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CRUDE OIL OUTLOOK: Crude oil prices remain stable as OPEC+ agrees to raise supply. The ramifications of a supply increase appear to be outweighed by the promise of structural stability. A risk-off sentiment shift might put pressure on the market, and the chart setup favors losses. Crude oil prices fell after OPEC+ officials agreed to a joint strategy to expand output after weeks of squabbling. For weeks, the cartel of leading oil exporters and their allies have battled to find common ground, with the main sticking point appearing to be a dispute between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Now, a deal has been reached under which output would grow by 400k barrels per day each month beginning in August and continuing until full capacity is restored. OPEC+ will have scaled up to deliver an additional 2 million barrels per day per month by the end of the year. The strategy will continue until the group’s 5.8 million barrels per day of suspended production is fully restored. If current trends continue, it will happen in September or October of next year. It could still be changed. Officials from OPEC+ will continue to meet monthly to discuss the initiative. As it stands, crude oil traders appear to be without a strong directional lead as a result of the news. On the surface, the increase in supply may have pushed prices down. However, reaching an agreement defused the possibility of a production free-for-all if OPEC+ collapsed, providing some support. From here, a lack of scheduled event risk appears to be putting broader market sentiment trends in charge. That appears to be set to “risk-off,” which normally spells doom for oil prices. So far, weakness has been moderate, but once markets in Europe and the United States join the war, selling might pick up momentum. TECHNICAL ANALYSIS OF CRUDE OIL With the emergence of a bearish Evening Star candlestick pattern, the WTI benchmark continues to seek swing-low support at 70.76, after appearing to mark a top below the $77/bbl threshold. A daily closing below this level could reveal the 66.76-67.98 zone. The 75.52-76.98 area provides immediate resistance. Regaining a foothold above that level appears to be a requirement for reducing near-term selling pressure. TradingView was used to build a crude oil price chart. TRADING RESOURCES FOR CRUDE OIL—- Ilya Spivak, DailyFX’s APAC Head Strategist, wrote this article. Use the comments area below to contact Ilya, or follow him on Twitter at @IlyaSpivak./nRead More

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