{"id":36838,"date":"2025-12-15T18:17:44","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T10:17:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/?p=36838"},"modified":"2025-12-15T18:17:44","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T10:17:44","slug":"crude-oil-holds-near-multi-month-lows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/analysis\/crude-oil-holds-near-multi-month-lows\/","title":{"rendered":"Crude Oil Holds Near Multi-Month Lows"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"573\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/03\/Oil5-1024x573.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-41760\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Key Points<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>WTI crude edges up to <strong>$57.38<\/strong>, but remains near late-October lows<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Markets weigh fresh <strong>US\u2013Venezuela tensions<\/strong> and <strong>China refinery demand<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ukraine\u2013Russia diplomacy<\/strong> and rising global output continue to cap gains<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>Oil prices saw modest gains in Monday\u2019s early trading session, with <strong>WTI crude climbing 0.13% to $57.38 per barrel<\/strong>, buoyed slightly by increased demand signals from China and geopolitical risks in Latin America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the broader picture remains bearish, with the benchmark still hovering just above the <strong>$56.00 floor<\/strong>, its lowest level in nearly two months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Exclusive: Russian crude was recently sold to at least one Chinese buyer at what traders say was the steepest discount this year <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/uyBSAx9dI2\">https:\/\/t.co\/uyBSAx9dI2<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Bloomberg (@business) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/business\/status\/2000471109959864513?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 15, 2025<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The uptick was supported by signs of strong refining activity in China, paired with <strong>rising friction between Washington and Venezuela<\/strong>, sparking concerns over supply disruption. Still, broader market sentiment is cautious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The admiral in charge of US military forces in Latin America retired two years early, amid rising tensions with Venezuela that includes seizure of an oil tanker and more than 20 deadly strikes on suspected drug-smuggling boats <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/bzHICMeutI\">https:\/\/t.co\/bzHICMeutI<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/OCajbn9uxa\">pic.twitter.com\/OCajbn9uxa<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Reuters (@Reuters) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Reuters\/status\/1999622796436263409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 12, 2025<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Traders are keeping a close eye on diplomatic efforts to <strong>broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine by year-end<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Any resolution could <strong>pave the way for sanctions relief<\/strong> on Russian crude, further increasing supply pressures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Simultaneously, <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/01p3LAwCqu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\">OPEC+ and non-cartel producers<\/a><\/strong> have shown few signs of curbing output, fuelling fears of oversupply heading into early 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-medium-font-size\">Technical Analysis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Oil prices remain under pressure, with WTI trading near <strong>$57.38<\/strong>, marginally higher on the day but still struggling below the key <strong>$59.00<\/strong> resistance zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After peaking at <strong>$77.89<\/strong> in mid-year, the price has entered a prolonged downtrend, repeatedly failing to sustain any upside momentum. The moving averages (5, 10, 30) remain flat to bearish, indicating weak directional bias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2026\/03\/3_image-22-1024x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-36839\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The MACD remains below the signal line and hovers near the zero mark, suggesting muted momentum and a lack of strong buying interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A decisive break below the recent <strong>$55.95<\/strong> low could open the door toward fresh multi-month lows, while a push back above <strong>$59.00<\/strong> is needed to revive bullish sentiment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-medium-font-size\">Bottom Line<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>While oil prices may see short-term technical bounces, persistent macro risks and oversupply concerns suggest any upside is likely to remain capped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Traders should watch for <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/6Bapdgi6HO\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\">political developments around Ukraine<\/a> and OPEC\u2019s production guidance as key catalysts for a directional shift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Learn more about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/markets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">trading<\/a> on <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/trade-now\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">VT Markets<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WTI bounces off support but upside limited as peace talks and surplus fears weigh. &#8211; vtmarkets.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":41760,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[5,66],"class_list":["post-36838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-analysis","tag-commodities","tag-oil"],"acf":{"acf_article_selection_author":""},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36838","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36838\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41760"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vtmarkets.com\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}