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• Fed says it needs more confidence inflation is slowing before cutting rates
  Traders lowered their expectations for the Federal Reserve to begin cutting interest rates as soon as...
  Traders lowered their expectations for the Federal Reserve to begin cutting interest rates as soon as March after remarks made by Fed Chair Jerome Powell following the conclusion of the central bank’s policy meeting on Wednesday.
  
  March is probably not the “base case” for when the Fed might start lowering its benchmark rate, Powell said during the press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
  
  “Based on the meeting today, I would tell you that I don’t think it’s likely that the committee will reach a level of confidence by the time of the March meeting to identify March as the time” for its first rate cut, he said. “But that’s to be seen.”
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• House passes $79 billion tax-cut package; prospects in Senate uncertain
  The House accomplished something unusual Wednesday in passing with broad,...
  The House accomplished something unusual Wednesday in passing with broad, bipartisan support a roughly $79 billion tax-cut package that would enhance the child tax credit for millions of lower-income families and boost three tax breaks for business, a combination that gives lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle coveted policy wins.
  
  Prospects for the measure becoming law are uncertain with the Senate still having to take it up, but for a House that has struggled to get bills of consequence over the finish line, the tax legislation could represent a rare breakthrough. The bill passed by a vote of 357-70.
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• U.S. stocks log worst day since September as Powell dims hopes of March rate cut
  U.S. stocks logged their biggest daily drop of 2024 on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman...
  U.S. stocks logged their biggest daily drop of 2024 on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell pushed back on the likelihood of the central bank starting its rate cuts in March.
  
  The S&P 500 fell around 79 points, or 1.6%, to end near 4,846, according to preliminary closing data from FactSet. That marked the worst session for the large-cap index on a percentage-point basis since September, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
  
  It also marked the worst Fed day performance for the index since March 2023.
  
  The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed around 317 points or 0.8%, its biggest one-day point decline since December.
  
  The Nasdaq Composite dropped around 346 points, or 2.2%, its worst day since October. The tech-heavy index also recorded its worst Fed day performance since November 2022.
  
  
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• Closing Oil & Gas Prices
  Benchmark U.S....

  Benchmark U.S. crude oil for March delivery fell $1.97 to $75.85 per barrel Wednesday. Brent crude for March delivery fell $1.16 to $81.71 per barrel.

  
  

  Wholesale gasoline for February delivery fell 8 cents to $2.18 a gallon. February heating oil was unchanged at $2.81 a gallon. March natural gas rose 2 cents to $2.10 per 1,000 cubic feet.

  
  
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• Energy Sector Commentary
  The energy sector is off to a...

  The energy sector is off to a lower start, pressured by weakness in the crude complex and the major equity futures which dropped amid lackluster AI forecasts from mega-cap tech companies. In company news, Phillips 66 released fourth-quarter results of $1.3 billion or $2.86 per share; adjusted earnings of $1.4 billion or $3.09 per share; $2.2 billion of operating cash flow, and $1.6 billion returned to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. Hess reported net income of $413 million, or $1.34 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2023. A couple of rating changes were made by Seaport Research Partners in U.S E&Ps, and by TPH Energy Research in MLPs & pipelines.

  
  

  WTI and Brent crude oil futures slid 1% this morning, giving back most of yesterday’s gains on demand concerns as investors digested China’s manufacturing activity which contracted for the fourth consecutive month in January. Oil forecasts such as OPEC’s, expect China to aid in oil demand growth in 2024, however, traders are jittery amid the latest signs of a struggling economy.

  
  

  Natural gas futures are higher on storage estimates which point to a higher-than-average draw, despite forecasts for warmer temperatures. Consensus is looking for a draw of (202) Bcf vs the 5-yr average of (185) Bcf. This comes following last week’s reported storage draw of (326) Bcf, the third-largest pull-on record.

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