Oil optimism slumps to 12-week low as price dips to bear market

Bloomberg

Hedge funds kept running away from oil as prices tumbled into a bear market.
They cut bets on West Texas Intermediate crude’s rally to the lowest level in 12 weeks, according to data. Optimism on Brent crude, the global benchmark, declined by the most this year.
WTI reached bear territory, dropping more than 20 percent from its April high amid escalating disputes between the US and its trading partners. Prices rebounded towards the end of the week as Saudi Arabia and Russia reiterated their commitment to supply cuts, leaving it unclear whether investors had made the right call.
“The zeitgeist of the oil market is that it wants to track the broader macro environment,” said Tamar Essner, Nasdaq’s director of energy & utilities. “A lot hinges on what the outlook for the global economy looks like, which really hinges on a trade deal.”
The net-long WTI position — the difference between bets on a price increase and wagers on a decline — fell 8.5 percent to 183,372 futures and options contracts in the week ended June 4, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission said. Long positions fell 6.1 percent, while short-selling wagers ticked up 3.2 percent.