MSN live trading group?

Does anyone else use msn messenger? I was thinking that we could set up a live trading group. That way during the day we could share any info that comes to us individually with the group but in real time..If you trade for yourself like me, it may be a good idea..

another day for the bulls

Should see some buying tomorrow...Alot of traders got caught wrong footed and were expecting a sell off in oil after the inventories..I stayed square just in case...Dow is on fire..oil over 58..Sentiment should be good tomorrow..I have been selling any run ups in oil sector this week...Haven't been a believer in the strengthening oil price this week..either has the market luckily..Tend to trade VPC and BUR..think we need a few good solid closes like tonight to sustain the rallies..so I might continue to sell any run ups and try buy dips in the morning for next few sessions.. as my friend always tells me : 'always leave a bit for the next man'..Bullish talk coming from Nymex though..they want to buy this thing up over 60 again.. I think I may just be a believer for now!

Dow hits highs on the back of FED leaving rates unchanged

Fed keeps interest rates at 5.25 percentWASHINGTON (AFX) - The Federal Reserve, faced with a strongly rebounding economy, left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday while repeating concerns about inflation.The central bank voted to leave the federal funds rate, the interest that banks charge each other, at 5.25 percent, where it has been since last June.That decision had been widely expected given an economy that is exhibiting better-than-expected growth. While the Fed had been expected to start cutting rates later this year, economists are now worried that the central bank may feel the need to resume raising rates for fear that inflation pressures will not keep easing.The rate action was supported by a unanimous 11-0 vote of the Federal Open Market Committee, the panel of Fed board members in Washington and regional bank presidents who meet eight times a year to set interest rates.At the previous four meetings, Jeffrey Lacker, the president of the Richmond Fed regional bank, had dissented in favor of a further boost in rates. However, he is not a voting member of the FOMC this year.The action means that banks' prime lending rate, the benchmark for millions of consumer and business loans, will remain unchanged at 8.25 percent.

Oil above $58

Oil prices climb above $57 a barrelNEW YORK (AFX) - Oil prices rebounded above $57 a barrel Wednesday, extending Tuesday's spike as traders brushed off gains in U.S. crude and gasoline supplies and refocused on heating fuel demand and upcoming OPEC production cuts.Trading was highly volatile, dropping by more than $1 right after the weekly inventory report's release, and then rising again -- continuing the energy market's recent roller coaster ride that has seen the price of a barrel of crude oil swing from $61 to $50 and back up to $57 in a single month.The huge movements reflect traders weighing ample supplies around the world against the likelihood that demand will surge as cold weather returns and U.S. economy chugs along more robustly than expected, and the potential for OPEC to slash more production.The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries begins its second round of production cuts, announced late last year, on Thursday."Whether or not they comply fully, psychologically, it's still important," said Chip Hodge, an energy portfolio manager with John Hancock Financial Services.The energy market has been skeptical about whether OPEC was enforcing the reductions it's promised, but recent comments out of Saudi Arabia, OPEC's biggest producer and exporter, have suggested that the cartel's members are indeed decreasing their oil production.Light, sweet crude for March delivery rose 30 cents to $57.27 in afternoon trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after dropping as low as $55.75 and rising as high as $57.80.Brent crude for March delivery rose 16 cents to $56.55 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.Nymex heating oil futures for February rose 1.71 cent to $1.6551 a gallon, while February gasoline futures fell 1.88 cent to $1.5025 a gallon. The contracts expire on Wednesday.Meanwhile, natural gas futures fell 10 cents to $7.635 per 1,000 cubic feet.The choppy trading followed huge price jumps on Tuesday. Crude oil traded as high as $57.05 before settling at $56.97 a barrel, a gain of $2.96. Natural gas had soared more than 80 cents, or 11.6 percent, on forecasts that predict temperatures will dip below freezing in the U.S. Midwest, the heart of the natural gas market.On Wednesday, the Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that crude oil inventories rose last week by 2.7 million barrels to 324.9 million barrels.Gasoline inventories rose by 3.8 million barrels to 224.6 million barrels, while distillate inventories -- which include heating oil and diesel fuel -- fell by 2.6 million barrels to 140.0 million barrels. A decrease in heating oil surpassed a small increase in diesel fuel.The results were close to what most traders were expecting, and reaffirmed the belief that U.S. supplies of crude and gasoline remain abundant, but recent cold weather has been eating into heating fuel supplies.Colder-than-normal temperatures are expected through mid-February in the U.S. Northeast, which is responsible for 80 percent of the country's heating oil consumption.The EIA said Wednesday that residential heating oil prices rose for the first time in six weeks in the period ending Jan. 29. The average residential heating oil price increased by 2.7 cents per gallon last week to reach 236.0 cents per gallon -- which is 10.1 cents lower than last year at this time.

