The Brent futures flat price for the prompt contract has seen a relatively weak morning. Price action initially found stability in the high $81/bbl-handles, reaching highs of $81.98/bbl at 05:30 GMT. Prices then came off to $81.31/bbl at 08:30 GMT, before finding some support and then coming off again to $81.49 at 10:20 GMT.
Israel has reportedly “concluded” a “series of strikes” on southern Gaza, with the Iranian foreign minister declaring that “developments in Gaza are moving towards a diplomatic solution”.
Looking at the CFTC data for the week to Feb 06, in Brent futures we saw a change of heart to a more bearish sentiment, particularly on a long positioning basis. Bullish speculators removed over 27.5mbbls (-8%) of length, whilst their bearish counterparts decreased their short positioning by only 4mbbls (-5%). In a similar vein, WTI witnessed a reversal to more bearish sentiment, with bulls removing 45mbbls (-20%) of length and bears adding 15mbbls (20%) of shorts.
The front and 6-month Brent futures spreads are at $0.55/bbl and $2.72/bbl, respectively.
Asian Refinery Margins: Q2-24: $11.79/bbl, Cal24: $10.88/bbl
Europe Refinery Margins: Q2-24: $10.47/bbl, Cal24: $8.80/bbl
