WTI crude oil is still on a tear, as prices have topped $80 per barrel and are showing no signs of retreating. Price is testing the top of its rising channel on the 4-hour time frame but might be due for a break higher.

The next upside barrier is around $81.30 per barrel, which is the full Fibonacci extension on the latest retracement. A move past this resistance level could set off a steeper climb for the commodity.

The 100 SMA is safely above the 200 SMA to confirm that the path of least resistance is to the upside or that resistance is more likely to break than to hold. The gap between the indicators is widening to reflect strengthening bullish momentum.

However, stochastic is already indicating overbought conditions or exhaustion among buyers. Turning lower would mean that sellers are taking over and might push for a correction to the channel support around $77.50 per barrel.

RSI has a bit more room to climb, so buyers could stay in control for much longer. Still, the oscillator is approaching overbought levels to suggest that profit-taking might happen soon.

Crude oil is riding along with other energy commodities that have been on a strong climb these days mostly due to the supply crunch in Europe and Asia.

Also, keep in mind that the OPEC refrained from increasing output in their latest meeting, despite strong pressure to do so. The cartel agreed to maintain their existing production deal of increasing output by 400K barrels per day until December this year.

The upcoming EIA inventory report would likely impact crude oil direction, with a large draw confirming that demand is elevated while supply remains tight. Still, even the surprise build reported in last week’s release was not enough to keep crude oil price gains in check.