19Apr2021 Pre-Market Commentary: Wall Street Futures Are Lower This Morning, DOW Down 65 Points, Nasdaq -0.5%, US Dollar Slips Fractionally 91.12, Bitcoin Is Sinking 56800

Here is the current market situation from CNN Money

European markets are mixed. The DAX is higher by 0.06%, while the CAC 40 is leading the FTSE 100 lower. They are down 0.43% and 0.07% respectively.

Why Irans Return To Oil Markets Isnt A Major Threat

The ongoing JCPOA discussions, involving European countries, Russia, Iran, and, on the sidelines, the U.S., are being watched by international oil markets with trepidation. The possibility of Washington rejoining the international Iranian nuclear agreement is still in doubt, but the Biden Administration appears to be considering the move. Iran has indicated that it with only rejoin JCPOA if US sanctions on its main economic sectors, namely oil and gas, are lifted. Analysts are worried about the possible negative repercussions for global oil supply

How To Play The $2.6 Trillion Clean Energy Investment Boom

The money is starting to pour into clean energy from all corners as the energy transition emerges as a wildly lucrative opportunity rather than simply a threat to the oil and gas industry. For the first time in 2020, energy transition investment topped half a trillion … and thats just the starting point. BloombergNEF says clean energy investment is set to hit $2.6 trillion this decade. Over $14 trillion in assets of institutions, foundations, and endowments are ready to back an energy transition. Forbes calls it a “paradigm

2021 Will Be Another Disastrous Year For Colombias Oil Industry

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit Colombia and its economy, including the vital energy sector, particularly hard. After implementing one of the worlds longest pandemic lockdowns during 2020, which took the economy to the brink of collapse, a recent sharp spike in COVID-19 cases has forced the reintroduction of lockdown measures across the Andean countrys major cities. It is the popular tourist city of Medellin and Colombias all-important principal port Barranquilla which are the worst affected, with strict curfews and restrictions

Western Europe Is Now The Worlds Largest Investor In Batteries

In 2020,Fitch Solutionsanalysts recorded 37 manufacturing projects for EV batteries and related components and materials worth $21.04 billion, for those projects disclosing financial details. The projects range from the production of battery cells and packs themselves, to anode materials and battery trays, and give an idea of which regions are most active in developing a localised supply chain and which countries are the biggest beneficiaries within those regions. Western Europe claimed both the biggest number of projects with 17, and

Oil And Gas Bankruptcies Jump Despite Rise In Crude Prices

The oil and gas sector is currently enjoying a mini-boom cycle as economies gradually re-open and oil demand begins to return to a semblance of normalcy. The oil markets are in an upbeat mood once again, with oil futures trading sharply higher on Wednesday after the U.S. government reported a third-weekly drop in weekly inventories while the International Energy Agency (IEA) issued a bullish oil report for 2021. After declining 8.7 mb/d last year, the IEA now expects world oil demand to expand by 5.7 mb/d in 2021 to 96.7 mb/d. For many U.S.

Renewables Dominate The Headlines, But Oil And Gas Remain King

The transition to a global energy system that runs on renewable energy rather than finite and dirty coal, oil, and gas is arguably the number-one topic in the media, sometimes eclipsing even the pandemic. Yet, for all the enthusiastic talk, it seems that we are nowhere near accomplishing the transitionand it may already be too late to do anything about climate change anyway, according to some climate scientists. Embedded power structures and support for a dying industry: these are the factors that are keeping oil and gas as

Coca-Cola beats on earnings, says demand in March hit pre-pandemic levels

Coca-Cola said quarterly demand was unchanged from a year earlier as North America and Western Europe take longer to recover.

Chile has one of the world’s best vaccination rates. Covid is surging there anyway

A recent surge in coronavirus infections in Chile has sparked concern beyond its borders.

China is starting clinical trials of a Covid vaccine that can be inhaled

CEO of CanSino Biologics, Xuefeng Yu, said a vaccine that’s inhaled could be more effective than those injected.

Images and video show NASA’s helicopter flying in ‘Wright brothers moment’ on Mars

NASA rover Perseverance captured imagery and video of the historic first flight of helicopter Ingenuity.

House lifting is big business following a record year of storms

With storms intensifying, rainfall increasing and sea levels rising, waterfront property owners are lifting their homes out of danger.

When the bull market in stocks will end, according to S&P 500 history

S&P 500 history since 1929 say the stock market doesn’t end a bull run after a year.

United adds summer flights to Iceland, Greece and Croatia in hopes vaccinations spur travel rebound

International travel demand is still down sharply because of the pandemic, and most of continental Europe remains off-limits for most U.S. citizens.

5 things to know before the stock market opens Monday

U.S. stock futures fell Monday after the Dow and S&P 500 closed at new record highs Friday.

NASA flies and lands helicopter on Mars, the first flight on another planet

NASA successfully conducted the first controlled flight on another planet on Monday ” its Mars helicopter Ingenuity flew a short flight above the red planet.

A look inside the most expensive home for sale in Bal Harbor, Florida

One of Villa Magnolia’s biggest selling points is its 221 feet of water frontage.

The post-pandemic spending spree has begun. Here are 6 things Americans are buying

Consumers are trading puzzles and sweats for champagne and skirts as they get Covid-19 vaccinations and plan outings again.

European Super League announced ” with 12 football clubs, including six from England

The new league has already been criticized by politicians, former players, and other football bodies.

Trip.com up more than 4% in Hong Kong IPO; top executive expects ‘record number’ of China travelers

Trip.com on Monday saw a strong start to its debut in Hong Kong, with shares jumping more than 4% from their issue price.

