WTI/USD – Crude Steady in Thin Trade as US Markets Closed

US crude is quiet in the Monday session. In North American trade, US crude futures are trading at $52.24. Brent crude futures are trading at $55.51, as the Brent premium stands at $3.27. There are no events to start off the week, as US markets are closed in observance of Martin Luther King Day.

The US consumer remains bullish about the economy early in the New Year and ahead of the Trump inauguration on Friday. The UoM Consumer Sentiment in January was solid, but the markets had expected a stronger performance. The indicator was almost unchanged at 98.1, shy of the forecast of 98.6. Despite the optimism, US retail sales were a mix during the December holiday season. Retail Sales improved to 0.6%, edging above the estimate of 0.5%. However, much of the increase in spending was attributable to automobile sales, at the expense of other sectors of the economy. This was reflected in Core Retail Sales (which excludes car sales), which remained stuck at 0.2%, compared to a forecast of 0.5%. Still, analysts are confident that an optimistic consumer will translate into strong spending numbers in the next few months. There was good news on the inflation front, as wholesale prices (measured by PPI) rose 0.3%, beating the forecast of 0.1%. This marked the third rise in four months, as inflation is pointing upwards due to higher oil prices. If inflation continues to climb towards the Federal Reserve target of 2.0%, we could see the Fed step in and raise interest rates. On Thursday, FOMC member Patrick Harker took note of the strong US economy and projected three “modest” rates from the Fed in 2017.  We’ll get another look at key inflation numbers on Wednesday, with the release of CPI and Core CPI.

WTI/USD Fundamentals

Monday (January 16)

• There are no US events scheduled on Monday

WTI/USD for Monday, January 16, 2017

WTI/USD January 16 at 12:40 EST

Open: 52.51 High: 52.72 Low: 52.12 Close: 52.24

Monday (January 16)

• There are no US  events scheduled on Monday

WTI USD Technical

• WTI/USD was flat in the Asian session. The pair recorded small gains in European trade and has been flat in the North American session
• 52.22 was tested earlier in support and is a weak line. It could break during the North American session
• 58.32 is the next resistance line

Further levels in both directions:

• Below: 52.22, 46.54, 40.57 and 33.22
• Above: 58.32, 65.05 and 72.99

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