25Jan2021 Market Close: Short Squeeze Turmoil Triggers Market Rollercoaster, DOW Closes Down 37 Points, Nasdaq Closes At New High +0.7%, Bitcoin Slides Again 32870

Written by Gary

SP 500 ends volatile day slightly higher (+0.4%), Apple pushes Nasdaq to another record close. As support for $15 minimum wage gains momentum, Main Street fears it’s not the right time.

The Market in Perspective

Here are the headlines moving the markets.
	An Oil Boom Hidden Within One Of Americas Biggest Cities When you think of giant oil fields you probably conjure up an image of vast areas of land or sea suitable for digging. However, Los Angeles demonstrates that oil extraction can take place right under our feet, producing as much as 100 million barrels every year. Compared to other major oil sites across the world, L.A. disguises oil diggers, sprawled across the city, as towers and buildings, so as not to look out of place. Six-story buildings and painted towers have been constructed across the city as facades to big oil diggers, extracting
	US Gasoline Prices To Rise On Stronger Economy, Higher Demand The U.S. national average gasoline prices are expected to rise to average $2.42 per gallon in 2021, from the lowest since 2016 of $2.17/gal in 2020, due to strengthening economy and higher demand for transportation fuels, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Monday. In 2022, the national motor gasoline average will be $2.43/gal, according to EIAs latest estimates. On-highway diesel prices are set to rise from $2.55/gal in 2020 to average $2.71/gal this year, and to $2.74/gal next year, the EIA said. As the vaccines
	U.S. Shale Industry Accelerates As Oil Prices Rise The number of drilled but uncompleted wells (DUCs) that accumulated at the height of the pandemic has already subsided to pre-Covid-19 levels in the US, a Rystad Energy analysis shows. After swelling to a multi-year high of 6,548 wells in June 2020, the number of such wells in the countrys major oil regions* slimmed down to around 5,700 wells by the end of December 2020. The inventory of live DUCs, which excludes tentatively abandoned wells drilled a long time ago, also declined by around 800 wells in the same period, from
	Why Gazprom Cut Gas Supply To Europe Amid Rising Prices Soaring natural gas prices in European markets could be seen as a boon for Russian giant Gazprom to increase its gas exports towards the Old Continent. But instead, somewhat surprising, Gazprom is adopting the exact opposite strategy, drastically reducing its physical deliveries of natural gas to the EU. Since the end of December 2020, Gazprom gas volumes transiting through Ukraine have fallen by a third to 130 mcbm per day according to CEO of Ukrainian TSO Sergey Makogon, cited by TASS news agency. Hence, spot prices at the Central European
	Saudi Arabia Looks To Stop Using Crude For Domestic Power Generation Saudi Arabia is working to replace the use of petroleum liquids for power generation with solar energy and gas-fired capacity, Argaam reported on Monday, citing Saudi Arabias Energy Minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, as saying. As part of the program Hydrocarbon Demand Sustainability, the worlds largest oil exporter will aim to replace petroleumwhich it still burns for electricitywith solar power energy, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said at a meeting to describe the strategy of the Saudi energy ministry.
	All Eyes Are On This Crucial Pipeline After KeystoneXL Got Axed The Trans Mountain expansion project has just become the most important oil pipeline project in Canada after U.S. President Joe Biden stopped the U.S.-Canada cross-border link Keystone XL. The expansion of Trans Mountain, which is set to nearly triple to 890,000 bpd the pipeline capacity from Alberta to the Vancouver coast, is currently expected to come online in December 2022. With Keystone XL dead, Trans Mountaina project now owned by the federal government of Canadais Albertas best chance to get its landlocked oil
	Biden bans most non-U.S. citizens from South Africa, extends Europe, UK and Brazil restrictions to curb Covid Biden bans entry of most non-U.S. citizens from South Africa and extends restrictions on most non-U.S. citizen travel from the U.K., much of Europe and Brazil.
