- WTI is seen consolidating its move higher, witnessed over the past six days.
- Escalating Middle East tensions might continue to support the black liquid.
- The bullish technical setup further supports prospects for additional gains.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) – the benchmark US Crude Oil price – edges lower during the Asian session on Friday, trading as it holds above mid-$95.00s and remains close to a nearly four-week high, touched the previous day.
US President Donald Trump stated that he would not use nuclear weapons in Iran and does not foresee deploying American ground troops to the Islamic Republic, easing concerns about a further escalation of tensions in the Middle East and weighing on the black liquid. However, the geopolitical risk premium remains in play amid intensifying fighting between the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Adding to this, the US-Iran standoff over the Strait of Hormuz acts as a tailwind for crude oil prices.
From a technical perspective, the commodity retains a bullish near-term bias above the 200-period Simple Moving Average (SMA) on the 4-hour chart and the 50% Fibonacci retracement level of the September-October decline. Adding to this, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator remains in positive territory with the latest reading at 0.12, while the Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 63.10 stays in bullish but not yet overbought ground. Momentum indicators together back the constructive outlook.
In the meantime, immediate support is seen at the reclaimed 50% retracement at $94.18, followed by the 200-period SMA clustered near $92.50 and the 38.2% retracement at $92.31. Deeper pullbacks would likely look to the 23.6% retracement at $89.99 as a more significant structural floor. On the topside, initial resistance appears at the 61.8% Fibo. retracement at $96.05, ahead of a stronger barrier at the 78.6% level around $98.72, with the recent swing high at $102.11 acting as a more distant cap if the rally extends.
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