Rising Energy Prices Are Pushing Millions More People Into Poverty

The energy and economic crises of 2022 plunged millions into poverty last year, with many people around the world struggling to pay their energy bills and contend with rising consumer costs. While Europe and other parts of the world made it through the winter with enough natural gas to power heating, lighting, and cooking, ongoing energy shortages and rising prices are expected to exacerbate energy poverty over the coming year.  More and more people worldwide have been experiencing poverty in the face of continually rising energy bills, other…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Rising-Energy-Prices-Are-Pushing-Millions-More-People-Into-Poverty.html

Scrapped Railway Project Could Derail Putin’s Arctic Ambitions

Moscow’s ability to develop its own resource-based economy, expand the Northern Sea Route, cement ties with China and support Vladimir Putin’s ambitions to project power into the Arctic depends on the development of land-based infrastructure in the northern regions of the Russian Federation (see EDM, April 29, 2016; September 11, 2018; December 6, 2018). Yet, that ability has now been called into question, as the Russian government has canceled, despite Putin’s repeated orders to the contrary, a program to complete…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Geopolitics/International/Scrapped-Railway-Project-Could-Derail-Putins-Arctic-Ambitions.html

Ovako Continues To Make Strides In Sustainable Steel Production

Via AG Metal Miner Steel news sources report that Italy’s Capitiano Tailored Automation (AIC) has partnered with Pomini Long Rolling Mills. Together, the companies signed an agreement with Swedish specialty steels group Ovako to modernize the company’s Hällefors bar mill. In a February 9 statement, AIC explained the details of the contract. First and foremost, it stipulates that AIC install new electrical and automation equipment. However, they are also to provide main and auxiliary drive panels for the mill and coil handling…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Ovako-Continues-To-Make-Strides-In-Sustainable-Steel-Production.html

Uzbekistan’s Natural Gas Production Drops As Energy Woes Worsen

After gas shortages during an unusually freezing winter left Uzbeks shivering in the dark, new extraction data is adding to worries about the country’s near-term energy security. Gas production fell in 2022 to 51.66 billion cubic meters, down 4.1 percent on the 53.8 billion extracted the previous year, government statistics show, and 8.3 percent below Tashkent’s optimistic forecast of 56.3 billion cubic meters. The large shortfall does not bode well for Uzbekistan’s chances of hitting its ambitious target of…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Natural-Gas/Uzbekistans-Natural-Gas-Production-Drops-As-Energy-Woes-Worsen.html

New Copper Catalyst Could Pave The Way For Next-Gen Solar Fuels

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researchers have made real-time movies of copper nanoparticles as they evolve to convert carbon dioxide and water into renewable fuels and chemicals. Their new insights could help advance the next generation of solar fuels. The paper about the research has been published in the journal Nature. Since the 1970s, scientists have known that copper has a special ability to transform carbon dioxide into valuable chemicals and fuels. But for many years, scientists have struggled to understand how this common…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/New-Copper-Catalyst-Could-Pave-The-Way-For-Next-Gen-Solar-Fuels.html

Why Bank Of England May Keep On Hiking Its Interest Rates

Interest rates in the UK will have to keep rising to prevent inflation sticking around for too long, a member of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) warned today. Catherine Mann, who joined the rate-setting group in September 2021 as an external member, said at an event hosted by the Resolution Foundation that she does not think the current level of rates are “in a restrictive stance”.   Mann, who has backed multiple outsized rate rises to front-load tightening, said she is concerned a “premature loosening…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Why-Bank-Of-England-May-Keep-On-Hiking-Its-Interest-Rates.html

Rolls Royce Sees 57% Jump In Year-Over-Year Profits

Rolls Royce, the British aero-engine manufacturer,  unveiled profits of £652m in 2022, £238m higher than the previous year. The increase, which was driven by its civil aerospace and power systems divisions, also reported free cash flow of £505m versus an outflow of £1.5 billion in the prior year. Charlie Huggins, head of equities at Wealth Club, said: “It’s not uncommon for a new CEO to do some kitchen sinking. But when the incoming leader describes the existing business as a ‘burning platform’…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Rolls-Royce-Sees-57-Jump-In-Year-Over-Year-Profits.html

Why Is China Buying Up So Much U.S. Oil?

