Once upon a time, about ten years ago, we used to joke that either World War III or the apocalypse would be sufficient to send the S&P limit up.... Now, it is no longer a joke.
...news flow was on balance positive as investors bet on the coronavirus being contained fast enough to leave little impact on the economy... We take a more cautious view and believe the coronavirus could get much worse globally.
Global gas price convergence tops this week’s pick of energy and commodities charts to watch... plus, US LNG exports and coronavirus impact on Asian crude oil and bunker fuel trade...
As the economic disruption prevails, the potential downwards revisions to growth and economic activity have the capacity to outweigh tentative green shoots, particularly across Asia and the Eurozone (via trade linkages with China).
Key events this week include the New Hampshire primary, Powell's testimony before congressional committees, the release of US CPI (Thursday), retail sales (Friday), and Q4 GDP readings from Germany (Friday) and the UK (tomorrow).
Despite climate concerns and environmentalist backlash against exploration for oil and gas in pristine sensitive regions of the Arctic, companies continue to explore for hydrocarbon resources in the Arctic Circle, in Russia and Norway in particular.
"... helicopter money will be the chosen way out of this deflationary quagmire, especially as it becomes increasingly clear that there is now no way left to reverse every government’s exploding fiscal liabilities. The Ice Age is nearing the end."
China sources some 70% of its crude imports from OPEC+ members, and its refineries are expected to slash runs by about 1 million b/d in February, according to S&P Global Platts Analytics.
