What's Behind Crude Oil's Jump to $81?

After hitting yet another record closing high in regular trading, crude oil moved to above the $81 level Monday evening.

What's behind the move? The modest OPEC output increase is seen as a primary driver in concert with ongoing strong demand worldwide. 500 thousand barrels per day extra from the OPECers just doesn't cut it, especially in light of disappointing output from the non-OPECer nations. And let's face it, are new refineries going up any time soon in this country? That's a situation that won't resolve for a decade or more. No wonder the crude forward curve reverted back to a backwardation condition.

COT open interest was up for third straight week as well. The run is amazing, and as mentioned last week, there's a good chance we could see a range up to about $85 near term if the momentum continues. Technical charts show crude is looking overbought, so a short, but sharp correction lurks around some future corner. For now, though, the market continues to bid crude ever higher.