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The oil market has a habit of looking settled right before it stops being settled. That is the setup now.
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has dropped sharply as the conflict around Iran has intensified, and more vessels are going dark by switching off AIS, or Automatic Identification System, signals that usually show where ships are moving. Hormuz is not just another shipping lane. It is one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints, so when visibility starts to disappear, supply risk moves back to the centre of the conversation.
Why this matters now
This matters for a couple of reasons.
The headline move is one thing. The market implication is another. Oil is not only about how many barrels exist, rather, it is also about whether those barrels can move, who is willing to insure them, how long buyers are prepared to wait and how much extra risk traders feel they need to price in.
Right now, three things are colliding at once: disrupted shipping, fragile diplomacy and a market that is already leaning heavily in one direction. That combination can make Brent move faster than the fundamentals alone would normally suggest.
What is driving the move
1 Supply visibility is deteriorating
The first driver is simple. The market can see less, and that tends to make it more nervous.
Transit through Hormuz has fallen sharply, while a growing share of traffic has involved ships that are no longer broadcasting standard tracking signals. In plain English, fewer vessels are moving normally through a critical corridor, and more of the activity is becoming harder to track. That does not automatically mean supply is about to collapse. But it does mean uncertainty is rising.
2 Iran’s storage buffer may be limited
The second driver is Iran’s export and storage constraint.
Onshore storage capacity is estimated at about 40 million barrels, and the market is watching what some describe as a 16-day red line. That is the point at which a prolonged export disruption could begin forcing production cuts to avoid damage to reservoirs. For newer readers, the takeaway is straightforward. If oil cannot leave storage for long enough, the problem may stop being about delayed exports and start becoming a genuine supply issue.
3 Positioning could amplify the move
The third driver is positioning, which is just market shorthand for how traders are already set up before the next move happens.
In this case, speculative crude positioning looks heavily one-sided. That matters because when a market is leaning too far in one direction, it does not take much to trigger a sharp adjustment. A fresh geopolitical shock could force traders to move quickly, and once that starts, price can run harder than the underlying news alone might justify.
Why the market cares
An oil shock rarely stays contained inside the energy market.
Higher crude prices can start showing up in freight, manufacturing and household energy bills. That means inflation expectations can start creeping higher again. Central banks are already trying to manage a difficult balance between sticky inflation and softer growth, so higher oil can make that job harder.
And this is not just a story about oil producers getting a lift. Airlines, transport companies and other fuel-sensitive businesses can come under pressure quickly when energy costs rise. Broader equity markets may also have to rethink the policy outlook if higher oil keeps inflation firmer than expected.
The ripple effects go well beyond oil
There is also a currency angle, and it is less straightforward than it first appears.
Commodity-linked currencies such as the Australian dollar often get support when raw material prices rise. But that relationship is not automatic. If oil is climbing because global demand is improving, that can help. If it is climbing because geopolitical risk is spiking, markets can shift into risk-off mode instead, and that can weigh on the Australian dollar even as commodity prices rise.
That is what makes this kind of move more interesting than it looks at first glance. The same oil rally can support one part of the market while putting pressure on another.
Assets and names in the frame
Brent crude remains the clearest read on broad supply risk. If traders want the cleanest expression of the headline story, this is usually where they look first.
- ExxonMobil is one of the more obvious names in the frame. Higher oil prices can support realised selling prices and near-term earnings momentum, although it is never as simple as oil up, stock up. Costs, production mix and broader sentiment still matter.
- NextEra Energy adds another layer. This story is not only about fossil fuels. When energy security becomes a bigger concern, the case for domestic power resilience, grid investment and alternative generation can strengthen as well.
- AUD/USD is another market worth watching. Australia is closely tied to commodity cycles, so stronger raw material prices can sometimes support the currency. But if markets are reacting more to fear than growth, that usual tailwind may not hold.
For newer readers, the key point is that oil moves do not spread through markets in a neat, predictable line. They ripple outward unevenly, helping some assets, pressuring others and sometimes doing both at the same time.
What could go wrong
A strong narrative is not the same as a one-way trade.
A ceasefire could stabilise shipping flows faster than expected. OPEC+ could offset some of the tightness by lifting production. Demand data from China could disappoint, shifting the focus back to weak consumption rather than constrained supply. And if the geopolitical premium fades, oil could pull back more quickly than the current mood suggests.
For newer readers, the takeaway is simple. Oil rallies can be real without being permanent. A move may be justified in the short term by disruption risk, then reverse quickly if those risks ease or if demand softens.
The market is no longer pricing oil in isolation. It is pricing visibility, transport security and the risk that supply disruption spills into inflation, currencies and broader risk sentiment.
That is why Hormuz matters, even for readers who never trade a barrel of crude themselves.
On the back of what has been a pretty punishing month for Oil, now trading below $70 a barrel for WTI crude, we’re going to take a look at Oil, the fundamental drivers behind the price swings and what the future could hold for the Oil markets. For the sake of clarity, this article will be looking exclusively at WTI Crude. So what drove the close to 11% decline in Oil?
What has stalled fund managers and market voices calling for oil to revisit $100 a barrel? Well, mostly it is a confluence of reasons, some rooted in basic economics and one fear-based reaction on the back of the “stock market rout” as it has been dubbed. Now although we are going to be focusing on some of the reasons for this decline, these are not specific to this sell-off alone, these are fundamental drivers in the price of Oil markets.
WTI Crude December Contract - October sell of from $76.72 to low of $68.53 One of the reasons for the sell-off is that of a supply jump. U.S. crude stockpiles rose by 22.3 million barrels, which is the most substantial increase since 2015. This factor comes down to basic economics.
With a boost in supply and the more something is readily available; naturally, the associated value will be lower, and this is what is weighing here. However, the story doesn't end there. It can also provide an insight into how the general populous is leaning as an increase in stockpiles means that the current supply level is too much for current demand.
For example, it could potentially be an indicator in sentiment, companies shifting to renewables, and more and more people moving to electric vehicles, etc. All of these factors would impact the appetite for oil which then leads to an oversupply, subsequently causing a tumble in price as we've seen of late. One of the other factors for Crude also stems from this balancing act of supply and demand.
With Crude spiking to highs not long seen, it sparked some fear that the high prices would weigh on demand for the asset, causing investors to be more cautious and to close out long positions. Since then both OPEC and the International Energy Agency have both revised down the oil growth forecasts. WTI December Contract and S&P Overlay - During the "stock rout" The so-called “stock market rout” also took its toll on the Oil price, with investors dumping risk assets and moving into safe-haven assets, i.e., bonds, gold, etc. this helped to perpetuate Crude’s slide and saw it shed a further 5% of its value.
So, with WTI Crude oil currently, at the time or writing sitting at lows of $66.70 a barrel, what lies ahead for Oil? With continued sell-offs seen in equities markets and steadily more risk-off sentiment throughout the market, we could continue to see Oil slide. However, as markets tend to jump between risk-on & risk-off on a daily, sometimes more frequent basis, we can expect to see plenty of activity in the Oil market, and this will undoubtedly be one of our watchlist staples.
For more information or any questions feel free to reach out to me on twitter This article is written by a GO Markets Analyst and is based on their independent analysis. They remain fully responsible for the views expressed as well as any remaining error or omissions. Trading Forex and Derivatives, including Oil Commodity trading, carries a high level of risk.
The Buraeu of Labor Statistics have released the latest jobs report for September. Let’s take a look at the latest numbers. The total non-farm payroll employment increased by 134,000, the U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today versus the forecast of 185,000. Biggest job gains were in professional and business services, in health care, and in transportation and warehousing. The unemployment rate declined by 0.2% to 3.7% in September better than the forecast of 3.8%.
Worth pointing out that the latest unemployment rate is the lowest level for 49 years. The number of unemployed people decreased by 270,000 to 6 million. Average hourly earnings dropped from 2.9% to 2.8% as anticipated.
The reaction Initially we saw some weakness in the US dollar as the latest figures were released, however, since then the Dollar has recovered some losses. Average hourly earnings dropped from 2.9% to 2.8% as anticipated. USD/JPY Hourly Chart GBP/USD Hourly Chart EUR/USD Hourly Chart This article is written by a GO Markets Analyst and is based on their independent analysis.
They remain fully responsible for the views expressed as well as any remaining error or omissions. Trading Forex and Derivatives carries a high level of risk. Sources: Bloomberg, Go Markets MT4
Markets Eager To Resume As the Easter holidays fade, we quickly saw a market resurgence of traders looking to resume normality. Perhaps one of the more stand-out movers during today's London session was none other than the Pound Aussie cross (GBPAUD). Following the Reserve Bank of Australia's announcement to hold interest rates at 0.1%, the recently stronger Pound took a tumble, and we'll be looking at where the price may end up.
A Sizeable Move Since early hours, the price of GBPAUD declined by 1.05% or roughly 200 pips. Considering the Average True Range (ATR) tends to sit around 100-120 pips, it's not something to ignore. Is this just a one-off move, or is something larger happening here?
RBA Rates On Hold Until 2025 Perhaps the overriding factor that spiked AUD demand today is the dovish comments made by the RBA that suggest they'll aim to keep the current rates on hold until 2025. In an uncertain environment mainly consisting of negative rates worldwide, the ability to offer stability, however small, speaks volumes. But is it enough to stave off economic risks associated with the pandemic?
