17Feb2022 Market Close & Major Financial Headlines: DOW closes Down 622 points, NASDAQ Down A Whopping 2.9%, S&P 500 Slips To 2.1%, Walmart’s Advertising Business Soars 130%, 2-Year Treasury Rate Had Its Biggest One-Day Drop In Almost A Month

Trudeau Having Difficulty Teaching Canadian Mounties To Goose-Step

OTTAWA—As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau continues his effort to impose authoritarian rule in Canada, he is beginning to face some challenges. . . (this is a news satire website)

Read more at: https://babylonbee.com/news/trudeau-having-difficulty-teaching-canadian-mounties-to-goose-step

Can Norwegian Natural Gas Solve Europe’s Energy Crisis?

Norways Equinor will maintain maximum natural gas production rates through the spring and summer to help the European Union fill its gas storage facilities, the companys chief executive said this week. The pledge comes amid continued concern about gas supplies into the warmer months of the year, which is typically the time storage is filled up for the peak demand period of winter. Last year, most of Europe failed to make sure it had enough gas for the winter, which sparked the gas crunch. Speaking to Bloomberg this week, Equinors

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Natural-Gas/Can-Norwegian-Natural-Gas-Solve-Europes-Energy-Crisis.html

Don’t Mess With Texas: BlackRock Confirms Its Support For Oil And Gas

BlackRock will continue to invest in oil and gas firms and is not boycotting the energy industry, the worlds biggest asset manager has said in a letter sent to Texas officials and trade groups after the top U.S. oil-producing state started considering dropping investors that it thinks are boycotting its energy industry. We will continue to invest in and support fossil fuel companies, including Texas fossil fuel companies, executives at BlackRock wrote in a letter, which a spokesperson for the asset manager confirmed to Reuters

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Dont-Mess-With-Texas-BlackRock-Confirms-Its-Support-For-Oil-And-Gas.html

Could Nuclear Power Be The Answer To Rising Energy Demand?

Between 2009 and 2019, global consumption of renewable energy grew at an annual average of 13.4%. Over that time, renewable energy consumption grew from 8.2 exajoules (EJ) globally to 28.8 EJ. Yet, global carbon dioxide emissions rose by more than 4 billion metric tons per year during that time, reaching an all-time high in 2019. The reason for this is that overall global energy consumption while growing at an average annual rate of only 1.9% rose by 92 EJ from 2009 to 2019. Renewables are growing at a much faster rate, but it will

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Alternative-Energy/Nuclear-Power/Could-Nuclear-Power-Be-The-Answer-To-Rising-Energy-Demand.html

Russia Is Ready To Send More Gas To Italy

Russian President Vladimir Putin has told Italys Prime Minister Mario Draghi that Russia is ready to deliver more natural gas if Italy needs it, Russias Ambassador to Italy, Sergey Razov, said at an Italy-Russia business forum in Milan on Thursday. Russia is the largest natural gas supplier to Italy. In December last year, a total of 41 percent of Italys natural gas imports were coming from Russias gas giant Gazprom, according to Italian news outlet Il Giorno. This winter, however, Russian supply to Europe as a whole

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Russia-Is-Ready-To-Send-More-Gas-To-Italy.html

What Does This Year Hold For Saudi Arabias ESG-Focused Islamic Bond?

Earlier this month, Saudi Arabias Riyad Bank closed a $750m sustainability sukuk (Islamic bond), the latest in a wave of high-profile issuances across different regions. Such ESG-related sukuk are set to see rapid growth in 2022, even while the broader sukuk market softens. Part of its ESG programme, Riyad Banks sustainability sukuk was an Additional Tier 1 sukuk, the first of its kind globally. It was 4.3 times oversubscribed, with demand peaking at $3.2bn. The launch followed on the heels of Saudi National Banks

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Alternative-Energy/Renewable-Energy/What-Does-This-Year-Hold-For-Saudi-Arabias-ESG-Focused-Islamic-Bond.html

