WTI toys with the $50 handle

WTI rallied through the 50 handle overnight and the US traders took the black gold up to test through 50.80 where supply came on thick and fast, with the bears back in control to test 49.80 support before a recovery back to the $51 handle again.

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There is speculation in the market that rising demand for crude in the world could stem the glut in crude supplies. This theme, coupled with yesterday's International Energy Agency report that was estimating global oil demand for the year would climb by the most since 2015, is likely to support WTI for the foreseeable future given that the demand and the supply imbalance in oil markets should continue to narrow in the coming months, according to the IEA report. However, the come back in the greenback towards the close in the US session and stocks unable to make further ground were damaging to the commodity sector in a fickle market place. As for levels, $49.60 and $48.80 are key supports while a break of $51.66 is required to put bulls in control targeting YTD highs of $54.58.