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WTI Poised for Weekly Loss Amid Fed Stimulus Taper Expectations

West Texas Intermediate crude headed for a weekly drop amid speculation that the Federal Reserve will slow the pace of economic stimulus in the U.S., the world’s biggest oil consumer. Futures swung between gains and losses in New York and are set for a 0.3 percent decline this week. U.S. retail sales increased more than estimated in November, government data showed yesterday, adding to expectations that the Fed will taper bond buying as soon as next week. Oil may fall in the coming days as the nation’s fuel inventories expand amid reduced demand, according to a Bloomberg News survey. “Tapering of stimulus is seen as a hawkish maneuver,” said Jonathan Barratt , the chief executive officer of Barratt’s Bulletin in Sydney, said by phone today. “As markets look for the terminal point, tapering may damage the outlook for demand. Bulls and bears are at evens based on existing fundamentals.” […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Natural Gas Futures Settle At Highest Price Since July 2011

Natural gas futures climbed to their highest price in nearly two and a half years Thursday after a government storage report showed a supply decline last week that was greater than normal for this time of year. Meanwhile, weather forecasts continue to project more frigid temperatures later this month. Natural gas for January delivery settled 7.2 cents higher, or 1.7%, to $4.409 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices rose to their highest level since July 20, 2011 and have gained 27% since Nov. 5. "We had a fairly mild winter last year and so far it’s turning out be pretty cold this year. A lot of people are trading […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Natural-Gas Prices Heat Up

The big chill gripping the U.S. is heating up the natural-gas market. Prices climbed to a two-and-a-half-year high on Thursday as one of the coldest autumns in more than a decade has kept stoking demand for the heating fuel. The run-up has helped investors who bet that gas prices would rise once temperatures fell. But it is bad news for utilities, which use gas to fuel power plants but are prevented in many states from immediately passing higher prices along to consumers. If the rally is sustained, it will spell relief for producers, which have struggled with low prices for years as output has soared. As cold weather set in across the Midwest and Northeast in November, utilities have been forced to use more gas, sending prices up more than 26% since Nov. 1. The added demand has sapped supplies. Gas in storage dropped by 81 billion cubic feet […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iran's fears of being a target cloud nuke talks

Assassinations, cyber-attacks and possible military strikes: As nuclear negotiations with Iran enter a crucial stage, Tehran is voicing fears that tougher oversight of its activities will increase the risks of an attack on its atomic facilities and the scientists working on them. Iranian fears that the country’s nuclear activities are a target are plausible but some nuclear experts say such concerns are overblown. Five of Tehran’s nuclear scientists and researchers have been killed in Iran since 2010 and a computer virus aimed at the heart of Tehran’s nuclear program temporarily slowed its uranium enrichment activities three years ago. Since then, Iran has claimed to have thwarted other potential malware invasions. It blames Israel, the United States or their allies for the physical and virtual attacks There have been no reports of recent attacks, but Iranian officials are clearly concerned that opening their nuclear program to greater […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iran’s fears of being a target cloud nuke talks

Assassinations, cyber-attacks and possible military strikes: As nuclear negotiations with Iran enter a crucial stage, Tehran is voicing fears that tougher oversight of its activities will increase the risks of an attack on its atomic facilities and the scientists working on them. Iranian fears that the country’s nuclear activities are a target are plausible but some nuclear experts say such concerns are overblown. Five of Tehran’s nuclear scientists and researchers have been killed in Iran since 2010 and a computer virus aimed at the heart of Tehran’s nuclear program temporarily slowed its uranium enrichment activities three years ago. Since then, Iran has claimed to have thwarted other potential malware invasions. It blames Israel, the United States or their allies for the physical and virtual attacks There have been no reports of recent attacks, but Iranian officials are clearly concerned that opening their nuclear program to greater […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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White House Wins Delay on New Iran Sanctions

The White House on Thursday blocked Congress from passing new sanctions against Iran, at least through the end of the year. Lawmakers in the House and Senate will not vote on new sanctions this year, following a White House campaign to stall legislative action for at least six months while the U.S. and other nations negotiate a comprehensive deal over Tehran’s nuclear program. Congress could return next year and adopt new sanctions, but the delay in a vote has bought the White House more time to make its case amid political pressure over President Barack Obama’s gamble to pursue diplomacy with Iran. As important, more Democrats have fallen in line behind Mr. Obama’s diplomacy, making it less likely they will help advance legislation undermining the Iran talks. In a bid to reduce opposition to an interim deal reached last month between world powers and Iran, the administration blacklisted more […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iran, world powers work on how to implement nuclear deal

Experts from Iran and six world powers labored for a fourth day on Thursday to work out exactly how to implement last month’s breakthrough deal for Tehran to curb its nuclear program in return for limited sanctions easing. The length of the closed-door discussions at the Vienna headquarters of the U.N. nuclear watchdog indicated the complexity of the task, not necessarily any major disagreements. Diplomats said it showed the parties were determined to ensure that there would be no misunderstandings in the implementation of the November 24 interim agreement. It is a "good sign" they are taking their time to get it right, one said. Iranian officials suggested after the second day of talks on Tuesday that progress was being made but have since declined to comment. Diplomats said the discussions were likely to continue on Friday and might stretch into the weekend. Experts from Iran, […]

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Saudis Shy Away from Unilateral Oil Output Cut

Saudi Arabia won’t unilaterally cut oil production as it and fellow OPEC members discuss how to cope with a possible increase in global crude output, said people familiar with the matter. This month, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, a group of some of the world’s largest oil producers, said it would keep its output ceiling unchanged. But OPEC officials have been publicly and privately jostling over whether the group might have to throttle back—should global oil output rise significantly and threaten to weaken prices—and how to divvy up any cuts among members. For the past two years, Saudi Arabia has essentially promised to steady markets no matter what fractious OPEC delegates decide. Saudi ministers walked out of an OPEC meeting in 2011 after members failed to agree to raise the group’s collective output to help make up for lost global output owing to civil war in Libya. […]

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U.N. confirms chemical arms were used repeatedly in Syria

Chemical weapons were likely used in five out of seven attacks investigated by U.N. experts in Syria, where a 2 1/2-year civil war has killed more than 100,000 people, according to the final report of a U.N. inquiry published on Thursday. U.N. investigators said the deadly nerve agent sarin was likely used in four incidents, in one case on a large scale. The report noted that in several cases the victims included government soldiers and civilians, though it was not always possible to establish with certainty any direct links between the attacks, the victims and the alleged sites of the incidents. "The United Nations Mission concludes that chemical weapons have been used in the ongoing conflict between the parties in the Syrian Arab Republic," the final report by chief U.N. investigator Ake Sellstrom said. Syria’s U.N. Ambassador Bashar Ja’afari and the opposition Syrian National Coalition […]

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Mexico Lower House Passes Oil Overhaul to End State Monopoly

Mexico ’s lower house passed an energy bill that ends Petroleos Mexicanos’s 75-year oil monopoly in a bid to attract foreign investment and boost growth. Lawmakers approved the bill in general terms in a 354-134 vote late yesterday and continue to discuss minority-party challenges to specific articles. If these are rejected, the initiative will be sent to Mexico’s states, where it’s likely to receive approval from more than half of the legislatures, the threshold for changing the constitution. The bill, passed by the Senate two days ago, would change Mexico’s charter to permit companies such as Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and Chevron Corp. (CVX) to drill for oil for the first time since 1938. It would allow production sharing and licenses for outside companies that will also be able to log crude reserves for accounting purposes. Supporters say it will boost economic growth, while opponents say it will funnel […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple