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Crude Oil Analysis: Houthis, China and the Case for $97 Brent

Crude Oil Analysis: Houthis, China and the Case for $97 Brent

By
Tim Duggan

Key Points:

  • Brent's cap is a wasting asset: the SPR sits at 307.65 mb, 88 mb below the DOE's 396 mb policy floor, and is drawing 3.8 mb a week.
  • US refiners ran at 97.2% of capacity, above the ten-year maximum band, and US diesel is up roughly 16% in four weeks to $5.31/gal heading into harvest.
  • Money managers are crowded short at the 87.5th percentile while producers cut their hedges by 61,979 contracts - the funds and the barrels are on opposite sides.