SWIFT Ban Means the Fed May Need to Be Ready With Dollars - Bloomberg
The decision to exclude various Russian lenders from the SWIFT messaging system could result in missed payments and giant overdrafts within the international banking system and spur monetary authorities to reactivate daily operations to supply the market with dollars.
That’s the view of prominent Credit Suisse Group AG strategist Zoltan Pozsar, who published a note Sunday examining the consequences for money markets of the decision to take some lenders off SWIFT, a system that facilitates international payments between institutions.
Drawing comparisons with the 2008 Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. failure and the pandemic-related market seizures of March 2020, Pozsar warns that “central banks should stand ready to make markets on Monday again.”
“Exclusions from SWIFT will lead to missed payments and giant overdrafts similar to the missed payments and giant overdrafts that we saw in March 2020,” Pozsar wrote. “Banks’ inability to make payments due to their exclusion from SWIFT is the same as Lehman’s inability to make payments due to its clearing bank’s unwillingness to send payments on its behalf. History does not repeat itself, but it rhymes.”
In Pozsar’s view, current excess reserves and reverse repurchase agreement facilities won’t be enough, and monetary authorities will need to act. And the upshot from that is that the Federal Reserve, which has been paving the way to start shrinking its balance sheet through so-called quantitative tightening, might actually expand it again first, according to Pozsar.
Sunday 27 February 2022
#Saudi crown prince, France's Macron discuss energy market impact of Ukraine crisis | Reuters
Saudi crown prince, France's Macron discuss energy market impact of Ukraine crisis | Reuters
The Saudi crown prince and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed on Sunday the impact of the Ukraine crisis on energy markets, Ekhbariya TV reported on Sunday.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud stressed in a phone call with Macron the kingdom's keenness on the stability and balance of oil markets and its commitment to the OPEC+ agreement, the state-owned TV channel added.
The Saudi crown prince and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed on Sunday the impact of the Ukraine crisis on energy markets, Ekhbariya TV reported on Sunday.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud stressed in a phone call with Macron the kingdom's keenness on the stability and balance of oil markets and its commitment to the OPEC+ agreement, the state-owned TV channel added.
BP to divest stake in Russian state-oil company Rosneft | Financial Times
BP to divest stake in Russian state-oil company Rosneft | Financial Times
BP is seeking to divest the near 20 per cent stake in Russian state-oil company Rosneft it has held since 2013 in the starkest sign yet of the corporate backlash against Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
The UK-listed oil group said in a statement on Sunday that it would no longer report reserves, production or profits from Rosneft, and its chief executive, Bernard Looney, would resign from the Rosneft board “with immediate effect”.
BP did not specify how and when it might divest the Rosneft stake. It could write off the shareholding, sell it back to Rosneft or find another buyer. Analysts have speculated that a state-backed Chinese or Middle Eastern group might be interested in the shareholding, but it is thought that BP could struggle to find a bidder. The Qatar Investment Authority is already a major Rosneft shareholder.
BP said the changes in the accounting treatment of the Rosneft stake would lead to two “material non-cash” charges in its first-quarter results that could amount to as much as $25bn: an $11bn charge related to foreign exchange losses, and the difference at that time between the “fair value” and the “carrying value” of the stake, which is currently $14bn.
#Saudi Aramco finds new gas fields in four regions - news agency | Reuters
Saudi Aramco finds new gas fields in four regions - news agency | Reuters
Saudi Aramco has discovered natural gas fields in four regions of the kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday, citing Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman.
The fields were found in the central area of the kingdom, in the Empty Quarter desert, near its northern border and in the eastern region, he said, according to the state news agency.
Saudi Arabia wants to increase gas production and boost the share of natural gas in its energy mix, replacing crude and fuel oil, to meet growing electricity consumption and to make more crude available for export.
The minister said an unspecified number of fields were discovered and he mentioned five by name, without indicating in the SPA report if these were all the reservoirs that has been found.
The fields he mentioned are Shadoon, in the central region, Shehab and Shurfa, in the Empty Quarter, in the southeastern region, Umm Khansar, near the northern border with Iraq, and Samna, in the eastern region.
Two of the gas fields, Samna and Umm Khansar, are "non-conventional," he said. Non-conventional deposits, also known as shale, are usually trapped in tight pore spaces, requiring special extraction techniques.
Saudi Aramco has discovered natural gas fields in four regions of the kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday, citing Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman.
The fields were found in the central area of the kingdom, in the Empty Quarter desert, near its northern border and in the eastern region, he said, according to the state news agency.
Saudi Arabia wants to increase gas production and boost the share of natural gas in its energy mix, replacing crude and fuel oil, to meet growing electricity consumption and to make more crude available for export.
The minister said an unspecified number of fields were discovered and he mentioned five by name, without indicating in the SPA report if these were all the reservoirs that has been found.
The fields he mentioned are Shadoon, in the central region, Shehab and Shurfa, in the Empty Quarter, in the southeastern region, Umm Khansar, near the northern border with Iraq, and Samna, in the eastern region.
Two of the gas fields, Samna and Umm Khansar, are "non-conventional," he said. Non-conventional deposits, also known as shale, are usually trapped in tight pore spaces, requiring special extraction techniques.
Major Middle East stocks track global rally | Reuters
Major Middle East stocks track global rally | Reuters
Major stock markets in the Middle East closed higher on Sunday, tracking Friday's rally in global equities as investors welcomed talk of renewed diplomacy after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, while strong corporate earnings added a further boost to Saudi shares.
EU countries agreed to freeze European assets of Russia President Vladimir Putin and his foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, and the White House announced plans for U.S. sanctions.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) rose as much as 2.2% during the day before closing at about 1%.
