier in the year seems to be a theme throughout the report, and makes it easier to see how the cartel was able to reach its agreement last week.

Other notable items from the OPEC report:

“Non-OPEC oil supply growth in 2018 is estimated at 2.50 mb/d, an upward revision of 0.19 mb/d from the previous month’s assessment. The US, Canada, Russia and Kazakhstan are expected to be the main growth drivers, while Mexico and Norway are anticipated to show the largest declines…”

CLICK HERE for a PDF of today's charts

Energy Markets Trying To Move Higher gallery 0

News & Views

View All
Pivotal Week For Price Action
Market TalkThursday, Mar 28 2024

Energy Markets Are Ticking Modestly Higher Heading Into The Easter Weekend With Crude Oil Prices Leading The Way Up About $1.25/Barrel Early Thursday Morning

Energy markets are ticking modestly higher heading into the Easter Weekend with crude oil prices leading the way up about $1.25/barrel early Thursday morning, while gasoline prices are up around 2.5 cents and ULSD futures are about a penny.

Today is the last trading day for April HO and RBOB futures, an unusually early expiration due to the month ending on a holiday weekend. None of the pricing agencies will be active tomorrow since the NYMEX and ICE contracts are completely shut, so most rack prices published tonight will carry through Monday.

Gasoline inventories broke from tradition and snapped a 7 week decline as Gulf Coast supplies increased, more than offsetting the declines in PADDs 1, 2 and 5. With gulf coast refiners returning from maintenance and cranking out summer grade gasoline, the race is now officially on to move their excess through the rest of the country before the terminal and retail deadlines in the next two months. While PADD 3 run rates recover, PADD 2 is expected to see rates decline in the coming weeks with 2 Chicago-area refineries scheduled for planned maintenance, just a couple of weeks after BP returned from 7 weeks of unplanned repairs.

Although terminal supplies appear to be ample around the Baltimore area, we have seen linespace values for shipping gasoline on Colonial tick higher in the wake of the tragic bridge collapse as some traders seem to be making a small bet that the lack of supplemental barge resupply may keep inventories tight until the barge traffic can move once again. The only notable threat to refined product supplies is from ethanol barge traffic which will need to be replaced by truck and rail options, but so far that doesn’t seem to be impacting availability at the rack. Colonial did announce that they would delay the closure of its underutilized Baltimore north line segment that was scheduled for April 1 to May 1 out of an “abundance of caution”.

Ethanol inventories reached a 1-year high last week as output continues to hold above the seasonal range as ethanol distillers seem to be betting that expanded use of E15 blends will be enough to offset sluggish gasoline demand. A Bloomberg article this morning also highlights why soybeans are beginning to displace corn in the subsidized food to fuel race.

Flint Hills reported a Tuesday fire at its Corpus Christi West facility Wednesday, although it’s unclear if that event will have a material impact on output after an FCC unit was “stabilized” during the fire. While that facility isn’t connected to Colonial, and thus doesn’t tend to have an impact on USGC spot pricing, it is a key supplier to the San Antonio, Austin and DFW markets, so any downtime may be felt at those racks.

Meanwhile, P66 reported ongoing flaring at its Borger TX refinery due to an unknown cause. That facility narrowly avoided the worst wildfires in state history a few weeks ago but is one of the frequent fliers on the TCEQ program with upsets fairly common in recent years.

Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk, including all charts from the Weekly DOE Report.

Pivotal Week For Price Action
Pivotal Week For Price Action
Market TalkWednesday, Mar 27 2024

Most Energy Contracts Are Ticking Lower For A 2nd Day After A Trickle Of Selling Picked Up Steam Tuesday

Most energy contracts are ticking lower for a 2nd day after a trickle of selling picked up steam Tuesday. ULSD futures are down a dime from Monday’s highs and RBOB futures are down 7 cents.

Diesel prices continue to look like the weak link in the energy chain, with futures coming within 1 point of their March lows overnight, setting up a test of the December lows around $2.48 if that resistance breaks down. Despite yesterday’s slide, RBOB futures still look bullish on the weekly charts, with a run towards the $3 mark still looking like a strong possibility in the next month or so.

The API reported crude stocks increased by more than 9 million barrels last week, while distillates were up 531,000 and gasoline stocks continued their seasonal decline falling by 4.4 million barrels. The DOE’s weekly report is due out at its normal time this morning.

RIN values have recovered to their highest levels in 2 months around $.59/RIN for D4 and D6 RINs, even though the recovery rally in corn and soybean prices that had helped lift prices off of the 4 year lows set in February has stalled out. Expectations for more biofuel production to be shut in due to weak economics with lower subsidy values seems to be encouraging the tick higher in recent weeks, although prices are still about $1/RIN lower than this time last year.

Reminder that Friday is one of only 3 annual holidays in which the Nymex is completely shut, so no prices will be published, but it’s not a federal holiday in the US so banks will be open.

Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk.