Oil prices are down roughly 20 percent from their high watermark for the year, reached in June, and the next steps could be dicey as a bear market forms. Crude inventories saw a surprise uptick last week, and gasoline stocks rose for the fifth time in six weeks. Sentiment has become bearish, and speculators have stepped up their short bets and sold off their net-long positions, signs that oil traders think oil has more room to fall. Oil prices are now at their lowest level in three months, and once again the month of July has been a huge disappointment for oil producers, many of whom had assumed that the rebound was underway. What is next for oil? Elevated inventories will take some time to be worked through, and oil production continues to exceed demand, although the magnitude of that surplus is up for debate. Goldman Sachs sees the […]