Mid-Day Oil Summary: Crude Rangebound

Crude front month is rangebound today after yesterday’s losses. Focus remains on upside risks from tight supply and potential higher summer fuel demand along with geopolitical and hurricane risks.

• Brent SEP 24 unchanged at 86.24$/bbl
• WTI AUG 24 down 0.1% at 82.76$/bbl
• The near term crude options skews have turned slightly more bearish again after briefly touching into positive territory earlier this week.
• API weekly oil stock data from late yesterday according to Bloomberg: Crude -9.16mbbl, Cushing +0.404mbbl.
• ARA crude storage fell 759k bbls or 1.4% in the week ended June 28 to 54.1mn bbls according to Genscape figures.
• The Biden administration remains open to dialogue with the Venezuelan government according to U.S. officials.
• Hurricane impacts for the U.S. are potentially more bearish for oil markets nowadays because they risk refinery shut ins according to RBC’s Head of Commodity Research Helima Croft in a CNBC interview.
• Ratcheting tensions between Israel and Lebanon risk escalating the Middle East conflict by drawing Iran into direct confrontation according to RBC
• Upgrades to the Abu Dhabi Ruwais refining complex have enabled Adnoc to export record volumes of Murban crude this year according to MEES analysis.