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☆ 'Very, very attractive': Strategist names 2 under-the-radar U.S. small-cap names to play right now
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Amala Balakrishner | In Amala-Balakrishner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Market strategist Matt Orton sees promise in small-cap stocks this year, naming four under-the-radar companies he is bullish on right now. Year-to-date, the Russell 2000 , the benchmark for small-cap stocks, has been up nearly 5.2% despite having a tough start to 2024. Small-cap players in the U.S. stand out as "very, very attractive" right now, he said, naming Vertiv Holdings and CyberArk as two companies on his radar. The market strategist remains confident on the stock, noting that "just because it is up, doesn't mean you don't want to own it." CyberArk The market strategist also has his eye on the cybersecurity space.

Persons: Matt Orton, Orton, Raymond James, CNBC's, Russell Organizations: Raymond James Investment Management, Vertiv Holdings, Vertiv Holdings Vertiv Holdings Locations: 2H24, U.S

☆ An Arms Smugger, a Daring Heist, and the Birth of Israel
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( David Kushner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +35 min

Joining the Haganah, Schwimmer discovered, wasn't as easy as just strolling through the door. "He felt he had to do his part in creating a Jewish state, so this could never happen again," Schwimmer recalled. Rather than melt down the surplus weapons for scrap, Liff told Greenspun to take as much as he wanted — free of charge. "It went against the grain to buck the same government we had fought to preserve only a few years before," Hank Greenspun recalled. In 2001, at the urging of Brian Greenspun, Schwimmer received a presidential pardon from Bill Clinton.

Persons: Danny Schwimmer, They'd, Rina, Al —, David Ben, Gurion, Al Schwimmer, Schwimmer, Bugsy Siegel's, Meyer Lansky, Frank Sinatra, Sinatra, —, Boaz Dvir, Israel —, Danny, Al, I've, Hank Greenspun, Greenspun, Brian, Adolph, Dick Tracy, " Schwimmer, Wing Walker, America, Yehuda Arazi, Arazi, they'd, Schwimmer's, Sam Lewis, Leo Gardner, Milton, Milt, Rubenfeld, Paul Reubens, Herman, Reubens, Bugsy Siegel, Siegel, — Schwimmer, Nathan Liff, Liff, PhotoQuest, Bernarr McFadden, Pat, Ptacek, Rafael Trujillo, Teddy Kollek, Erwin Johnson, Bill Gerson, Gerson, Bud King, Gerson's, Ben, Joel Kimmel, Lewis, Lansky, hadn't, Tommy, Messerschmitts, David, Milt Rubenfeld, Israel, Charlie Winters, Winters, weren't, aren't, America's, Joseph McCarthy, John F, Kennedy, Brian Greenspun, Golda Meir, Bill Clinton Organizations: Israeli Air Force, TWA, Haganah, United Nations, Lockheed Air, Los Angeles Examiner, USC, Getty, US Naval, Schwimmer Aviation, FBI, UN, Customs Service, Palestine . Volunteers, Embassy, Israel, Service Airways, State Department, BI, Pepsi, Zionist, Nazi, Star, American, Avia, Messerschmitt, Pennsylvania State University who's, Las, Sun, Israel Aerospace Industries, IAI, they're, Israeli Locations: Tel Aviv, Israel, Connecticut, Palestine, New York, Copacabana, United States, Hungary, Auschwitz, storages, Arizona, Bridgeport, Rome, Burbank , California, Burbank, Las Vegas, Hawaii, Oahu, Santa Claus, California, Washington, Burbank ., Acapulco, Mexico, it's, Mexico City, Central, South America, Dominican Republic, China, America, Mexican, Panama, Panamanian, Corsica, Oklahoma, Detroit, Suriname, Brazil, Senegal, Casablanca, Sicily, Catania, Europe, Czechoslovakia, Czech, Egypt, Cairo, Los Angeles, American, Gaza, Iran

☆ 'America's greatest gift to Israel'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( David Kushner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +35 min

As the country's founder and first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, once declared, "America's greatest gift to Israel was Al Schwimmer." Joining the Haganah, Schwimmer discovered, wasn't as easy as just strolling through the door. "He felt he had to do his part in creating a Jewish state, so this could never happen again," Schwimmer recalled. Rather than melt down the surplus weapons for scrap, Liff told Greenspun to take as much as he wanted — free of charge. In 2001, at the urging of Brian Greenspun, Schwimmer received a presidential pardon from Bill Clinton.

☆ US forces hammered dozens of IRGC and Iran-backed militia targets with 125 bombs in retaliation for the drone attack that killed American troops
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The military action comes days after a drone attack killed US troops in Jordan. AdvertisementThe US military on Friday began strikes against Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria, a US defense official told Business Insider. AdvertisementThe White House immediately blamed Iran-backed militias for the deadly incident and vowed revenge. The recent drone attack could have been an attempt to undermine the US hold in eastern Syria and to open arms smuggling routes through Jordan to the West Bank. AdvertisementSome US lawmakers have called for the Biden administration to take aggressive military action in retaliation for the Jan. 28 drone attack, including conducting strikes inside Iran itself.

Persons: —, CENTCOM, Joe Biden, Defense Lloyd Austin, Washington, John Kirby, they're, Biden Organizations: Service, Business, US Central Command, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, Quds Force, US, Coalition, Pentagon, Defense, National Security, Institute for, West Bank Locations: Iran, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, United States, Tehran, East, Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen, Hamas

A view shows the logo of the European Central Bank (ECB) outside its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany March 16, 2023. That was a relief to financial markets, roiled in recent weeks by a surge in government bond yields led by U.S. Treasuries. The central bank reiterated it would reinvest all the cash it receives from maturing bonds it holds under its 1.7 trillion euro pandemic-era bond scheme until the end of 2024. Instead, the ECB kept the emphasis on slowing inflation, raising investors' conviction that September's rate rise was the central bank's last. And inflation risks have not disappeared.

Persons: Heiko Becker, Christine Lagarde, Lagarde, Piet Christiansen, Gabriele Foa, reinvestments, Marcus Brookes, Sabrina Kanniche, Yoruk Bahceli, Naomi Rovnick, Amanda Cooper, Nick Zieminski Organizations: European Central Bank, REUTERS, ECB, U.S, Treasuries, Reuters, Danske Bank, The Bank of, Algebris, Quilter Investors, Asset Management, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, Italy, Copenhagen, Israel, The Bank of Canada, wean, Ukraine

☆ NetApp beats revenue estimates on rising demand for cloud services
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Aug 23 (Reuters) - NetApp (NTAP.O) reported first-quarter revenue above Wall Street estimates on Wednesday, driven by strong demand for cloud based services from businesses. Enterprise spending on cloud held strong as businesses moved to upgrade their technology infrastructure that is core to their operations and also incorporate newer AI capabilities. NetApp also reiterated its profit and revenue outlook for fiscal 2024. NetApp's total revenue for the quarter ended July 28 was $1.43 billion, compared to analysts' estimate of $1.41 billion, according to Refinitiv data. The company earned an adjusted profit of $1.15 per share, which beat expectations of $1.07 per share.

Persons: NetApp, Yamini, Shailesh Organizations: Enterprise, Thomson Locations: Sunnyvale , California, Bengaluru

It's likely that workers at the Chevron (CVX.N) plants will join their Woodside colleagues in authorising industrial action, which could then be launched with a seven-day notice period. The worst-case scenario is that industrial action is prolonged and forces a total shutdown of the three plants. The most likely outcome for the time being remains limited industrial action, ongoing negotiations and an eventual settlement that sees the unions get some of what they want, most likely in exchange for some longer-term guarantees. LNG imports by Asia, Europe vs spot Asia priceASIA IMPORTS RISINGAsia's imports for August are expected to lift to 22.86 million metric tons, according to data compiled by commodity analysts Kpler. This would be up from 21.61 million metric tons in July and would be the strongest month since January's 23.37 million.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, It's, Europe's, Shri Navaratnam Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Woodside Energy, West, Offshore Alliance, Chevron, Woodside, Kpler, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Rights LAUNCESTON, Australia, Woodside, Western Australia, Asia, Europe, North Asia, ASIA, Japan, South Korea, South, Russia, Ukraine

LAUNCESTON, Australia, Aug 17 (Reuters) - China made a rare draw on crude oil inventories in July as imports softened and refinery processing remained elevated to meet rising domestic demand and a surge in refined fuel exports. China doesn't disclose the volumes of crude flowing into or out of strategic and commercial stockpiles, but an estimate can be made by deducting the amount of crude processed from the total of crude available from imports and domestic output. The volume of crude available to refiners was 14.36 million bpd, consisting of imports of 10.29 million bpd and domestic output of 4.07 million bpd. Subtracting the refinery throughput from the total crude available leaves a deficit of 510,000 bpd. Imports dropped 2.38 million bpd in July from June's 12.67 million bpd, and were the lowest monthly total since January.

