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Oil jumps 3% on reports of effective coronavirus drug

A vaccine will be too late for the current virus but the breakthrough will be crucial if there is another outbreak

LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices jumped by more than 3% on Wednesday on reports that scientists have developed an effective drug against the fast-spreading coronavirus that has weighed heavily on global economic activity.

News that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its producer allies are considering further output cuts to counter a potential squeeze on global oil demand further supported that had collapsed by more than 20% since early January.

China’s Changjiang Daily, the official newspaper of the city of Wuhan where the virus outbreak began, reported on Tuesday that a team of researchers led by Zhejiang University professor Li Lanjuan have found that drugs Abidol and Darunavir can inhibit the virus in vitro cell experiments. Separately, Sky News reported that a British scientist has made a significant breakthrough in the race for a vaccine by reducing part of the normal development time from two to three years to only 14 days.

A vaccine will be too late for the current virus but the breakthrough will be crucial if there is another outbreak, Sky said

Nick Note: The jerk me off stage. Drug companies are not racing for a cure…. They are racing for a multi billion dollar contract to produce BULLSHIT for stupid ass politicians  to show they are doing something……..and the even dumber   (if Possible) gullible desperate panic stricken public.

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Saudis mull deep oil output cuts over coronavirus: Reports

 Saudi Arabia is reportedly pushing for a major short-term output cut.

Representatives of OPEC and its allies, known as OPEC+, are  meeting to discuss possible scenarios for how to respond to ebbing demand from China, the world’s largest oil consumer and the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak.

Saudi Arabia, the kingpin of Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), is reportedly pushing for a deep, short-term oil production cut in response to waning demand triggered by the coronavirus outbreak. Fears over how coronavirus could ripple through China and the broader fabric of the global economy hammered oil futures in January which witnessed the biggest monthly crude price drop in 30 years. One option being discussed by OPEC+ could see Saudi Arabia spearhead a collective output cut of 500,000 barrels a day until the crisis has passed, the Wall Street Journal, reported citing OPEC officials, and Reuters News Agency reported, citing two OPEC sources and a third industry source.

Another scenario under consideration could see the kingdom implement a temporary cut of 1 million barrels a day to jar oil prices, cartel sources tell the Wall Street Journal.

The cartel and 10 allied nations led by Russia have yet to agree on how to respond to falling crude demand in China in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. Saudi Arabia wanted OPEC+ to schedule an emergency meeting of its full delegation, but the meeting this week will only be a technical one to discuss the impact of the outbreak on oil markets and produce recommendations to members, according to the Wall Street Journal. Cartel officials have told the Wall Street Journal that after this week’s meeting, producers will decide whether to hold a Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, or a later summit of all 23 producers in Vienna.  OPEC sources have also told Reuters the group and its allies are also considering holding a ministerial meeting over February 14-15, ahead of a previously scheduled March meeting. As the coronavirus outbreak hit fuel demand in China, refiner Sinopec Corp told its facilities to cut throughput this month by about 600,000 barrels per day (bpd), or 12 percent – the steepest cut in more than a decade. Independent refineries in Shandong province, which collectively import about a fifth of China’s crude, cut output by 30-50 percent over a little more then half. Nick Note: Information i have leads me to believe the Saudis are abut to shock the markets with a 1 million BPD production cut. As you know i have had you short the shit out of oil…. SO JUST DO IT…. and we shall see what we shall see!!! remember i keep promising you that i want to lose as much money as possible… So help me out here!

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API Reports Crude Inventory Build

The American Petroleum Institute (API) Reported a crude inventory build of 4.18 million barrels for the week ending January 31, compared to analyst expectations of a 2.8-million-barrel build in inventory. Last week saw a drop in crude oil inventories of 4.27 million barrels, according to API data. The EIA’s report (which happens often)  showed a build of 3.5-million barrels for that week. Oil prices were down yesterday in the afternoon hours, after trending upward earlier in the day on news that OPEC was in talks about what action to take in response to the effects of the coronavirus that have disrupted travel within China and consequently, oil demand. Today Wednesday April Brent crude oil is up   $1.64(+2.90%) at $55.39. . Overall, the benchmarks have slid more than $10 since the beginning of the year. The API  reported a build of 1.96 million barrels of gasoline for week ending January 31, after last week’s large 3.27-million-barrel build. Distillate inventories were down by 1.78 million barrels for the week, compared to last week’s 141,000 draw, while Cushing inventories rose by 960,000 barrels. US crude oil production as estimated by the Energy Information Administration showed that production for the week ending January 24 stayed at 13.0 million bpd for a third week in a row, a record high for the United States.