Rising Lithium Prices Could Derail The EV Boom

As the price of lithium has skyrocketed over 400% in the past year, the demand for lithium-ion batteries appears more intense than ever. Lithium has earned the white petroleum label due to its dramatic need for supplies from the rise of battery giga-factories, electric vehicles, powerwalls and energy storage businesses. Battery makers including Tesla, Panasonic and LG Chem, have to budget for the rising cost of lithium. Batteries that go into electric cars require lithium. More battery makers will need to expand production to

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Rising-Lithium-Prices-Could-Derail-The-EV-Boom.html

U.S. Marine Reservist already charged in Jan. 6 Capitol riot case busted for fake Covid vaccine ID scam

The Defense Department mandated that all service personnel be vaccinated for Covid-19.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/marine-reservist-charged-in-jan-6-capitol-riot-sold-fake-covid-cards-feds-say.html

The ranks of these kinds of investors are poised for fast growth in the coming decade

Certain groups of U.S. investors, namely women and some new and affluent investors, are poised to grow in numbers in the coming decade, new research finds.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/ranks-of-these-investors-are-poised-for-fast-growth-in-coming-decade.html

Investing Club: Walmart’s full-year guidance signals near-term bumps but a stronger back half

While near-term growth at Walmart will be pressured, the longer-term outlook looks as strong as ever.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/investing-club-walmarts-full-year-guidance-signals-near-term-bumps-but-a-stronger-back-half.html

Bezos’ Blue Origin is building more rockets to meet ‘robust demand’ for space tourism, CEO says

Blue Origin CEO Bob Smith on Thursday said the company needs to build more of its New Shepard rockets to meet the demand from the space tourism market.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/bezos-blue-origin-building-more-space-tourism-rockets-ceo.html

Airbus CEO says hydrogen plane is ‘the ultimate solution’ but cautions a lot of work lies ahead

While there is excitement in some quarters about hydrogen planes, a considerable amount of work needs to be done to commercialize the technology.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/airbus-ceo-says-hydrogen-plane-is-the-ultimate-solution.html

Walmart says shoppers are on alert as grocery bills climb

The giant retailer said it has kept the number of sales high and is talking to vendors to hold down price, too.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/walmart-cfo-brett-biggs-says-customers-are-paying-attention-to-rising-prices.html

Ford’s Mustang Mach-E beats Tesla’s Model 3 as Consumer Reports’ top electric vehicle for 2022

The designation is further validation of Ford CEO Jim Farley’s belief the company can not only compete with Tesla but also beat Elon Musk when it comes to EVs.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/fords-mustang-mach-e-tops-teslas-model-3-in-consumer-reports-list-.html

Tesla CEO Musk accuses SEC of calculated effort to ‘chill’ his right to free speech

The filing comes more than a week after Tesla disclosed that the SEC issued a new subpoena to the automaker in November 2021.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/tesla-ceo-musk-accuses-sec-of-calculated-effort-to-chill-his-right-to-free-speech.html

With limited inventory due to a computer chip shortage, 82% of consumers are paying above sticker price for a new car

The average amount paid for a new car is $45,717, which is $728 more than the average manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $44,989, new research shows.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/more-than-80percent-of-consumers-are-paying-above-sticker-price-for-new-car.html

5 things to know before the stock market opens Thursday

U.S. stock futures dropped Thursday as NATO accused Russia of adding forces at the Ukraine border not reducing them.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/5-things-to-know-before-the-stock-market-opens-thursday-february-17.html

Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Walmart, AutoNation, Cisco and others

These are the stocks posting the largest moves before the bell.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/stocks-making-the-biggest-moves-premarket-walmart-autonation-cisco-and-others.html

Nestle CEO open to doing a ‘big deal’ after cutting L’Oreal stake

Mark Schneider told CNBC that while Nestle is not “compelled” to make any acquisitions, it is considering all options as part of its growth strategy.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/nestle-ceo-open-to-doing-a-big-deal-after-cutting-loreal-stake.html

Walmart tops quarterly estimates, backs long-term forecast as it focuses on value amid rising food prices

The retailer said it is focused on keeping prices low, as some shoppers get nervous about inflation.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/walmart-wmt-earnings-q4-2022.html

Bonds & Bullion Bid As Bullard & Blinken Bloviation Batters Big-Tech & Bitcoin

Bonds & Bullion Bid As Bullard & Blinken Bloviation Batters Big-Tech & BitcoinA renewal of old concerns – geopolitical issues, economic growth – sparked a significant risk-off stance today in the markets.

