Written by Gary
US stock markets falls for a second day of losses as rally to records pauses (SPY -1.2%). Chevron, Boeing share losses contribute to Dow’s fall, Tesla jumps on upgrade.
The Market in Perspective
| Here are the headlines moving the markets. | |
 | Why 2021 Will Be A Banner Year For Renewable Energy In The U.S.A Joe Biden administration is bound to usher in a 180-degree pivot on climate change from the outgoing presidency. But with control of the Senate hanging in the balance with the battle set to go down to the wire in Georgia, Bidens plan to squeeze $2 trillion from the federal purse to pursue his ambitious Climate Plan could end up severely hamstrung. But with the global shift to renewable energy in full swing, the American political landscape might not matter that much in the long run. Indeed, Goldman Sachs has predicted that global capital |
| Trump Administration Holds Its Last Offshore Oil AuctionThe Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is holding on Wednesday the last offshore lease sale for the year and the last such lease sale under the current U.S. Administration of President Donald Trump, before Joe Biden, who has promised to ban new lease sales on federal lands and waters, takes office. The outcome of Wednesdays lease sale in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico will give analysts insights into whether the oil and gas industry will rush to secure new offshore leases before Biden moves to ban new lease developments as part of his energy |
| This Tiny Rich Nation Is Looking To Become A Hub For Space MiningLuxembourg is stepping up efforts to achieve itsgoal of becoming Europes hub for space miningbyannouncing plans to create a European Space Resources Innovation Centre (ESRIC), in charge of laying the foundations for exploiting extra-terrestrial resources. In collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), Luxembourg aims to make the centre an internationally recognized entity of expertise for scientific, technical, business and economic aspects related to the use of space resources, including water on the moon, and |
| Is This The Most Exciting Oil Stock For 2021?In 2020 the oil and gas industry suffered through its most brutal year in modern history. Oil prices went negative for the first time ever, global demand for crude and gasoline crashed through the floor, and a wave of bankruptcies saw an unprecedented number of job losses in the sector. But with a new COVID vaccine on the horizon and the potential for a major oil supply deficit looming over the industry, there has arguably never been a better time for oil exploration. Oil exploration companies have not been immune to COVID, and as the sector begins |
| How Venezuela Is Successfully Skirting U.S. Oil SanctionsVenezuela sits atop the largest proven oil reserves in the world, clocking in at a whopping 300 billion barrels. But years of domestic economic mismanagement, corrupt international banking, and strict international sanctions have brought the Venezuelan economy–and oil industry–to its knees. Earlier this summer, the countrys once-mighty oil sector became the ultimate metaphor for Venezuelas economic and industrial deterioration as one lone oil rig tapped the worlds largest oil patch. Indeed, over the course of this year |
| Hurricanes Led To Steepest Fall In Gulf Of Mexico Oil Production Since 2008Crude oil production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico dropped in August by the largest amount compared to the previous month since September 2008, due to shut-ins because of Hurricanes Marco and Laura, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday. In August, Gulf of Mexicos crude oil production declined by 27 percent, or by 453,000 barrels per day (bpd), compared to July, the EIA has estimated. Total crude oil production in the Gulf of Mexico averaged 1.2 million bpd in August 2020, which was the lowest production rate in almost |
| GM went public 10 years ago, and it’s been a mediocre investment ” here’s how it can improve for the next 10A decade after the “new GM” went public in an IPO, its balance sheet is sound but the stock’s performance has been a mediocre rollercoaster ride for investors. |
| Cancel Thanksgiving, stay home, wear a mask ” State and city leaders impose targeted coronavirus restrictions to curb Covid without tanking economyWithout a cohesive federal plan, state and local officials are imposing stay-at-home orders, curfews and other measures to curb the coronavirus. |
