Oil traders have shifted to hold a more bearish outlook on crude prices this year and into 2016, with data showing the number of sell options taken out at $40, $35, $30 and even $25 a barrel has jumped in the past four weeks. Benchmark U.S. crude futures were trading at $41.50 per barrel on Friday, not far off 2015 lows and more than 15 percent below levels reached after a rally starting in August had stirred market expectations that a price rout starting in June 2014 may be ending. [O/R] Now, Reuters data shows that open interest in put options in U.S. crude futures – which shows the number of unsettled deals betting on lower prices – has soared over the past four weeks. “The trend is your friend, and the trend is down. It looks very bearish,” said Oystein Berentsen, managing director of crude oil at Singapore-based […]