One of the most important bull thesis for crude in 2023 is that China, having permanently shelved its zero Covid policies, will unleash a global buying spree as the Chinese economy sharply roars back to life. On Tuesday, we got another indication of precisely that: Unipec, the largest oil trader in China and the trading unit of state-held refiner Sinopec, and PetroChina, the largest oil and gas producer and distributor in China, have both hired ten supertankers in March to haul US crude back to Asia, according to Bloomberg, citing people with…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/Why-Is-China-Buying-Up-So-Much-US-Oil.html

Oil Price Cap Is Working: Yellen

The U.S. and EU-applied price cap on Russia’s oil have “sharply” reduced the Kremlin’s income, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday at the G20 meeting in India. “We’ve continued to see emerging markets negotiate deep discounts on Russian oil which keeps oil in the global market but sharply reduces the Kremlin’s take. The way I see it, our sanctions have had a significant negative effect on Russia so far. While by some measures, the Russian economy has held up … Russia is now running…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Oil-Price-Cap-Is-Working-Yellen.html

Oil Falls After The EIA Confirms Another Large Crude Build

Crude oil prices fell today after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a crude oil inventory build of 7.6 million barrels for the week to February 17. This compared with a weekly build of 16.3 million barrels reported for the previous week, but since the size of the build was the result of data adjustment than an actual accumulation of crude in storage, the market largely shrugged it off. At 479 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are above the five-year average for this time of the year. In gasoline, the EIA estimated an…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Oil-Falls-After-The-EIA-Confirms-Another-Large-Crude-Build.html

The 13 U.S. States That Raised Gasoline Taxes For 2023

More than a dozen U.S. states raised gasoline taxes in the second half of 2022 and in 2023, and many states ended their fuel-tax holidays that were introduced in 2022 as a way of reducing the retail prices of gasoline. Gasoline and diesel taxes, which are applied at the wholesale level, were increased in 13 states between July 2022 and January 1st, 2023, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Thursday. Since July 2022, these taxes increased the most in New York State, rising by $0.088 per gallon for both gasoline and diesel, according…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/The-13-US-States-That-Raised-Gasoline-Taxes-For-2023.html

Iraq To Drop Dollar In Trade With China

The Iraqi central bank announced Wednesday that, for the first time, it plans to allow trade from China to be settled directly in yuan instead of the US dollar to improve access to foreign currency. “It is the first time imports would be financed from China in yuan, as Iraqi imports from China have been financed in (US) dollars only,” the government’s economic adviser, Mudhir Salih, told Reuters. According to a statement released by the Iraqi central bank, carrying out transactions in the Chinese currency would boost the balances…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Geopolitics/International/Iraq-To-Drop-Dollar-In-Trade-With-China.html

Germany Plans To Have The World’s Fourth Largest LNG Import Capacity By 2030

Germany plans to have as much as 70.7 million tons per year of LNG import capacity by 2030, which will make Europe’s biggest economy the fourth-largest LNG import capacity holder in the world by the end of this decade, Argus reports, citing plans by the German economy ministry and energy group RWE. Germany no longer receives Russian gas via Nord Stream, which was sabotaged in the autumn of 2022. Even before that, Russia had slashed pipeline flows via Nord Stream, citing Western sanctions that prevented gas turbine maintenance. Faced with…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Germany-Plans-To-Have-The-Worlds-Fourth-Largest-LNG-Import-Capacity-By-2030.html

India’s Fuel Demand Is Set To Rise By 4.7% In The Next Fiscal Year

Fuel consumption in India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, is expected to rise by 4.7% in the next fiscal year between April 2023 and March 2024, estimates by the Indian ministry of petroleum and natural gas showed on Thursday. India’s gasoline demand is forecast to increase by 7.1% over the next fiscal year, while gasoil demand is expected to climb by 4.2%, according to the ministry’s initial estimates reported by Reuters. Demand for all products—except for naphtha—is projected to increase over the 12 months…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Indias-Fuel-Demand-Is-Set-To-Rise-By-47-In-The-Next-Fiscal-Year.html

U.S. LNG Giant Sees Revenues More Than Double In 2022

Cheniere Energy, the biggest U.S. LNG exporter, more than doubled its revenues in 2022 from a year earlier as Europe imported increased volumes and paid high prices for gas as it sought to replace Russian pipeline supply. Cheniere (NYSEAMERICAN: LNG) reported today total revenues of $33.428 billion for 2022, up from $15.864 billion for 2021. Last year’s revenues beat the analyst consensus expectation of $32.7 billion. Cheniere also reported a net profit of $1.428 billion, compared to a loss of $2.343 billion for 2021. Europe attracted most…

Read more at: https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/US-LNG-Giant-Sees-Revenues-More-Than-Double-In-2022.html

Jamie Dimon says the Federal Reserve has ‘lost a little bit of control of inflation’

The JPMorgan CEO said he’s not currently breaking out the recession playbook because of the strength of the U.S. economy.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/jamie-dimon-says-the-federal-reserve-has-lost-a-little-bit-of-control-of-inflation-.html

Stocks close higher Thursday, S&P 500 snaps four-day losing streak: Live updates

Stocks closed up on Thursday as traders weigh earnings from chipmaker Nvidia and assess future potential Federal Reserve moves.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/22/stock-market-today-live-updates.html

