Oil prices jumped to multi-year highs Monday, rising over 1.5% amid a global energy crisis that has spurred power and gas shortages in several nations.
Oil futures were steady in late morning trading, with WTI up slightly at $80.71/bbl and Brent down slightly at $83.50/bbl. U.S. natural gas futures were up 1.6% at $5.43/MMBtu.
Oil prices are on track to outpace copper prices this year by the largest amount since 2002 and are topping an index of raw material prices by the biggest margin in more than a decade.
Citigroup expects oil prices to rise to $90/bbl this winter as inventories drop to their lowest levels on record, a result of increased demand from more industries switching from high-priced natural gas to oil.
Utility companies in New York and New England are warning that surging global natural gas prices will lead to higher heating bills this winter.
Natural gas demand in the EU’s industrial sector in October was 12% below pre-pandemic levels as companies cut usage in response to surging prices.
Saudi Aramco agreed to cut prices and supply additional crude to several Asian buyers in November as consumers begin switching to oil for more power generation.
China’s gasoil exports in October are expected to be down 47% from September due to soaring domestic prices and tight export quotas.
China-based ENN Natural Gas inked a 13-year deal to purchase LNG from U.S.-based Cheniere Energy starting July 2022.
Japan’s Eneos (formerly Nippon Oil) announced plans to buy Japan Renewable Energy for $1.8 billion in a bid to expand its low-carbon business.
Qatar’s state-owned petroleum company, Qatar Petroleum, is changing its name to Qatar Energy to highlight a focus on energy efficiency and environmentally friendly technology.
Italian energy infrastructure company Snam has launched a new program aimed to invest and provide support to startups working on new hydrogen projects.
Building and operating the emerging U.S. offshore wind industry could be worth $109 billion to businesses in its supply chain over the next 10 years, analysts predict.
Our most recent list of force majeure and allocation announcements from suppliers is here.
Supply Chain
Southern California’s Huntington Beach reopened Monday following last week’s offshore oil spill.
California utilities are again warning of preemptive power cuts ahead of expected high winds in the coming days that will increase the chance for wildfires.
Import volume grew 11% in August at the ports of New York/New Jersey, Virginia, Charleston and Savannah, as congestion on the West Coast forces shippers to seek alternatives.
Nearly 80,000 shipping containers are stacked on the docks of the Port of Savannah, a 50% increase over normal levels, while some ships are waiting nine days before getting a spot to dock.
U.S. ports are expected to process 4 million more TEUs by the end of the year compared to 2020, a number that would be even higher but for persistent supply chain disruptions.
Russia is hoping to start shipping year-round via the Northern Sea, which passes through the Arctic Ocean, with forecasts that the route will become a major shipping lane by 2023.
China’s Cosco Shipping will debut its new Transpacific BCO Express Line later this week, opening two new trade routes to Los Angeles and Prince Rupert, Canada, in a bid to improve schedule reliability.
North American PC shipments dropped by 9% compared to the same time last year, largely a result of supply chain problems dragging down market growth following record demand levels reached in 2020.
Car sales in China dropped 17% in the third quarter from a year ago, the first decline in more than a year due to continued effects of the global chip shortage.
JPMorgan’s chief executive forecasted that supply chain disruptions hampering economic growth will be erased as early as 2022 due to high levels of consumer spending, currently around 20% more than pre-pandemic levels.
For a partial list of automotive disruptions caused by semiconductor and component shortages, clickhere.
Domestic Markets
The U.S. reported 116,202 new COVID-19 infections and 1,182 virus fatalities Monday.
The U.S. administered more than 7 million COVID-19 vaccine doses last week, the most since July.
The surge of COVID-19 infections driven by the Delta variant may be starting to wane, with new infections throughout the U.S. dropping by 22% over the last two weeks, while hospitalizations have dropped 20%. The decline prompted the White House’s top medical adviser to say families can safely trick-or-treat outdoors for Halloween this year.
Michigan is one of a handful of U.S. states seeing an uptick in COVID-19 cases, with its seven-day average at 3,541 as of last Friday, while hospitalizations from the virus have been steadily rising since August.
Chicago’s mayor will allow the city’s public workers to opt out of a COVID-19 vaccine mandate through the end of the year, provided they get regular virus tests.
The governor of Texas, which currently leads the nation in average daily COVID-19 deaths, issued an order prohibiting “entities” in the state from enforcing vaccine mandates, setting up a clash with a pending federal vaccine/testing mandate for businesses with more than 100 employees.
California’s COVID-19 death toll since the start of the pandemic crossed 70,000 Monday.
Florida’s COVID-19 positivity rate dropped below 5% Friday for the first time since July.
Teaching vacancies in Florida have surged to 5,100 since the beginning of the school year, as pandemic stress and low pay drive teachers from their jobs.
Goldman Sachs downgraded its outlook for the U.S. economy, lowering its growth projection from 6.0% to 5.6% for this year and from 4.4% to 4.0% in 2022, citing expiring relief programs and weaker consumer spending.
U.S. House lawmakers are set to vote on a short-term increase to the government’s borrowing limit today, potentially averting another showdown on debt and spending in less than two months.
Southwest Airlines flight cancellations stretched into their fourth day Monday, with roughly 10% of flights cut due to staffing shortages and bad weather.
