WTI holds steady around $75, OPEC+ decision in focus

• WTI sees a quiet start to the week around $75 amid impending OPEC+ outcome.
• OPEC+ talks extend into Monday after UAE objected proposed output deal.
• Post-NFP USD weakness offers some cushion, as the decision remains in focus.

WTI (futures on Nymex) has reversed a brief dip to $74.75 lows and trades back on the $75 level, posting marginal gains so far this Monday, as all eyes remain on the delayed OPEC and its allies (OPEC+) decision for the next direction.

Investors remain on the edge and refrain from placing any aggressive bets on the black gold after the UAE objected to a consensus reached by the rest of the OPEC+ members to increase oil output by about 2 million barrels a day (bpd) from August to December 2021. 

Over the weekend, Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister pushed back on the UAE’s resistance and called on for ‘compromise and rationality’, as global oil demand is expected to outpace the supply amid economic reopening worldwide.

Meanwhile, the downside in the US oil remains cushioned by the renewed weakness in the US dollar, as investors rethink the Fed’s next monetary policy moves after Friday’s NFP blowout.

Pre-OPEC+ verdict anxiety combined with a rise in the US oil rigs capped the upside in check below $75.50.

WTI technical levels to consider