Fueling Strategy: Please partial fill “only” tonight, Wednesday AM wholesale prices will drop 2 cents – Be Safe Today!

NYMEX Crude $ 38.28 DN $1.1100
NY Harbor ULSD $1.1555 DN $0.0246
NYMEX Gasoline $1.4538 DN $0.0142

NEWS
Oil futures fell for a fifth straight session on Tuesday to settle at their lowest level in two weeks, as traders braced for industry data that are likely to show another increase in U.S. crude supplies.

Prices, however, settled above the session’s lows, finding some support as the U.S. dollar weakened in the wake of comments from Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen, who emphasized a cautious approach to raising benchmark interest rates. West Texas intermediate crude for May fell $1.11, or 2.8%, to settle at $38.28 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the lowest since March 15. May Brent crude on the ICE Futures exchange declined by $1.13, or 2.8%, to $39.14 a barrel. WTI oil was trading even lower at around $38.19 before Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen’s speech to the Economic Club of New York. She defended the central bank’s decision to move cautiously on interest-rate hikes pointing to shaky global economies.

“Oil is reacting favorably to more favorable monetary policy,” said Tim Evans, chief market strategist at Long Leaf Trading Group. The U.S. dollar was down following Yellen’s comments, which contributed to “oil pairing its early losses.” Commodities priced in dollars can find support from a weaker dollar, as a decline in the U.S. unit can boost the attractiveness of those commodities to holders of other currencies.

WTI crude prices were trading nearly 14% higher for the month, buoyed by expectations that members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other key producers will agree on a plan to stabilize output when they meet on April 17 in Doha, Qatar. There is still some hope that the coming summit “may yet produce some supportive adjustment in supply,” Timothy Evans, energy futures specialist at Citi Futures and OTC Clearing, said, noting that Iran has reportedly agreed to attend the meeting, but won’t participate in an output freeze. Still, “the idea of a [production] freeze may be tested” by news that Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are preparing to restart the 300,000 barrel-per-day Khafji oil field, he said.

Weekly U.S. inventory data are due out from the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday and from the Energy Information Administration early Wednesday. Analysts polled by Platts forecast an increase of 2 million barrels in crude stockpiles. A weekly increase would make the seventh in a row for the EIA data. The EIA will also release the latest domestic oil-production figures. Oil output has fallen eight of the last nine weeks and it’s about 200,000 barrels a day lower than January levels, Rob Thummel, Tortoise managing director and portfolio manager, said during a podcast Monday.

The market also awaits the monthly U.S. employment data due Friday. A bullish report would hint at the Fed moving on interest rates in June, which would be bearish for commodities, including crude oil, said Darin Newsom, DTN senior analyst. On the other hand, bearish jobs data “could be interpreted as slower demand for [natural gas and] crude oil,” which could also be bearish for the energy market, he said.