AU: NYMEX February light sweet crude stands at $90.58 per barrel after trading in a $90.33 to $90.79 range.
OIL VIEW: NYMEX February light sweet crude stands at $90.58 per barrel after trading in a $90.33 to $90.79 range. Wednesday's settlement at $90.48 was the first $90-plus settlement since Oct 7, 2008 ($90.06 settlement that day). Nevertheless, the front contract struggled earlier ($90.79 high) and Weds ($90.80) to decisively break above the Dec 7 high at $90.76 and may need to close above that level for upward momentum to mount. Barclays Capital strategists say "the $70 to $80 range appears to be retreating into the mists of memory, and the $80 to $90 range looks unlikely to re-establish itself for long." They maintain that with OPEC "reactive rather than proactive, the route to $100 appears fairly unobstructed at this time."
