Louisiana legal stuff: this gets way into the weeds, but my hunch -- there are some readers interested. The reader who sent me this, says this was the result of Trump-appointed judges. See this post.
Disclaimer: this
is not an investment site. Do not make any investment, financial, job,
career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or
think you may have read here.
Twenty-year high: PFE. And no, I'm not going to post Rocky Mountain High; I have to draw the line somewhere. LOL.
Lumber: drops to nine-month low, extending retreat from record. Link here.
Jobless claims: yawn. Exactly what is being tracked? Why is it worth following? It's one thing to track jobless numbers during a recession when there is a shortage of jobs, but jobless claims when there are 10 million job openings across the US. If there's one metric that doesn't matter today, it's the jobless metric.
Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here.
Aramco’s net income of $25.5 billion for the quarter compares to $6.6 billion in the same quarter of 2020.
The result beat expectations, with analysts expecting a median net income of $24.7 billion for the quarter.
Saudi state oil giant Aramco reported a stunning 288% increase in net
income to $25.5 billion for the second quarter, while maintaining its
dividend of $18.8 billion, as big oil benefits from higher prices and a
recovery in worldwide demand.
Rigs don't matter, following worst timing ever, January - March, 2020, graphic below,
note the ever-so-subtle jump in rig count. Saudi records an incredible
quarter after slashing rigs from fifty to less than thirty.
The EIA report on propane inventories that came out yesterday was a
shocker. This time of year, stocks are supposed to be building toward
the levels needed to get U.S. propane markets through the winter season.
But the numbers released on Wednesday showed an inventory decline,
resulting in inventory balances now below the five-year minimum.
The
culprit, of course, is exports, with 1.4 MMb/d of them reported last
week, a 17% gain over the year-to-date average. And these cargoes to
overseas markets are happening even with propane prices in the
stratosphere: more than double where they stood this time last year.
Propane marketers were hoping that higher prices would slow down
exports, but so far that is not happening. In today’s blog, we examine
U.S. exports of LPG — propane plus butane — and discuss what may be
ahead for these markets.
From a reader a few days ago:
There has been SO much hydrocarbon info coming out these past several days, one has a difficult time keeping up.
One
of the odder data points came from Energy Transfer's conference call
when the CEO said a Memorandum Of Understanding has been reached with
the government of Panama to study the feasibility of building propane
terminals on either coast of Panama and a pipeline to connect them.
To
say I was taken aback would be an understatement, but the more I
pondered the current and future scenarios, it actually may make a lot of
sense.
Condensed 'story' ...
There are now small fleets of HUGE ships csrrying propane (LPG) non stop to new, HUGE petchem plants in China and India.
This is in addition to the robust push for expanded heating/cooking applications to propane from wood, coal, etc.
These big ships (using onboard propane for fuel) can 'zip' back and forth reliably from a west coast terminal.
The
LPG can, somewhat, be economically ferried down to the east coast of
Panama from Texas terminals using older, smaller ships that are
increasingly becoming obsolete for longer voyages.
Amazing
example of global ripple effect that has its origins in the free market
economy and adventurous risk takers like Harold, et al.
The EIA report on propane inventories that came out yesterday was a
shocker. This time of year, stocks are supposed to be building toward
the levels needed to get U.S. propane markets through the winter season.
But the numbers released on Wednesday showed an inventory decline,
resulting in inventory balances now below the five-year minimum.
The
culprit, of course, is exports, with 1.4 MMb/d of them reported last
week, a 17% gain over the year-to-date average. And these cargoes to
overseas markets are happening even with propane prices in the
stratosphere: more than double where they stood this time last year.
Propane marketers were hoping that higher prices would slow down
exports, but so far that is not happening. In today’s blog, we examine
U.S. exports of LPG — propane plus butane — and discuss what may be
ahead for these markets.
While traveling for the past two weeks or so, I didn't keep up with the news, but it seemed like every time I checked in the Dow and S&P 500 were hitting new highs. And I think I saw a headline today that the Dow and S&P 500 hit new highs again today.
The ten-year treasury fell a bit today but is trending higher, now at 1.349 percent. I guess talking heads say it will trend toward 2%. OMG. That could derail this market.
US dollar (DXY): 92.88 -- about where it's been since November, 2020.
WTI: after falling to $65 over the weekend WTI has recovered and is now back to $69 and change. I was hoping to sell shares in EOG and buy shares in a different Permian operator but may have missed my opportunity. I don't put new money into oil, but will trade within the sector. New money is being invested with Cathie Wood.
Dividends payable August 12, 2021: AAPL and EPD.
Disclaimer: this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment, financial, job, career, travel, or relationship decisions based on what you read here or think you may have read here.
For gardeners only: this is a pretty good story. When I was growing up in Williston, ND, my mother made the best rhubarb pie in the world. Period. Dot.
When my mom moved out to Flathead Lake (Lakeside, MT), to the family summer home that became her retirement home, she took a few "stalks" (is that what they are called?) of rhubarb from her garden in Williston, ND, and transplanted them to a little plot in the corner of her yard on Flathead Lake.
I'm using the term "garden" loosely. The only garden plant mom ever planted that survived was rhubarb, and it was only three or four plants, but I digress.
My mom was sure the rhubarb plant she planted in Montana was inside her lot lines. [In literature, that's called foreshadowing.]
Well, apparently some years ago, some temporary renters living in the house behind her were "stealing" her rhubarb. LOL. That became a thing for a few summers. No gunfights at the "OK Corral" but words were spoken.
My mom has passed on to the big rhubarb garden in the sky and a sister has bought the house. During the family reunion, the rhubarb story came up again, and we decided to sort this out once and for all. [No, we had not been drinking.]
We got out the "original" deed, checked the legal description which included the latitude and longitude of the lot lines.
We then went out with someone's brand new iPhone and brand new "map" app and set the phone in the middle of the rhubarb plant.
The plant is one foot outside Mom's lot lines. It's possible some of the rhubarb stalks lean into mom's lot (it's a huge plant), but the law, I'm sure, states that where the main body of stalks enter the topsoil marks the "official location." If so, that's not good news for my mom's heirs who like homemade rhubarb pie.
This summer our sister who now owns the house says her goal this summer is to transplant the rhubarb plant three feet to the southeast, putting the plant clearly inside her lot lines.
She will do it under cover of darkness.
*************************************** The Making Of ....
