Oil
Crude prices gave up earlier gains after a surprisingly hawkish FOMC dot plot sent both Treasury yields and the U.S. dollar higher. WTI crude rose after a mostly bullish EIA crude oil inventory report. Americans are travelling as jet fuel demand improved to the highest level since the end of May and as gasoline demand rose by 900,000 bpd.
Saudi Energy minister noted that the oil market is not out of the woods yet and that the OPEC+ cautious approach is paying off.
The short-term rebound in the dollar will likely be a speed bump in WTI crude’s path higher.
Gold
Gold lost its mojo after the Fed’s latest economic projections showed the last call for stimulus was nearing. The Fed’s hawkish pivot is a major buzz-kill for gold bulls that could see some momentum selling over the short-term. Short-term Treasury yields will continue to rise, and that should provide some underlying support for the dollar, which will keep commodities vulnerable.
Despite the recent weakness for gold over the past week, gold’s medium-and-longer term outlook remains bullish. The line in the sand that needs to be defended for bullish bullion investors is the $1,800 level.
Cryptos
Bitcoin pulled back after testing the upper boundaries of its recent $30,000 to $41,000 trading range. Bitcoin needs to add another log on the fire to get cryptocurrency traders excited. Following the El Salvador commitment to Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency community is awaiting which country is next. Bitcoin either needs to show progress on becoming carbon neutral or have a couple more countries accept Bitcoin as legal tender.
A stronger dollar sent Bitcoin tumbling as all risky assets sold off. Bitcoin’s consolidation phase should continue a while longer.
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