$85 Crude Is Citi’s Base Case as Demand Falls: Morse For much of 2022, oil steadily rallied as investors piled into bets that the world’s most liquid commodity would surge as inflation climbed. On Tuesday, the trade showed its clearest signs yet of unraveling. Brent futures plunged by more than $10 a barrel, succumbing to the third-largest daily retreat on record. West Texas Intermediate fell below $100 for the first time since May 11. Prices slumped again on Wednesday. Months of dwindling liquidity, alongside technical selling, and some producer hedging contributed to the slide. But the real driver was concern about a recession and aggressive interest rate hikes, undermining the idea of oil prices being a means of hedging against inflation. “Recession fears likely pushed some investors out of the oil trade as inflation hedge,” said Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS Group AG. Physical Holding There has been […]