08Jul2021 Market Close: Fear May Be Returning To The Market With The VIX Spiking More Than 15%.

Written by Gary

After the fourth-worst open ever, the markets settled down with the DOW closing off 0.71%, SandP down 0.06, and NASDAQ bucking the trend up 0.76%. It appears that the market is reacting to new fears of another spike in COVID cases. Some investors moved into bonds with the 10 year falling below 1.3%.

The Market in Perspective

Here are the headlines moving the markets.
	Oil Theft Runs Rampant In Africa’s Top Oil Producer OPEC member Nigeria is losing billions of U.S. dollars every year to oil theft and sabotage, which continue to plague the oil sector in Africa’s top crude producer and exporter. Every day, Nigeria’s oil production could have been up to 200,000 barrels higher if it weren’t for the still endemic and widespread oil theft, according to government and industry estimates. Every year, Nigeria is missing out on billions of U.S. dollars of oil revenues because of crude oil losses, oil thieves rupturing pipelines, and causing
	Argentina To Sanction Oil Firms Drilling Off Disputed Falklands Argentina is looking to impose sanctions on the UK and Israeli oil firms for what it claims are illegal drilling activities off the Falkland Islands, a UK-run territory that has been at the center of a long-running dispute between the UK and Argentina. Argentinian energy secretary Daro Martnez said at a news conference on Wednesday that the government had started a process to sanction UK-based Harbour Energy, which was created from the recent merger of Chrysaor and Premier Oil, as well as Israels Navitas Petroleum for illegitimately
	The Mega-Challenge Of Creating A Global Hydrogen Market Hydrogen has become a buzzword that has stirred the energy industry. Although some fossil fuel-dependent countries feel threatened, others see opportunities. And while skeptics first dismissed it as a ‘hype’, policymakers and those in the private sector that believe in the technology’s future, have steadily increased the stakes. It is becoming clear that the application of hydrogen (whether green, blue, or another color) isn’t a matter of if but when. Many media outlets have been reporting on the potential
	Will $70 Oil Tempt U.S. Producers To Open The Taps? U.S. crude oil production is not expected to pick up a significant growth pace at least until the end of this year, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its latest monthly outlook, raising its output forecasts only slightly from last month despite the recent rally in prices. The Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) for July shows that the EIA expects American crude oil production to average 11.10 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2021. This is a slight increase of 20,000 bpd compared to EIAs projection for 2021 oil production
	Hydrogen Wars: The UAE And Saudi Arabia Are Battling For Dominance Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is in discussions with energy firms about stakes in projects, investments, and long-term contracts in the hydrogen industry, Bloomberg reports, citing sources familiar with the talks. This is shaping up as another rivalry between the UAE and Saudi Arabia on top of the ongoing OPEC+ discord about oil production quotas. ADNOC, the state-held giant pumping nearly all the oil in the United Arab Emirates, has already stated its ambition to explore the hydrogen market, especially that of blue hydrogen, produced
	OPEC Agreement At Risk As UAE Prepares To Open The Taps In a relatively rare example of disagreement or, at least, such public disagreement usually close allies Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have failed to reach an agreement last week on an extension to the oil output cuts scheduled to expire in April 2022. Saudi Arabia and the other 23 members of OPEC+ are in agreement to increase production by a modest 400,000 barrels per day each month from August to December. They would then extend the current baseline cuts from the scheduled end in April 2022 to December 2022.
	This 40-year-old puts an extra $600 toward his car loan each month so he can pay it off early – here’s why that’s a smart approach A 40-year old video producer living in Los Angeles is prioritizing pay off his car loan so he can lower his overall debt.
	Walmart’s Black senior managers give the company low marks, report says An internal survey found many Black supervisors, senior managers and directors would not recommend Walmart to others, according to a Bloomberg report.
