WTI regains $50.00 and above
Crude oil prices have recovered the upside bias at the beginning of the week, now lifting the barrel of the West Texas Intermediate beyond the psychological $50.00 mark.
WTI up on risk-on sentiment, USD sell-off
Prices for the black gold started the week on a firmer note amidst an increasing sentiment towards the riskier assets, all in response to the results in the French elections held on Sunday.
In addition, the USD-denominated space stays buoyant in response to the offered bias around the greenback, which is testing fresh lows in the 99.00 neighbourhood when tracked by the US Dollar Index (DXY).
In the meantime, crude oil prices stay under pressure as market participants continue to weigh the probability of an extension of the OPEC/non-OPEC deal beyond June vs. rising US production, as gauged by the increasing US oil rig count. According to driller Baker Hughes, US active oil rigs climbed to 688 during the week ended on April 14, advancing for 14th week in a row.
WTI levels to consider
At the moment the barrel of WTI is up 1.05% at $50.16 and a break above $51.06 (20-day sma) would aim for $51.38 (55-day sma) and finally $52.65 (high Apr.19). On the other hand, the next support lines up at $49.71 (low Apr.24) followed by $49.20 (low Apr.21) and then $49.06 (200-day sma).
