Oil prices dipped from seven-year highs Thursday following news of a rise in U.S. crude and gasoline stocks to their highest levels in a year. Crude futures extended losses in late morning trading, with WTI down 0.5% at $85.09/bbl and Brent down 0.7% at $87.74/bbl. U.S. natural gas was 2.8% higher at $3.91/MMBtu.
Turkey warned it would cut energy supplies for factories after a main Middle Eastern supplier suspended natural-gas flows for 10 days due to a technical problem.
Oklahoma-based Unit Corp., which filed for bankruptcy in May of 2020 at the trough of the slump in oil prices, hired an investment bank to sell $1 billion of oil assets in the U.S. Anadarko and Gulf Coast basins.
Chesapeake Energy, which only emerged from bankruptcy last year, is in advanced talks to purchase Chief Oil & Gas for $2.4 billion, underscoring the energy industry’s recovery as natural resource prices surge to multi-year highs.
More than 30 million Americans were under winter storm warnings yesterday as the second major weather system of the past week crept up the U.S. South and East Coast. Dangerous road conditions are expected to stretch from coastal parts of Virginia through the Carolinas.
Congestion at Western ports is rippling back to Asia, with ships arriving at China’s Yantian port delayed by an average of seven days alongside a 40% drop in ship volumes from the U.S. and Europe the past two weeks.
Union Pacific said COVID-19 infections among staff will continue to hurt freight volumes this quarter although not as severely as the 4% volume slump in the final three months of 2021.
Saw timber prices rose to $26.44/ton last quarter, fueled by increased demand for cardboard boxes as well as wet weather that put a premium on trees sourced from dry areas.
Shipping congestion is slowing the rollout of free COVID-19 tests to residents of Ohio and Maryland.
Intel, the world’s largest semiconductor manufacturer, announced plans to build a new $20 billion factory outside Columbus, Ohio, a major boost amid the decades-long slowdown in U.S. chip production.
European lawmakers are working on a framework that would move 20% of global semiconductor production to the continent by 2030, up from the current 10%. The continent is competing with India, which just released $10 billion in incentives to lure chip makers, and Shanghai, which is offering to subsidize new investment.
Federal regulators announced a key approval for a planned $10 billion train tunnel under the Hudson River, a milestone for the long-delayed project that promises to transform rail activity in the U.S. Northeast.
Nearly $500 million of new U.S. infrastructure dollars will be used to expand a lock complex at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, enabling vessels to haul bulk cargo between Lake Superior and the other Great Lakes.
Supply chain disruptions have reversed a decade-long decline in the cost of building clean energy infrastructure, with prices for solar panels surging more than 50% last year alongside double-digit price gains for wind turbines and batteries.
Electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure is expanding more rapidly as automakers compete to win over an ever-growing number of consumers entering the EV market.
China Merchants Heavy Industry will supply Norway’s Höegh Autoliners with a dozen new car carriers with multi-fuel and zero-carbon capability.
The world’s first liquid hydrogen carrier completed its maiden voyage from Australia to Japan yesterday, following a nearly year-long delay caused by the pandemic.
France’s Port of Marseille is investing more than $850 million into an on-site green hydrogen project with 600MW of production capacity.
Stock in wind-power company Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy fell nearly 15% Thursday after it posted an operating loss and lowered its guidance, citing supply chain constraints.
A recent study suggests that supply chains would benefit from more female participation, with all-women supply chain teams achieving greater efficiency than all-male and mixed-gender teams.
M. Holland’s 2022 Plastics Industry Trends & Predictions
M. Holland’s market experts weigh in on what we can expect for the plastics industry in 2022. View the infographic and read more on current trends and predictions.
Domestic Markets
Yesterday marked the two-year anniversary of the U.S.’s first recorded COVID-19 case. The nation reported 644,814 new infections and 2,479 virus fatalities. Fatalities have surged 42% over the past two weeks to an average of roughly 1,900 per day, while hospitalizations reached an all-time high for the second day in a row at more than 160,000.
More hospitals across the country are suspending elective surgeries amid COVID-induced staff shortages, even as hospitals in some urban areas with declining case rates report easing strains.
Top healthcare officials in Georgia, one of the least-vaccinated states, are pleading with residents to get their COVID-19 shots to reduce strain on hospitals.
More than 300 U.S. testing sites affiliated with Chicago-based Center for COVID Control will shut down indefinitely over allegations of operating without state approvals.
Price-gouging of COVID-19 tests is a rising concern among lawmakers.
The White House is sending more than $100 million to hospitals to help improve workers’ mental health.
The COVID-19 Omicron variant was likely already in the U.S. before its first reported appearance in South Africa.
States are using record cash reserves built up during the pandemic for tax rebates and bonuses, paying down debts and pension obligations and investing in short-term infrastructure projects.
U.S. immigration courts have hit historic pandemic-induced backlogs, sparking years-long delays for immigrants seeking asylum:
The economic impacts of travel bans outweigh the limited protection they provide to most nations, the World Health Organization said. An extreme example is Hong Kong, where 44% of bankers surveyed said they are likely to leave the island due to its strict travel curbs.
Several European nations have begun dropping pandemic restrictions in apparent recognition that the measures have been largely futile against the COVID-19 Omicron variant.
France announced tighter COVID-19 rules yesterday with hopes of easing some restrictions next month.
Hybrids and fully electric vehicles accounted for a global high 86% of new passenger car registrations in Norway last year:
At M. Holland
M. Holland’s 2021 EcoVadis rating improved year over year, reflecting a continued commitment to sustainability and corporate social responsibility initiatives. See the press release.
M. Holland’s 3D Printing group offers a rapid response alternative for producing selected parts where resin availability is tight. For more information, email our 3D Printing team.
Market Expertise: M. Holland offers a host of resources to clients, prospects and suppliers across nine strategic markets.
For all COVID-19 updates and notices, please refer to the M. Holland website.
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