Roughly 36% of workers in 10 major U.S. cities were back in the office last week, the highest level since the start of the pandemic.
Amazon updated its return-to-office plans, allowing individual teams to decide how many days corporate employees will be required to be at the office during the week while mandating all employees live within commuting distance.
A growing number of millennial homebuyers are pooling their finances with partners, friends or roommates to purchase houses as home prices surge.
The pandemic continues to cause uncertainty in box office returns, with the most recent installment of the James Bond franchise pulling in a muted $56 million in its debut weekend.
International Markets
The U.K. surpassed 40,000 new COVID-19 infections Monday for the first time since July. Rough estimates show more than 1 million people in the nation are suffering from long-haul COVID-19 symptoms.
Mexico’s Health Ministry reports that COVID-19 infections in the country so far this month are down 43% and deaths are down 24%.
Tokyo reported just 49 new COVID-19 cases Monday, marking the third consecutive day of low infection numbers in Japan’s capital.
Hong Kong officials are waiting to see a rise in COVID-19 vaccination rates before loosening travel restrictions, a contrast to other Asian nations that have begun reopening borders amid a decline in infections.
Indonesia further eased its COVID-19 restrictions, allowing travelers from 18 other countries to enter the nation and cutting quarantine protocols from eight to five days.
A new French study of more than 22 million people found that being vaccinated against COVID-19 reduces the risk of hospitalization or dying from the virus by 90%.
The COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer/BioNTech is the world’s most sought-after jab, with the manufacturer having shipped over 1.6 billion doses to 130 countries since the start of the pandemic.
New research from the U.K. has identified a possible genetic link between Alzheimer’s disease and severe COVID-19 infection.
Debt from the world’s low-income countries climbed to a record $860 billion in 2020, as the pandemic caused major financial problems and spurred the creation of large stimulus packages. The pandemic has also put an estimated 100+ million people into poverty, the United Nations says.
A new government report from India warns that volatile prices for crude oil, edible oils and metal products pose concerns for the country’s economic growth.
Passenger numbers at London’s Heathrow airport were just 38% of pre-pandemic levels in September, driven mostly by a decline in traffic from North America.
Volkswagen will decide on the location of its planned battery cell plant in Eastern Europe in the first half of 2022.
Tesla aims to deliver its first group of vehicles from a new factory in Berlin in December, with plans to build up to 10,000 vehicles per week next year.
At M. Holland
M. Holland’s 3D Printing group offers a rapid response alternative for producing selected parts where resin availability is tight during prevailing force majeure. 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.
We and selected third-parties use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL third-party cookies. For more details about cookies and how we use them, read the full Data Privacy Policy.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. For more details about cookies and how we use them, read the full Data Privacy Policy.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement
1 year
Set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Cookie
Duration
Description
__cf_bm
30 minutes
This cookie, set by Cloudflare, is used to support Cloudflare Bot Management.
bcookie
1 year
LinkedIn sets this cookie from LinkedIn share buttons and ad tags to recognize browser ID.
bscookie
1 year
LinkedIn sets this cookie to store performed actions on the website.
lang
session
LinkedIn sets this cookie to remember a user's language setting.
lidc
1 day
LinkedIn sets the lidc cookie to facilitate data center selection.
UserMatchHistory
1 month
LinkedIn sets this cookie for LinkedIn Ads ID syncing.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Cookie
Duration
Description
_ga
2 years
The _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
_ga_S6SF7JZ2WY
2 years
This cookie is installed by Google Analytics.
_gat_UA-7828007-1
1 minute
A variation of the _gat cookie set by Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager to allow website owners to track visitor behaviour and measure site performance. The pattern element in the name contains the unique identity number of the account or website it relates to.
_gcl_au
3 months
Provided by Google Tag Manager to experiment advertisement efficiency of websites using their services.
_gid
1 day
Installed by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
CONSENT
2 years
YouTube sets this cookie via embedded youtube-videos and registers anonymous statistical data.
vuid
2 years
Vimeo installs this cookie to collect tracking information by setting a unique ID to embed videos to the website.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Cookie
Duration
Description
_fbp
3 months
This cookie is set by Facebook to display advertisements when either on Facebook or on a digital platform powered by Facebook advertising, after visiting the website.
fr
3 months
Facebook sets this cookie to show relevant advertisements to users by tracking user behaviour across the web, on sites that have Facebook pixel or Facebook social plugin.
IDE
1 year 24 days
Google DoubleClick IDE cookies are used to store information about how the user uses the website to present them with relevant ads and according to the user profile.
personalization_id
2 years
Twitter sets this cookie to integrate and share features for social media and also store information about how the user uses the website, for tracking and targeting.
test_cookie
15 minutes
The test_cookie is set by doubleclick.net and is used to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE
5 months 27 days
A cookie set by YouTube to measure bandwidth that determines whether the user gets the new or old player interface.
YSC
session
YSC cookie is set by Youtube and is used to track the views of embedded videos on Youtube pages.
yt-remote-connected-devices
never
YouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video.
yt-remote-device-id
never
YouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video.
yt.innertube::nextId
never
This cookie, set by YouTube, registers a unique ID to store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen.
yt.innertube::requests
never
This cookie, set by YouTube, registers a unique ID to store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen.