Forget fundamentals for oil; We're back to fear

[Seleskya + 50]

Geopolitical risk is now back on oil speculator radar and looks set to overshadow the boring fundamentals. North Korea situation hitting WWIII fever pitch; Russia again an enemy (bit of a change in story there in DC) ... typical chaos in the Middle East, though we never know if THIS is the straw that will break the camel's back. All combined, looking bad for humanity, good for oil prices. Die-hard speculators don't really care, though. They live for the trading moment. 

[Carlsbad + 19]

harsh. I'm a trader and I still worry about geopolitics. Would prefer to live to trade another day. But I do know a few who really think it's all just a game, like they're watching the world collapse on Playstation. But fear--yeah. I feel it and it will drive oil prices right now, perhaps more than any OPEC deal could in one direction, or an uptick in US shale in the other direction. 

[TraderTate + 186]

what's geopolitics? 

[Marina Schwarz + 1,576]

1 hour ago, TraderTate said:

what's geopolitics? 

The greatest Playstation game of all time. 
Joke aside, I've always suspected fear is a stronger driver for oil prices than anything else. Who cares about fundamentals, when there are so many exciting things to worry about... Even though they do have to do with fundamentals, ultimately.