| Sen. Elizabeth Warren says CDC failed to capture the true toll of Covid on people of colorWarren said the CDC’s messaging and infographics on Covid-19 mortality rates across racial and ethnic groups “do not tell the full story.” |
| U.S. is in an ‘absolutely dangerous situation’ as Covid outbreak worsens, top health official says“I lose sleep at night over where we are in the pandemic right now,” Adm. Brett Giroir said on MSNBC. |
| Grocery chain apologizes after releasing ‘super spread’ ad for ThanksgivingœHosting? Plan a super spread, reads a full-page advertisement printed in Giant Food’s Savory magazine, TODAY reports. |
| Governor Cuomo offers free online skills training for unemployed New YorkersNew York Gov. Andrew Cuomo partners with online learning platform Coursera to give unemployed and underemployed residents free online skills learning. |
| GoodRx co-CEO sees Amazon Pharmacy as ‘complementary,’ rather than a competitorShares of GoodRx continued to trade lower after Tuesday’s sell-off. |
| Trump officials see surge in signs ups for free CVS, Walgreens Covid vaccine program for seniorsU.S. officials are seeing “tremendous uptake” of a program that will allow CVS Health and Walgreens to administer Covid vaccines to seniors in facilities. |
| WHO warns vaccine won’t help countries fend off current wave of infections“We are not there with vaccines yet. We will get there, but we’re not there,” Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO’s health emergencies program, said. |
| Coronavirus vaccine shots could go to U.S. health workers in about a monthHealth-care workers in the United States could get the first doses of a coronavirus vaccine in about a month. |
| GM to offer auto insurance that uses data from connected vehicles to price ratesGeneral Motors is launching its own auto insurance as a way to generate new revenue using its growing amount of connected vehicles in the U.S. |
| FAA clears Boeing 737 Max to fly again after 20-month grounding spurred by deadly crashesFederal regulators cleared the Boeing 737 Max to fly again after a 20-month grounding that sparked a crisis inside one of the nation’s biggest exporters. |
| New York City will close schools for in-person learning to curb Covid outbreak, Mayor de Blasio saysThe schools will close even as indoor dining at restaurants and the city’s gyms, which experts say are at high risk for spreading virus, remain open. |
| Bitcoin Jumps, Stocks Dump After Vaccine-Pop FlopsBitcoin Jumps, Stocks Dump After Vaccine-Pop Flops Tyler Durden Wed, 11/18/2020 – 16:00 A hope-filled vaccine headline redux from Pfizer (95% efficacy… that’s better than MRNA’s 94.5%…) sparked another algo-buying-panic but de Blasio battered those dreams by shutting down NY schools as COVID cases soar. The machines tried to ramp ’em after the de Blasio bust but that rip was dumped… |
| GM Recalling Over 50,000 Chevy Bolts That Can “Catch Fire When Charged To Nearly Full Capacity”GM Recalling Over 50,000 Chevy Bolts That Can “Catch Fire When Charged To Nearly Full Capacity” Tyler Durden Wed, 11/18/2020 – 15:50 General Motors is recalling tens of thousands of Chevrolet Bolt vehicles after the company became aware of “five fires involving the cars” that resulted in two injuries from smoke inhalation. A notice was issued on Saturday for 50,932 of the vehicles in the U.S. dating from 2017 to 2019. General Motors said the battery could œcatch fire when charged to full or nearly full capacity, according to Bloomberg. In total, the measure covers about 69,000 Bolt vehicles, according to WSJ. As a temporary fix, the company is reprogramming its battery’s œhybrid propulsion control module 2 to only allow charging to 90%. The company is exploring a permanent solution to the problem. In the interim, GM says owners shouldn’t park their cars in their garages until having them re-programmed. While the company is still investigating the cause of the fires, it noted that the batteries were all near a full charge in each instance. |