In addition to the chaotic geopolitical headline hockey from the US-Ukraine-Russia storm, the US economy may be slowing (jobless claims data jumped awkwardly higher, Philly Fed disappointed, and Housing Starts tumbled), just as The Fed’s Jim Bullard reiterated his uber-hawkish by calling for the rest of The Fed to come to his dark side or “risk the credibility of The Fed” itself.

Russia is establishing a pretext to invade Ukraine, according to comments by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the UN Security Council.

“This could be a violent event that Russia will bring on Ukraine, or an outrageous accusation that Russia will level against the Ukrainian government.

“Russia may describe this event as ethnic cleansing or a genocide making a mockery of a concept that we in this chamber did not take lightly,” he added.

“We believe these targets include Russia’s capital (or) Ukraine’s capital Kiev, a city of 2.8 million people,” he said.

Bullard said that Core PCE – The Fed’s favorite inflation measure –  “does not have the reputation of coming down naturally.”

“So we’re way on one side of the ship and I think we have to re-center. I want to re-center faster than some of my colleagues,” Bullard said.

“I think there is actually widespread agreement across fi …

Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/bonds-bullion-bid-bullard-blinken-bloviation-batters-big-tech-bitcoin

Stocks Are Caught In A “Reservoir Dogs” Standoff

Stocks Are Caught In A “Reservoir Dogs” StandoffWhile the core drivers of (very negative) risk sentiment today have been the re-escalation of the geopolitical tensions in Ukraine coupled with Goldman’s unexpected admission that “the economy may be slowing more than expected”, it is quite likely that all this could flip with just one headline out of the White House as we have observed on several occasions in recent weeks, when geopolitical sentiment reversed on a dime (although as Zoltan Poszar today suggested, a crash may be precisely what Powell and Biden both want to cap inflation, even though all a stock market crash would achieve is sending the economy into a recession).

But below the barrage of conflicting headlines, a just as fierce tug of war emerges when looking at the sharply polarized technicals, flows and dealer “greek” positioning, which are far more powerful and persistent than geopolitical newsflow.

A good recap of many of these forces comes courtesy of Nomura’s Charlie McElligott who, in his usual florid style, first looks at events earlier this week, writing that the rally which we have seen off the Monday lows was largely from the “squeeze fodder” of Dealer “short hedges” around the “biblical demand” for Index downside over the past few months (iVol absolutely collapsed by mid-week) as well as hedge fund dynamic covering in their recently grossed-up “short books” – as a reminder last week we noted that ac …

Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/stocks-are-caught-resevoir-dogs-standoff

Canada Freezes Convoy Bank & Crypto Accounts, Threatens Dogs; MSM Journos Dox Donors With Hacked Materials

Canada Freezes Convoy Bank & Crypto Accounts, Threatens Dogs; MSM Journos Dox Donors With Hacked MaterialsCanadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said Thursday that financial institutions have been actively freezing the accounts of people linked to the medical freedom protests in Ottawa, which has left an unknown number of protesters and donors in financial limbo, according to state-owned CBC.

Freeland said that the RCMP and other law enforcement agencies have been gathering intelligence on convoy protesters and their supporters, and have been sharing that information with financial institutions in order to restrict access to both cash and crypto.

“The names of both individuals and entities as well as crypto wallets have been shared by the RCMP with financial institutions and accounts have been frozen and more accounts will be frozen,” she said, referring to crypto exchange accounts.

Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/canada-freezes-convoy-bank-and-crypto-accounts-threaten-dogs-msm-journos-dox-donors

Stockman: “We’re Not Useful Idiots!”

