Sign in Subscribe
Petroleum

Crude Oil Prices Surge Ahead of OPEC Meeting and Potential Hurricane

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Crude oil prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) experienced a notable surge on Friday, with October light, sweet crude oil settling 32 cents higher at $21.27/bbl despite a bearish downturn in the market. The increase was largely attributed to short-covering by traders, who began their buying early in the session. Meanwhile, OPEC's upcoming summit in Vienna has piqued the market's attention, with a preparatory meeting among host Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico taking place over the weekend in Caracas. Traders are cautiously optimistic that the OPEC meeting may lead to some positive developments, with the market expecting little to come of the meeting.

Key Takeaways:

  • Crude oil prices on Nymex rose 32 cents to settle at $21.27/bbl on Friday, with October light, sweet crude oil losing 38 cents for the week.
  • Traders on Nymex engaged in short-covering early in the session, leading to gains in crude oil prices.
  • OPEC's upcoming summit in Vienna has drawn market attention, with a preparatory meeting taking place among host Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico over the weekend.
  • The market is expecting little to come of the Caracas meeting, but is keeping a close eye on OPEC's developments.
  • Nymex crude oil is undervalued to Brent crude oil on London's International Petroleum Exchange (IPE), with market-watchers predicting potential gains in the coming weeks.
  • September Nymex gasoline experienced a large 1.88 cents gain to close at 66.11 cents/gallon, with October gasoline rising 0.98 cents to 62.96 cents/gallon.
  • September heating oil rose 0.50 cents to 55.99 cents/gallon, with the October contract gaining 0.50 cents to 56.64 cents/gallon.
  • Natural gas futures trading saw the September Nymex Henry Hub contract expire with a 3.6 cents loss to close at $2.912/MMBtu, while the October contract dipped 4.8 cents to $2.922/MMBtu.

Statistics:

  • Crude oil prices on Nymex rose $21.27/bbl on Friday, with a 32-cent gain.
  • October light, sweet crude oil lost 38 cents for the week, with a 89-cent sell-off on Wednesday.
  • September Nymex gasoline gained 1.88 cents to close at 66.11 cents/gallon, with two-day gains of 3.10 cents/gallon.
  • Natural gas futures trading saw the September Nymex Henry Hub contract expire with a 3.6 cents loss to close at $2.912/MMBtu, with a 2.6-cent loss for the week.

Sources:

  • Bloomberg News
  • New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex)
  • International Petroleum Exchange (IPE)
  • Reuters
  • OPEC

Read more