Persons: China doesn't, refiners, Brent, Robert Birsel Organizations: National Bureau of Statistics, Brent, Refinitiv Oil Research, Reuters, Thomson Locations: LAUNCESTON, Australia, China, storages, June's, East, Saudi Arabia, Brent, Singapore

☆ Ukraine's frontline farmers face Russian rockets and rock-bottom prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Vladyslav Smilianets | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Viacheslav RatynskyiVELYKOMYKHAILIVKA, Ukraine, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Less than 30 km (19 miles) from Ukraine's southeastern front line, rural farmers whose businesses have survived Russian rockets now fear another hammer blow to their livelihoods: rock-bottom prices for their harvest. "The price (for crops) is not acceptable for the farmers. The farmers of Velykomykhailivka must juggle their worries about collapsing prices and export difficulties with the prospect of more Russian missiles crashing into their farms. We won't have any profit this year with such storages and crop prices." Reporting by Vladyslav Smilianets; Writing by Max Hunder; Editing by Tom Balmforth and Conor HumphriesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Mykola, Krut, Vladyslav Smilianets, Max Hunder, Tom Balmforth, Conor Humphries Organizations: Local, Russian, REUTERS, Reuters, UN, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Velykomykhailivka, Dnipropetrovsk region, VELYKOMYKHAILIVKA, Russian, Dnipropetrovsk, Moscow

A general view shows a special ship, "Neptune", the floating liquefied natural gas terminal, during the inauguration of the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal 'Deutsche Ostsee' in the port of Lubmin, Germany January 14, 2023. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File PhotoLAUNCESTON, Australia, Aug 14 (Reuters) - The comfort that had characterised natural gas markets in Asia and Europe in recent months was shown to be a mere illusion by the threat of strike action at three major Australian liquefied natural gas (LNG) plants. Benchmark Dutch natural gas prices jumped 28.3% from the close on Aug. 8 to the finish on Aug. 10 as reports of the looming strike action spooked the market. Woodside and Chevron are engaging in talks with labour unions at the LNG facilities, and it's not yet clear what form any strike action would take, assuming no agreement can be reached. Europe's LNG imports in contrast have been trending lower as the continent's natural gas storages remained elevated and demand shifts structurally lower as countries move to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

Persons: Annegret, Tom Hogue Organizations: REUTERS, Woodside Energy, Chevron, West Shelf, Benchmark, South Korea, China, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Lubmin, Germany, LAUNCESTON, Australia, Asia, Europe, Western Australia, North Asia, Woodside, Chevron, Ukraine, Japan, South Korea, Qatar, United States

Russia remained the top supplier to China, with pipeline and seaborne arrivals of 2.04 million bpd in July, which was down from June's 2.56 million bpd. However, it was still enough to exceed imports from Saudi Arabia, which Refinitiv estimated at 1.82 million bpd in July, down from 1.94 million bpd in June. It's also worth noting that much of the strength in China's crude imports is because of massive inflows into commercial or strategic storages. India's refiners continue to gorge on discounted Russian crude, with arrivals in July estimated at an all-time high of 2.08 million bpd. Japan's July oil imports are estimated at 2.49 million bpd, up from June's 2.11 million bpd, while South Korea's are put at 2.76 million bpd, up from 2.53 million bpd in June.

Persons: Amit Dave LAUNCESTON, It's, China doesn't, India's refiners, Brent, Clyde Russell, Christopher Cushing Organizations: REUTERS, Refinitiv Oil Research, Brent, OPEC, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Vadinar, Gujarat, India, Australia, China, Asia, Russia, June's, Saudi Arabia, OPEC, Angola, Oman, East, Iraq, Moscow, South, North Asia

LAUNCESTON, Australia, June 19 (Reuters) - China added to crude oil stockpiles at the fastest rate in nearly three years in May, as robust imports outweighed near-record refinery processing. This was up 15.4% from the same month in 2022, and was the second-highest monthly total, eclipsed only by the 14.91 million bpd from March. The volume of crude available to refiners was 16.37 million bpd, consisting of imports of 12.11 million bpd and domestic output of 4.26 million bpd. It's worth noting that for the first five months of 2023 China's crude oil imports are up 6.2% to the equivalent of 11.13 million bpd. If the flows into storage and the rise in product exports are factored in, suddenly the increase in China's crude oil imports doesn't look quite as bullish as it may first appear.

