Learn about the oil market
Everything on the live dashboard — the ratings, the bias gauge, the session tags — rests on a handful of ideas. Here they are in plain English.
What Digging 4 Oil tracks
Digging 4 Oil finds every story that moves the crude price and rates it for traders. On a schedule, an AI analyst digs through the major wires and regional outlets across the New York, London, Asia and Sydney sessions, then scores each story three ways: an impact score (0 = no impact, 100 = strong impact), a bullish/bearish split for direction, and a horizon — whether it bites immediately or plays out over months. The dashboard rolls it all into one market-bias gauge for oil, alongside the WTI price (updated with every dig) and a macro calendar of the week's inventory reports, OPEC+ meetings and data releases.
What moves oil
Crude is the most news-driven commodity there is, and the six drivers on this site are the curriculum. OPEC+ & supply: cartel quotas, Saudi and Russian policy, US shale output — the single biggest lever on price. Inventories & refining: the weekly US EIA report every Wednesday (15:30 UK) is oil's heartbeat, alongside Cushing stocks and refinery runs. Demand & the economy: China's crude imports set the tone, with global growth, fuel demand and IEA forecasts behind them. Geopolitics: a fifth of the world's oil passes the Strait of Hormuz, so conflict, sanctions and shipping attacks price straight into crude as risk premium. The dollar and rates set the macro backdrop, since oil is priced in dollars. And the oil market itself — the shape of the futures curve, WTI/Brent spreads, positioning and refining margins. Watching how each headline is rated, session by session, is a fast way to build the instincts behind oil trading.
Oil trading FAQ
What moves the price of oil?
Supply and demand, plus fear. Supply: OPEC+ decisions, US shale, outages. Demand: China's imports, global growth, fuel consumption. The weekly EIA inventory report delivers a regular Wednesday jolt, geopolitics — Hormuz, the Red Sea, Russia sanctions — adds risk premium, and the dollar and rates set the backdrop.
What is the difference between WTI and Brent?
WTI (West Texas Intermediate) is the US benchmark, priced at Cushing, Oklahoma; Brent is the global seaborne benchmark from the North Sea. They usually move together with a spread of a few dollars. The price in the header is WTI, in US dollars per barrel.
When is oil most actively traded?
Crude futures trade nearly around the clock from Sunday evening to Friday night (UK time). Liquidity peaks in the London–New York overlap, roughly 13:00–17:00 UK time, and the weekly EIA report (Wednesdays, 15:30 UK) reliably brings a burst of volatility.
What do bullish and bearish mean for oil?
Bullish means pointing to a higher crude price; bearish means pointing lower. Every story here gets a bullish/bearish percentage split plus an impact score from 0 (no impact) to 100 (strong impact).
How are the stories found and rated?
An AI analyst scans major wires and regional outlets across the New York, London, Asia and Sydney sessions on a schedule, then scores each story's impact, direction and horizon from an oil trader's perspective. Ratings reflect a model's reading of the news, not a forecast.
Is this financial advice?
No — Digging 4 Oil is an informational news and sentiment tool. Nothing on the site is investment advice; always do your own research before trading.