Commodity Market: US Crude Oil retreats as fuel demand concerns outweigh US coronavirus aid deal optimism

Futures on US West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil fell on Tuesday, following an almost 1% surge during the previous trading day, as pandemic-related demand concerns overshadowed optimism over a new fiscal stimulus package in the United States.

Both WTI and Brent benchmarks gained on Monday after reports emerged that US Democrats had unveiled a new $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill, which US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi categorized as a compromise measure that cuts the costs of the economic aid.

“If it happens, the U.S. stimulus checks will go a long way to shoring up U.S. oil demand at a most critical juncture and could move oil prices back into a pre-September frame of mind,” Stephen Innes, market strategist at AxiCorp, wrote in an investor note.

However, fiscal stimulus hopes were outweighed by fuel demand concerns stemming from the virus spread globally.

The latest data by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University showed total confirmed COVID-19 cases had already surpassed 33.364 million worldwide, with US cases now exceeding 7.149 million. Global death toll has surpassed 1.001 million, with more than 205,000 deaths reported in the United States alone.

Oil traders were also paying attention to the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, as a possible escalation could affect Azerbaijan’s oil and gas exports.

As of 8:50 GMT on Tuesday WTI Crude Oil Futures were retreating 0.79% to trade at $40.28 per barrel, while moving within a daily range of $40.13-$40.70 per barrel. WTI Crude Futures have retreated 5.56% so far in September, following four straight months of gains.

Brent Oil Futures were losing 0.96% on the day to trade at $42.10 per barrel, while moving within a daily range of $42.04-$42.52 per barrel. Brent Oil Futures have dropped 7.59% so far in September, following five straight months of gains.

Daily Pivot Levels (traditional method of calculation) – WTI Crude Oil Futures

Central Pivot – $40.39
R1 – $41.01
R2 – $41.41
R3 – $42.03
R4 – $42.64

S1 – $39.99
S2 – $39.37
S3 – $38.97
S4 – $38.56

Daily Pivot Levels (traditional method of calculation) – Brent Oil Futures

Central Pivot – $42.20
R1 – $42.91
R2 – $43.30
R3 – $44.01
R4 – $44.71

S1 – $41.81
S2 – $41.10
S3 – $40.71
S4 – $40.31