US GDP for 4th quarter comes in 3.5% ( above expectations) but chicago pmi falls short

BULLET: US DATA: Jan Chicago PM index was 48.8 vs 51.6 in....US DATA: Jan Chicago PM index was 48.8 vs 51.6 in Dec and expectations for a gain. Prices paid were 54.9. New orders were 46.3, production 53.2, and employment 42.8, inventories 41.9.Provided by: Market News International

Daily paper round up from Sharecrazy!

http://www.sharecrazy.com/dailies/paper/index.html

Nymex crude settles @56.97

NEW YORK (AFX) - Oil prices settled just below $57 a barrel Tuesday -- a gain of almost $3 -- and natural gas soared more than 11 percent on expectations of more Arctic weather in the U.S.Renewed concerns about OPEC production cuts also bolstered oil prices.Light, sweet crude for March delivery jumped $2.96 to settle at $56.97 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices reached as high as $57.05 during trading before falling back.March Brent crude at London's ICE Futures exchange settled at $56.39 a barrel, up $2.71.Meanwhile, natural gas soared more than 80 cents, or 11.6 percent, to settle at $7.740 per 1,000 cubic feet on the Nymex."People were digging their spurs into it. This is just a lot of people running to get out of the way of the rally," said Tim Evans, energy analyst at Citigroup Global Markets "There wasn't a lot of foresight, not a lot of calculation to it. It's just a reaction to the cold weather."Seven-day forecasts on Tuesday predicted temperatures to dip below zero in the Midwest, the heart of the natural gas market, said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Alaron Trading Corp. in Chicago."That's just driving the natural gas market up dramatically," Flynn said. "And it's leading the way up."Colder-than-normal temperatures are also expected through mid-February in the Northeast, which is responsible for 80 percent of the country's heating oil consumption. Heating oil rose nearly 9 cents to settle at $1.6380 a gallon.Crude oil also received a boost Tuesday from a Wall Street Journal report that said Saudi Arabia has told its customers it will cut supply by a further 158,000 barrels a day, effective Feb. 1."After these cuts, our oil production will have declined by about 1 million barrels a day since last summer," a senior official said, according to the newspaper."It seems a cartel has a right to change its mind," Flynn said. "Yesterday, Saudi Arabia says it's happy with $50-a-barrel oil, then today there's a report on the Saudi's cut in production. It's a day of contradictions."On Monday, prices fell by more than $1 to settle at $54.01 barrel after a Saudi official reiterated that they don't favor further production cuts and are comfortable with prices at current levels, according to a Dow Jones newswire report. The Saudi Arabia ambassador to the U.S., Turki al Faisal Saudi, was speaking at a National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce event.The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said it would begin cutting production by 1.2 million barrels a day in November but some traders have speculated that a few cartel members were not complying. The group said late last year it planned to cut production an additional 500,000 barrels a day starting Feb. 1. Saudi Arabia is OPEC's biggest producer.The markets are also looking ahead to the weekly report on U.S. inventories on Wednesday.U.S. crude imports are expected to have risen by 1.2 million barrels in the week ended Jan. 26, according to a survey of analysts by Dow Jones Newswires. Gasoline stockpiles are expected to gain 1.6 million barrels, while distillate stockpiles, which include heating oil and diesel, are seen falling by 2.6 million barrels.In other Nymex trading, gasoline futures rose 8 cents to settle at $1.5213 a gallon.

Saudi..

Energy: From FTN: "Saudi Arabia will cut crude output by an additional 158k barrels per day starting February 1. After these cuts, Saudi output will be down by about 1 million barrels per day since last summer. Still, crude oil inventories are close to a nine-year high. Some of the increase in supply is the result of warm weather, but some reflects slower economic growth. After all, inventories bottomed in 2004, and the warm streak only goes back to November of this year. Because demand is falling due to slower economic growth, supply reductions will boost the price of oil but will also result in still slower economic growth. In a way, the Saudis have tightened economic conditions for everyone."Provided by: Market News International

OPEC

OPEC: Reported comments from Algerian oil minister Chakib Khelil-- OPEC unlikely to cut production again in March-- Oil prices will stabalise at around $50.00. (Bbg).Provided by: Market News International

Mid morning news from ADVFN

In London, Kazakhmys led blue chips lowers, down 18 pence at 1,032, with weaker metal prices offsettng fourth quarter production numbers, which Credit Suisse said were the company's best so far.
Earlier, Kazakhmys said copper in concentrates rose 9 pct to 433,500 tonnes, while copper cathodes grew 3 pct to 407,000 tonnes.