Stockman: “We’re Not Useful Idiots!”Authored by David Stockman via Contra Corner blog,

We Are Not Useful Idiots!Honest injun. We’re not useful idiots here at Contra Corner!

We do think, however, that the entire Ukrainian crisis is a Washington-confected con job. And we came to that conclusion without relying on a single scrap of information peddled by Russki propagandists appearing on Strategic Culture Foundation or Zero Hedge.

Actually, we thought it up all by our lonesome! Well, we’ll grant we did have a fair amount of help from Google, which insofar as we know works for the CIA, not the Russian SVR (foreign intelligence service).

In any event, at the very center of the crisis is the Washington claim that the rule of law and the sanctity of sovereign borders are on the line in Ukraine and that, therefore, Russia must not be allowed to encroach a single inch into sacrosanct Ukrainian territory.

That is to say, it is not a matter of America’s national security interest in the precise Ukrainian geography, which happens to lie cheek-by-jowl on Russia’s border, but the very governance of the entire planet: Conform to the “rule of law” as articulated by Washington or get sanctioned, outlawed, pariah-ed, and even invaded, if worst comes to worst.

We hear this refrain repeatedly from Secy Blinkey and national security advisor Snake Sullivan. But we find ourselves doubled over with laughter each time, knowing practically by heart the list of coups, regime change plots, invasions and occupations Washington has foisted upon ot …

Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/stockman-were-not-useful-idiots

Post Office scandal: Ex-manager’s ‘skin turned grey’ from stress

Former branch manager tells hearing she had a “complete breakdown” after IT scandal ruined her finances.

Read more at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-60417979?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

Elon Musk says US is trying to ‘chill’ his free speech

The billionaire Tesla boss says his criticism of the government has drawn “unrelenting investigation”.

Read more at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-60420157?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

KitKat and Durex makers Nestle and Reckitt warn of price rises

Consumer groups Nestle and Reckitt say product prices will rise to offset higher operating costs.

Read more at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-60414915?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

Crypto tax in India spurs bonanza for digital-coin bourses

Binance-owned WazirX, India’s largest crypto bourse, has seen daily sign-ups on its platform jump almost 30% since Feb. 1, when the government unveiled the levy on the transfer of digital assets in its annual budget, said co-founder Nischal Shetty.

Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/cryptocurrency/crypto-tax-in-india-spurs-bonanza-for-digital-coin-bourses/articleshow/89643361.cms

LIC’s looming IPO weighs on India insurer shares, investors say

The government filed draft papers on Sunday with India’s market regulator to sell 5% of the company’s shares in what could be the world’s third-biggest insurance IPO ever and one of this year’s biggest Asian share sales

Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/ipos/fpos/lics-looming-ipo-weighs-on-india-insurer-shares-investors-say/articleshow/89640279.cms

135% upside target! Is this smallcap stock a multibagger in making?

The stock is undervalued, said ICICI Securities, which has a price target of Rs 563.

Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/135-upside-target-is-this-smallcap-stock-a-multibagger-in-making/articleshow/89632737.cms

The Moneyist: ‘He promised to pay them off’: My daughter lived with a man for 9 years. He took out credit cards in her name. Will she be held liable?

‘He is two months behind in payments to the credit-card company.’

Read more at: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B20C05575-04D4-B545-7961-D00E1642E55E%7D&siteid=rss&rss=1

Bond Report: 2-year Treasury rate has its biggest one-day drop in almost a month on renewed fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine

Treasury yields slip across the board Thursday as investors continue to monitor Ukraine developments.

Read more at: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B20C05575-04D4-B545-795C-617E773F3F37%7D&siteid=rss&rss=1

: Walmart’s advertising business soars 130% to reach $2.1 billion

Walmart Connect, the retail giant’s growing advertising business, more than doubled year-over-year to reach $2.1 billion, the company reported Thursday.

Read more at: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B20C05575-04D4-B545-7966-AE86643BAA27%7D&siteid=rss&rss=1