WTI marches towards $75.00 as China-linked demand hopes poke recession woes

• WTI remains on the front foot around intraday high.
• China reopening, PBOC’s Shuqing propel expectations of higher energy demand.
• US data trigger economic slowdown fears, weigh on the US Dollar.
• US, China inflation will be crucial for clear directions.

WTI grinds higher near the intraday top surrounding $74.70 as firmer sentiment jostles with economic slowdown concerns during early Monday. Even so, the softer US Dollar and a light calendar allow the black gold buyers to keep the reins, after Friday’s mixed performance.

That said, the risk profile remains firmer amid China’s reopening of the national borders after a three-year halt. On the same line were comments from Guo Shuqing, party secretary of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC).

“Some 2 billion trips are expected this season, nearly double last year's movement and recovering to 70% of 2019 levels, the government says” reported Reuters while conveying China unlock news.

On the other hand, PBOC’s Shuqing said, “The world’s second-largest economy is expected to quickly rebound because of the country’s optimized Covid-19 response and after its economic policies continue to take effect.” 

Elsewhere, the US Dollar Index (DXY) dropped the most in three weeks the previous day, down 0.20% intraday near 103.70 by the press time, as the US employment report failed to impress the greenback buyers while the US activity numbers raised fears of economic slowdown. It’s worth noting that downbeat prints of the US wage growth, ISM Services PMI and the Factory Orders drowned the Treasury bond yields, as well as the DXY the previous day.

On a different page, headlines surrounding a delay in the colonial pipeline restoration and the Russia-Ukraine tussles seem to also help the energy buyers. However, the economic fears test the upside momentum as traders fear more rate hikes ahead of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for December from China and the US, up for publishing on Wednesday and Thursday respectively.

Technical analysis

WTI rebound remains elusive unless the quote crosses the 21-DMA hurdle surrounding $77.00.