Dow ends down 450 points as Walmart’s tepid outlook weighs on U.S. stocks
Stocks ended with losses, but off session lows, pulling...
Stocks ended with losses, but off session lows, pulling back after disappointing guidance from retail behemoth Walmart Inc. sparked some concern around the health of the consumer.
Walmart shares fell 6.5% on the day, weighing on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which finished with a loss of 450.94 points, or 1%, at 44,176.65. The Dow was down 677 points at its session low.
The S&P 500 gave up 26.63 points, or 0.4%, to close at 6,117.52, after back-to-back record finishes. The Nasdaq Composite shed 93.89 points, or 0.5%, to end at 19,962.36.
U.S. natural gas futures rose for a seventh consecutive session Wednesday,...
U.S. natural gas futures rose for a seventh consecutive session Wednesday, as the cold blast across much of the U.S. hikes demand for heating and freezes in some production, while forecasts show winter weather stretching into March with large storage withdrawals widening inventory deficits.
Data due today from the U.S. Energy Information Agency is expected to show a 187B cf draw from underground storage, leaving inventories at 2.11T cf, or 109B cf below the five-year average and 377B cf below the year-earlier level, according to a survey of analysts by The Wall Street Journal.
Technical indicators suggest overbought conditions, and physical prices likely will retreat next week as daily demand declines, Eli Rubin of EBW Analytics said, but "cold March weather risks after the coldest January-February in a decade are bridging bullish near-term conditions."
Front-month Nymex natural gas (NG1:COM) for March delivery closed +6.8% to $4.280/MMBtu, a new 52-week high and highest settlement value for the front-month contract since December 30, 2022; U.S. natural gas has surged 40% this month alone and 18% YTD.
Court ruling, EPA stance boost small refiners' RFS hopes
The US Court of Appeals...
The US Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit has issued a stay on the Environmental Protection Agency's denial of Calumet's request to exempt its 57,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Shreveport, La., from 2023 Renewable Fuel Standard obligations. Relief could be on the horizon for other small refineries as EPA signals a course reversal on RFS exemptions under the Trump administration.
Calcasieu Pass LNG on track for April commercial launch
Venture Global LNG has informed long-term customers that it expects to...
Venture Global LNG has informed long-term customers that it expects to launch commercial operations at Calcasieu Pass export plant in Louisiana on April 15, about three years after the facility began exporting cargoes. "These efforts now allow us to supply our long-term customers with the full 20-year contract term of the lowest-cost, clean LNG as promised under our contracts," the company stated.
Trump and Zelensky traded harsh words amid tension over Russia talks
Soon after the US and Russia held talks about how to end the war in Ukraine...
Soon after the US and Russia held talks about how to end the war in Ukraine without Ukraine present, a verbal battle erupted between President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky. It began when Trump accused Ukraine of starting the war, which dates back to when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Zelensky then told reporters Trump was living in a Russia-created “disinformation space,” saying, “I want there to be more truth in Trump’s team.” Trump responded by calling Zelensky “A Dictator without Elections” and lamenting how much the US had spent on the war in a Truth Social post that overstated the amount of aid the US provided.