	Western heat wave virtually impossible without climate change, researchers say, urging action The heat wave that gripped the Pacific Northwest and Canada in June was a once-in-a-millennium event impossible without climate change, researchers said.
	Africa suffers worst surge in Covid cases as delta variant spurs third wave of pandemic Covid cases in Africa are doubling every 18 days as the highly contagious delta variant rips through the continent.
	Virtually all new Covid deaths and hospitalizations are among unvaccinated people, White House says President Joe Biden’s Covid team has set its sights on those Americans who are still unvaccinated against the coronavirus, amid the delta variant’s spread.
	Disgraced Trump foe Michael Avenatti weeps as he is sentenced to 2.5 years in prison for Nike extortion scheme Michael Avenatti gained fame by representing Stormy Daniels in her battle with Donald Trump. He faces prison for trying to extort Nike.
	BP says all other global energy crises pale in comparison to the year of Covid. These stats show why BP said the coronavirus crisis last year resulted in primary energy and carbon emissions falling at their fastest rates since World War II.
	NBA Finals Game 1 featuring Suns-Bucks attracts 8.5 million viewers, up 13% from last year The NBA said Game 1 also set 20-year viewership highs in the Phoenix and Milwaukee markets.
	These 6 psychological biases may be holding you back from building wealth Instead of letting your emotions rule your decisions, using the rational part of your brain can help you overcome these psychological biases.
	Nobel-winning poverty researcher on why people aren’t going back to work Esther Duflo, whose anti-poverty research won a Nobel Prize, says blaming unemployment benefits for a tight labor market misses the mark on the Covid economy.
	Electric Dodge muscle car and Ram pickup part of Stellantis’ $35.5 billion EV plans The company expects more than 70% of sales in Europe and over 40% in the U.S. to be low emission vehicles (EVs and hybrid-electric models).
	Americans will need masks indoors as the U.S. heads for ‘dangerous fall’ with the surge in delta Covid cases The U.S., which just celebrated the Fourth of July, is headed toward a “dangerous” fall when the delta variant is expected to cause another surge in new cases.
	Olympics will ban spectators after Japan declares state of emergency Japan’s state of emergency due to rising Covid-19 cases will last from July 12 through Aug. 22.
	“Basta” – Tearful Avenatti Sentenced To 2.5 Years In Prison Over Nike Extortion Plot “Basta” – Tearful Avenatti Sentenced To 2.5 Years In Prison Over Nike Extortion Plot Michael Avenatti, the sleazy LA lawyer who shot to fame (with more than a little help from his pals at CNN) after representing Stormy Daniels, the former porn star who claimed to have had a brief affair with President Trump, has just been sentenced to 30 months in prison after being convicted on charges of extortion. The sentencing was the result of a hamfisted scheme to try and extort Nike after he uncovered “evidence” that the athletic apparel giant was inappropriately paying bribes to high school coaches and players, part of the ruthless relationship battle to strike sponsorship deals with the next generation of athletes. The corporate lawyers that Avenatti tried to extort immediately contacted the FBI, who asked them to wear a wire to a second meeting, where Avenatti was caught on tape demanding that Nike essentially pay him $25MM (via consulting contracts and other perks) or risk him going public with the damaging information, which he claimed would wipe billions of dollars’ of Nike’s market cap. Prosecutors
	Consumer Credit Soars Most On Record As Credit Card Borrowings Explode Consumer Credit Soars Most On Record As Credit Card Borrowings Explode The American consumer is making a triumphal return. After several months of subdued increases in consumer credit, moments ago the Fed reported that in May, total consumer credit surged by the most on record, soaring by $35.28 billion, nearly double the consensus estimate of $18 billion and sharply higher from last months’ $20.04 billion. The monthly increase was a whopping 10% SAAR, pushing the total to a new record high of $4.279 trillion. What was behind the surge? Well, one month after we noted a surprising dip in credit card usage in April, in May Americans went all out, and splurged, pushing revolving credit, i.e., credit card debt, higher by a whopping $9.2 billion, the biggest monthly increase since December 2019, and pushing total revolving debt to $974.6 billion.
