Friday, July 19, 2013

"WTI Tops $109; Surges Above Brent For First Time In 3 Years"

We didn't catch the entire move but did catch enough of the Brent/WTI spread narrowing to make a difference.
I'm down with the laurel crown but what the heck is  "Memento mori"?
From ZeroHedge:
For the first time since QE2 was announced (August 2010), the price of WTI Crude oil is now more expensive that Brent crude. The Brent-WTI spread has collapsed from over $23 in Feb 2013 and is now negative and notably below the long-run average level of around $0.98. At $109, WTI is the highest since March 2012. Gas prices - at the pump - continue to rise significantly reaching the highest since March, but given the lag to production, are set to reach well over $4.00 per gallon on average.

The round-trip from QE2...



Goodbye Old Friend: "End of the Line for Brent-WTI Trade"
The spread peaked at over $25 in 2011. Here are some of our 2013 posts:

Trading the Brent/WTI Spread 
An End to the Above-ground Oil Inventory Build
Expanded Seaway pipeline start-up proceeds, crude flows--Next Steps: Double Capacity Again, Watch WTI-Brent Spread Shrink, Saudis Cry (ENB; EPD) 
Brent-WTI Spread Narrows as Seaway Pipeline Readied to Move Oil From Cushing Bottleneck to Gulf Coast Refineries

Schork: "Demise of Brent/WTI premium might be premature" (EPD; ENB)
Schork Was Right (and a little lucky)--"Brent-WTI Surges To 2-Month Highs"

"Are They Never Ever Getting Back Together Again? Latest WTI/Brent Relationship Update"

"Brent - WTI Spread Falls to Six Month Lows"
"Brent-WTI Spread Drops to a 52-Week Low"
Brent-WTI Spread Drops to Another 52-week Low

Memories
Like the corners of my mind
Misty water-colored (with a slight oily sheen) memories
Of the way we were... 
Tank farms Cushing Oklahoma