| Twitter Hires One Of The World’s Most Respected Hackers As Its Head Of SecurityTwitter Hires One Of The World’s Most Respected Hackers As Its Head Of Security Tyler Durden Wed, 11/18/2020 – 15:35 Twitter seems to want to fight fire with fire. That is why the company is hiring one of the world’s best known hackers to help protect it against – well, hackers. It wasn’t soon after Twitter announced its latest “innovation” of copying “Stories” from Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat, that the company also announced it was appointing “one of the world’s best regarded hackers” as their head of security. Going by the alias “Mudge”, Peiter Zatko was hired by the social media company and was given a “broad mandate” to enact any changes to the company’s structure and practices, Reuters reported. He’ll be in charge of everything from security to misinformation and will report directly to Jack Dorsey. Zatko told Reuters he would look at œinformation security, site integrity, physical security, platform integrity — which starts to touch on abuse and manipulation of the platform — and engineering. He has also said he is committed to “improving public conversations” on Twitter. We’ll believe it when we see it… |
| 67% Of Republicans, 21% Of Democrats Says Lives “Somewhat” Back To Pre-COVID Normal: Gallup67% Of Republicans, 21% Of Democrats Says Lives “Somewhat” Back To Pre-COVID Normal: Gallup Tyler Durden Wed, 11/18/2020 – 15:20 By Megan Brenan of Gallup, Highlights: Six in 10 Americans say their life right now is “not yet back to normal” 67% of Republicans, 21% of Democrats say life is at least somewhat normal 70% in U.S. say the pandemic has disrupted their life a great deal/fair amount As COVID-19 cases were surging again across the U.S. last month, more than six in 10 Americans said their lives had not returned to pre-pandemic normalcy. Overall, 62% of Americans surveyed Oct. 19-Nov. 1 said their life right now is “not yet back to normal,” while 34% said theirs is “somewhat back to normal” and 3% said “completely” so. |
| McDonald’s sorry for stopping couriers using toiletsFood delivery drivers claim they were denied access to toilets at restaurants during lockdown. |
| UK giant Unilever bets on vegan food with ‘scary target’The consumer giant wants a significant slice of sales to be plant-based as vegan foods take off. |
| Boeing’s 737 Max cleared to fly in the US after crashesThe jet has been grounded since March 2019, after two crashes that together killed 346 people. |
| Bitcoin breaks $18,000 as rally powers on, all-time high in sightThe original and biggest cryptocurrency jumped as high as $18,483 and was last up 2%. It has soared about 160% this year and has jumped 17% in the last three days alone. |
| HSBC upgrades SpiceJet to buy, raises its target price by 200%“The company expects 737 Max to return to operations by Q1 2021. Once 737 Max returns to operations, SpiceJet could start receiving incentives as part of the sales and lease back agreement,” said HSBC. |
| F&O: Nifty range widens to 12,700-13,200; cooling VIX aiding bullsIndia VIX slipped 3.43 per cent from 19.13 to 19.12 levels. Volatility has cooled down significantly, but needs to continue at lower levels to ride the momentum with a higher market base. |
| October 2020 Sea Container Imports Continue At Record Pace, Exports Not So MuchWritten by Steven Hansen The import container counts for the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach improved month-over-month and not only is well into expansion year-over-year and is continuing at record high levels. Exports continue in contraction year-over-year.
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| Market Extra: 6 reasons bitcoin is trading at its highest level since 2017 ” and 1 warningBitcoin, the digital currency that is arguably one of the most polarizing assets in financial markets, is approaching heights not seen since a frenzied rush into cryptographic currencies three years ago. |
| The Wall Street Journal: Apple will pay $113 million to more than 30 states over iPhone battery issues in new settlementApple Inc. has agreed to a $113 million settlement with more than 30 states that accused the iPhone maker of concealing issues with batteries by throttling phone performance with a software update in 2016. |
| : Longtime GOP senator’s illness may close the door on Fed nominee SheltonThe news that Sen. Charles Grassley has contracted coronavirus, likely keeping him off the Senate floor until he recovers, also dashed GOP hopes for a quick revote on controversial Federal Reserve nominee Judy Shelton. |
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