WTI crude oil futures settle at $106.19

The price of WTI crude oil Crude Oil Crude oil is the most popular tradable instrument in the energy sector, offering exposure to global market conditions, geopolitical risk, and economics. The instrument is strategically relied upon and situated in the global economy. Crude oil has proven to be a unique option for traders given volatility and the efficacy of both swing trading and longer-term strategies. Despite its popularity, crude oil is a very complex investing instrument, given the litany of fluctuations in oil prices, risk, and impact of politics stemming from OPEC. Short for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC operates as an intergovernmental organization of 13 countries, helping set and dictate the global oil market.How to Trade Crude Oil Crude oil is most commonly traded as an exchange-traded fund (ETF) or through other instruments with exposure to it. This includes energy stocks, the USD/CAD, and other investing options. Crude oil itself is traded across a duality of markets, including the West Texas Intermediate Crude (WTI) and Brent crude. Brent is the more relied upon index in recent years, while WTI is more heavily traded across futures trading at the time of writing. Other than geopolitical events or decisions by OPEC, crude oil can move due to a variety of different ways.  The most basic is through simple supply and demand, which is affected by global output. Increased industrial output, economic prosperity, and other factors all play a role in crude prices. By extension, recessions, lockdowns, or other stifling factors can also influence crude prices. For example, an oversupply or mitigated demand due to the aforementioned factors would result in lower crude prices. This is due to traders selling crude oil futures or other instruments.  Should demand rise or production plateau, traders will bid increasingly on crude, whereby driving prices up. Crude oil is the most popular tradable instrument in the energy sector, offering exposure to global market conditions, geopolitical risk, and economics. The instrument is strategically relied upon and situated in the global economy. Crude oil has proven to be a unique option for traders given volatility and the efficacy of both swing trading and longer-term strategies. Despite its popularity, crude oil is a very complex investing instrument, given the litany of fluctuations in oil prices, risk, and impact of politics stemming from OPEC. Short for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC operates as an intergovernmental organization of 13 countries, helping set and dictate the global oil market.How to Trade Crude Oil Crude oil is most commonly traded as an exchange-traded fund (ETF) or through other instruments with exposure to it. This includes energy stocks, the USD/CAD, and other investing options. Crude oil itself is traded across a duality of markets, including the West Texas Intermediate Crude (WTI) and Brent crude. Brent is the more relied upon index in recent years, while WTI is more heavily traded across futures trading at the time of writing. Other than geopolitical events or decisions by OPEC, crude oil can move due to a variety of different ways.  The most basic is through simple supply and demand, which is affected by global output. Increased industrial output, economic prosperity, and other factors all play a role in crude prices. By extension, recessions, lockdowns, or other stifling factors can also influence crude prices. For example, an oversupply or mitigated demand due to the aforementioned factors would result in lower crude prices. This is due to traders selling crude oil futures or other instruments.  Should demand rise or production plateau, traders will bid increasingly on crude, whereby driving prices up. Read this Term futures Futures Futures or a futures contract represents a legal agreement to buy or sell a security or asset at a predetermined price at a specified time in the future. Of note, the parties are not known to each other.These transactions usually involve commodities or other securities involving the buying and selling for a forward or predetermined price.Futures also adhere to a delivery date, which specifies the date of delivery and payment. Relative to other forms of investing futures are much more complex, as they involve specified and non-flexible parameters.Futures Trading ExplainedFutures contracts are negotiated at exchanges that act as a unified marketplace for both buyers and sellers. Buyers of contracts represent long position holders, while selling parties constitute short position holders.Both parties risk their counterparty walking away if the price goes against them. As such, the contract can involve both parties incurring a margin of the value of the contract with a mutually trusted third party.This margin can range substantially, depending on the current volatility of the market of the security being traded.Futures can be incredibly risky and are the textbook definition of market speculation. A trader who predicts that the price of an asset will move in a certain direction can contract to buy or sell it in the future at a price.If this prediction is correct, the trader will profit. If the prediction is incorrect there will be losses. Futures trading is considered an advanced type of trading that requires prior knowledge and understanding.For this reason, retail traders will seldom be afforded access to futures trading by brokers without first undergoing specific questions or account requirements. Futures or a futures contract represents a legal agreement to buy or sell a security or asset at a predetermined price at a specified time in the future. Of note, the parties are not known to each other.These transactions usually involve commodities or other securities involving the buying and selling for a forward or predetermined price.Futures also adhere to a delivery date, which specifies the date of delivery and payment. Relative to other forms of investing futures are much more complex, as they involve specified and non-flexible parameters.Futures Trading ExplainedFutures contracts are negotiated at exchanges that act as a unified marketplace for both buyers and sellers. Buyers of contracts represent long position holders, while selling parties constitute short position holders.Both parties risk their counterparty walking away if the price goes against them. As such, the contract can involve both parties incurring a margin of the value of the contract with a mutually trusted third party.This margin can range substantially, depending on the current volatility of the market of the security being traded.Futures can be incredibly risky and are the textbook definition of market speculation. A trader who predicts that the price of an asset will move in a certain direction can contract to buy or sell it in the future at a price.If this prediction is correct, the trader will profit. If the prediction is incorrect there will be losses. Futures trading is considered an advanced type of trading that requires prior knowledge and understanding.For this reason, retail traders will seldom be afforded access to futures trading by brokers without first undergoing specific questions or account requirements. Read this Term are settling at $106.19. That's down $3.33 or -3.04%

The high price reached $109.76. The low reached $101.53. The settle is near the middle of that range.

Looking at the daily chart, the price moved below the 100 day MA (and an upward sloping trend line) near $104.62. The rebound into the close took the price back above that MA level. That MA is near the middle of what has been home to most of the price action since the start of March (see red box). That box runs from $93.14 to around $116.38 (wide but real).

There were two runs to the upside. The one back in March, saw the price shoot up to the high for the year. The more recent extension above the area, moved up to $123 area, before backing back to the downside.

On the downside, the rising 200 day MA (green line in the chart above) is making it's way toward the lower extreme at $93.14. If the price of crude oil were to move lower from here (get and stay below the 100 day MA), that 200 day MA would move closer to the lower extreme of the "red box", increasing that levels importance from a technical perspective.

The price action and failure on the 2nd run higher, suggests that the peak may indeed be in place. Lower demand from a weakening global economy may save the supply issue problem somewhat, but the winds from war are still an issue (and hopefully there are no hurricanes disruptiong supply as well this year).

That is why there are technicals which help to connect the price action to the storyline. The uncertainty is also why the low to high trading range is justifiable.