Probably not. Risky Business The Australian currency will remain risk-sensitive, and with Covid-19 cases continuing to rise throughout Europe and America, demand for the 'Aussie' will potentially struggle to find enough demand. By contrast, the Pound looks to build on vaccine success and hopefully reignite the economy in June/July by further easing lockdowns.
The potential for GBPAUD to turn bullish longer-term looks more probable at this stage. The idea that the pair could resume an upward trajectory is backed up by some relatively strong technical signals on both the hourly and daily Ichimoku charts listed below. Ichimoku Hourly Chart Analysis Beginning with the hourly, we can see today's bearish price action is heading towards the previous weekly pivot point of 1.8010 before finding some support.
Despite the decisive move to the downside, now that the pair found some short-term support, we'd generally expect some corrective price behavior during the upcoming sessions. Notice the RSI indicator (Relative Strength Index) is also in heavily oversold territory, further fueling speculation to the upside. The current weekly pivot point of 1.8145 makes an attractive potential target or a consideration for resistance.
Ichimoku Daily Chart Analysis The daily Ichimoku chart helps put today's price moves into perspective, further highlighting the bullish indicators in play. Note, the current price action is still trading well above the cloud, as is the lagging span (purple line). The thickness of the cloud also suggests plenty of support above 1.80 levels.
Remaining Tentatively Bullish So despite the sudden bearish activity seen today, the outlook for GBPAUD remains bullish across multiple timeframes, not accounting for any new Covid-19 issues that may emerge. Sources: Go Markets, Meta Trader 5, TradingView, Bloomberg
GBPCAD – Hourly Individually, both the British Pound and the Canadian Dollar have surged in recent trading sessions, appearing relatively strong against their peers in the short-term. With the latest fundamental data suggesting both currencies have benefited from similar economic drivers, it could be tough to navigate a directional bias for GBPCAD, as we'll discuss in today's Chart of The Day. Firstly, as the markets come to grip the idea that the Bank of England will seek to avoid cutting interest rates into negative territory, the Pound should continue to gather momentum along with positive reports of vaccine rollouts around the country.
Similarly, the Bank of Canada has also dismissed talks of negative rates and reaps the rewards of recent steadiness in global oil prices. At around $58 per barrel, we're seeing the highest oil prices in just over a year. And with further potential production cuts earmarked for Saudi Arabia, the commodity-sensitive CAD could see additional gains.
Technically speaking, Sterling does appear to have the slight upper hand from a longer-term trend perspective. However, in the short-term, the hourly chart shown looks bearish. We might be witnessing more corrective moves or some profit-taking activity following last week's sharp advance to higher levels instead of specific CAD demand.
This idea neatly ties in with the recent bearish divergence pattern highlighted on the RSI indicator above. A further sell-off on the hourly could target the current weekly pivot point (gold line), located at 1.7475. Looking at the price action during the past few weeks, it has a habit of utilising weekly pivots as critical support areas.
For example, not only did GBPCAD test last week's pivot of 1.7500 multiple times, but it even touched January's final pivot with pinpoint accuracy, reaching exactly 1.7350 before rebounding upwards. To the upside, the pair continues to find resistance around the early 1.76 regions, but as mentioned before, these trends display a more bullish bias when viewed longer-term. So despite all the factors contributing to a favourable condition for the Canadian Dollar, the Pound edges ahead in dominance as 2021's top-performing G10 currency thus far.
Given its momentum, any weakness is probably likely to be viewed as temporary, with traders eyeing the dips in price as possible opportunities to go long. Sources: Go Markets, Meta Trader 5, TradingView, Bloomberg
To begin the week, I thought we'd do something a little bit different. We have taken the current ten-year challenge sweeping social media and tried to apply it to a brief technical analysis summary of the major FX pairs. Where were they trading in early 2009?
And where are they now? Judging by the list below, it would seem gold wins the gold medal regarding overall performance. The following summaries will delve further into each trading pair.
EURUSD Even though current price action is trading just above the 200 MA suggesting the longer-term trend is bullish, the price action since 2009 provides more significant evidence of a strong downtrend in place, most notably the lower highs witnessed in 2009, 2011, 2014 and last year respectively. Following the rather dull consolidative period between 2015 to 2017, the Euro-Dollar pair has shown a new lease of life and has found the 1.25 level to play a significant role once again. At current levels though, the danger here is that we could slip back into the familiar rangebound territory if the supportive structure seen at 1.14 fails to contain sellers going forward.
The highlighted head and shoulders pattern might be a precursor to a EURUSD reversal back towards the 1.05 lows. GBPUSD Surprisingly, only a 5% difference in value since this time ten years ago. We see mostly rangebound moves since 2009, with the Brexit catalyst in 2016 providing fuel for an extended step down in price.
