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Oil prices ended unchanged today as early Azerbaijan angst sent WTI above $92 and some chatter from the Biden admin that draining the SPR was once again the table seemed to drag WTI back down (but $90 was support).

Investors have been looking past worries about China's economic growth and a sluggish economy in Europe to push the commodity higher amid ever-tightening supplies, as Russia and Saudi Arabia have each curbed production.

API

• Crude -5.25mm (-1.00mm exp)

• Cushing -2.56mm

• Gasoline +732k (+500k exp)

• Distillates -258k (-200k exp)

After last week's big surprise product builds (and crude build), all eyes remain on this week's inventory data for signs that demand is stalling. Instead, API reported a big (5.25mm barrel) crude inventory draw. Cushing stocks continued to drawdown heavily…

Source: Bloomberg

WTI was hovering at $90.80 ahead of the API print.

Shrinking supplies have ignited a flurry of predictions that $100 oil could return on a roster than includes industry heavyweights such as Chevron Chief Executive Officer Mike Wirth and traditional bears at Citigroup.

"Oil trading is a sophisticated game of Chutes & Ladders" and there are some hot spots that may take Brent, and possibly WTI, to $100 a barrel shortly, said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis at the Oil Price Information Service, a Dow Jones company.

The biggest threats to the oil rally continuing are "changes in fundamentals," said Troy Vicent, senior market analyst at DTN.

Finally, as a reminder, history shows that surging energy costs usually play a role in tipping the U.S. into recession.

Meanwhile, Russia is killing it…

When will 'The West' start fighting back against the price-cap-deniers? (Like Trudeau did today… until absolutely no one else joined him in condemning India).