Crude oil prices rose due to positive factory output data from China and ongoing unrest in the Middle East. The OPEC+ meeting is expected to result in a delay of production cuts for next year, highlighting the challenge of balancing market support and maintaining market share.
Traders are expecting OPEC+ to delay a production increase, with oil trading within a narrow range due to geopolitical factors and the outlook in China. The dollar strengthened after US President-elect Donald Trump cautioned BRICS nations against creating an alternative currency, while the Middle East saw a truce between Israel and Hezbollah and Tehran's pledge to aid Syria's government.
On the technical side, the price has been trading in a triangle formation for the last 4 months and is near its completion. The Stochastic is below the neutral level more towards the oversold levels hinting that there might be another bullish rebound in the upcoming sessions and probably a retest of the upper boundary of the triangle.
On the other hand the faster 50-day moving average is trading lower than the slower 100-day moving average validating the overall bearish trend in the market while the Bollinger bands have somewhat contracted showing that volatility might be running low in the market for oil.