Energy Markets

On Monday, global stocks rose for the second consecutive session as expectations of a December rate reduction from the U.S. Federal Reserve helped calm recent concerns over stretched valuations in AI while yields on longer-dated U.S. Treasury bonds fell. The stock market dropped last week, with the largest percentage weekly drop since early August. This was due to a lack of optimism about the prospects of an interest rate cut. Other factors included the impact of the prolonged U.S. shutdown on the economy and the lingering concern over high valuations of AI-related firms. Stocks rallied by the end of last...

On Monday, global stocks rose for the second consecutive session as expectations of a December rate reduction from the U.S. Federal Reserve reduced recent concerns over stretched valuations in AI while yields on longer-dated U.S. Treasury bonds eased. The stock market dropped last week, with the largest percentage weekly drop since early August. This was due to market pessimism about the prospects of an interest rate cut and the impact the prolonged U.S. shutdown had on the economy. There were also lingering worries over the high valuations of AI-related firms. Stocks rallied by the end of last week, after New...

JPMorgan predicted on Monday Brent crude to be $57 per barrel in 2027 and West Texas Intermediate at $53, while maintaining its estimates for 2026 at $58 and $54 each. Brent crude futures traded at around $62.54 per barrel by 1434 GMT. U.S. West Texas intermediate crude was trading for $58.08. JPMorgan predicts that global oil demand will grow by 0.9m barrels per day to 105.5m bpd in 2025. In a note, JPMorgan said that similar gains were expected in 2026 and then accelerated to 1.2m bpd by 2027. JPMorgan forecasts that global oil supply will outpace the demand. It...

Investors began the week with a positive outlook, as they took comfort in growing expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut rates by December. However, policymakers are still divided on this issue. The markets were preparing for possible catalysts such as the release of U.S. retailer sales and producer price data that is due later this week. Also, British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves will unveil her much-anticipated budget. Geopolitical events were also in the spotlight. The United States and Ukraine agreed to modify a proposal widely viewed as being too favorable to Moscow. This kept oil prices in check on...

On Friday, U.S. president Donald Trump and New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mahmdani both agreed that New York utility Con Edison must lower its rates. The Republican President and the new democratic socialist mayor met at the White House to discuss concerns about cost of living. Trump said, "We're going to have talk with them (Con Edison)." We have to convince Con Edison to lower their rates. Mamdani replied, "Absolutely." Both men were successful in their recent election campaigns when it came to the issue of affordability and inflation. The company responded to a question by saying: "We are excited...

Wall Street stocks shook in range-bound, but choppy trading on Friday. Rising hopes for a December rate reduction from the U.S. Federal Reserve was countered with persistent concerns about lofty valuations of tech companies. The tech-laden Nasdaq had a modest decline, while the S&P 500 had a slight increase, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was heading more decisively in the positive direction. The benchmark Treasury yields fell, the dollar remained steady and bitcoin was sharply lower. The S&P 500, the Nasdaq, and other world markets are on course to post their biggest weekly percentage losses since U.S. president Donald...

On Friday, the Russian rouble reached a five-week-high against the U.S. Dollar on renewed hopes for peace in Ukraine following reports of a U.S.-backed settlement plan. At 1130 GMT the rouble had gained more than 1.3% against the dollar and was 1.2% higher at 11,07 against the Yuan at the Moscow Stock Exchange. During the trading session the rouble reached 78.55 per dollar, its highest level since October 16. The rouble has strengthened despite U.S. sanction against Russian oil companies Rosneft, and Lukoil. These sanctions will take effect on Friday at 1701 GMT. The sanctions will likely reduce the foreign...

Oil production in Texas is on the rise. Mark Waters owns a shop that sells safety and tools to oil companies. In the past four to six month, Tie Specialties in Odessa in Texas has seen a drop of 25% in sales in the oilfield. Shelves are filled with power tools, wrenches and augers to dig holes. Pegboards display hard hats and gloves as well as various colors of overalls. This is my sixth boom and bust. I've seen it all. Waters, 65, said, "I'd call it slowdown but everyone I've spoken to says that the future for the next...