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iPhone shortages predicted to hit US as coronavirus causes chaos in supply chain

A leading Apple analyst slashed his first-quarter iPhone sales projections by 10 percent

A TOP tech analyst has predicted that Apple could be hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak, slashing his estimate for iPhone sales in the first quarter. Ming-Chi Kuo, known by some as the world’s leading Apple expert, said in an investor note that he would be lowering his prediction of Q1 iPhone sales by 10 percent. Kuo, an analyst for TFI Securities, a financial services group in the Asia-Pacific region, now expects the number of first-quarter iPhone sales to stand at between 36 and 40 million – in line with the first quarter of 2019, when Apple reportedly moved 38 million iPhones. Last year, the company stopped reporting unit sales of iPhones. Kuo added that it would be “difficult to predict” second-quarter shipments of iPhones due to the “uncertainties of the coronavirus epidemic and consumer confidence.” The analyst is not changing his earnings estimates on an Apple stock target price, but he did advise investors to “repay attention to the iPhone supply chain after the Coronavirus epidemic becomes stable.” Kuo had identified five potential risks to Apple that could be caused by the coronavirus. These risks included labor shortages and impacts to design schedules caused by travel restrictions. In response to the growing number of cases, the US declared a public health emergency and placed a temporary ban on those who had recently travelled to China.

Foxconn, a Taiwanese company which makes smartphones for Apple and other brands, has halted “almost all” of its production in China after companies were told to shut until at least February 10, a source told Reuters, adding that an extension of the stoppage could disrupt shipments to clients including Apple.

Last week, insiders warned that the production of the cheap iPhone 9 could be halted until March because of the disease. Nick Note: I want to be crystal clear here. The stock market especially high tech has their heads up their collective asses here. They are way way way UNDERESTIMATING the impact to their bottom line the quarantine and still spreading pandemic  in China will cost them. We are talking demand destruction where they get 25% of their business and over 70% of their supply chain manufacturing. And that is at the present state of affairs. Have this continue another 2 months like i believe will happen and their first half earnings will be devastated eventually affecting in a very very negative way their stock market valuations. The record highs of Tesla (doubling in the past month) and the companies that make up   the FANG are a SICK joke that in my stupid ass opinion will be reversed. And hopefully in a devastating way… for them not us. That’s why i love trading. You get to put your money where my mouth is,,,,,..,,,.. And if  I happen to guess right again we get paid a lot of money…. And you wanna know the really cool part? The biggest financial institutions (worth trillions)  in the world chock full of others peoples money and Harvard MBA’s And Wharton Doctoral economists and mathematicians pay us a lot of money when i happen to guess right… And I am a grammar school flunk out….  Who can’t even spell…. Life is wonderful!!

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Factbox: Companies feel impact of coronavirus outbreak in China

(Reuters) – Companies around the world have warned that a coronavirus outbreak in China could disrupt supply chains or hurt bottom lines as factories and shops shut and airlines suspend flights.

FINANCIAL IMPACT:

** Apple (AAPL.O) gave a wider-than-usual revenue outlook range for the March quarter to factor in uncertainty. Apple, which has suppliers in Wuhan, the central Chinese city at the heart of the outbreak, said the reopening of some suppliers’ factories outside Wuhan had been moved to Feb. 10 from the end of January.

** Baidu (BIDU.O) postponed the announcement of its fourth-quarter results.

** Carlsberg (CARLb.CO) expects the virus to hurt business, but said it was too early to give an estimate.

** Electrolux (ELUXb.ST) said the epidemic could have a material impact if its Chinese suppliers were further affected and that it was implementing contingency plans.

** Foxconn’s (2317.TW) shipments to customers including Apple could be disrupted if a Chinese factory halt extends into a second week, a source said. Foxconn has halted almost all its production in China, the person said.

** H&M (HMb.ST) said store closures in China – about 45 – hurt sales in January. The company said its flexible supply chain had limited disruptions.

** Jaguar and Land Rover parent Tata Motors (TAMO.NS) expects the outbreak to hamper production in China and hit profits.

