Crude Oil Forecast Dec. 23, 2011, Fundamental Analysis

Crude oil prices rose on Thursday after dollar dropped and stocks gained amid signs the economy is strengthening, as the US jobless claims dropped to the lowest level since April 2008, and the US confidence came better than expected, together overshadowed slower than forecasted US GDP.

As the year nears to end, lights are about to fade upon the financial markets and we 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 traders will be mostly concerned about the latest development from the 17-bloc euro area.

The outlook for crude oil prices remains generally to the downside, as persistent fears from the EU debt crisis and signs global growth is slowing are likely to keep crude oil prices under pressure. Traders will 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.