	Restaurants push for more access to Covid vaccine, but unlikely to force workers to receive it The National Restaurant Association requested priority for those who work in foodservice after first responders and the most vulnerable.
	California lifts statewide Covid stay-at-home order, allowing restaurants to reopen The California Department of Public Health said Monday that the state’s stay-at-home order will be lifted for every region beginning immediately.
	As support for $15 minimum wage gains momentum, Main Street fears it’s not the right time Biden’s plans would more than double the current federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, which has not moved since 2009.
	WarnerMedia reportedly planning Harry Potter TV series for HBO Max Executives of the WarnerMedia-backed streaming service are reportedly in talks to bring the Harry Potter franchise to television on HBO Max.
	Delta plans to bring back 400 pilots, signaling optimism about future air travel Delta is planning to train and call back some 400 pilots by the summer in hopes of a demand recovery.
	Target to give employees bonuses after strong holiday season, extends Covid-related benefits Target said it will give $500 bonuses to all hourly workers and $1,000 to $2,000 bonuses to those in leadership roles.
	Budweiser will sit out Super Bowl, funneling marketing dollars to boost vaccine awareness Budweiser will not be running a commercial during the Super Bowl for the first time in 37 years.
	Pfizer board member Gottlieb defends change to ship fewer Covid vaccine vials to account for extra doses Dr. Scott Gottlieb, who sits on Pfizer’s board, defended its move to count six doses of its Covid vaccine per vial, instead of five.
	U.S. toy sales surged 16% in 2020 as parents looked to entertain kids during pandemic Families in lockdown shifted disposable income from other types of entertainment such as movie theaters, amusement parks and restaurants to toys.
	Chipotle will air its first Super Bowl ad touting the farmers who supply its food Chipotle Mexican Grill will run its first-ever Super Bowl ad this year to highlight the farming practices of its suppliers.
	Moderna says it’s working on Covid booster shot for variant in South Africa, says current vaccine provides some protection Moderna said it’s accelerating work on a Covid-19 booster shot to guard against the recently discovered variant in South Africa.
	AMC Entertainment says bankruptcy is off the table after raising more than $900 million since December Shares of AMC skyrocketed Monday after the company disclosed that it had secured enough financing to remain open and operational deep into 2021.
	“Sell Mortimer”: Short Squeeze Turmoil Triggers Market Rollercoaster “Sell Mortimer”: Short Squeeze Turmoil Triggers Market Rollercoaster And to think that it started off so well. Amid media reports of investor “optimism” on the back of more fiscal stimulus and covid vaccine rollouts (when in reality said media was merely goalseeking a narrative to the higher overnight futures), the Emini started off solidly in the green, and at one point were set to make a breakout attempt at the all time high of 3,859.75, getting to within 8 points…. when at exactly 1045am, a trapdoor opened below the market, and the Emini tumbled a whopping 60 points in under minutes… … a move catalyzed by a rollercoaster move in the most shorted names, the biggest of which – with 140% of its float shorted – was Gamespot, and which exploded as high as $159, a level it hit just minute before said trapdoor opened above, and sent the stock plunging. In fact, after more than doubling shortly after the open, GME at one point dropped as much as $100, turning red on the session before recovering losses…
	Godiva Closing All US Stores On Plunging Sales Godiva Closing All US Stores On Plunging Sales Godiva is riding its company horse out of North America andÂ shutting down or sellingÂ all 128 of its brick-and-mortar locations in the U.S. and Canada by the end of March, the chocolatier announced on Sunday. And while the company’s stores in the Middle East, Europe, and China will remain open, Eater.com notes that that’s of little use to America’s last-minute gift-givers who previously could’ve counted on swinging by the mall post-work and treating their loved ones to a gilded box of truffles. Godiva cited the drop in traffic during the pandemic and changing consumer buying behavior as reasons behind the decision. While people are no longer shopping in person at Godiva stores, the company has seen growth in online sales and purchases through its retail and grocery partners. CEO Nurtac Afridi, who was appointed to the role last month by Govida’ …
