Yahoo Finance Oil’s Rangebound Trading Pushes Volatility Measure to 2019 Lows
(Bloomberg) -- Even with big events happening in the Middle East, oil trading has been relatively lackluster as volatility seeps out of the market.
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Prices have stayed rangebound, with traders searching for direction ahead of OPEC’s production meeting in June. That’s sent a key measure of market swings to the lowest since in roughly five years: Brent’s second-month rolling volatility reached the lowest levels since 2019.
Brent hovered near $84 a barrel after posting its first weekly advance this month, while West Texas Intermediate settled near $80. Both markets drifted between small gains and losses on Monday.
All eyes continue to monitor developments in the Middle East.
Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were killed in a helicopter crash. Separately, there are concerns over the health of Saudi Arabia’s 88-year-old King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, father of the country’s de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.
However, analysts downplayed the significance of the events for crude futures markets, noting that oil policies and exports are unlikely to be affected.
Despite crude’s recent directionless trade, global benchmark Brent has gained almost 10% this year, supported by OPEC+ supply cuts. Oil’s rally has cooled since mid-April as money managers wait for signs of improving demand ahead of the summer season. Market watchers are turning their attention to the upcoming meeting of the producer group on June 1, where a rollover of existing curbs is expected.
Elsewhere, drone strikes on Russian refineries continue, with the Slavyansk refinery struck over the weekend. A China-bound oil tanker was meanwhile hit by a Houthi missile in the Red Sea area on Saturday.
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