Persons: China doesn't, It's, Jamie Freed Organizations: National Bureau of Statistics, OPEC, Saudi Aramco, Reuters, Thomson Locations: LAUNCESTON, Australia, China, OPEC, Russia, Iran, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Saudi

LAUNCESTON, Australia, May 19 (Reuters) - Chinese refiners dipped into crude oil inventories in April for the first time in 18 months, as high processing rates exceeded the volume of crude available from both imports and domestic output. The volume of crude available to refiners from imports and domestic output in April was 59.71 million tonnes, equivalent to 14.53 million bpd. For April, the total amount of crude available was 340,000 bpd below the volume processed by refiners, the first time since November 2021 that refiners have drawn on inventories. CRUDE IMPORTS RECOVEROn the crude import side the picture is more interesting, with April arrivals the lowest since January at 10.3 million bpd. For May, it seems likely that imports will recover, with Refinitiv Oil Research estimating arrivals of 11.83 million bpd, a jump of 1.53 million bpd from April's soft outcome.

☆ G7 plans new vaccine effort for developing nations, Yomiuri reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, May 13 (Reuters) - The Group of Seven (G7) rich nations is set to agree on establishing a new programme to distribute vaccines to developing countries at next week's summit of leaders, Japan's Yomiuri newspaper said on Saturday. In addition to the G7, G20 nations such as India and international groups such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Bank will participate, it added, citing Japanese government sources. However, COVAX faced setbacks in ensuring equitable access, as wealthy nations prioritised shots for their citizens while insufficient storage facilities in poorer nations caused supply delays and disposal of millions of close-to-expiry doses. The new program aims to pool rainy-day funds for vaccine production and purchases, as well as investment in low-temperature storages and training of health workers to prepare for the next global pandemic, the Yomiuri said. Saturday's meeting of G7 finance ministers agreed to offer aid to low- and middle-income countries to help increase their role in supply chains for energy-related products.

[1/3] Smoke rises above buildings after an aerial bombardment, during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan, May 1, 2023. "It's been four days without electricity and our situation is difficult," said 48-year-old Othman Hassan from the southern outskirts of the city. Despite multiple ceasefire declarations, the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) appeared to be fighting for territory ahead of proposed talks. The army and RSF, which had shared power after a coup in 2021, have accused each other of breaching a string of truces. The U.N. has pressed the warring sides to guarantee safe passage of aid after six of its trucks were looted.

☆ CEO of Italy's Eni sees no major energy price upsets in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Eni SpA FollowROME, April 29 (Reuters) - The CEO of Italian oil and gas company Eni (ENI.MI), Claudio Descalzi, has said he does not expect any "big shocks" on the energy markets this year. "Above all, in these months we have managed to diversify supplies, eliminating dependencies that are dangerous for the stability of supplies and prices," he added. Prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Italy depended on Russia for 40% of its gas imports. Eni said on Friday its first-quarter net profit fell 11% year-on-year on lower oil and gas prices compared with the first three months of 2022, but its results nonetheless exceeded expectations. Reporting by Crispian Balmer Editing by Helen PopperOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

This brings the total pledged output cuts by the group to around 3.66 million bpd, around 3.7% of global demand, and these are expected to remain in place until the end of the year. Saudi Arabia, the world's leading oil exporter, said the additional reduction is precautionary and aimed at achieving stability in the global oil market. Contained within the decision to cut output is the tacit admission that the demand side of the crude equation may not be as bullish as had been forecast by virtually every major energy body and the analyst community. Most likely it would have been well below the $79.77 a barrel it ended at on March 31, which was the closing price before Sunday's shock move to further cut output. China has also been accumulating more oil than it is consuming, despite rising domestic demand and refinery processing rates.

☆ Vietnam needs $11.5 bln to expand national fuel storage capacity by 2030
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HANOI, March 31 (Reuters) - Vietnam would need investment of up to 270 trillion dong ($11.51 billion) to expand its national fuel storage system by 2030, state media reported on Friday, citing a draft plan prepared by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The investment would raise the country's crude oil and refined fuel storage capacity to 75-80 days of net imports, Dau Tu newspaper reported. The country's current fuel storage capacity stands at 65 days of net imports, state radio broadcaster VOV cited the Minister of Industry and Trade, Nguyen Hong Dien, as saying on Thursday. Most of the investment needed for the plan would come from businesses, Dau Tu reported. ($1 = 23,455 dong)Reporting by Khanh Vu; Editing by Kanupriya KapoorOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The EU is buying up Russian liquefied natural gas at the highest level in 3 years, think tank says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Jennifer Sor | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The EU is purchasing Russian liquefied natural gas at the highest level in three years, according to Bruegel data. Though the bloc has sanctioned Russian oil and fuel oil, LNG imports are still free-flowing. The EU snapped up 19.2 billion cubic meters of Russian LNG last year, a 35% increase from 2021. It also makes the EU Russia's second-largest LNG customer, despite efforts from European nations to cut off other Russian energy imports. Birol said the continent still needed to put more effort into diversifying away from Russian energy, or potentially risk blackouts later on in the year when storages are depleted.

