17Dec2020 Market Close: Wall Street Closed Higher, DOW Closed Up 145 Points, Nasdaq At +0.8%, WTI Slides Up To 48.41, Bitcoin Slips To 22734

Toyota: Theres Too Much Hype Over EVs

There is too much hype surrounding electric vehicles (EVs), one of the worlds top automakers, Japans Toyota, says, noting that the electricity needed to charge electric cars would strain grids and increase carbon emissions. If all cars in Japan were electric, the country would be short of electricity in the summer, while the infrastructure for a 100-percent EV fleet would cost the equivalent of up to US$358 billion, The Wall Street Journal quoted Toyotas President Akio Toyoda as saying at a press conference in his role as chairman

Venezuelas Crisis: A Cautionary Tale For Oil Nations

The story of Venezuelas rise to wealth and its now near collapse is a cautionary tale for countries rich in natural resources. The 1914 discovery of crude oil in the Maracaibo Basin sent the then impoverished agricultural backwater of Venezuela on a tumultuous journey, which at its peak saw the country become one of the worlds largest oil exporters, Latin Americas richest country and then ultimately a failed state. While commentators exclusively blame Hugo Chavezs socialist Bolivarian revolution and Nicols Maduros

U.S. Shale Patch Reduced Breakeven Costs By 20% This Year

Pressured by plunging oil prices and the need to adjust to the lower oil demand, U.S. oil producers have slashed costs and managed to bring down their average breakeven costs by nearly 20 percent to $45 a barrel on average, Bloombergs research service, BloombergNEF (BNEF), said on Thursday. According to BloombergNEFs estimates, U.S. oil producers have cut their average breakeven costs from an average of $56.50 per barrel last year to $45 a barrel now. Some of the most prolific areas in the U.S. shale patch, such as the core of the

An Under-The-Radar Opportunity In LNG

Natural gas production and liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, including in the United States, could get a boost from a relatively new and not-so-self-evident revenue streamthe global shipping industry. Driven by stricter sulfur emissions standards and the ongoing global drive towards a lower-carbon future, the worlds top shipping operators and manufacturers are raising the share of vessels in the fleet powered by alternative fuels. LNG has so far emerged as the top choice among fuels alternative to marine gasoil and

Saudi Arabias Crude Oil Exports Inch Up In October

Saudi Arabias crude oil exports rose to 6.159 million barrels per day (bpd) in October, up by nearly 100,000 bpd from the 6.066 million bpd exports in September, data from the Joint Organisations Data Initiative (JODI) showed on Thursday. Total oil exports from Saudi Arabia, including crude oil and total oil products, increased again month over month by 281,000 bpd to 7.38 million bpd in October, according to the JODI database, which collects self-reported figures from 114 countries. In September, the worlds biggest oil exporter,

Wall Street Is Warming Up To Canadas Oil Sands

Things are looking up for the Canadian oil sands. After years of strife and faltering profits, battered by environmental regulations and domestic pipeline shortages as well as the flood of cheap shale oil and gas coming out of the United States thanks to the West Texas shale revolution, 2021 is on track to be a much, much better year for Canadian oil. While pretty much any and every oil-producing nation in the world has had a less-than-stellar year, to put it mildly, few have had it as bad as Canada. The already-bruised sector was absolutely

Coca-Cola will cut 2,200 jobs worldwide as part of restructuring plan

Coca-Cola will cut about 2,200 jobs in its global workforce as part of a broader restructuring of its business.

Biden to pick North Carolina environmental regulator to run EPA

Regan will play a critical role in supporting Biden’s aggressive plan to battle climate change and transition the U.S. economy to clean energy.

EV start-up Canoo unveils new vehicle ahead of NASDAQ debut

The futuristic-looking van, or MPDV, is designed for everything from last-mile deliveries to food trucks, according to the California company.

Mad dash to the finish: A record number of people plan to shop the Saturday before Christmas, survey says

Over 150 million Americans plan to shop on Super Saturday this year, up slightly from 147.8 million in 2019, according to the National Retail Federation.

Why cheap cars are disappearing from dealer showrooms

Cars costing less that $20,000 make up a smaller share of the new car market than they have in the past, partly because automakers are not making them.

Hospital CEOs say they expect skeptical employees will want Covid vaccine when they see co-workers getting it

Hospital CEOs expressed confidence Thursday that the hesitancy among some employees around Covid-19 vaccinations will fade over time.

Five surprising things we learned about billionaire Bill Gross in legal fight with neighbor

Billionaire bond investor Bill Gross is a “Gilligan’s Island” super fan, an avid dancer and is especially jealous when it comes to his girlfriend.

GM leads $23 million investment in on-demand vehicle maintenance service Yoshi

The Series B funding round will assist the company’s hiring and expansion plans as it emerges from the coronavirus pandemic for the coming years.

HHS Secretary Azar says Pfizer keeps government at ‘arm’s length’ on Covid vaccine manufacturing

HHS Secretary Azar said he’d like “more visibility” into Pfizer’s Covid vaccine manufacturing, adding Pfizer has kept the federal government at “arm’s length.”

Brandon Copeland, other NFL players, surprise families with $800 Amazon gift cards

Brandon Copeland’s foundation, Beyond the Basics, brought together is doing his part, along with 19 other former and current players.

5 ways the coronavirus pandemic is reshaping the future of retail stores

2020 has given retailers the chance to rethink the role of the brick-and-mortar store. A new report from CBRE showcases what the store of the future looks like.

5 things to know before FDA panel votes on Moderna’s Covid vaccine today

A key FDA panel is scheduled to vote Thursday on whether to recommend the approval of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use.

Russia’s Putin says he hasn’t had Covid vaccine yet because he’s too old

At his annual December press conference, Putin encouraged Russians to take the “Sputnik V” vaccine and said he would receive it as soon as he was able to.

Dollar Slump Sparks Surge In Small Caps, Lumber, Copper, Crypto, & Gold

Dollar Slump Sparks Surge In Small Caps, Lumber, Copper, Crypto, & Gold Tyler Durden Thu, 12/17/2020 – 16:00

The USDollar is on the verge of breaking down to its lowest in 6 years…

US Nuclear Weapons Agency Breached As Part Of Massive Cyberattack: Report

US Nuclear Weapons Agency Breached As Part Of Massive Cyberattack: Report Tyler Durden Thu, 12/17/2020 – 15:39

“DOE and NNSA officials began coordinating notifications about the breach to their congressional oversight bodies…”

Crowd-Sourced Quant Platform Quantopian Shuts Down After “Underperforming”

Crowd-Sourced Quant Platform Quantopian Shuts Down After “Underperforming” Tyler Durden Thu, 12/17/2020 – 15:20

The platform first launched in 2011 and, in sum, had about $50 million in venture funding. It allowed anybody to try “almost any” trading strategy, which eventually led to more than 12 million backtests of different strategies.

Rare Sneaker Marketplace Scores $3 Billion Valuation

Rare Sneaker Marketplace Scores $3 Billion Valuation Tyler Durden Thu, 12/17/2020 – 15:00

StockX says revenue grew by more than 75% year-over-year in the third quarter to more than $100 million as the company achieved break-even.

Rishi Sunak extends furlough scheme for another month

Chancellor Rishi Sunak extends the furlough scheme for one month until the end of April 2021.

Port of Dover facing ‘unnecessary holdups’ on 1 January

The company managing the port says lack of government support will make the transition “more challenging”.

London Capital and Finance: Report reveals regulator’s flaws

Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey apologises for his role after investors lost huge sums.

10 non-Covid risks that may dominate emerging markets in 2021

Some risks aren’t going away any time soon for emerging markets, irrespective of the overwhelming view among investors and strategists that 2021 will be a year of continued recovery. Though the turbulence triggered by the coronavirus outbreak has given way to optimism that vaccines and central bank largess will keep the revival on track, a few themes are likely to keep dominating developing economies that collectively account for $30 trillion, or about 34%, of global gross domestic product.

Craftsman Automation files IPO papers with Sebi

The IPO comprises a fresh issue of equity shares aggregating up to Rs 150 crore and an offer for sale of up to 45,21,450 shares by promoter and existing shareholders, draft red herring prospectus filed with Sebi showed.

LIC IPO: EY, Milliman and Willis Towers Watson in race for actuarial firm appointment

The firms have made presentations to the government on Thursday, following which financial bids have been opened.

: Google hit with yet another antitrust suit, this one focused on core search engine

Google was hit with a second multistate antitrust lawsuit in two days Thursday, with the most recent claiming the company altered the designs of its search engine to undercut competitors.

Market Extra: Bitcoin price rally near point of ‘exhaustion’, warns market-timing expert

Bitcoin’s surge to unprecedented levels above $23,000 on Thursday is being met with much ballyhoo on Wall Street, but at least one technical expert warns that the popular digital currency could be primed for a pullback.

Market Extra: Stock-market timing expert DeMark ‘confident’ S&P 500 surges 5% in next 2 weeks “then watch out!

Tom DeMark is confident that the S&P 500 index has room to run another 5% to hit a top near 3,907 before the end of the year or around the first week of 2021, he tells MarketWatch.