Political risk is rising globally – with worrying consequences for markets April 1, 2015 Uncertainty about global and domestic politics is greater today than it has been for some years. It is therefore inevitable that political risk will play a more prominent role in capital market investment decisions than it has done for many years. Political risk is not a new phenomenon in markets. As early as 1294, the [...]
US oil production posts largest increase in over a century March 30, 2015 Last year US oil production posted its largest volume increase since record keeping began over a century ago. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said it increased to1.2m barrels per day last year, pumping out a total 8.7m barrels per day. This was the largest volume increase since record-keeping began over a century ago. "Most of the [...]
Markets rocked as oil price spikes on Yemen violence March 26, 2015 MARKETS were yesterday shaken by the prospect of an end to the era of super-cheap oil after air strikes on rebels in Yemen by Saudi Arabia and its allies threatened to disrupt world oil supplies. Brent crude – a North Sea benchmark – jumped 4.5 per cent to $59 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) [...]
This map shows why airstrikes in Yemen are pushing up oil prices March 26, 2015 Yemen doesn't actually produce that much oil compared to some other Middle East nations. But news that it been hit by air strikes from Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies sent global oil prices berserk today. Nervous investors helped push Brent crude, the global benchmark, as high as $59.78 per barrel, or a two-and-a-half week high. But [...]
Markets riled after Saudi Arabia launches airstrikes in Yemen March 26, 2015 Tensions in the Middle East stirred global markets today pushing nervous investors into safe-haven assets. Investors sought safety in gold, pushing bullion prices up to a two-and-a-half week high of $1,219.40 an ounce, on news that Saudi Arabia and its Gulf Arab allies had launched air strikes in the Yemen city of Aden. Meanwhile, the dollar fell [...]
Shell to cut 250 North Sea oil jobs as oil prices plummet March 26, 2015 Oil giant Shell has said it will shed around 300 North Sea oil and gas jobs as part of a cost management drive. "The North Sea has been a challenging operating environment for some time," Paul Goodfellow, Shell's upstream vice president for the UK and Ireland at, said. "Reforms to the fiscal regime announced in the budget [...]
US magnate warns oil prices could hit $100 by the end of 2016 March 25, 2015 Oil prices could return to as much as $100 a barrel by the end of next year, a US oil magnate warned yesterday. "I think you could very well be at $100 a barrel by the end of 2016," Boone Pickens, chair of the hedge fund BP Capital, said during a speech at the Commonwealth Club [...]
Supermarket price war and drops in oil prices drag UK inflation down to zero March 24, 2015 Hard-pressed households gained a reprieve in the past year – prices held flat in the 12 months to February, official figures showed yesterday. Economists now believe deflation is just around the corner, as falling fuel and food prices keep easing the pressure on family budgets. It is the first time inflation has fallen to zero [...]
Wall St drops on dollar fears – New York Report March 24, 2015 US stocks fell for a second session yesterday, with equities keeping a tight range that corresponded with currency fluctuations as traders focused on the dollar’s strength and its possible effect on corporate earnings. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 104.9 points, or 0.58 per cent, to 18,011.14, the S&P 500 lost 12.92 points, or 0.61 [...]
Food and oil prices drag the UK towards CPI deflation March 22, 2015 Could this be the week the UK officially goes into deflation? Office for National Statistics figures out this Tuesday are expected to show that UK Consumer Price Index (CPI) prices dropped 0.1 per cent in February, after hitting record lows of 0.3 per cent last month. Behind the possible entry into deflation is a drop [...]