Tortoise Managing Director Rob Thummel in Bloomberg

Oil Slides as US Bank Collapse Stokes Economic Uncertainty

Oil prices whipsawed on Monday as traders tried to gauge how the biggest US bank collapse since 2008 will affect monetary policy.

Crude fell more than four dollars earlier in the day as investors fled from risk assets, only to recover most of those losses by around midday. President Joe Biden aimed to strengthen confidence in the banking system and prevent contagion with his morning speech, saying that customers at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank will be protected.

“The risk off trade was driving oil prices down,” said Rob Thummel, a portfolio manager at Tortoise Capital Advisors., “A little bit more certainty on the direction of the banks means the risk off trade is no longer happening as much.”

Read more here: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-13/brent-oil-drops-below-80-as-svb-failure-deepens-turbulence