WTI oil trading at $86, analysts forecast higher oil prices

18 February 2011 18 February 2011

BonTrade

WTI oil futures open Friday’s trading session up over $86 a barrel as many analysts remain bullish over short term oil price direction for WTI, while Brent crude oil remains trading at a record spread to US Light crude.

Latest WTI Oil Price

US Light crude oil futures for March 2011 delivery was trading at $86.10, 08.05 GMT this morning on the NYMEX, the March 2011 WTI oil contract expires on Tuesday after the Presidents Day holiday shuts the exchange on Monday.

“Thursday’s advance also narrowed the spread against Brent. For now, we are not viewing this spread activity as the beginning of a trend but instead consider it to be a deserved correction. We are maintaining a bullish trading posture in anticipation of fresh highs in the product markets and a further advance in nearby Brent values of some $4-$5 a barrel.” said Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch & Associates.

Brent and WTI Spread

Brent’s premium to WTI crude hit a record of $18.79 a barrel, as the domestic price is pressured by near record high storage levels at Cushing, the contract’s delivery point, which isn’t accessible to most US refineries.

WTI Oil Futures Heading to $90?

“As the unrest continues the market has no other choice but to head higher,” said Tony Rosado, a broker at GA Global Markets, who expects NYMEX WTI crude oil to climb to $90 a barrel, last seen two weeks ago, even as the US petroleum products market is well supplied.