** Levi Strauss (LEVI.N) shut about half its stores in China and said it will take a near-term hit.

** LG Display (034220.KS) said it had not closed any factories in China but warned the outbreak increased uncertainty for suppliers.

** McDonald’s (MCD.N), which closed several hundred of its roughly 3,300 outlets in China, said the overall impact on profits would be “fairly small” if the virus stayed contained in China.

** Japanese trading house Mitsui (8031.T) expects manufacturing activities to slow in automobile and other sectors, and possibly reduce steel product demand.

** Pandora (PNDORA.CO) said the virus had led to an “unprecedented” decline in consumer traffic in China and Hong Kong and that it was unable to estimate impact immediately.

** Remy Cointreau (RCOP.PA) warned that a potential impact from the outbreak would be significant because of its big exposure to China.

** Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL.N), which cancelled three trips of its China-based cruise liner, trimmed its 2020 earnings forecast, adding it would take a further hit if travel restrictions continued until the end of February.

** Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) extended a holiday closure for some factories in line with Chinese government guidance but declined to comment on the impact.

** Samsung affiliate and battery maker Samsung SDI (006400.KS), which counts Volvo (VOLVb.ST) among its customers, warned of a hit to its March-quarter earnings.

** Sony (6758.T), which raised its annual profit outlook, said impact from the virus could offset the revision.

** SK Hynix (000660.KS), which has a chip plant in the eastern Chinese city of Wuxi, said the outbreak had not disrupted production but that could change if the situation was prolonged.

** Starbucks (SBUX.O), which closed more than half its roughly 4,300 stores in China, delayed a planned update to its 2020 forecast and said it expects a material but temporary hit.

** Tesla (TSLA.O) warned a 1-1.5 week delay in the ramping up of production of its Shanghai-built Model 3 cars could slightly hurt March-quarter profit after China ordered a shutdown of the factory. Tesla is also evaluating whether the supply chain for cars built in its California plant will be affected.

STORE/FACTORY CLOSURES:

** Companies including Apple, Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O) Google and Deere (DE.N) temporarily closed facilities in China.

** Fast Retailing (9983.T) closed about 280 of its 750 Uniqlo stores in China.

** Haidilao (6862.HK) shut restaurants and IKEA closed its stores in China. Burger King (QSR.TO) shut some restaurants.

** Hyundai Motor (005380.KS) said it will suspend production in South Korea due to the coronavirus outbreak disrupting parts supply, becoming the first major automaker to do so outside of China. [L4N2A41I5]

** Swatch (UHR.S) closed five stores in Wuhan, Yum China (YUMC.N) closed some KFC and Pizza Hut stores in the city, Luckin Coffee (LK.O) closed its cafes and AB Inbev (ABI.BR) suspended production at its brewery.

** Toyota Motor (7203.T) shut factories in China through Feb. 9.

** Walt Disney (DIS.N) shut its resorts and theme parks in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

HOTELS, BOOKING PLATFORMS, AGENCIES:

** Hyatt (H.N) and Shangri-La said they will allow travellers from China to cancel hotel bookings for free through Feb. 29.

** InterContinental Hotels (IHG.L) said it would allow customers to cancel for free reservations made for China for specific dates..

** Ctrip, China’s largest online booking platform, said more than 300,000 hotels on its platform had agreed to refunds on bookings between Jan. 22 and Feb. 8.

** Fliggy, Alibaba’s (BABA.N) booking site, offered similar refunds, as did several Chinese and European tour operators.

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UK-EU divergence is at odds with supposed Canada-style deal

Trade officials on both sides are likely to drag the Brexit deal past 2020 as contentious issues like tariff reductions and services negotiations will not be resolved so easily, says Deborah Elms, executive director of the Asian Trade Centre.  Nick Note: I can prove to you the world is FULL of the dumbest stupid assholes that ever lived and they are in positions of power. I keep telling you their is NO TRADE DEAL….. And get this THEIR WILL BE NO TRADE DEAL. So the sooner the Brits grow a hairy set of balls and tell Europe  their historic enemy the Germans ti KISS OFF the better they  will be. Pick up the phone and tell Merkil to kiss my bitter tasting ass. Keep the $35 billion in exit fee money. Then offer no taxes for any European company that locates in England. And for some really fun put 100% duty on German cars and Trucks. And call the French and Dutch car and truck markers and ask do you still want access to the biggest market in Europe? them here is how you get 0% duty… Remove all trade barriers or go get fucked with the Germans. With a deal the pound and the  British economy  will soar! The Brits do not have any negotiators so the pound will get pounded… I can’t wait. For the Germans this is not about trade its punishing the Brits for leaving. When you see things in this light it all makes sense. AND PROOF THEY ARE ALL STUPID!