In reaction, Credit Suisse said despite the strong production figures, it is cutting its price target to 1,300 pence from 1,500p to reflect the recent fall in copper prices.
Sector peers fell in sympathy, further hit by declines in commodity prices overnight, with copper losing 4 pct and weak numbers from US peer Phelps Dodge yesterday.
Xstrata lost 29 pence at 2,295, BHP fell 12 pence to 928, Vedanta was down 13 pence at 1,117, Anglo American eased 24 pence at 2,341 and Rio Tinto was down 22 pence at 2,658.
Oil majors also weighed as crude prices failed to make much headway following steep falls yesterday, with investors waiting tomorrow's US stockpile data.
Earlier this morning, the New York Mercantile Exchange's main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in March, was up 0.09 usd at 54.10 usd.
Sentiment was further knocked as Morgan Stanley cut its price target on BP to 610 pence from 685 and on Royal Dutch Shell to 1,825 pence from 2,030.
BP shed 3 pence to 535-1/2, Royal Dutch Shell was down 11 pence at 1,704, and BG was off 2 pence at 663-1/2.

Saudi Arabia to cut oil output to raise prices - report

LONDON (AFX) - Saudi Arabia, which already has aggressively shaved its oil output in a battle to shore up prices, will reduce production by another 158,000 barrels per day from Thursday and more cuts are on the way, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing an unnamed senior Saudi official.The latest cut means Saudi Arabia will have reduced production by about 1 mln barrels per day in the past six months, the report said.The Saudi official couldn't be precise about the country's output after the reduction this week but said that it would be "around 8.5 million barrels a day."The reductions, part of a broader OPEC campaign, are intended to shrink inventories of oil that had ballooned last year as demand growth for petroleum faltered, The Journal said. The Saudi cut is seen as an aggressive move to keep the price of the US benchmark crude above 55 usd a barrel, the report said, citing Roger Diwan, an analyst at PFC Energy, a Washington industry consultancy.Word of the Saudi move to further trim output comes as traders are trying to learn if OPEC is going to cut its production in line with its announced plans, the Journal said, noting OPEC's members often produce more than they have pledged.Saudi Arabia's reduction is nearly double the total cuts it agreed to make under two output accords hammered out at OPEC at meetings in October and December, the WSJ said. The 10 OPEC members that committed to the cuts were producing about 27.5 mln barrels a day in September, the Journal said, and if the agreed-upon cuts are fully implemented, output would drop to 25.8 mln barrels a day in a global oil market of about 85 mln barrels a day.

Credit Suisse's Bhutani Switches From Metals to Oil in Top Fund

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=af9OuXxKJLAg&refer=europe

BP

BP's joint venture in Russia has been found guilty of breaking the terms of its licence to exploit one of the world's biggest natural gas fields, endangering its stake in the flagship project. Rosprirodnadzor, Russia's environmental watchdog, is reported to have officially concluded that the Anglo-Russian joint venture TNK-BP has under-exploited the giant $2bn Kovykta gas field in Siberia, writes the Independent.

Article from fool.co.uk with reference to VPC

http://www.fool.co.uk/news/investing/investing-strategy/2007/01/29/contango-anyone.aspx

VPC buying back it's own shares

Venture Production PLC - Venture Production - Purchase Of Own Equity Shares
RNS Number:3202Q
Venture Production PLC
29 January 2007
Venture Production plc (the 'Company')

Purchase of Own Equity Shares

Venture Production plc announces that on 26 January 2007 it purchased 292,907
ordinary shares of 0.4 pence each at a price of 724.6892 pence each. The shares
so purchased will be held as treasury shares.

Following this transaction the Company holds 3,343,503 ordinary shares in
treasury and has 130,152,790 ordinary shares in issue, excluding treasury
shares.