Gregor Stuart Hunter gives us a look at what the day will bring for the European and Global markets. It seems that Nvidia's profits could only smother a fire on the markets for a limited time. Investor confidence is still in ruins after the stock markets tumbled again on Thursday following a new sell-off of tech shares on Wall Street. Investors are alerted on Friday following the explicit threat from Japanese Finance Minister Satsukikatayama, that an intervention in the FX market could be imminent. This was before the announcement of the lavish $135 billion stimulus package from the Takaichi government,...

Oil prices dropped 1.5% on the Friday, continuing a downward trend for the third consecutive session. The United States was pushing for a Russia/Ukraine agreement that could increase global supply while investors were hesitant about its rate reductions. Brent crude futures dropped 93 cents or 1.5% to $62.45 per barrel at 0416 GMT after falling 0.2% the previous session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate fell 1.7% or 98 cents to $58.02 per barrel after ending the previous session down 0.5%. The two contracts will fall by more than 2.5% on the back of concerns about oversupply, wiping out most of last...

Oil prices dropped on Thursday, as U.S. president Donald Trump's administration pressed Ukraine to accept a peace deal with Russia that would end a three-year war. Brent crude futures fell 32 cents or 0.5% to $63.19 per barrel at 11:54 AM CDT (1754 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude Futures dropped 47 cents or 0.79% to $58.97. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Wednesday that the U.S. crude oil supply was lower than expected. This led to a rebound in both benchmarks on Thursday. The U.S. and Russia peace proposal includes the concession of Ukrainian territory to Russia as well...

On Thursday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an agreement from the Climate summit COP30 Some have called for clarification on the controversial subject of weaning off the world. fossil fuels The Belem summit, in Brazil's Amazonian city, missed the self-imposed deadline of Wednesday to reach agreement between the 200+ countries that were present. This included issues such as how to increase climate financing and move away from fossil fuels. Guterres said at a summit press conference: "I welcome the calls for a just and fair transition mechanism, as well as the growing coalition that is calling for clarity in...

Investors began a week of events on a positive note on Monday as they took comfort in the growing expectation that the Federal Reserve will cut rates by December, even though policymakers are divided on such a move. The markets are preparing for possible catalysts. These include the release of U.S. retailer sales and producer price data, due later this week. Meanwhile, British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves will unveil her much-anticipated budget on Wednesday. Geopolitical events are also a focus. The U.S., Ukraine and other countries are working on a plan that will end the conflict with Russia. They have...

Investors began a week of events on a positive note on Monday as they took comfort in the growing expectation that the Federal Reserve will cut rates by December, even though policymakers are divided on such a move. The markets were preparing for possible catalysts. These included the release of U.S. retailer sales and producer price data, due later this week. In addition, British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves will also be releasing her highly anticipated Budget. After the United States, Ukraine and other countries announced that they had developed a "refined and updated peace framework" in order to end the...

By Anna Szymanski LONDON (November 21) What Mike Dolan, the ROI team and I are looking forward to reading, watching and listening to this weekend. The Nvidia boost was short-lived. The U.S. equity market fell on Thursday, despite an initial rally. Both the Nasdaq index and Dow recorded +1,000 points from the peak to the trough. The Nasdaq, which is dominated by tech stocks, saw its largest intraday movement since April's tariff tantrum. Nvidia's $57 billion record third quarter revenue, and its rosy outlook did not calm fears of an AI bubble. Jamie McGeever, ROI's markets columnist, explains that the...

European shares dropped on Friday as traders worried about the valuations of tech stocks. The U.S. employment data showed a mixed picture. This added to the traders' insecurity and diminished hopes that Federal Reserve would cut rates this year. Wall Street was led lower by technology stocks on Thursday, despite a positive report from Nvidia about its earnings. Fears of a market bubble fueled by AI were not dispelled despite the chipmaker's good news. Investors continued to dump riskier assets during Friday's Asian trade. At 1007 GMT the MSCI World Equity Index had dropped 0.5%, and was on course for...