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried hit with four new criminal charges

The new indictment against FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried includes new details alleged fraud at the cryptocurrency company and a related hedge fund.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/ftx-founder-sam-bankman-fried-hit-with-new-criminal-charges.html

U.S. will create at least two semiconductor manufacturing clusters by 2030, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo says

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said the U.S. will channel CHIPS and Science Act funds into semiconductor manufacturing clusters by 2030.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/gina-raimondo-says-us-to-create-semiconductor-manufacturing-clusters.html

Six-month Treasury yield tops 5%. Here’s how you can put your idle cash to work

Get a little bit of return on your cash holdings with this strategy.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/six-month-treasury-yield-tops-5percent-heres-how-you-can-put-your-idle-cash-to-work.html

Nikola’s fourth-quarter revenue falls short as it delivers just 20 trucks

Nikola said it made a series of changes to its battery-electric truck during the quarter in response to feedback from early customers.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/nikola-nkla-q4-2022-results.html

Feds point to overheated wheel bearing in report on Ohio train derailment

The preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board did not offer an exact cause of the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/ntsb-norfolk-southern-train-derailment-preliminary-report.html

Bitcoin sits below $24,000 for second straight day, and SBF faces new charges: CNBC Crypto World

CNBC Crypto World features the latest news and daily trading updates from the digital currency markets and provides viewers with a look at what’s ahead with high-profile interviews, explainers, and unique stories from the ever-changing crypto industry. On today’s show, Professor Yesha Yadav of Vanderbilt University Law School discusses last week’s hearing on Capitol Hill regarding why financial system safeguards are needed for digital assets.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/video/2023/02/23/bitcoin-sbf-faces-new-charges-cnbc-crypto-world.html

Alec Baldwin pleads not guilty to ‘Rust’ involuntary manslaughter, can continue filming amid criminal case

A New Mexico judge said that Baldwin could continue filming “Rust” with restrictions on how he interacts with witnesses in the criminal case.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/alec-baldwin-pleads-not-guilty-to-rust-involuntary-manslaughter.html

Ukraine war live updates: Russia and Ukraine accuse each other of plots and provocations ahead of war anniversary

The one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine takes place on Friday and we’ve seen geopolitical tensions ramp up this week in the lead-up to the day.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/ukraine-war-live-updates-latest-news-on-russia-and-the-war-in-ukraine.html

Wells Fargo lays off mortgage bankers days after rewarding some with California retreat

Some Wells Fargo bankers were successful enough last year to be flown to a resort in Palm Desert, California, for a company-sponsored conference this month.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/22/wells-fargo-lays-off-mortgage-bankers-days-after-rewarding-some-with-california-retreat.html

Retirees lost 23% of their 401(k) savings in 2022, Fidelity says

Retirement 401(k) account balances lost nearly one-quarter of their value in 2022, according to Fidelity Investments, the largest 401(k) provider in the U.S.

Read more at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/23/401k-retirement-savings-account-balances-sank-in-2022-fidelity-says.html

NTSB’s Initial Report Points To ‘Overheated Wheel Bearing’ As Likely Cause Of Ohio Train Derailment

The National Transportation Security Board (NTSB) issued a preliminary report on the derailment of a Norfolk Southern freight train hauling toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio, earlier this month, finding the incident was likely due to an overheated wheel bearing on one of the train cars.

NTSB released the initial findings from its three-week investigation after “five DOT-105 specification tank cars (railcars 28–31 and 55) carrying 115,580 gallons of vinyl chloride” derailed and were subsequently discharged through a controlled burn to prevent a catastrophic explosion. The spill and burn have polluted the air, water, and soil — residents in the small blue-collar town and surrounding communities have reported feeling sick while some pets and wildfire have mysteriously died.

“Surveillance video from a local residence showed what appeared to be a wheel bearing in the final stage of overheat failure moments before the derailment,” the report said. “The wheel bearing and affected wheelset have been collected as evidence and will be examined by the NTSB.”

Recall that we directed readers’ attention to this surveillance video over a week ago.

Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/ntsbs-initial-report-point-overheated-wheel-bearing-likely-cause-ohio-train-derailment

Parents Increasingly Move Back In With Their Kids, What’s Going On?

Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

Multigeneration households are on the rise. Let’s discuss several reasons why…

Pew discusses the Demographics of Multigenerational Households.

The number of Americans who live in multigenerational family households is about four times larger than it was in the 1970s, while the number in other types of homes grew by far less. The share of the U.S. population living in multigenerational homes more than doubled over the past five decades.

