WTI erases majority of daily gains, still remains near mid-2015 highs

• Oil rally losses momentum as USD recovers part of its losses. 
• WTI off highs, still above $60. 

The WTI barrel was falling modestly on Tuesday, the first trading day of 2018. It was down 0.11%. Earlier today it reached at $60.73, the highest level since June 2015. Then it pulled back and it was trading at $60.35/40. Despite today’s slide it was holding on top of $60.00 with the bullish intact. 

The up-move today came from an large anti-government rallies in Iran and also by ongoing supply cuts led by OPEC and Russia. On the negative side for the price, major pipelines in Libya and UK restarted. Geopolitical risks and the supply history are likely to continue to be key drivers in 2018.

 “On all fronts, the oil market is looking robust; demand growth looks to be firm globally and supply is in a position to tighten. With OPEC supply cut extensions set to be baked into the cake and lower than previously expected growth in US production looking likely, the recent jump in geopolitical risks should continue to lift prices throughout the year”, wrote analysts from TDS. 

WTI Technical Levels

Resistances levels are aligned at $60.73 (Jan 2 high), $61.00 (psychological) and $61.82 (June 2015 highs). On the downside, supports are located at $60.13 (Jan 2 low), $59.95 (Dec 27 & 28 high) and $59.40 (10-day moving average).