December crude oil futures traded at $92.05 a barrel on Thursday morning, representing a 2% decline from last week’s levels.
 
Crude oil was overbought following a rally at the beginning of October, which saw the commodity soar 21% on the view that US stockpiles will continue to shrink. It is therefore not surprising to see a bit of a sell-off on the back of renewed eurozone woes. It is also worth pointing out that crude oil has managed to close above the $90 level over the past nine trading days, despite breaching this level once on Monday. This is a very bullish sign, although it should be noted that upside momentum appears to be petering out, so there is a risk of seeing a bigger pull-back should macro concerns continue to instigate a flight to perceived safe havens. Investors should keep an eye out for bearish crossovers on the standard Moving Average Convergence Divergence.
 
In the meantime, crude oil fell on Thursday morning as uncertainty regarding the Greek referendum and the suspension of European aid to Greece fuelled concerns of a eurozone breakup. Also weighing on crude oil was a soft inventory report on Wednesday, when the EIA reported a 1.8 million barrel rise in inventories in the week ended October 28. That exceeded expectations for a 1.4 million increase. Looking ahead, investors are holding their breath to see whether Friday’s non-farm payrolls confirm an improvement in the jobs market, following Wednesday’s better-than-expected ADP report. An encouraging report could revive the bullish trend in crude oil and narrow the gap between NYMEX and Brent.