WTI at $58 as Oil Stays Weak on Supply, Trade Woes


   
Barani Krishnan
DTN Analyst

   SECAUCUS, NJ (DTN) -- Oil futures fell in sluggish trade for a second 
straight day on Wednesday (10/15) as an intensifying U.S.-China trade battle 
and fears of oversupply continued to weigh on key crude benchmarks.

   U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer labeled China's recent restrictions 
on rare earths exports as a "global supply chain power grab'".

   Bank of America, meanwhile, cautioned that Brent could slip beneath $50 bbl 
if U.S.-China trade tensions worsened and OPEC+ production continued to ramp up.

   NYMEX-traded WTI crude for November delivery settled down by $0.43 at $58.27 
bbl, while ICE Brent for December delivery dipped by $0.35 to $62.04 bbl.

   In the downstream sector, gasoline prices bucked the lower trend, with 
November RBOB gasoline climbing by $0.0096 to $1.8382 gallon.

   Front-month ULSD futures gave back gains from earlier in the day, falling by 
$0.0186 to trade at $2.1790 gallon.

   The U.S. dollar index softened by 0.270 points to 98.54 against a basket of 
foreign currencies.

   Market participants are awaiting the delayed publication of the Energy 
Information Administration's Weekly Petroleum Status Report on Thursday 
(10/16), due to the Columbus Day federal holiday on Monday (10/13).

   The American Petroleum Institute will issue later today its own weekly oil 
supply-demand data, also delayed for a day by to the holiday.

   Since recovering briefly from the five-month lows of last week, WTI and 
Brent have been trading weakly and in a tight range on persistent worries of 
oversupply.

   The International Energy Administration warned on Tuesday that the global 
oil market could be in a record glut of 4 million by next year as producer 
alliance OPEC+ continues to pump more than needed while and demand remains 
sluggish.

   The trade dispute between the United States and China -- the world's two 
largest oil consumers --- is, meanwhile, threatening to disrupt global freight 
flows after both nations imposed additional port fees on ships carrying cargo 
between them.

    




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