During the Asian session, the price of WTI Crude Oil is actively growing, testing 77.50 for a breakout.
Yesterday, the asset renewed the local highs of February 17, reacting to the increased prospects for further recovery of the Chinese economy. Analysts expect that the increase in demand for energy from China will help offset its overall decline in the face of further tightening of monetary policy by the world's leading regulators. Also, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, which is still in an acute phase, creates a tense situation in the hydrocarbon market.
Hopes for an increase in fuel consumption in China are also supported by Wednesday’s macroeconomic statistics: business activity in the NBS manufacturing sector in February rose from 50.1 points to 52.6 points, and service PMI strengthened from 54.4 points to 56.3 points, while analysts predicted its fall to 49.7 points, which, according to experts, will ensure stable demand for "black gold" in the second world economy.
Yesterday, pressure on quotes was exerted by a report from the American Petroleum Institute (API): for the week of February 24, the volume of reserves increased by 6.203M barrels after an increase of 9.895M barrels earlier. On Wednesday, corresponding statistics from the Energy Information Administration of the US Department of Energy (EIA) will be released: according to forecasts, the figure will increase by 0.440M barrels after rising by 7.648M barrels last week.
On the daily chart, Bollinger bands are moving flat: the price range narrows slightly from above, remaining quite spacious for the current level of activity in the market. The MACD indicator is growing, keeping a relatively strong buy signal (the histogram is above the signal line). Stochastic shows similar dynamics, quickly approaching its highs, which indicates that the instrument may become overbought in the ultra-short term.
Resistance levels: 78.00, 78.74, 79.81, 81.00. | Support levels: 77.00, 76.00, 75.00, 74.00.