Month: August 2018

Oil gains on China demand/Iran supply curbs

Oil prices surged 2 percent on Friday and were on track to end a run of weekly declines on signs that Iran sanctions may limit global supply and that a trade war may not curb China’s appetite for U.S. crude.

Commodity Closing – Europe/Oil-Gas Majors 24.08.18

Brent Crude Technical Snap

Pivot: 74.55.  Long positions above 74.55 with targets at 75.40 & 75.85 in extension. Below 74.55 look for further downside with 74.15 & 73.60 as targets. RSI is mixed to bullish.

Today’s Economic Events

13:30 US JUL P Durable Goods Ex Transportation exp: 0.4% prev: 0.2%
13:30 US JUL P Durable Goods Orders exp: -0.5% prev: 0.8%

General Market Comment

US indices closed lower on Thursday, dragged by shares in the Automobiles & Components (-1.09%), Materials (-0.7%) and Consumer Services (-0.69%) sectors. On the economic data front, initial jobless claims decreased to 210K in the week ending August 18 (estimated 215k) from 212K previously while continuing claims also decreased to 1.727M in the week ending August 11 (anticipated 1.73M) from a revised 1.729M last week. In addition, the FHFA house price index increased by 0.2% in June, below the estimate of +0.3%, from a revised +0.4% in May. Moreover, the Bloomberg consumer comfort index decreased to 58.6 in the week ending August 19 vs. 58.9 in the prior week and Markit manufacturing PMI decreased at a preliminary estimate of 54.5 in August (expected 55) compared to 55.3 in the prior month. Finally, new home sales decreased to 627K in July (estimated 645K) from a revised 638K in June. The S&P 500 (2,856.98) remains above its 20d moving average (2,839.10 – positive slope) and 50d moving average (2,799.11 – positive slope). read more

Brent Crude Technical Snap

Pivot: 73.15. Short positions below 73.15 with targets at 72.15 & 71.75 in extension. Above 73.15 look for further upside with 73.75 & 74.20 as targets. As long as 73.15 is resistance, look for choppy price action with a bearish bias.

Today’s Economic Events

06:30 FR 2Q Unemployment Change (k) (QoQ) exp: NA prev: 83
06:30 FR 2Q Unemployment Rate exp: NA prev: 8.9%
07:00 GE JUL F Consumer Price Index (MoM) exp: 0.3% prev: 0.3%
07:00 GE JUL F CPI – EU Harmonised (MoM) exp: 0.4% prev: 0.4%
07:45 FR JUL F Consumer Price Index (MoM) exp: -0.1% prev: -0.1%
07:45 FR JUL F CPI – EU Harmonised (MoM) exp: -0.1% prev: -0.1%
09:30 UK JUN Unemployment Rate (ILO) exp: 4.2% prev: 4.2%
10:00 EC 2Q P Euro-Zone: GDP (QoQ) exp: 0.31% prev: 0.3%
10:00 EC JUN Euro-Zone: Industrial Production (MoM) exp: -0.3% prev: 1.3%
10:00 GE AUG Zew Survey (Current Situation) exp: 71.5 prev: 72.4
10:00 GE AUG Zew Survey (Econ. Sentiment) exp: -19.5 prev: -24.7 read more

General Market Comment: 14.08.18

US indices closed lower on Monday, dragged by shares in the Automobiles & Components (-1.98%), Consumer Durables & Apparel (-1.45%) and Banks (-1.4%) sectors. On the economic data front, no major data was released yesterday. The S&P 500 (2,821.93) breaks below its 20d moving average (2,826.82 – positive slope) and 50d moving average (2,786.59 – positive slope).

European markets are expected to start on a flat note.

Foreign Exchange

The US dollar was mixed against its major pairs on Monday. On the economic data front, no major data was released yesterday. read more

OPEC on Monday forecast lower demand for crude in 2019 as rivals blocks produce more crude. Additionally, top oil exporter Saudi Arabia in an attempt to maintain price levels, told the consortium they had cut production.

Commodity Closing – Europe/Oil-Gas Majors 13.08.18