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Search Results Web results Oil demand in China continues to fall amid coronavirus fears

Oil prices have slid to 13-month lows as fears of coronavirus outbreak rise. Azlin Ahmad of Argus Media says that OPEC needs to make a “big announcement” if it wants to push prices back up. Nick Note: That is EXACTLY what i think they will do and that is why we are buying the shit out of oil. And soon enough this hysterics will pass and viral flue season will be over. And things will return back to normal.. So in the mean time the sky is falling falling falling i tell you!

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Tents set up as a coronavirus precaution at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County

Three tents were erected at March Air Reserve Base in case planes carrying passengers who need medical screening are unexpectedly rerouted to the base

RIVERSIDE — Three large tents were erected on the tarmac of March Air Reserve Base — where 195 coronavirus evacuees remained under federal quarantine orders — as a precaution in case additional planes carrying passengers who need medical screening are unexpectedly rerouted to the base, officials said Sunday. The tents were set up to meet a request from federal officials to provide enough housing at the facility for at least 250 more people in individual rooms in case a plane carrying passengers who need to be medically screened is temporarily diverted to March ARB, such as in the case of bad weather or for refueling, according to Brooke Federico, a public information officer for Riverside County’s County Executive Office. “Because of the time involved in constructing the tents, officials decided to have them in place in case any planes were unexpectedly diverted to March (ARB),” Federico said.

News of the tents came as officials said three more cases of coronavirus had been confirmed in California’s Santa Clara and San Benito counties. Eleven U.S. cases have now been confirmed.

PRESS RELEASE: Six cases of novel #coronavirus have been confirmed in California. As said by @CDPHDirector and State Public Health Officer Dr. Sonia Angell, the risk to the general public remains low. Read the release here: https://t.co/IiC2Fwl5X3#nCoV2019 #NovelCoronavirus

— CA Public Health (@CAPublicHealth) February 3, 2020

Nick Note: A pandemic and the ensuing panic is a terrible thing to waste!

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Boris Johnson will RULE OUT accepting EU regulations

 he lays out terms for Canada-style agreement today

  • Prime Minister will tell EU leaders he wants a Canada-style free trade agreement
  • Boris Johnson will say he would rather accept trade tariffs than EU rules 
  • His speech comes as the EU will also unveil its guidelines for Brexit talks

Boris Johnson will today rule out accepting Brussels regulations as he squares up to the European Union over a trade deal. Setting out his vision for the country’s post-Brexit relationship, the Prime Minister will tell EU leaders he wants a Canada-style free trade agreement. But in a tough-talking speech, he will warn they must drop demands that the UK sticks to their regulations as the price of a deal. If the leaders refuse to back down, Mr Johnson will say he would rather accept trade tariffs than EU rules and would instead follow Australia’s trading relationship with the EU, which is based on World Trade Organisation terms. ‘In either case, I have no doubt that Britain will prosper,’ the Prime Minister will say. Boris Johnson will today rule out accepting Brussels regulations as he squares up to the European Union over a trade deal His speech, which he will deliver to an audience of business leaders and ambassadors in London, comes as the EU will also unveil its guidelines for Brexit talks. The two sides are set on a collision course as the EU insists that any deal is dependent on the UK signing up to a ‘level playing field’ on regulations and rules, which would effectively stop British businesses being able to undercut those on the continent.  But the Prime Minister will argue no other country which has a trade deal with the EU has been forced to sign up to such obligations. He will say: ‘There is no need for a free trade agreement to involve accepting EU rules on competition policy, subsidies, social protection, the environment or anything similar, any more than the EU should be obliged to accept UK rules. In the ‘very unlikely event’ that talks do not succeed, Mr Johnson will say in his speech he will seek a much looser arrangement. ‘The choice is emphatically not ‘deal or no deal’.  The question is whether we agree a trading relationship with the EU comparable to Canada’s – or more like Australia’s,’ he will insist. ‘In either case, I have no doubt that Britain will prosper.’  But Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said any suggestion the UK will have to follow EU rules and laws after 2021 ‘just ain’t happening’. He told Marr that staying tied to EU regulations ‘obviously defeats the point of Brexit’. At the end of the transition period in December, the country will leave the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy, which dictates how much British trawlers can catch and where. Fishermen complain they do not get a fair share of what is caught in UK waters. The Fisheries Bill going through Parliament will end the automatic right of EU vessels to fish in British waters, with access to fisheries set to be a matter for the UK to negotiate regulations in any trade deal. Nick Note: Bye bye Pound!