	Here’s What Wall Street Thinks Is Behind The Shocking Plunge In Yields Here’s What Wall Street Thinks Is Behind The Shocking Plunge In Yields While stocks have been a (mostly) one-way ticket higher, 2021 has been a rollercoaster for interest rates: after 10 year yields rose +83bps in Q1, they fell -27bps in Q2 and have started Q3 by already falling another -12bps. So yesterday, when commenting on the latest violent move in yields lower which left a majority of rates traders (who have been blindsided by the move) dazed and confused, we quoted JPM’s rates strategist Jay Berry who said that “the 10+bps decline in 10-year yields since Friday morning seems outsized all considered” and added that 10-year Treasury yields was 25bps too low relative to model-implied fair value, a 3-standard deviation divergence, and the largest such deviation since the early fall 2020. To be sure, one argument that has been floating around is that extremely bearish 10Y positioning has been the ma …
	“Hide Your Grandparents”: Cuomo Vows To Handle Gun Violence Like He Did COVID-19 “Hide Your Grandparents”: Cuomo Vows To Handle Gun Violence Like He Did COVID-19 Elderly New Yorkers beware; Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) vowed on Thursday to tackle the state’s skyrocketing gun violence in the same manner as the administration dealt with COVID – in which he notably ordered COVID patients to be housed in elder care facilities – where the most vulnerable live, leading to countless unnecessary deaths. “We know how to deal with an epidemic,” he said during a briefing. “We wanna do with gun violence, what we just did with COVID,” he said
	Easyjet warns travel rules may just benefit rich Costly testing could put travel out of reach for some, despite more relaxed rules, the airline says.
	Lloyds fined for nine million misleading insurance letters The bank claimed in the letters that insurance renewal quotes being offered were a “competitive price”.
	Will England’s success boost the UK economy? The chancellor and others think the tournament could boost consumer confidence as the economy reopens.
	Q1 takeaways: TCS sticks to double-digit growth hope despite muted show The company’s management highlighted the several challenges faced by its staff due to the medical crisis in the country in April and May, which saw daily new cases rise by over 400,000 a day at one point during a brutal summer.
	Jai Balaji Industries: Back from brink of bankruptcy, but can it be a revival bet? After becoming a 1MTPA company from being a 1 lakh tonne firm in 42 months, Jai Balaji became more ambitious. It embarked upon a plan to set up a 5 million tonnes steel plant along with a 1,215 MW power plant at Purulia, West Bengal.
	Market Movers: China concerns spark selloff in metals, Tata Motors Shares of metal companies were among the biggest losers on the day. Concerns surrounding slowing economic growth in China, the largest consumer of metals, arose in the light of media reports that the Chinese Cabinet was in favour of cutting interest rates.
	May 2021 Consumer Credit Continues To Expand Written by Steven Hansen Headline consumer credit expanded significantly in May which was well above expectations. Our analysis of the unadjusted data shows annual growth continues to grow year-over-year.
	03 July 2021 New York Fed Weekly Economic Index (WEI): Index Declined Written by Steven Hansen The New York Fed’s Weekly Leading Index (WLI) again marginally declined this past week. This index’s trend is now beginning to decline based on the 13-week rolling average.
	: My sister and her husband said I should pay 40% toward our vacation rentals because they share a bedroom. Is that fair? On previous vacations, we each agreed to pay one-third for two-bedroom places and car rentals.’
	Encore: Proposed legislation would allow $1,000 penalty-free 401(k) withdrawal Maybe it’s time to rethink adding a credit card to 401(k) accounts
	The Moneyist: I got into an accident after my friend asked me to drive her car. She insists I pay her full deductible. Is that fair? ‘A truck was speeding down a two-way road, and we were hit in the very back left side of her car when he veered into my lane.’