Bitumen futures, launched for the first time ever on the Shanghai Futures Exchange in October 2013, are seen as closely related to crude oil, from which they have been refined. They add to the good selection of commodity contracts available in China, helping the country’s efforts to influence global prices. More importantly, they have caught our eyes this week by closing at the highest price in more than a year, clearly above horizontal resistance at the psychological level of 2,000 yuan per tonne. This suggests an important base to the bear market of the past two years has been found, a slightly irregular double bottom, with a first measured target at 2,500 yuan. A break above the weekly cloud should add to bullish momentum.