Sahara International Petrochemical Company and Saudi Arabian Mining (Ma'aden)(1211.SE) supported the Saudi index most, rising 6.7% and 4.7% respectively after they reported robust profits for the last year.
Ma'aden also announced an issue of one bonus share for each share, taking share capital of the miner to 24.61 billion riyals ($6.56 billion).
Egyptian blue-chip index (.EGX30) surged 2.6% after three consecutive days of declines as all but one index closed in green.
The country's largest lender Commercial International Bank Egypt (COMI.CA) and Cleopatra Hospitals (CLHO.CA) were the biggest boost to the index, adding 3% and 11.4%, respectively.
Egypt, often the world's top wheat importer, is working on a plan to buy wheat from other regions rather than Russia and Ukraine. Around 50% and 30% of Egypt's wheat imports in 2021 were from those two countries respectively.
The Qatari index was up 0.2% as Qatar Gas Transport (QGTS.QA) gained 2.2% and Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA) lost 1.2%.
Major stock markets in the Middle East closed higher on Sunday, tracking Friday's rally in global equities as investors welcomed talk of renewed diplomacy after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, while strong corporate earnings added a further boost to Saudi shares.
EU countries agreed to freeze European assets of Russia President Vladimir Putin and his foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, and the White House announced plans for U.S. sanctions.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI) rose as much as 2.2% during the day before closing at about 1%.
Sahara International Petrochemical Company and Saudi Arabian Mining (Ma'aden)(1211.SE) supported the Saudi index most, rising 6.7% and 4.7% respectively after they reported robust profits for the last year.
Ma'aden also announced an issue of one bonus share for each share, taking share capital of the miner to 24.61 billion riyals ($6.56 billion).
Egyptian blue-chip index (.EGX30) surged 2.6% after three consecutive days of declines as all but one index closed in green.
The country's largest lender Commercial International Bank Egypt (COMI.CA) and Cleopatra Hospitals (CLHO.CA) were the biggest boost to the index, adding 3% and 11.4%, respectively.
Egypt, often the world's top wheat importer, is working on a plan to buy wheat from other regions rather than Russia and Ukraine. Around 50% and 30% of Egypt's wheat imports in 2021 were from those two countries respectively.
The Qatari index was up 0.2% as Qatar Gas Transport (QGTS.QA) gained 2.2% and Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA) lost 1.2%.
#Saudi Miner Soars As it Returns to Profit Amid Commodity Boom - Bloomberg
Saudi Miner Soars As it Returns to Profit Amid Commodity Boom - Bloomberg
The shares of Saudi Arabia’s state miner rose as much as 8.3% on Sunday after it announced a profit and plans to boost its capital by $3.3 billion amid a surge in commodity prices.
Maaden, as Saudi Arabian Mining Co. is known, will offer 1 bonus share for each held, according to a statement. That will double its capital to 24.6 billion riyals ($6.6 billion) and will “boost the future growth plans,” the company said.
Commodity prices have climbed in the past year on booming demand, fueled by trillions of dollars in government stimulus and the global economic rebound from the coronavirus pandemic.
The increase in prices helped Maaden return to profit after two years of losses. It made net income of 5.23 billion riyals ($1.4 billion) in 2021, up from a loss of 209 million riyals a year earlier. It opted against a cash dividend for 2021 “based on the company’s need to continue funding its current and future projects.”
The shares of Saudi Arabia’s state miner rose as much as 8.3% on Sunday after it announced a profit and plans to boost its capital by $3.3 billion amid a surge in commodity prices.
Maaden, as Saudi Arabian Mining Co. is known, will offer 1 bonus share for each held, according to a statement. That will double its capital to 24.6 billion riyals ($6.6 billion) and will “boost the future growth plans,” the company said.
Commodity prices have climbed in the past year on booming demand, fueled by trillions of dollars in government stimulus and the global economic rebound from the coronavirus pandemic.
The increase in prices helped Maaden return to profit after two years of losses. It made net income of 5.23 billion riyals ($1.4 billion) in 2021, up from a loss of 209 million riyals a year earlier. It opted against a cash dividend for 2021 “based on the company’s need to continue funding its current and future projects.”
OPEC+ trims forecast for 2022 oil market surplus in latest data | Reuters
OPEC+ trims forecast for 2022 oil market surplus in latest data | Reuters
OPEC+ revised down its forecast for the 2022 oil market surplus by about 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 1.1 million bpd, according to a base scenario in a technical committee report seen by Reuters on Sunday.
The data - part of a report the Joint Technical Committee (JTC) prepares for OPEC+ ministers - also shows stocks in the developed world standing at 62 million barrels below the 2015 to 2019 average by the end of the year.
In a previous forecast it had predicted the stocks would reach 20 million barrels above the same average by that point.
Ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies led by Russia, a grouping known as OPEC+, meet on March 2 to decide whether to increase output by 400,000 bpd in April.
OPEC+ revised down its forecast for the 2022 oil market surplus by about 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 1.1 million bpd, according to a base scenario in a technical committee report seen by Reuters on Sunday.
The data - part of a report the Joint Technical Committee (JTC) prepares for OPEC+ ministers - also shows stocks in the developed world standing at 62 million barrels below the 2015 to 2019 average by the end of the year.
In a previous forecast it had predicted the stocks would reach 20 million barrels above the same average by that point.
Ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies led by Russia, a grouping known as OPEC+, meet on March 2 to decide whether to increase output by 400,000 bpd in April.
#UAE's non-oil foreign trade up 27% in 2021 - Dubai ruler | Reuters
UAE's non-oil foreign trade up 27% in 2021 - Dubai ruler | Reuters
The United Arab Emirates has recorded a 27% year-on-year jump in its non-oil foreign trade amounting to 1.9 trillion dirham ($517 billion) in 2021, Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum said on Twitter on Sunday.