	Italian Premier To Resign As He Plots Latest Political Comeback Italian Premier To Resign As He Plots Latest Political Comeback Soon, Italy will be leaded toward its its 132nd federal government in roughly 160 years as PM Mario Conte, who led Europe’s third biggest economy through its most recent debt crisis, while also setting Italy on the path toward closer cooperation with China, appears to be finito – at least for now. Despite barely surviving a handful of confidence votes, 56-year-old leader’s time as premier and leader of Italy’s council of ministers is coming to a close. According to a government statement, Conte will resign next week to avoid a damaging defeat in the Senate, as he maneuvers to try and return for another round of leadership, combating Italians who are maneuvering against him. Giuseppe Conte On Tuesday, Conte is expected to preside over a cabinet meeting at 0900 in Rome and then head to President Sergio Mattarella’s o …
	The First Casualty Of The Big Short Squeeze: Melvin Capital Gets $2.75BN Bailout From Citadel, Point72 After Its Shorts Explode The First Casualty Of The Big Short Squeeze: Melvin Capital Gets $2.75BN Bailout From Citadel, Point72 After Its Shorts Explode With dozens of heavily shorted (by hedge funds) stocks exploding higher in recent days, it was only a matter of time before the first casualty of said bull raid emerged, and thanks to the WSJ we now have the first name. Melvin Capital, which we learned last week had suffered massive losses on its shorts, is set to receive a $2.75 billion capital injection from hedge fund giants Citadel and Point72 and investors (in what appears to be a bailout so Mevlin Capital founder Gabe Plotkin, a former star portfolio manager for Steven Cohen, could pay his margin call). The bailout loan investments are for non-controlling revenue shares in the hedge fund, although it wasn’t immediately clear how much of Melvin’s revenue the two funds would get. Melvin Capital’s Gabe Plotkin
	UN: Covid jobs crisis ‘most severe’ since the 1930s The global economy lost the equivalent of 225 million jobs in 2020 – four times more than in the financial crisis.
	Covid: Hays Travel to close 89 shops as lockdown delays ‘bounce back’ The third national lockdown and travel ban meant the travel firm “had to act”, a spokeswoman says.
	Ikea to start selling spare parts for products The furniture giant says it wants to dispel the idea that it makes disposable goods.
	Proposed NBFC norms may strengthen their balance sheets: Moody’s Last week, RBI released a discussion paper which proposed a scale-based regulatory approach linked to the systemic risk contribution of shadow lenders.
	Is the stock market closed tomorrow? On Monday, bears continued to hammer the stocks as benchmark indices slid for the third straight day. Overall, Rs 2.08 lakh crore was wiped off from the market in a single session.
	Kotak Bank takeaways: Bad loans rise, but management claims bank well-provisioned Its key subsidiaries also saw growth year-on-year as the economy continued to recover while higher levels of savings also went into financial products like equities, insurance and mutual funds.
	January 2021 Texas Manufacturing Index Moderates Of the three Federal Reserve districts which have released their January manufacturing surveys – all are in expansion.
	: Vimeo valued at more than $5 billion through new investments As Vimeo prepares for life as a standalone public company, the maker of video software has picked up a new round of equity funding that values the company at upwards of $5 billion.
	Capitol Report: A guide to budget reconciliation, which Democrats could use to push Biden’s agenda If President Joe Biden cannot gather enough bipartisan support for his $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan, Democrats will look to anotheget at least some of it through on a simple majority with 51 votes in the Senate using a process called budget reconciliation.
	Bond Report: 10-year Treasury yield books biggest daily drop in 10 weeks on eurozone economic concerns U.S. Treasury yields fall Monday in line with European bond markets after data in Germany pointed to deterioration in the eurozone economy, hinting at the possibility of a double-dip recession.