Oil prices rally on US pressure on Russia, trade deal optimism
(Reuters) - Oil prices gained more than 3% on Tuesday...
(Reuters) - Oil prices gained more than 3% on Tuesday as President Donald Trump ramped up pressure on Russia over its war in Ukraine and on optimism that a trade war between the U.S. and its major trading partners was abating.
Brent crude futures settled $2.47, higher at $72.51 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $2.50, or 3.75%, to settle up at $69.21. Both contracts settled at their highest since June 20.
On Tuesday, Trump said he would start imposing tariffs and other measures on Russia "10 days from today" if Moscow did not make progress toward ending the war in Ukraine.
"We've amped it up. We have a hard deadline of 10 days," said Phil Flynn, senior analyst with Price Futures Group. "And there's a suggestion that other countries are going to join us."
Also on Tuesday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he had told Chinese officials that, given U.S. secondary tariff legislation on sanctioned Russian oil, China could face high tariffs if Beijing continued its Russian oil purchases.
S&P 500, Nasdaq snap win streaks as stocks finish lower ahead of Fed decision
U.S. stocks finished lower on Tuesday, with the S&P...
U.S. stocks finished lower on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both snapping winning streaks ahead of a pivotal day on Wall Street that will feature the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision, second-quarter GDP data and key earnings reports from megacap technology firms.
The S&P 500 was off 18.91 points, or 0.3% to end at 6,370.86. The large-cap index snapped its six-day winning streak, according to FactSet data.
The Nasdaq Composite fell 80.29 points, or nearly 0.4% to finish at 21,098.29, ending its four-session winning streak.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 204.57 points, or nearly 0.5%, ending at 44,632.99.
Earlier in the day, U.S. and Chinese negotiators concluded their latest round of trade talks in Stockholm aimed at extending a tariff truce that is set to expire in mid-August.
But later on, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said they would report back to President Donald Trump, who will make the final decision on an extension of the truce.
GeoSouthern, Williams Market Haynesville Gas Assets
Private producer GeoSouthern Energy Corp. is taking bids for its Haynesville...
Private producer GeoSouthern Energy Corp. is taking bids for its Haynesville natural gas assets, three sources told Hart Energy.
GEP Haynesville II, a joint venture (JV) between GeoSouthern Energy and Williams Cos., operates around 50,000 net acres in Louisiana’s Haynesville Shale.
Analysts estimate GEP Haynesville II’s coveted acreage could fetch between $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion through a potential sale.
GeoSouthern owns 75% of the acreage, primarily in De Soto and Sabine parishes, Louisiana. Midstream company Williams Cos. owns a 25% non-operated stake, investor filings show.
The two companies formed a JV in August 2021 to develop the acreage, which was prospective for the Haynesville and Middle Bossier shale formations. The undeveloped properties were transferred to Williams as part of Chesapeake Energy’s bankruptcy and restructuring process.
During a wide-ranging discussion with UK Prime Minister...
During a wide-ranging discussion withUK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, President Trump said he’d likely impose a 15% or 20% blanket tariff on imports from countries that have not reached new trade deals with the US, which is higher than the 10% that he announced in April. Trump also said he was “very disappointed” in Russian President Vladimir Putin and that he would give Russia 10 to 12 more days to negotiate a ceasefire with Ukraine or the US would hit Russia’s trading partners with tariffs, shortening a previous 50-day deadline. The president also called for the US to get more involved in providing humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, saying the US would “set up food centers” and asserting that there is “real starvation,” in contradiction to a denial from Israel’s prime minister.
Get ready for Warner Bros. and Discovery Global. Warner...
Get ready for Warner Bros. and Discovery Global. Warner Bros. and Discovery have gotten past that awkward phase of determining who gets to keep what after the breakup, with the company announcing yesterday the names and leadership of the two companies that will remain after it splits itself in two. The streaming and movie studio will be known as Warner Bros., with WBD CEO David Zaslav at the helm, and the cable television business (which also includes the Discovery+ streaming service) led by the current company’s CFO will be called Discovery Global. The company expects to complete the rupture, which will effectively undo the blockbuster 2022 merger that created it, by the middle of next year.
At least four people, including a police officer, were killed in a shooting in a Midtown Manhattan office building that houses corporate offices for Blackstone and the NFL, CNN reports. The shooter, tentatively identified as a 27-year-old from Las Vegas, was also dead, according to authorities.
Spirit Airlines plans to furlough 270 pilots, demote another 140, and run fewer flights this fall as it seeks to cut costs after emerging from bankruptcy.
A Massachusetts federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s efforts to bar Planned Parenthood clinics from receiving Medicaid reimbursements while the organization challenges the defunding included in the Republicans’ recently passed tax bill.
The Las Vegas Sphere will show a version of the 1939 Wizard of Oz souped up by a team of technicians and AI to fit its giant screen. The film screenings begin in late August.
