Good morning,
The market looks like WTI will hold price above $60/barrel this week. There are so many variables flying around right now. The bulls are being pushed by FED keeping rates low, Saudi Arabia hammering cuts through 2019, Iran and Venezuela sanctions, positive progress on the US and China trade talks, and feelings of healthy demand appetite for crude oil. The bears on the sidelines are staying active following weak economic data out of China, a not-so-thrilling housing market in the US, record US production, Russia discussing leaving the OPEC cuts, Trump hammering on OPEC to stop cutting, investors such as Warren Buffet saying our economy is out of steam, and potential extension of supply waivers for countries buying from Iran. So basically you have a full hand of cards showing bull market strength, and a full hand of cards showing bear market strength. I don’t like to keep sounding like a skipping record, but crude is probably going to trade back and forth in a $5/barrel range for the next quarter until data starts to truly back one of the hands in play.
In local retail news, I believe gasoline is a bit overbought going into refinery maintenance season. We could see gasoline prices fall off a little bit in the next couple of months. But for now, I would get used to paying around $2.69/gallon on gasoline. Surprisingly, diesel prices are staying fairly consistent around $2.95/gallon. I still think there is a lot of upside risk in diesel prices going into Q3 and Q4 of this year. More to come on this in the following months.
Propane prices continue to drop as we unwind the winter delivery season. Propane production is continuing at record levels and inventories remain over 30% higher this year compared to last year, and demand was stronger! Propane prices have a chance of breaking away from crude and falling. I am very confident we will see excellent summer fill rates and contract prices for next season at or below this season’s prices. More to come in the following months.
As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to give us a call.
Best regards,
Jon Crawford