On Friday, a Japanese regional governor will be expected to announce whether he is willing to allow a partial restart at the Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear plant, which is the largest in the world, as Japan attempts to revitalize its nuclear sector while reducing fossil fuel imports. The approval of Niigata Prefecture governor Hideyo Haazumi will remove the final major obstacle for Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) in its plans to restart Kashiwazaki and Kariwa's two biggest reactors. TEPCO would be able to restart its power plant for the first time since March 2011, when the tsunami destroyed Fukushima Daiichi. This...

In October, China's crude oil storage volumes likely increased as robust imports from China and domestic production outweighed an increase of refinery processing. According to calculations based upon official data, China's crude oil surplus was 690,000 barrels a day (bpd), up from 570,000 bpd a month earlier. China's rate of adding crude oil inventories to its reserves is seen as an important factor for the demand for crude oil in the world’s largest importer. It also adds uncertainty to price forecasts. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, data released on November 14, China's refineries produced 14.94 million barrels per...

The price of palm oil in Malaysia rose by more than 1% Tuesday, marking the fourth consecutive session that prices have risen. This was largely due to the higher Chicago soyoil after China bought American soybeans. The benchmark contract for palm oil delivery in January on the Bursa Derivatives exchange ended 59 ringgit or 1.42% higher, at $4210 ringgit (1,012.02) per metric ton. David Ng, a proprietary trading at Kuala Lumpur's Iceberg X Sdn. Bhd., explained that the contract tracked gains on the Chicago soyoil markets today. Two traders who were familiar with the transactions said that China purchased at...

China is prepared to intensify cooperation with Russia on energy, agriculture, and other investments. Premier Li Qiang made this statement during a Monday meeting in Moscow with Russian Prime Minster Mikhail Mishustin. Li told Mishustin, the Russian official news agency Xinhua reported that China welcomed more agricultural and food product from Russia. Xinhua reported, citing Li, that China hopes Russia will also make it easier for Chinese companies to invest and operate in Russia. Mishustin said to Li that the bilateral cooperation has proven resilient in the face of external challenges. According to a transcription of the meeting posted on...

JPMorgan reported on Thursday that around 1.4 million barrels of Russian oil per day, or about a third, of the country's potential seaborne exports, are still in tankers due to the U.S. sanction against Rosneft, and Lukoil. In the first sanctions that President Donald Trump has imposed directly on Russia since his second term began, the U.S. gave itself a deadline of November 21 to end all business with Rosneft or Lukoil. The sanctions have caused Lukoil to struggle, forcing the company to sell foreign assets, and disrupting operations in Iraq, Finland, and Bulgaria. According to trading sources, the overall...

The market for liquefied gas is preparing itself for an increase in supply, mostly from the top exporter, the United States. However, it is not clear how low the spot price will need to fall to clear these additional volumes. According to commodity analysts Kpler, the global supply of super-chilled gasoline is forecast to reach 475 million metric tonnes in 2026. This represents a 10.2% increase over the 431 millions tons predicted for 2025. This figure is comparable to South Korea's total annual demand, which is the third largest LNG importer in the world behind China and Japan. Go Katayama,...

Several sources familiar with the situation said that Saudi Arabia will export to China at least 36,000,000 barrels of crude, a slight decrease from the previous month. As some Chinese refineries prepare for maintenance, and independent refiners wait for Beijing's 2026 import quotas, the expected drop in oil supply for the second consecutive month from the top oil exporter to world's biggest importer comes at a time when many refineries in China are preparing for maintenance. Sources said that one of the Chinese buyers has reduced their December volume because they have already lifted the majority of their full-year contract...

According to a draft version of the stimulus package presented by premier Sanae Takaichi on Wednesday, Japan's government is expected to pledge to increase its spending "without hesitation" in order to help an economy that's on the verge of emerging from stagnation. The draft doesn't mention how much money will be spent, but it does call for "bold strategic" investments in growth and crisis management areas. This is a clear indication that the package will include hefty spending. The draft said that the government would spend "boldly and without hesitation" on the necessary policies. Drafts of the package showed that...