Crude Oil Forecast Dec. 20, 2011, Fundamental Analysis

Crude oil prices yo-yoed between gains and losses on Monday, as traders hope the European finance ministers will announce an new crisis aid, while Asian markets were slapped hard over today’s session following the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.

As the year comes to end, lights are about to fade around the financial markets, where will accordingly see low volumes and limited trading as well before Christmas holiday. The sentiment will start to shape as investors stay cautious ahead of the New Year’s but will be mostly concerned about the latest development from the 17-bloc euro area.

On Tuesday, eyes will be focused on German Data, with the IFO index for business climate, current assessment and expectation, where projections are hovering around a drop in these indices and that should eventually affect trading.

Outlook for crude oil prices remains mostly to the downside, as persistent fears from the EU debt crisis and signs of slower global growth are likely to keep crude oil prices under pressure, where traders will also continue to monitor the developments from the 17-bloc euro nation and the European leaders’ latest moves to contain the debt crisis, where we expect volatility to persist over the sessions this week.