Oil Notches Weekly Loss on Tariff Risk, Fed’s Slower Easing Path
(Bloomberg) -- Crude posted a weekly loss as investors weighed the Federal...
(Bloomberg) -- Crude posted a weekly loss as investors weighed the Federal Reserve’s slower approach to cutting interest rates and President-elect Donald Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on EU countries unless they buy more US oil and gas.
Brent futures settled little changed near $73 a barrel to cement a 2.1% drop for the week. West Texas Intermediate held steady above $69 a barrel, with the February contract down 1.9% this week.
Trump said he wants the European Union to conduct large-scale purchases of American oil and gas and threatened tariffs if they don’t, adding to wider economic concerns as the US government is facing an imminent shutdown over funding plans. The Federal Reserve on Wednesday scaled back the number of cuts it expects next year, signaling a more hawkish approach to inflation.
Crude pared losses and US equities pushed higher on Friday after the central bank’s preferred gauge of inflation came in muted for November, signaling that the selloff on the Fed’s announcement was overdone.
U.S. stocks close sharply higher on inflation data, but still book weekly losses
U.S. stocks closed sharply higher Friday, with all three...
U.S. stocks closed sharply higher Friday, with all three major indexes bouncing as investors appeared relieved that fresh data showed inflation rose slightly less in November than forecast.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 498.02 points, or 1.2%, to close at 42,840.26, losing steam in afternoon trade but still finishing with its biggest gain since the day after the U.S. presidential election held in early November.
The S&P 500 climbed 63.77 points, or 1.1%, to end at 5,930.85.
The Nasdaq Composite gained 199.83 points, or 1%, to finish at 19,572.60.
But all three indexes booked weekly losses after stocks slumped Wednesday on the Federal Reserve signaling a potentially slower pace of interest-rate cuts next year. The Dow dropped 2.3%, logging a third straight week of declines. The S&P 500 saw a weekly loss of 2%, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq declined 1.8% for the week.
EIA Natural Gas Storage Draw Of -125 Bcf Is Mostly In Line With Analyst Expectations
On December 19, 2024, EIA released its Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report....
On December 19, 2024, EIA released its Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report. The report indicated that working gas in storage declined by -125 Bcf from the previous week, compared to analyst forecast of -126 Bcf. In the previous week, working gas in storage decreased by -190 Bcf.
At current levels, stocks are 20 Bcf higher than last year and 132 Bcf above the five-year average for this time of the year.
From the technical point of view, natural gas is moving towards the nearest resistance level at $3.55 – $3.60 level. A move above the $3.60 level will open the way to the test of the next resistance at $3.80 – $3.85.
US barrels toward a shutdown right before holidays
The US federal government will partially ...
The US federal government will partially shut down at 12:01am ET on Saturday if a spending bill is not passed by Congress and signed by President Biden today. But what was expected to be a drama-less affair has been thrown into chaos from new demands by President-elect Trump and fierce criticism from Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who has flexed considerable influence over the Republican Party as an unelected individual.
The agency placed temporary restrictions on drone flights over “critical New Jersey infrastructure” across a large stretch of the state, including the cities of Elizabeth, Camden, and Bayonne. It’s a response to reports of unexplained drone sightings from residents over the past month. Meanwhile, officials are telling people in New Jersey to knock it off with the laser pointers at planes. Reported laser strikes on planes are up 269% in NJ this month over the same period last year, the agency said.
