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Wheat up for 3rd session on U.S. export prospects

U.S. wheat futures edged up on Friday, trading near last session's one-week top on expectations of strong demand for U.S. cargoes. Soybeans were little changed after two sessions of gains driven by concerns over adverse weather in Brazil and Argentina. FUNDAMENTALS * The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board Of Trade was up 0.2 percent at $5.14-3/4 a bushel by 0137 GMT, adding to Thursday's gain of 1.4 percent. Wheat was on track to rise about 0.5 percent for the week. * Soybeans steadied at $9.12-1/2 a bushal after ...

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A coal commission for India

In Germany today, there is an existential tug-of-war between the declining remains of a historic, deep-rooted and culturally significant coal industry and the country’s “coal commission,” (formally known as the Committee on Growth, Structural Change and Employment), which is slowly but surely setting targets for the phase-out of coal-based power generation from the country’s energy mix. The commission is made up of 28 members with voting rights, which includes trade union leaders, industry associations, academics, and regional representatives. This commission is a political settlement mechanism which will determine how and ...

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Oil Set for Biggest Weekly Gain Since 2016 on Saudi Supply Cut

Brent crude headed for its biggest weekly gain since December 2016 as Saudi Arabia’s production cuts outweighed concerns over the health of the global economy. The global benchmark is on track for an 9.4 percent advance this week, ending three consecutive weeks of losses. Prices rallied as Saudi Arabia reduced output even before OPEC’s cuts deal went into effect this month. Yet fears over global oil demand persisted ahead of further trade negotiations between the U.S. and China, where the central bank lowered reserve requirements for lenders on Friday to ...

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U.S. energy execs’ outlook sours for first time since 2016 – Fed survey

U.S. oil and gas executives’ outlook turned negative for the first time since the low point of the last oil bust, according to results of a survey released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. A survey of executive sentiment fell to -10 from 47 in the prior quarter, the first negative reading since early 2016, when U.S. crude prices plummeted to $26 per barrel. More than half of executives said they expect lower capital spending in 2019. Still, executives predict U.S. crude will end the year trading around $60 ...

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What Happened To Oil Prices In 2018?

As much for amusement as for education, the following stories chart perceptions of the oil price by month (with the actual price for the month in parentheses): January: Oil could hit $80 per barrel by the end of 2018, says portfolio manager ($63.7) February: [Investment Bank] sees oil surging above $80 in 6 months (62.23) March: Fed’s [economist] says the market is not appreciating the risk of an oil price spike (62.73) April: An Oil Price Rally Is Likely (66.25) May: [Oil company] CEO says oil price could hit $100 ...

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Outlook 2019: Nigeria’s desperate quest to banish oil sector inertia

Nigeria’s oil sector is in urgent need of entangling itself from the web of economic stagnancy, stalled reforms and a risk of rising militancy next year. Nigeria’s output will get a much needed boost with the startup of the 200,000 b/d Egina oil field which could take production, OPEC dependent, up to a decade high of 2.3 million b/d. But the country faces uncertainties around a volatile presidential campaign season ahead of its February 2019 elections. At first glance, oil production was a positive story in 2018. Output recovered to ...

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U.S. crude oil inventories decrease last week: API

The American Petroleum Institute (API) on Thursday reported a draw of 4.50 million barrels in the U.S. crude oil inventories for the week ending Dec. 28. In the previous week ending Dec. 21, API reported a build of 6.92 million barrels. Oil prices climbed on Thursday in choppy trading after separate surveys indicated crude output in major oil producers declined. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for February delivery gained 0.55 U.S. dollar to settle at 47.09 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for March ...

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Here’s What to Expect From Oil in 2019

Oil had a tumultuous 2018, with prices rising to a four-year high in October before plunging more than $30 in the following months. Oversupply and demand worries are high on the concern list for the industry, making volatility a buzzword this year as well. There are other power dynamics at play. OPEC’s Viennese waltz in early December was a perfect example of a shift, with Russia brokering a deal to curb output and sharing the reins with traditional leader Saudi Arabia. President Donald Trump’s tweets demanding lower oil prices and ...

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Refinery news roundup: First 2019 works start in Europe

Data is starting to emerge on 2019 refinery works in Europe, with news also emerging on industrial action. Unionized workers at Petrogal, the operator of Portugal’s two refineries owned by Galp, have been called to a series of strikes across December and January related to pay and working conditions, a spokesman for the Fiequimetal union told S&P Global Platts. For the Matosinhos (Porto) refinery and associated units, the dates were from 6 am on December 7 through to 6 am December 24 and then again from 6 am January 2 ...

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Chinese triad offers a tonic to battered markets

World stock markets rallied on Friday after China’s central bank moved to support its slowing economy, Chinese services data pointed to positive growth, and Beijing announced a new round of trade talks with Washington. Markets were buoyed by the resumption of trade talks between China and the United States and by encouraging surveys of China’s services sector. A slew of weak data had showed China’s economy was losing steam. China’s central bank said on Friday it was cutting the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves for the ...

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Yen edges back as Chinese confirm U.S. trade talks

The yen pulled back on Friday after China announced new measures to support its economy and hopes grew that upcoming U.S.-China trade talks would make some progress, although the Japanese currency remained on course for its best week in 11 months. The yen’s large gains this week, exacerbated by a flash crash on Thursday in holiday-thinned markets, were a stark example of investors’ demand for safety after stocks plunged and fears of a slowdown in China grew. On Friday, market sentiment improved when China confirmed that trade talks with the ...

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House Passes Spending Package to End Shutdown

House Democrats passed a spending package aimed at reopening the federal government, defying President Trump’s demands for border-wall funding on their first day in power. With a partial government shutdown approaching two full weeks, the House voted, 241-190, on Thursday night to approve a package that included six uncontroversial spending bills crafted in the Senate that would fund most of the government through September. To separate the feud over the border wall, Democrats also passed a stopgap spending bill funding the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the wall, through ...

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Bad News Barrage Dims Hopes Fed Can Deliver 2019 Rate Hikes

Federal Reserve expectations that it will be able to deliver two rate rises this year are being battered by mounting economic and market news that signals trouble for the economy. The Fed already was expecting the economy to slow this year after a hot 2018, and the rate rises it projects for 2019 are under the four made in 2018. But it now looks that even two rate increases may be difficult to pull off. Financial markets, by way of prices for federal-funds futures, have moved to cancel out any ...

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U.S. economy flashes warning signs of impending slowdown: Kemp

U.S. manufacturers reported the broadest slowdown in growth last month for more than a decade, as the trade conflict with China, falling equity prices and increasing uncertainty finally started to take a toll on the economy. The Institute for Supply Management’s purchasing managers’ index slumped by 5.2 points in December from the previous month, the largest monthly fall since October 2008. Manufacturers reported increases in orders, output, employment and inventories, indicating the sector continues to expand, but at a much slower rate than before, according to survey results published on ...

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Inflation Was a Bad Bet Last Year

Investors entered 2018 expecting strong economic growth to fuel inflation. A year later, they’re still waiting for higher consumer prices. Despite early-year concerns about rising prices that hurt demand for bonds, Treasury debt indexed to the rate of inflation returned less than conventional U.S. government debt in 2018. That’s because inflation hasn’t taken flight, even with wages rising at the fastest pace in almost a decade and unemployment near a 50-year low. Total returns for Treasury inflation-protected securities slumped in the fourth quarter to end 2018 down 1.4%, counting price ...

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