Venture production

Venture Avoids Taxman After Record Year for Output
2007-01-29Herald, The; Glasgow (UK)

By MARK WILLIAMSON
VENTURE Production said it enjoyed a record year in 2006 helped by a big increase in production, but confirmed it did not expect to pay a penny in tax on its earnings. The Aberdeen oil and gas independent, which endured a turbulent spell following production disappointments earlier in the decade, enjoyed a 50per cent increase in output helped by bringing fields onstream and strengthened by acquisitions. In a year of strong oil and gas prices, the growth had a dramatic effect on earnings at Venture, helping the company pass a significant landmark. The company, which was set up to scavenge for so-called "stranded assets" in which bigger fish did not want to invest, generated significantly more cash than it needed to pay to fund huge investment in developing fields for the first time. "2006 was a record year for Venture and we have continued to make great progress in increasing both production and reserves, " said chief executive, Mike Wagstaff. "As we enter 2007, activity is at record levels despite the tight market for equipment and services and we are confident that the momentum that we have established will continue." Although Venture is focused 100per cent on the North Sea, the company confirmed that Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown's decision to raise the premium payable on North Sea profits from 10per cent to 20per cent from last April had no effect on the firm. Brown's move outraged industry leaders. However, Venture has benefited from other changes made by him in previous years, particularly the decision in 2002 to allow operation and production companies to claim tax relief on 100per cent of investment spending in the first year, rather than claiming it over four. InSeptember, after announcing that it swung from a pre-tax loss of GBP5.9m to a profit of GBP97.7m in the six months ended June 30, Venture said it probably would not have to pay any tax on its 2006 profits. In a trading update yesterday Venture said: "The 2006 tax charge is not expected to result in a cash charge at this time due to the utilisation of capital allowances." Venture said average net production for 2006 was 44,706 barrels oil equivalent daily. The GBP153m takeover of CH4 Energy, the first company acquired by Venture, provided a significant boost to gas production in the southern North Sea. The company brought two new fields on stream and managed to reduce interruptions to pumping. However Venture said production and exploration drilling in the fourth quarter was hit by "unusually poor offshore weather conditions".

Oil hovers around 55

At 2.14 pm, oil is approx down 40c. Awaits direction from the US @3pm. Copper extends losses to over 3% along with similar fall for Zinc.

Roundup..Cairn energy shares weak (AFX)

LONDON (AFX) - Cairn Energy PLC saw its share prices slip as the gas reserves cut in Bangladesh and the still unresolved pipeline issue in India offset the UK group's plan to return cash to investors in the second quarter.Proved and probable reserves at the Sangu gas field, offshore Bangladesh, have been cut by 187 bln cubic feet to reflect the steady fall in production and the group's decision to re-classify some of the potential resources to the broader proved, probable and possible category.The reduction put booked reserves at Sangu at around 142 bcf, or 6 pct of Cairn's overall reserves, Cairn said in an operational update.The steady fall in Sangu's output is partly behind the 13 pct decline in the group's overall production in 2006 to 24,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day.Cairn will publish revised reserves figures alongside annual results on March 27.In India, Cairn has yet to sort out the pipeline issue with the state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp, disappointing analysts who are worried that any delay in the 340 mln usd pipeline project could further push back the 2009 start-up of the Mangala field, its largest oil find in Rajasthan.In the update, Cairn only repeated its earlier statement that talks between Cairn India Ltd, its 69 pct-owned unit, and ONGC are progressing and a resolution will likely be achieved in the first half. Cairn has already delayed first oil target at Mangala twice from the original late-2007 to 2008, then to 2009."Constructive talks continue. We're confident (the issue) will be resolved," said a Cairn spokeswoman, declining to comment on media reports in India claiming the pair have agreed to jointly build the pipeline, with Cairn taking the lead with a 70 pct stake and ONGC holding the remaining 30 pct.The Sangu reserves and pipeline news kept Cairn shares weak, offsetting the group's decision to distribute part of the proceeds from the Cairn India's initial share sale to shareholders in the second quarter.The offer raised 1.9 bln usd, about 600 mln usd of which will be retained by Cairn India. The remaining 1.3 bln usd will be returned to investors and fund various projects of the PLC.Apart from giving a timeline, Cairn failed to say how much it hopes to return to investors and in what form the cash will be paid (i.e. dividends or share buybacks).At 12.08 pm, Cairn shares were off 7 at 1,693 pence.Investec Securities, in a note, called the trading statement "uninspiring" and has placed its 19 stg net asset value for the shares under review following the reserves downgrade."Rajasthan rumbles on, but still no definite detail on the pipeline and the Q2 cash return to shareholders," it said, adding it kept a 'hold' on the stock.The additional oil discovery in Rajasthan could have been a 'bright spot' in the update, but analysts found the flow rate too small to get them excited about it.The latest find in Rajasthan was located in Shakti North East, located 6 kilometres north-east of the Shakti-1 discovery.The well, known as Shakti-NE-1, encountered about "six metres of net pay of oil". It flowed about 83 barrels of oil per day, Cairn said.