European gas prices rallied in the run-up to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine begun almost exactly a year ago and they leapt to record highs when Russia subsequently cut supplies of relatively cheap pipeline gas. Although European prices have eased to around 50 euros ($53) per megawatt hour (MWh) from last August's peak of more than 340 euros, they remain above historic averages. That was even when they had received significant levels of Russian gas on long-term contracts prior to the shut down of the Nord Stream pipeline to Germany in August. Nord Stream's closure drove up European gas prices, as well as liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices, which also hit record levels of around 70 million British thermal units (mmBtu), compared with around $16 now . That could be tricky as the fall in gas prices this year has reduced the incentive to avoid the fuel.

Below are answers to the most urgent questions:HOW HAS GERMANY RESPONDED TO THE LOSS OF RUSSIAN GAS? Germany launched a multi-layered strategy to reign in demand and source alternatives following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent decline in gas deliveries. Germany is now getting more pipeline gas from neighbouring Europe and Norway, buying liquefied natural gas (LNG) via existing European terminals, and constructing new LNG terminals on German coastlines, as well as achieving gas savings. Gas stocks are 89% full, enough to get Germany to the end of March even in a prolonged cold spell, according to most recent statistics, before re-filling starts in the April to September storage season. As a rule of thumb, Germany depletes its stocks by a rate of around 1% per day if temperatures fall below zero degrees, the regulator has said.

☆ Russian gas will eventually return to Europe as nations 'forgive and forget,' Qatari energy minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

On Friday, Russian energy supplier Gazprom said it would not resume its supply of natural gas to Germany through the key Nord Stream 1 pipeline, blaming a malfunctioning turbine. Hannibal Hanschke | ReutersThe European Union's rejection of Russian energy commodities following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine won't last forever, Qatar's Energy Minister said during an energy conference over the weekend. EU countries have dramatically cut down their imports of Russian energy supplies, imposing sanctions in response to Moscow's brutal, full-scale invasion of Ukraine. "But Russian gas is going back, in my view, to Europe," al-Kaabi said. Italy has dramatically reduced its reliance on Russian gas by replacing it with energy sources from alternative producers, such as Algeria.

☆ Putin wasted his leverage over Europe, which no longer relies on Russia for gas, German minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

German minister says Russia wasted the leverage it had in the early stage of the conflict with Ukraine. Europe was heavily reliant on Russian gas, but countries have now diversified their supplies. After the invasion of Ukraine there were fears of blackouts in Germany and other countries across Europe, as Russia drastically reduced its gas supplies amid sharp criticism of its aggression against its neighbor. But Germany's scramble to secure alternative energy supplies has borne fruit, with the country switching to sources of energy including Liquefied Natural Gas, or LNG. Habeck said that Germany was now "one-third done" with replacing Russian energy supplies through other means, and sounded a note of cautious optimism.

☆ Ukraine-Russia war sees U.S. mull Patriot missile defense battery for Kyiv. It's not enough.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Pavel K. Baev | Pavel K. Baev Is A Research Professor At The Peace Research Institute Oslo | Prio | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

The feeble Russian response to Ukraine’s recent drone attacks suggests the West has room to maneuver. The drone attacks also point to how the West can do more to turn the tide of war in Ukraine’s favor. But the Patriot deployment would take months even in the best circumstances, and the war gives no respite. And the feeble Russian response to Ukraine’s recent drone attacks suggests the West has room to maneuver. A U.S. Army Patriot Missile System operates at a joint exercise with NATO allied and partner forces, in Zadar, Croatia, on May 17, 2021.

☆ German exports fall as demand cools in Europe, U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Exports down 0.6% m/m, twice as much as forecastImports post strongest m/m fall since JanuaryBERLIN, Dec 2 (Reuters) - German exports fell more than forecast in October, official data showed on Friday, as high inflation and supply chain snags hit demand in key trading partners, further raising the spectre of recession for Europe's largest economy. Exports declined by 0.6% on the month, twice as much as analysts predicted in a Reuters poll, the data from the Federal Statistics Office showed. Germany's top export partner, the United States, saw the sharpest fall in German exports at 3.9%, while exports to other European Union member states were down 2.4%. The German chambers of commerce and industry (DIHK) said last month Germany's exports were likely to fall 2% next year due to a sluggish global economy, with nearly half of German companies that sell abroad expecting an economic downturn. Also last month, German industrial group Thyssenkrupp (TKAG.DE) warned its sales and profit would "nosedive" next year as high inflation and energy costs are compounded by expected recession in Europe.

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