After declining in earlier decades, multigenerational living has grown steadily in the U.S. since the 1970s. From 1971 to 2021, the number of people living in multigenerational households quadrupled, while the number in other types of living situat …

Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/personal-finance/parents-increasingly-move-back-their-kids-whats-going

How US And Russian Nuclear Arsenals Have Evolved

Over 75 years have passed since the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and more than 12,000 nuclear warheads are still scattered across the world from silos in Montana to isolated corners of European airbases and even to the ocean depths where ballistic missile submarines lurk as a deterrent nearly impossible to detect.

Hiroshima was the first of two atomic bombings in 1945 and it involved a 15-kiloton device while the weapon used in the attack on Nagasaki three days later had a 22-kiloton yield. Modern nuclear warheads are far more powerful with the U.S. Trident missile yielding a 455-kiloton warhead while Russia’s SS ICBM has an 800-kiloton yield.

As Statista’s Martin Armstrong reports, together, the United States and Russia possess roughly 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons with a stockpile of over 8,000 between them, according to the Federation of American Scientists. This figure rises to over 11,000 when counting retired but still intact warheads in the queue for dismantlement.

Even though these are awfully high numbers, they still represent a huge reduction in the number of warheads in existence at the height of the Cold War.

This infographic shows how stockpiles have …

Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/how-us-and-russian-nuclear-arsenals-have-evolved

White House Blames Republicans, Former Trump Officials For Toxic Chemical Spill In Ohio

Authored by Frank Feng via The Epoch Times,

The White House criticized Republican lawmakers and the Trump administration on Wednesday, claiming they should be to blame for the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

The criticism came on the same day as former President Donald Trump visited the derailment site, during which he called out the Biden administration for its slow response.

“Congressional Republicans and former Trump administration officials owe East Palestine an apology for selling them out to rail industry lobbyists when they dismantled Obama-Biden rail safety protections as well as EPA powers to rapidly contain spills,” said Andrew Bates, a deputy White House press secretary, according to a statement.

He added, “Congressional Republicans laid the groundwork for the Trump Administration to tear up requirements for more effective train brakes, and last year most House Republicans wanted to defund our ability to protect drinking water.”

Bates challenged GOP lawmakers to set things right. He also tweeted out a 2021 letter signed by 20 GOP senators, asking the Feder …

Read more at: https://www.zerohedge.com/political/white-house-blames-republicans-former-trump-officials-toxic-chemical-spill-ohio

Vegetable shortages could last for up to a month

The environment secretary says shortages of some fruit and vegetables could go on for up to four weeks.

Read more at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64743775?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

Sam Bankman-Fried hit with four new criminal charges

Sam Bankman-Fried is accused of making more than 300 illegal political donations.

Read more at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64740128?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

Why is there a shortage of tomatoes and other fruit and vegetables in the UK?

Supply issues have led the grocers Tesco, Asda, Aldi, and Morrisons to limit sales of fresh produce.

Read more at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64718826?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

Adani rout has room to run as charts show 85% call still valid

Four of those seven show a strong potential to be affected by technical levels, according to a Bloomberg analysis.

Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/adani-rout-has-room-to-run-as-charts-show-85-call-still-valid/articleshow/98188091.cms

Fitch affirms rating on Adani Transmission’s restricted group notes at ‘BBB-‘; outlook stable

The credit assessment reflects the project companies’ availability-based revenue, with low technical complexity, reflected in high availability levels and operating performance that Fitch expects to remain stable.

Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/fitch-affirms-rating-on-adani-transmissions-restricted-group-notes-at-bbb-outlook-stable/articleshow/98184715.cms

Tech View: Nifty ends Feb series with a red candle. What should traders do on Friday

Fear gauge index India VIX moved down 3.30% from 15.59 to 15.07 levels. Volatility slightly fell for the day but overall has been rising from the last four sessions. Option data suggests a broader trading range between 17,200 and 18,000 zones and an immediate trading range between 17,350 and 17,850 zones

Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/tech-view-nifty-ends-feb-series-with-a-red-candle-what-should-traders-do-on-friday/articleshow/98180634.cms

87% of Americans are concerned about the economy, survey finds

MarketWatch exclusive: Harris Poll finds that despite some encouraging economic trends, people remain deeply worried.

Read more at: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B20C06575-04D4-B545-71A1-C7DD02B39CEE%7D&siteid=rss&rss=1

Amid extreme weather, congressional investigation sounds alarm on nursing homes’ emergency preparedness

New rules needed to protect long-term care residents from natural disasters, lawmakers say

Read more at: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B20C06575-04D4-B545-71A1-E377D5B44459%7D&siteid=rss&rss=1

Will Acxiom, the giant data broker, provide information for abortion prosecutions? Shareholder group wants to know.

The company’s privacy policy says it turns over data “as necessary … to respond to law enforcement.”

Read more at: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B20C06575-04D4-B545-71A1-07B6AF43BF0F%7D&siteid=rss&rss=1