Commodities
Beggars can’t be choosers. If you understand that then you’ll understand why leaders from 53 African countries happily jetting to Beijing on Monday for the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). Beijing is considered the Santa Claus, having pumped a staggering US$124 billion into Africa since 2000. And on Monday, China splashed another US$60 billion for the […]
... written on Sep 04 2018OPEC reported on Monday that Saudi Arabia cut its oil production in July, a surprise move after Riyadh had pledged to ramp up output following the June meeting in Vienna. Additionally, President Donald Trump has been threatening all and sundry to stop buying Iranian oil, as part of U.S. sanctions against the country. Theoretically, the oil prices […]
... written on Aug 16 2018Beijing’s unusual silence over Donald Trump’s latest US$505 billion trade war threat has been mind-boggling. Has President Trump pressed the right button and was right when he declared that trade wars were good and easy to win? It appears so, judging by the lack of retaliation from the Chinese after Trump’s massive US$505 billion tariffs […]
... written on Jul 23 2018Earlier this month, the United States imposed tariffs on US$34 billion worth of Chinese imports. President Trump it was a punishment for Chinese theft of IP (intellectual property) and other unfair trade practices. Amusingly, Trump warned China not to retaliate. Immediately on the same day, China did exactly that – slapping taxes on the same […]
... written on Jul 21 2018There were two big declines in crude prices – last week and on Monday – despite analysts forecast of a decline of 3.622 million barrels in U.S. inventories for the week through July 13. Turns out, a surprise crude oil oversupply of 629,000 barrels in U.S. crude stockpiles occurred, as reported by the American Petroleum […]
... written on Jul 18 2018Get ready for a spike in crude oil prices. Shortly after the U.S. State reaffirmed the Trump administration’s goal of reducing Iran’s oil exports to zero by November 4th, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned Tehran could retaliate – by disrupting oil shipments to neighbouring countries. Although Iran didn’t elaborate on such plans, it isn’t hard to […]
... written on Jul 06 2018President Donald Trump had walked away from the Paris climate agreement. His administration had also announced the U.S. was leaving the United Nations’ Human Rights Council. If you think those were the craziest decision a United States president had ever made, think again. There’s no limit as to what the 45th President of the United States […]
... written on Jul 01 2018Exactly how much OPEC will increase the oil production is still a question mark. However, OPEC ministers announced a deal that is likely to add around 600,000 to 800,000 barrels a day to the market. That would be the first increase oil supplies from the producer group ever since the cartel cut production of 1.8 million […]
... written on Jun 24 2018The rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Qatar appears to have entered a point of no return. For more than a year, a Saudi-led bloc has staged a boycott of Qatar, accusing the tiny but gas-rich Persian Gulf state of sponsoring terrorism and committing other menaces. However, Qatar has proven to be a tough nut to crack […]
... written on Jun 22 2018Imagine you’ve engaged and awarded a contractor to renovate your office. For some strange reasons, you agreed to pay the contractor according to “calendar dates” instead of the project’s progress. In other words, you had agreed to generously pay even if the contractor does zero work. The job was supposed to be completed in 3 […]
... written on Jun 06 2018
