Beijing restricted exports of two minerals—gallium and germanium—that the US considers critical to national and economic security because of their use in semiconductors, EVs, and other high-tech products. Companies that require these two materials are scrambling to secure supplies because when it comes to gallium and germanium production…China is the only game in town. The export curbs, seen as retaliation for the US’ moves to cut off China from important tech, were announced just days before Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen heads to China.
The energy sector has resumed the holiday-shortened week higher, supported by strength in the underlying commodities while major equity futures dipped on weak economic data from Beijing and as investors wait for the FOMC meeting minutes later today.
WTI crude oil futures are higher as extended production cuts by Saudi Arabia and Russia earlier this week outweigh demand concerns. Meanwhile, Brent crude oil is trading near the flatline as WTI catches up to Brent’s gains following the Independence Day holiday, which appeared to narrow the spread between the benchmarks. United Arab Emirates energy minister Suhail Al Mazrouei told reporters on Wednesday the recent production cuts should be enough to help balance the oil market. Additionally, Morgan Stanley on Wednesday lowered its oil price forecasts for the third quarter this year to $75 from $77.50 per barrel, predicting a market surplus in the first half of 2024 with non-OPEC supply growing faster than demand next year.
April shows lower US oil production, record gas output
US crude oil production reached a ...
US crude oil productionreached a two-month lowof 12.615 million barrels per day in April, while demand for crude and petroleum products slipped to 20.446 million bpd, the Energy Information Administration has reported. On the other hand, gross natural gas production in the contiguous US climbed to a record 113.9 Bcf/d in April, with Texas achieving a second consecutive month of output records.
New round of contracts awarded for SPR refill program
Four companies including Shell...
Four companies including Shell Tradingand Atlantic Trading & Marketing have won Energy Department contracts to supply a combined 3.2 million barrels of crude oil to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve at an average price of $71.98 per barrel, with deliveries set for September. The department plans to issue another solicitation for SPR purchases on Friday.
