Market News - Gold, Oil &amp; Forex

Why Power Prices Are Rising Faster in Deregulated States

Back in the last century, when neo-liberalism, deregulation, and privatization were all the rage, we, in the USA, decided to restructure and deregulate the electricity industry, on the theory that such action would bring about the same benefits to electricity consumers as it did for consumers of transportation, natural gas, and telecommunications. The idea took hold mainly in states where consumers paid high prices for electricity. The other states decided to leave well enough alone. The...

Why Household Batteries Are Becoming Strategic Assets

The Strait of Hormuz has become the pressure point of the global energy system. The war has already deprived global markets of 1 billion barrels of crude oil and petroleum products. Supply from the Middle East has been severely disrupted, and there is now rising uncertainty around Chinese refining projects and global inventories. For governments, part of the answer to this strategic crisis may now begin much closer to home. While energy security is often discussed from the top down – and...

China Is Learning to Use Less Oil-and That's a Bigger Deal Than It Sounds

Three months into the biggest oil supply disruption in modern history, China appears to have discovered something that should make oil bulls at least a little uncomfortable. It can get by on less fuel than anyone thought. China's gasoline and diesel demand has been falling for years as electric vehicles gained market share and economic growth slowed. But the latest drop has surprised even seasoned observers., gasoline sales at Sinopec, China's largest refiner and fuel...

Stocks

See How Centrus Energy Ranks Among Analysts' Top Metals Picks

A study of analyst recommendations at the major brokerages shows that Centrus Energy Corp (Symbol: LEU) is the #26 broker analyst pick, on average, out of the 50 stocks making up the Metals Channel Global Mining Titans Index. The Metals Channel Glob

UK Clean Tech Firms Plan Europe's Biggest Direct Air Capture Project

UK clean energy technology firms have set up a joint venture to build and operate Europe's biggest direct air capture project. Carbon capture technology developers Airhive and Mission Zero Technologies have joined forces with Progressive Energy, a developer of low-carbon energy projects, to build a direct air capture (DAC) facility on Teesside, south of Newcastle, Bloomberg reports. The new venture, named UnionDAC, expects to begin removing carbon dioxide (CO2) from air in 2030. Two years...

Guyana’s Oil Boom Gets a Major Boost From $100 Crude

Oil prices remain elevated in the wake of the Iran War. Tehran’s ability to close the Strait of Hormuz has sharply crimped world oil supply, with around 20% of all petroleum consumed globally passing through the waterway. This triggered an oil shock with prices surging to levels not seen since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Although this is straining economies worldwide, it is creating a windfall for the tiny South American nation of Guyana, which recently emerged as a global oil producer and...

Sanctioned Private Chinese Refiner Seeks Non-Iranian Crude

Hengli Petrochemical, the privately-owned Chinese refiner that was sanctioned by the U.S. in April over allegedly buying Iranian oil, is looking to buy crude from other Middle Eastern producers and West Africa, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing trade sources. Hengli Petrochemical, one of China's largest independent refiners which operates a refinery in Dalian with the capacity to process 400,000 barrels per day of crude, was sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of...

Forex

Euro Shrugs Off ECB Hike as Traders Refocus on Rising US-Iran Risks

The Euro was broadly steady after the ECB delivered its widely anticipated 25 basis point rate hike, as traders quickly shifted their attention back to the Middle East. While the central bank raised inflation forecasts and lowered growth projections, the decision largely matched expectations. More importantly, policymakers offered no guidance on what comes next, leaving […] The post Euro Shrugs Off ECB Hike as Traders Refocus on Rising US-Iran Risks appeared first on ActionForex.

Forex

The EURO: in the ECB’s Hands

The European Central Bank meeting will clarify the outlook for EURUSD. The dollar is failing to capitalise on the favourable backdrop. The US dollar has ignored the escalation of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the fall in stock indices. Neither its status as a safe-haven asset nor the deterioration in global risk appetite […] The post The EURO: in the ECB’s Hands appeared first on ActionForex.

Forex

ECB hikes interest rates for first time since 2023 as Iran war ramps up energy costs

The European Central Bank also raised its inflation forecasts and cut its growth outlook.

Economy

Wholesale prices rose 1.1% in May, more than expected, on surge in energy

The producer price index was expected to increase 0.7% in May, according to the Dow Jones consensus forecast.

Another Gulf Producer Joins Dark-Mode Tanker Traffic Through Hormuz

Kuwait appears to have joined a growing bunch of Middle Eastern oil and gas producers that have moved to ship energy cargoes in dark mode through the Strait of Hormuz. The liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carrier Gas Umm Al Rowaisat, which is owned by the national Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, has passed through the Strait in recent days, then transferred the cargo onto another ship which is currently en route to an Indian port, vessel-tracking data