Oil softer but propped up by cold weather, fresh Iranian tensions UPDATE

Updates prices, adds details LONDON (AFX) - Oil was a touch softer, with falls limited by expectations of more freezing temperatures in the US Northeast and as political tensions in Iran re-emerged.At 11.56 am in London, front-month Brent North Sea crude contracts for March delivery were down 37 cents at 54.92 usd a barrel, after rising 1.17 usd to settle at 55.29 usd on Friday.Meanwhile, front-month New York light sweet crude contracts for March delivery dropped 32 cents to 55.09 usd a barrel, after rising 1.19 usd to close at 55.42 usd on Friday.Global Insight senior energy analyst Simon Wardell said while the supportive factors continue to prop up prices, further gains may be hard to come by."We've reached a level where its simply not sustaining itself, we'll probably see prices between the 50 and 55 usd level for a while," he said. At around 55 usd, oil has come a long way since hitting an all time high above 78 usd, which it touched in July last year. This year alone, prices have lost just over 10 pct of their value on account of a milder winter. Temperatures have turned lower over recent weeks, however, helping oil prices rise slightly. Private weather forecaster AccuWeather has forecast temperatures in the US Northeast, the world's largest heating oil consumer, to stay below normal for the next 5 days, lifting demand and limiting price slumps."We might see an impact of cold weather in the Energy Information Administration inventory report," said Wardell, commenting on the weekly stock report from the US, due Wednesday. Most analysts are expecting the report to show lower heating oil stocks this week as a result of the recent cold snap. Fresh geopolitical tensions from oil-rich nations Iran and Nigeria are also supporting prices. On Saturday an Iranian parliamentarian said the country had begun increasing its capacity to make nuclear bombs. Though this was later denied by an Iranian nuclear official, the statement will have no doubt brought the Iran nuclear issue back to the foreground, said Michael Davies, Sucden analyst.Further supply woes are feared from Nigeria. On Sunday militants from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta torched a police headquarters in Port Harcourt in the Niger Delta in an attempt to free one of their leaders, added Davies."Geopolitical tensions seem to have once again caught the market's attention amid heightened violence in Nigeria, that has once again increased concern about more supply disruptions in the country," explained Davies.

Metals- Copper sinks as stockpiles rise on LME

LONDON (AFX) - Copper prices sank after the LME reported yet another large rise in inventories, which have more than doubled since the start of last year.Falls were limited, however, by continued speculation Chinese buyers will return to the market this year after heavy destocking kept them at bay in 2006.At 11.15 am, LME copper for three-month delivery was down at 5,670 usd a tonne against 5,810 usd at the close yesterday.The LME said in a daily report earlier that copper stocks held in its warehouses rose by 5,975 tonnes to total 213,675 tonnes. Copper stocks are heading comfortably above the crucial 200,000 tonne level, above which they are no longer considered critical.However, Standard Bank analyst Michael Skinner noted that while stocks are piling into warehouses in Europe, they are steadily leaving Asian warehouses."The stock movement reflects our view that Chinese buying is on the increase and we look for this to continue over the medium term," he said.Chinese copper imports rose by an annual 59.4 pct in December. Traders speculate the sharp rise came as a result of consumer restocking.Chinese copper stocks were run down through most of last year as buyers stayed out of the market on account of the high copper prices.By the end of 2006, Chinese destocking helped knock copper some 30 pct off an all time high of 8,800 usd a tonne, reached in mid-May."With China reporting apparent refined copper consumption growth in excess of 15 pct in 2006 it seems the market may have been led into a false sense of security recently as destocking masked the real level of demand," said BaseMetals.com analys William Adams.

Oil stays well bid on cold weather AFX

Oil stays well bid on cold weather, fresh Iranian tensions LONDON (AFX) - Oil stayed close to three-week highs above 55 usd a barrel as more freezing temperatures in the US Northeast seemed likely and as political tensions in Iran re-emerged.Global Insight senior energy analyst Simon Wardell said while the supportive factors continue to prop up prices, further gains may be hard to come by."We've reached a level where its simply not sustaining itself, we'll probably see prices between the 50 and 55 usd level for a while," he said. At 10.20 am in London, front-month Brent North Sea crude contracts for March delivery were down 16 cents at 55.13 usd a barrel, after rising 1.17 usd to settle at 55.29 usd on Friday.Meanwhile, front-month New York light sweet crude contracts for March delivery dropped 14 cents to 55.25 usd a barrel, after rising 1.19 usd to close at 55.42 usd on Friday.

