A sharp fall in crude oil was observed..........>

OIL: A sharp fall in crude oil was observed overnight, with little in the way of

headline drivers apparent.

- WTI (CLF9) registered a low of $52.80 on the move, as it quickly lost ~$1.00,

last $53.35, after an uptick from lows. Initial support noted at the cycle low

of $52.77. A break there would see bears focus on up trend line support from the

January 2016 lows at ~$51.00. Worth noting that some ~8.5K lots traded in the

spike in WTI (CLF9).

- Brent crude traded in a similar fashion, although it managed to register a

marginal fresh cycle low at $61.52 in the process.

- Thursday saw Saudi Energy Minister al-Falih note that the country's oil

production has risen in November, but was set to pare back in January, with

demand exp. to tail off.