The ProShares UltraShort Bloomberg Crude Oil ETF (SCO) surged 5.07% during Thursday's pre-market session. The leveraged exchange-traded fund, which provides two times inverse exposure to crude oil, benefited from a broad decline in oil futures prices.
The move was driven primarily by heightened hopes for a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, which would reduce the geopolitical risk premium embedded in oil markets. Reports indicated that suspicious trading activity and large short positions in crude oil futures were established ahead of news suggesting the two nations were nearing a memorandum of understanding to end the conflict.
Additional factors contributing to the bearish sentiment on oil included the United Arab Emirates' formal departure from OPEC, signaling a potential shift in traditional supply structures, and South Korea's announcement that it will secure annual crude oil imports from Canada to diversify its energy sources. These developments collectively eased supply concerns and pressured oil prices, lifting the inverse SCO ETF.
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