Oil Tracking Lower Ahead Of OPEC Meeting, Gold Steady

Oil prices have continued to track lower, following sharp losses in Thursday trade. The front month WTI contract is off a further 0.45%, last tracking near $77.60/bbl. For Brent, front month is just under $81.60/bbl. Both benchmarks are tracking slightly lower for the week.

• Markets are looking ahead to the OPEC+ meeting June 2 where the group are widely expected to rollover current cuts into the second half of the year. OPEC+ members who have agreed to voluntary cuts totalling 2.2m b/d are discussing extending them until year-end, Reuters said, citing sources within the bloc.
• Thursday's dip also came even despite a larger than expected draw in US stocks. Broader risk off/concerns around the Fed outlook weighed in the space.
• Brent prompt time spreads are also painting a more amply supply backdrop.
• For WTI, the trend direction remains down, and the recovery from earlier in the week appears to be a correction - for now. A resumption of weakness would signal scope for a move towards $75.64, the Mar 11 low. Initial firm resistance to watch is at $83.63, the Apr 26 high.
• Gold hasn't shown a strong directional trend in the first part of trade. We were last near $2343, little changed for the session. We are still tracking higher for the week. Recent lows came in at $2322.8, which is close to the 50-day MA.