WTI remains on the offer with API build, testing 55 4 hr sma at 52.16

Oil dropped overnight on an impressive run for the bears, taking the price down from the 52.80 level and lows of 52.13 were scored after the API data as well.

The greenback has rallied across the board on the back of his pro business plans taking some traction overnight when he started signing off the controversial Keystone and Dakota pipelines. 

While we await the official oil stock data in the US tomorrow in the US the private survey with the American Petroleum Institute reported an increase of 2.9 million barrels in U.S. crude supplies for the week ended Jan. 20, according to sources. The API data also showed a run up of roughly 4.9 million barrels in gasoline supplies and a climb of 2 million barrels in distillates.

There are also mounting questions around the value of oil as the latest weekly Commitment of Traders report from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (ending Jan. 17) was actually showing that the hedge funds and other money managers have been getting on the bid in their oil positions heading their physical shorts and locking in higher prices, expecting the price of oil to fall and they have done so, covering their shorts to the highest level since 2007.

WTI levels

 50.00 is the psychological support to the downside while a move towards 54.52 is a very bullish move for a break of the start of the year highs. The 4hr 55 sma at 52.16 continues to be near-term support holding up before 51.30/60 territory and ahead of 50.35 being this year's low after there as the Dec 9th bullish gap.