WTI drops back towards $22 mark, as coronavirus fears spark risk-off

WTI shaves-off gains and drops back towards $22 levels.
Hopes of a new enlarged-OPEC deal roiled by coronavirus-led risk-off.
DXY rebound also adds to the pain in WTI ahead of House vote, Rigs data

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

Having failed another attempt to sustain the recovery gains above the 23 level, WTI (oil futures on NYMEX) sellers returned and knocked-off the rates back to test Thursday’s low of 22.38. At the time of writing, the black gold trades at 22.57, down 0.20% so far, with eyes set on the 22 mark.

Oil bulls are unable to take advantage of the increased hopes of a new OPEC deal being considered by Russia, as risk-aversion rears its ugly head in Europe amid mounting fears over the coronavirus rapid spread and its economic fallout.

Earlier today, Dmitriev, Head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), called for a new OPEC alliance (OPEC+) deal to stabilize the oil market and cushion the demand impact of the coronavirus outbreak.

However, the market sentiment was roiled by a 17k surge in virus cases in the US on Thursday, as the US overtook China as the nation with the most infections. The optimism fueled by the US fiscal stimulus was washed away by the intensifying virus spread globally.

Also, increased haven demand for the greenback amid risk-off collaborated with the latest leg down in barrel from WTI from near the 23 handle.

Attention now turns towards the US House vote on the coronavirus relief package and Baker Hughes Oil Rigs Count data for fresh trading impetus while virus-related updates will continue to remain a major driver on the market sentiment.

WTI technical levels to consider

WTI

Overview
Today last price	22.60
Today Daily Change	-0.29
Today Daily Change %	-1.20
Today daily open	24.19

Trends
Daily SMA20	33.3
Daily SMA50	44.85
Daily SMA100	51.92
Daily SMA200	53.98

Levels
Previous Daily High	25.58
Previous Daily Low	23.41
Previous Weekly High	31.9
Previous Weekly Low	20.57
Previous Monthly High	54.69
Previous Monthly Low	43.95
Daily Fibonacci 38.2%	24.24
Daily Fibonacci 61.8%	24.75
Daily Pivot Point S1	23.2
Daily Pivot Point S2	22.22
Daily Pivot Point S3	21.03
Daily Pivot Point R1	25.38
Daily Pivot Point R2	26.57
Daily Pivot Point R3	27.56

Author

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

EUR/USD stays well offered below 1.1800

The selling pressure on EUR/USD is picking up pace, with the pair slipping decisively below the key 1.1800 level and sliding to fresh two week lows as Wednesday’s session draws to a close. The move lower comes as the US Dollar finds renewed strength after the latest round of US data and the release of the FOMC Minutes. Next of note on the docket will be the US weekly Initial Jobless Claims.

GBP/USD reaches multi-day lows near 1.3500

GBP/USD reverses its initial upside momentum and is now adding to previous declines, approaching the 1.3500 region on Wednesday. Cable’s downtick comes on the back of decent gains in the Greenback and easing UK inflation figures, which seem to have reinforced the case for a BoE rate cut in March.

Gold battle to regain $5,000 continues

Gold is back on the front foot on Wednesday, shaking off part of the early week softness and challenging two-day highs near the $5,000 mark per troy ounce. The move comes ahead of the FOMC Minutes and is unfolding despite an intense rebound in the US Dollar.

Australia unemployment rate set to edge up within overall strong labor market

The Australian monthly employment report is scheduled for release on Thursday at 00:30 GMT, and market participants anticipate a modest increase in jobs in January. The Australian Bureau of Statistics is expected to announce that the country added 20K new jobs in the month, while the Unemployment Rate is forecast at 4.2%, up from the 4.1% posted in December.

Mixed UK inflation data no gamechanger for the Bank of England

Food inflation plunged in January, but service sector price pressure is proving stickier. We continue to expect Bank of England rate cuts in March and June. The latest UK inflation read is a mixed bag for the Bank of England, but we doubt it drastically changes the odds of a March rate cut.

Sui extends sideways action ahead of Grayscale’s GSUI ETF launch

Sui is extending its downtrend for the second consecutive day, trading at 0.95 at the time of writing on Wednesday. The Layer-1 token is down over 16% in February and approximately 34% from the start of the year, aligning with the overall bearish sentiment across the crypto market.