The recovery from 2017 to the beginning of 2018 may give a clue to future movements within the pair. Notice how the price has respected the 200 MA in recent years, it would appear the region of 1.35 could be a potential barrier if tested, resulting in a continuation of the longer-term downtrend. In this scenario, the previous 1.20 support is a target worth considering.
USDJPY In 2009 the Dollar-Yen pairing appeared somewhat heavy towards the downside. However, we've seen a steady recovery since the 2012 lows, and a validated bullish trendline is currently in play. In December last year, price attempted a sharp move down to 104 levels but was quickly rejected, resulting in further Dollar strength.
Key areas to note are the Fibonacci retracements of the 2015 high including the 50% level which has provided strong support around 100.00 and the 23.6% retracement at 113.80 which continues to act as tough resistance. Perhaps we'll see another rally north to re-test 113.80 longer-term, especially when RSI (Relative Strength Index) levels are looking oversold. AUDUSD Like a boomerang that's been thrown and come back, the Aussie has returned to where it began in 2009 following some large swings higher.
Currently, in a residual downtrend, it's difficult to see where this pair may up longer-term, but the key takeaway over the last decade would be the importance of the 0.70 zone regarding support and resistance levels. USDCAD It is also a case of 'Back To The Future' for the Loonie. Despite some significant price moves over time, current levels are almost identical to those seen this time ten years ago.
Technically still within a longer-term uptrend, price action has maintained a presence around the 200 MA and has produced a textbook series of higher highs and lower lows since mid-2017. It is also worth pointing out that the 50% retracement level near the 1.20 mark has provided strong support for the pair in both 2015 and 2017. The future outlook appears to be indecisive moves heading sideways.
USDCHF Not too much change for the Swissie either since 2009. Following the SNB crisis in 2015, price action has been practically non-existent with 1.03 acting as somewhat of a ceiling slowly squeezing the price into submission. We could either see a massive breakout after this extended consolidation phase or perhaps more of the same longer-term.
NZDUSD An impressive 36% gain since 2009. Longer-term we have settled around the 50% Fibonacci retracement level of the Jun 2014 high. Current levels also coincide with the 200 Moving Average which price action has failed to break above in recent years convincingly.
There is still a slight bias to the downside, and the previous support level of 0.62 could be a potential target should the Kiwi Dollar continue to grind lower. XAUUSD An impressive price rise in the last decade for the precious metal, and similar to Kiwi Dollar, current price action is sitting around the 50% Fibonacci retracement level from the August 2011 high. The overall longer-term trend has been sideways since 2013 with no clear directional bias in sight.
The only thing worth noting here is the current RSI situation which appears overbought and could spell some bearish activity in the weeks and months ahead. This article is written by a GO Markets Analyst and is based on their independent analysis. They remain fully responsible for the views expressed as well as any remaining error or omissions.
Trading Forex and Derivatives carries a high level of risk. For more resource on Forex trading check out our Forex Trading For Beginners introduction, Forex Trading Courses, open a Forex Demo Account or open a live Forex Trading Account. Sources: Go Markets MetaTrader, Google, Datawrapper, Tradingview.
Facebook has had a fair share of negative news headlines in recent times with lawsuits filed against the company and calls to improve the monitoring of information that is posted on the social media platform. Despite that, the share price of Facebook hit an all-time high this week after trading at above $314 per share for the first time during the trading day on Thursday. With the negative headlines, there is also a level of optimism about the future of the company with revenue numbers expected to increase in 2021.
Q4 2020– revenue growth Last year, the company saw a substantial slowdown in revenue growth in Q2 due to the COVID-19 pandemic when it saw a significant reduction in its advertising side of the business. However, Q4 revenue rose by 33% year-over-year, a significant increase from 22% growth in Q3 and 11% in Q2. ''This was a strong quarter for our business, as the acceleration of online commerce we’ve seen during the pandemic continued into the holiday season. Our total revenue for Q4 was $28.1 billion, which is a 33% year-over-year increase.
Our fastest growth rate in over two years. After a really difficult year for so many businesses, this holiday period was important. And while many businesses are still struggling, the good news is that Q4 was stronger than expected for retail'', Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s COO explained Q4 performance during its earning call back in January.
The share price is up by around 14% since the beginning of the year. Facebook – YTD Source: TradingView Price target increase Deutsche Bank recently increased their price target for Facebook from $355 to $385 and maintained a ''buy'' rating for the social media giant following positive feedback from advertisers and Mark Zuckerberg’s positive comments about more e-commerce moving onto the platform. Deutsche Bank data checks show that advertisers have continued to spend on the platform in Q1 of 2021.
Facebook report Q1 2021 earnings on 28 th April. You can trade Facebook (FB) and many other stocks from the ASX, NYSE, and the NASDAQ with GO Markets as a Share CFD. Click here for more information.
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