Oil sector erodes early gains

Oil sector gave up early strength this morning. Traders look sceptical about any further upside to oil price on back of cold weather. Oil may be at the top of it's near term trading range. March Nymex crude currently down approx 10c @ $55.30. Interesting to note similar weakness in base metals today also. Copper inventories build of 5975mt on LME this morning. Copper price off over 2%.

Mid morning news from ADVFN

Oil prices were higher in Asian trading hours, driven up by demand for heating fuel in the US during a bout of cold weather there, dealers said.
Light sweet crude for delivery in March was up 0.42 usd at 55.84 usd a barrel on Nymex.

Cairn Energy kicked off what looks like being a busy week with a trading statement in which it revealed plans to return cash to shareholders in the second quarter alongside news it has discovered more oil in its prized Rajasthan field in India.
In Bangladesh, however, the group said the proven and probable reserves have been cut by 187 bln cubic feet following further drilling on the site and a decline and production.
In reaction, Bridgewell repeated its 'overweight' stance, noting that although 2006 production of 24,500 boepd on an entitlement basis fell short of its forecast, management has renegotiated Ravva gas sales prices higher.

Cairn recovered from an opening fall to trade 10 pence higher at 1,710.
Fellow oil stocks were also higher following further recovery by crude prices, with BP adding 3-1/2 pence to 543-1/2 and Royal Dutch Shell gaining 7 pence to 1,726 ahead of its fourth quarter results on Thursday.

Across the commodities floor, mining stocks were also in demand as metal prices also recovered from recent weakness, with gold, silver and copper all starting the week on the front foot.
Lonmin gained 41 pence to 2,970, while Xstrata added 27 pence to 2,374 and Vedanta climbed 9 pence to 1,141.

Economic data look for week ahead

http://www.todayfx.com/calendar.html?gclid=CIGAqrOwhYoCFRRqXgodDlE2Nw

Latest news from OilVoice

http://www.oilvoice.com/m/Latest_News.asp

Company announcements for the week ahead

http://www.sharecast.com/cgi-bin/sharecast/story.cgi?category_id=0218

Weekend papers @ Citywire

http://www.citywire.co.uk/Home/Home.aspx

Citywire provides a roundup of all the news from the weekend papers!

An up day in store for Monday

I think Friday's weakness in the oil sector in picks like VPC and BUR was due to the fact that many traders aren't convinced by the strength in the oil price. Electing to stay on the sidelines and rather wait until Monday for a fresh look at where things stand. The oil price , however, managed to stay above 55. A reaction to the cold weather and the possibility that inventories ( distillates) will show drawdowns next Wednesday. The new home sales data in the US came in higher than expected too which was bad news for an interest rate cut in the US. However, one broker wasn't as impressed by the housing data and pointed to the 30 to 40% cancellation rate which alot of investors are overlooking. Sentiment in the US and UK mkt was downbeat on Friday... I get the feeling that any rallies this week in the oil sector could be short lived and are probably worth selling!

I created this blog as a platform to discuss the trading of UK oil shares. I would like to hear from other people interested in shares like VPC, BUR, DNX,BP and TLW etc. Oil managed to close over the psychologically important level of 55$ on Friday so we should see a bounce in the shares in trading on Monday the 28 Jan. The oil price was supported by the announcement to increase the SPR (strategic petroleum reserve) and the cold weather in the US last week. However, the oil price is looking volatile. Last week, we saw gains in the oil price of 2% during UK trading only for the gains to be reversed and oil to end sessions lower. Traders don't seem to be convinced by the recent strength in the oil price. Share price gains seem to be capped and rallies are being sold. Oil may trade between 53 to 56 on the back of this cold weather for the next few weeks. However, when the cold weather lifts we may see the bears take control again and set up another attack on 50$. Inventories in the US are still climbing and it seems that there may be a quiet period from the end of winter to the start of the driving season that would give the bears the ammo they require. I would like to use this blog as a tool to help investors dissect the market and to assertain what is moving the market and the share price of their chose UK oil stock.