Oil Prices Spike For 2nd Day In A Row - WTI Is Up A Whopping 16% In 2 Days

Well, another day another oil price spike. After yesterday's 10% move (which left most analysts scratching their heads), oil is surging again today. WTI spiked up more than 5% Friday morning, taking the 2-day move to +16%.

Traders had expected profit-taking today after yesterday's big move, but it appears that short covering and the move in the broader equities market is providing lift.

Like with yesterday's move, there is very little commodity-specific news that can be cited as responsible for the lift. Comfort with the US economy and a nice recovery in Chinese stocks the past two days may signal that the demand fears that took WTI into the $30s are now being pushed to the back burner.

Volatility in the markets this week has been off the charts. The VIX index measures fear in the broader market by reading option pricing to gauge volatility. Crude oil has its own VIX-equivalent, the OVX, and it has surged this week, moving higher even in the last two days as oil spikes.