It was a day of record highs on Wall Street amid fresh evidence that the world’s biggest economy is shaking off its Covid crisis. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 indexes closed at fresh peaks on Thursday, with the Dow also jumping almost 1%, after a renewed drop in US jobless claims. The number of [...]
Last week started well enough for the oil market. Brent scrambled above $70/bbl for the first time in two months. Alas, the positive momentum proved fleeting. A mid-week wobble consigned the two leading crude markers to their first weekly drop in four. Underpinning the angst among oil bulls was the runaway spread of the Covid-19 [...]
Oil market players are locked and loaded but still waiting to pull the trigger. Prices struggled for direction yesterday and ended little changed in the wake of industry data pointing to an unexpected build in US crude stocks. Those of a bullish disposition were also unnerved by signs of waning fidelity to OPEC+ production curbs. [...]
Yesterday’s main event was the inauguration of the 46th US President, Joe Biden. The ceremony was a muted affair because of the unprecedented security measures that had to be taken after the siege of the Capitol two weeks ago and due to the notable absence of the outgoing President, Donald Trump. His successor wasted no [...]
Those still doubting the current challenges facing the oil market need to look no further than the latest IEA monthly report, released yesterday. The agency revised down its forecast for global oil demand by 580,000 bpd for 1Q21 and 280,000 bpd for 2021 amid a fresh bout Covid-driven demand destruction. The resurgence in cases across [...]
Markets hate uncertainty. And we saw plenty of it on Friday. Oil and equities were a sea of red as a US-centric session added to the growing air of uncertainty. To begin with, stimulus hopes were dealt a blow as optimism for a breakthrough on a coronavirus relief package fizzled out. This came as fresh [...]
OPEC+ took centre stage yesterday as the group’s monitoring committee gathered for its latest monthly review. As expected, the producer alliance did not recommend any changes to the current agreement. Instead, the focus was on conformity to agreed cuts. OPEC+ kingpins Saudi Arabia and Russia pressed the likes of Iraq, Nigeria and the UAE for [...]
Trouble is piling up for risk assets. Sentiment was knocked yesterday by a trifecta of simmering geopolitical tensions, the raging COVID pandemic and disappointing US jobs data. Tensions between the US and China have risen of late after the latter was ordered to close its consulate in Houston. This set the stage for a tit-for-tat [...]
It is being fought on two fronts: central banks and governments against COVID-19 and Saudi Arabia against Russia. After the Fed and the Bank of England introduced emergency rate cuts it was the turn of the ECB. The European Central Bank will provide banks with loan and would increase its bond purchases by €120 billion [...]
The World Health Organization now describes the coronavirus as pandemic. It warns that more countries will join Iran and Italy that are already in the frontline of the disease. The announcement triggered a chain of events that sent investors in the financial and commodity markets looking for shelter. The new label will neither accelerate nor [...]
