WTI OIL JUMPS TO $78 AS MARKETS EXPECT OPEC PRODUCTION CUTS TO EXTEND INTO Q2

• WTI Oil jumps to $78, trying to break higher.
• Oil traders are seeing bullish signals as US macroeconomic data points to a recovery and OPEC looks set to lengthen its production cuts. 
• The US Dollar Index is back above 104.00, though it is unable to clearly break away from a pivotal level. 

Oil prices jumped on Friday, trading above $78 in the European trading session,  in what already has been a profitable week for Oil. Markets are on the lookout for confirmation that OPEC will prolong its current production cuts into the second quarter of the year. Although these production cuts are voluntary, they are a key factor in helping sustain Oil prices at the current levels. 

Meanwhile, the US Dollar Index (DXY) is trading in a very tight range despite the release of important economic data and a whole army of US Federal Reserve speakers releasing comments to the markets throughout the week. Tensions are building up in markets: While Fed officials talk about the timing for an interest-rate rate cut or the number of upcoming cuts, recent inflation data points to the possibility of a rate hike to counterweight the possible second-round effects in inflation.