M. Holland is excited to be the Headline Sponsor for the upcoming Injection Molding & Design Expo in Detroit! This two-day trade show will highlight the latest technologies, materials, equipment and opportunities in injection molding. The event is May 25-26 and admission is free. Click here to learn more.
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.
Supply
Oil prices rose only modestly yesterday even after Russia made good on threats to cut gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria.
In mid-day trading today, WTI futures were up 2.7% at $104.80/bbl, Brent was up 1.9% at $107.30/bbl, and U.S. natural gas was down 4.1% at $7.04/MMBtu.
The U.S. government said crude stocks rose by just 692,000 barrels last week, short of expectations, while distillate inventories including diesel and jet fuel fell to their lowest levels since 2008. The drop in distillates pushed U.S. heating oil to a record close at $4.67 a gallon.
Chinese commercial gas demand is falling due to lockdowns.
More oil news related to the war in Europe:
Russia’s Gazprom halted gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria yesterday over their failure to pay in rubles. European gas prices settled 4.1% higher after a turbulent day of trading, while Asian LNG prices rose 16%. The EU — and notably its largest economy Germany — vowed to push back on Russia’s demands.
North Sea crude purchases are at multi-year highs on increased demand from European refiners looking to replace Russian supplies. Climate activists, sharply opposed to more North Sea production, succeeded in halting some German crude flows yesterday in protest.
Russian seaborne oil exports rose 420,000 bpd in April but are expected to drop sharply when new sanctions take effect in May. Moscow predicted crude exports could fall 17% this year.
A change of control at a Rosneft-operated refinery in Germany could soon complete the nation’s planned halt of Russian oil imports.
Exxon Mobil declared force majeure on its 273,000-bpd Sakhalin-1 operations in Russia’s Far East. Meanwhile, India cannot find a vessel to transport 700,000 barrels of crude from the site.
TotalEnergies will take a $4.1 billion charge as sanctions stall its massive Arctic LNG2 project in Russia originally slated to begin production next year.
Sembcorp Marine and a unit of conglomerate Keppel Corp — both controlled by Singaporean state investment firm Temasek — agreed to a merger that will create the world’s largest builder of oil rigs.
One of the world’s biggest shipping companies, Taiwan-based Yang Ming Marine Transport, says recent signs of easing port congestion could lead to improved freight conditions in the second quarter. FEU prices were down 20% since late February at the Port of Los Angeles last week, while TEU prices were 50% of last August’s levels.
Hapag-Lloyd plans to equip its entire 3 million-TEU container fleet with real-time tracking devices, an industry first.
In the latest supply chain news from first-quarter earnings season:
Knight-Swift Transportation raised its outlook after reporting a 49% jump in revenue and a 60.5% jump in profit to $208.3 million.
Florida-based trucker Landstar System saw record revenue and earnings on 27% higher rates and a boost in volumes.
Wisconsin-based Marten Transport, a hauler of time- and temperature-sensitive goods, posted record revenue and saw a 52% jump in profit.
Paccar’s total revenue increased 10.6% as the trucker began using several more efficient truck models.
Trans-Pacific revenue at Hong Kong-based Orient Overseas Container Line grew 83% despite a 15.4% decline in container volume.
Port Houston’s container volumes expanded 20% year over year, including a 26% increase in loaded container imports.
Global smartphone shipments fell 11% in the quarter, with Chinese vendors losing market share to Samsung and Apple.
The Port of Oakland saw 69,878 TEUs of loaded exports last month, a 12% increase from February but a 25.8% decline from a year ago.
U.S. auto sales are expected to fall 23.8% in April on rising interest rates and continued low inventories.
Toyota produced a record 866,775 vehicles across the globe in March despite factory stoppages and demand shortfalls in the Japanese market.
A South Korean consortium led by LG Energy Solution will invest $9 billion in Indonesia to build a mines-to-manufacturing supply chain for electric vehicles.
Indonesia, the world’s biggest edible oils exporter, widened the scope of its export ban on cooking oil to include crude and refined palm oil, a sharp turnabout from official policy announced the previous day.
First-time jobless claims fell by 5,000 last week to 180,000, near historic lows.
The U.S. economy shrank 1.4% in the first quarter, surprising economists who expected 1.0% growth.
The U.S. trade deficit in goods widened unexpectedly to a record $125.3 billion in March, up 18% from the previous month, on a surge in the value of imported industrial supplies.
Inflation worries have dampened U.S. consumer confidence, according to a recent survey, with just 20% of respondents rating the economy as excellent or good.
Employment in U.S. daycare services remains more than 10% below pre-pandemic levels, as the profession saw one of the worst flights of workers during the pandemic.
In the latest news from first-quarter earnings season:
Qualcomm’s earnings and sales beat expectations, helping dispel fears that chip demand is slowing after a pandemic-fueled surge the past two years.
Samsung reported record quarterly revenue and saw net profit jump 59% on resilient demand for computer chips and rising smartphone sales.
Boeing reported a worse-than-expected $1.24 billion loss as production setbacks stack up for its jetliner and military programs. Long-stalled deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner — with pending orders topping $25 billion — could resume by this summer.
Medical-device maker Boston Scientific attributed a 10% gain in revenue to a rise in medical procedures and upped its full-year sales outlook.
Harley-Davidson’s sales fell 5%, primarily in North America, as supply shortages held back production. The firm expects a planned spinoff of its electric motorcycle division to be finalized by the middle of this year.
Procter & Gamble’s organic sales rose 10%, the biggest jump in 20 years, as the firm warned that shoppers may begin to balk at higher prices.
Consumer-goods giant Unilever raised prices an average of 8.3% last quarter, the most of any competitor, and suffered a 1% decline in overall volumes.
American agriculture giants including Archer Daniels Midland, Bunge and Cargill reaped gains on the global rise in commodity prices and said tight crop supplies could continue for several years.
Kraft Heinz beat market expectations and raised its full-year sales forecast as pandemic-era demand for packaged meals and condiments remains high.
PayPal posted revenue slightly above market expectations but reduced full-year guidance by several percentage points as more consumers return to in-store shopping.
International Markets
Global COVID-19 fatalities fell to 15,000 last week, the lowest weekly total since March of 2020, according to the WHO.
Shanghai reported 12,309 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday, its lowest level in weeks, while Beijing reported more cases as it tries to test its 22 million residents three times over the next five days.
Authorities also began mass testing in Hangzhou, a city of around 12 million that is home to a small but notable network of tech companies.
China’s central bank said it would step up monetary support to help avert the impact of lockdowns.
Taiwan reported over 11,000 new COVID-19 cases yesterday, a record.
Up to 80% of Europeans may have been infected with COVID-19, new research suggests, as the bloc enters a post-emergency phase in which mass reporting of cases is no longer necessary, officials say.
The BA.2 subvariant of Omicron now accounts for over 90% of cases in Japan, as calls to remove travel restrictions grow.
Reinfections with COVID-19 were 10 times higher in the latest Omicron surge than at any time during the pandemic, new research out of Britain shows.
Testing for COVID-19 is down 70%-90% across the world, making it more difficult for health officials to monitor for new strains.
More news related to the war in Europe:
Russian officials predict the nation’s economy could contract as much as 12.4% this year as inflation surges past 20%, although reports suggest the nation’s economic data cannot be trusted.
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.