Stock Market Leverage In La-La Land, Rises To Historic WTF High

Stock Market Leverage In La-La Land, Rises To Historic WTF High

Authored by Wolf Richter via WolfStreet.com,

Archegos shows how leverage is the great accelerator of stock prices on the way up, and on the way down. One of its bets, ViacomCBS, after skyrocketing, collapsed by 60%.

Vast, unreported, and at the time unknown amounts of leverage blew up Archegos Capital Management, dishing out enormous losses to its investors, the banks that brokered the swaps, and holders of the targeted stocks. The amount of leverage became known only after it blew up as banks started picking through the debris. ViacomCBS [VIAC] was one of the handful of stocks on which Archegos placed huge and highly leveraged bets, thereby pushing the shares into the stratosphere until March 22, after which they collapsed by 60%.

Archegos is an example of how leverage operates: It creates enormous buying pressure and drives up prices as leverage builds, and then when prices decline, the leveraged bets blow up as forced selling sets in. Most of the leverage in the markets is unreported until it blows up. The only type of stock-market leverage that is reported is margin debt ” the amount that individuals and institutions borrow against their stock holdings as tracked by FINRA at its member brokerage firms. Margin debt is an indicator for over …

Clover Health Shares Pop For Second Day On Now-Debunked “Short Squeeze” Narrative

Clover Health Shares Pop For Second Day On Now-Debunked “Short Squeeze” Narrative

It appears the crowd over at WallStreetBets may be as relentless as they are oblivious.Â

Shares of Clover Health – most recently known for plunging after noted short seller Hindenburg Research accused the company, and its resident advocate Chamath Palihapitiya, of failing to disclose a DOJ inquiry before going public – were up as much as 10% Monday morning on what appears to be a now-debunked notion that the company was sporting short interest that rivaled GameStop.

The company became a hot topic on Friday of last week, spiking 20% on the day to close the week, after S3 Partners – a company that is supposed to specialize in data analytics – apparently incorrectly reported during the week that Clover’s short interest as % of its float was more than 140%.

That led to reports like this one, fr …

US Futures Dip From Record As Chinese Stocks Soar

US Futures Dip From Record As Chinese Stocks Soar

US equity futures slipped from record highs, European stocks held steady at the start of a new week and Chinese stocks soared the most in five weeks, as investors awaited a fresh round of corporate earnings with global shares sitting at record highs. The dollar slid following the crypto rout over the weekend. Gold rose and oil was flat.

At 07:30 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 81points, or 0.24%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 10.75 points, or 0.26%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 46points, or 0.3% after briefly rising above Friday’s close during the European morning. Notable movers included Activision Blizzard and PayPal which fell in premarket trading. Tesla slid 1.6% following a deadly crash involving a 2019 Model S that no one appeared to be driving. IBM and United Airlines are due to report.

Looking at global markets, the MSCI world equity index climbed to a new peak, up 0.2% despite the weakness in US futures. Blockbuster economic data from China and the US last week pushed the MSCI All-Country World Index to another record despite concerns surrounding the …

Feds Warn Parents To “Stop” Using Peloton Treadmill After Child’s Death, Release Horrifying VideoÂ

Feds Warn Parents To “Stop” Using Peloton Treadmill After Child’s Death, Release Horrifying VideoÂ

Sales of the Peloton Bike and Peloton Tread (treadmill) erupted during the virus pandemic as people worked out at home. As soon as the lockdowns took effect in March 2020, the home-fitness business took off. But there appears to be a problem with one of Peloton’s products. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned over the weekend that consumers should stop using Tread if there are young children or pets at home.

CPSC’s advisory was published on Saturday and warns:Â

“The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is warning consumers about the danger of popular Peloton Tread+ exercise machine after multiple incidents of small children and a pet being injured beneath the machines. The Commission has found that the public health and safety requires this notice to warn the public quickly of the hazard.”

“To date, CPSC is aware of 39 incidents including one death. CPSC staff believes the Peloton Tread+ poses serious risks to children for abrasions, fractures, and death.”Â

“In light of multiple reports of children becoming entrapped, pinned, and pulled under the rear roller of the product, CPSC urges consumers with children at home to stop using the product immediately.”Â

The advisory comes as regulators continue to investigate a child’s death by a Tread.Â

Shoppers making ‘revenge purchases’ flock back to High Street

Shoppers flocked back to the High Street last week to treat themselves after non-essential stores reopened.

Bank of England to consider digital money plan

The Bank and the Treasury set up a taskforce to examine how a central bank digital currency would work.

HSBC boss Noel Quinn scraps executive floor at London HQ

Bank chief Noel Quinn says the “new reality of life” is people will not be in the office five days a week.

3 individuals, 2 situations: Importance of asset allocation during market cycles

It has been no less than a roller-coaster ride for equity investors since the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ready for a repeat of March 2020? No, buy only for long term: Analysts

As India reports more Covid cases compared with last year’s peak, analysts say the situation will be different this time around, and people should not read too much into the drastic fall in the market.

Investors mistakenly pump up NBFC stock trying to cash in on oxygen suppliers

Stocks such as Linde India, Bhagwati Oxygen and National Oxygen have soared over the past two weeks.

Earnings Watch: The pandemic’s differing earnings effects will be on display with tech, airline reports

The first big week of earnings season will kick off with a study in contrasts.

Metals Stocks: Gold prices slip Monday after biggest weekly rise since December

Gold futures contracts on Monday are under pressure, despite subdued trade in the bond market and weakness in the dollar, which should provide some support for bullion, market experts said.

: Synlab targets $6 billion market capitalization in Frankfurt IPO as COVID-19 testing booms

Synlab set the price range for its planned IPO in Frankfurt at ‚¬18 to ‚¬23 a share, giving the German laboratory services provider a market capitalization of up to $6 billion.