WTI loses the grip further, approaches $55.00 ahead of EIA

• Prices of the WTI drops to the vicinity of $55.00/bbl.
• Growth, oversupply concerns weigh on sentiment.
• EIA’s weekly report coming up later in the NA session.

Prices of the American benchmark for the sweet light crude oil are shedding further ground on Thursday and are now approaching the $55.00 per barrel.

WTI now looks to data

Prices of the barrel of WTI have fully faded the December rally, so far losing more than 16% from the boundaries of the $66.00 mark recorded earlier in the year to current levels near the $55.00 mark.

Renewed and growing concerns on the impact on global growth of the coronavirus outbreak in China have coupled with rising oversupply fears, all motivating traders to keep dumping long positions in crude oil and accelerating the downside to levels last seen in November 2019 near the $55.00 mark per barrel.

Later in the NA session, the DoE will publish its official weekly report on US crude oil inventories. Late on Wednesday, the API reported another build in US crude supplies, this time of 1.6 million barrels during last week.

 WTI significant levels

At the moment the barrel of WTI is retreating 1.94% at $55.05 and a break below $54.77 (low Nov.20 2019) would aim for $53.66 (low Oct.31 2019) and then $51.06 (monthly low Oct.3 2019). On the flip side, the next resistance aligns at $57.52 (200-day SMA) seconded by $58.77 (55-day SMA) and finally $59.73 (weekly high Jan.20).