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U.S. whipping up panic over virus, China says, as Pakistan resumes flights

https://youtu.be/ICanbEch4Kw

BEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China accused the United States on Monday of whipping up panic over a fast-spreading coronavirus with travel restrictions and evacuations as Chinese stocks plunged on the first day back from the extended Lunar New Year holiday. The death toll in China from the newly identified virus, which emerged in Wuhan, capital of the central province of Hubei, rose to 361 as of Sunday, up 57 from the previous day, the National Health Commission said. The World Health Organization (WHO) last week declared the flu-like virus a global emergency and it has since spread to 23 other countries and regions. The first death outside China was reported on Sunday – that of a 44-year-old Chinese man who had travelled from Wuhan to the Philippines. Airlines around the world have suspended flights but Pakistan, a close Chinese ally, bucked the trend on Monday and said it was resuming air travel after a three-day suspension.

  • U.S. health officials announce second case of person-to-person coronavirus transmission
  • Exclusive: Outbreak to hit iPhone output if China extends Foxconn factory halt – source

Wuhan and some other cities remain in virtual lockdown with travel severely restricted, and China is facing increasing international isolation. China accused the United States of spreading fear by pulling its nationals out and restricting travel instead of offering significant aid. Relations between the two sides had just begun to recover after a long and bruising trade war. Washington has “unceasingly manufactured and spread panic”, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters, noting that the WHO had advised against trade and travel curbs. “It is precisely developed countries like the United States with strong epidemic prevention capabilities and facilities that have taken the lead in imposing excessive restrictions contrary to WHO recommendations,” she added, saying countries should make reasonable, calm and science-based judgements. Chinese delegate Li Song said the international community should treat the outbreak objectively and not “deliberately create panic” among the general public. A woman wears a face mask in a market alley in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus, February 1, 2020. REUTERS/Thomas Peter Li said China had shared information about the virus with self-ruled Taiwan, which China claims as its own. Shut out of the WHO, Taiwan is being included as a high-risk area as part of China but is unable to get epidemic information first-hand. It has only 10 coronavirus cases compared with thousands in China. Taiwan’s Foxconn (2317.TW), which makes smartphones for Apple (AAPL.O) and other brands, has halted “almost all” of its production in China after companies were told to shut until at least Feb. 10, a source said. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment. President Xi Jinping said controlling the virus was China’s most important task. “Xi stated that the prevention and control of the pneumonia epidemic is directly related to the people’s life safety and fitness, directly related to the overall economic and social stability, and directly related to China’s opening,” Xinhua state news agency said. Chinese stocks .SSEC closed down almost 8%, wipe $393 bln off the market value, the yuan currency had its worst day since August, and Shanghai-traded commodities from oil to copper hit their lower limits — all despite the central bank’s biggest cash input into financial markets since 2004. The WHO saud at least 151 cases had been confirmed in 23 other countries and regions, including the United States, Japan, Thailand, Hong Kong and Britain. Chinese-ruled Hong Kong, rocked by months of sometimes violent anti-China protests, announced the closure of four more border crossings with mainland China, leaving just three open. Australia evacuated 243 people from Wuhan and will quarantine them on a remote island. On Saturday it had followed the United States in barring entry to all foreign nationals travelling from mainland China. The virus is thought to have emerged late last year in a Wuhan market illegally trading wildlife. The number of deaths in China has now passed the total Chinese toll from the 2002-03 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), another coronavirus that emerged from China and killed almost 800 people around the world. Even so, Chinese data suggests the new coronavirus, while more contagious than SARS, is significantly less lethal, although such numbers can evolve rapidly.