Wednesday, January 14, 2026

The Chart Of The Day -- January 14, 2026

Locator: 49916COPPER.

SCCO: currently pays 1.7%.  BRK pays no dividend. SCCO pays a very, very nice dividend:

The ticker: 


Comparing with BRK-B, the GOAT

 

One month:


Six months
:


One year
:
 

Five years
:
 

Max:   


 

The Year Of Ultra-Ultraportable Windows Laptop -- January 14, 2025

Locator: 49915LAPTOPS.

I don't follow non-Apple PCs or Intel or Microsoft to much extent (it's a long, long story), but this appears to be a very useful summary. 

My hunch: if these new non-Apple PCs make the Apple MacBook Air feel "chonky," these 2026 computers are going to feel "Chinese-cheap." It's all about the keyboard. 

Before we get started: the average weight of a non-Apple PC varies significantly by form factor:

  • Laptops: The average weight is around 3 to 4 pounds (1.4 to 1.8 kg). Ultraportable models can be under 3 pounds, while larger, high-performance, or gaming laptops often weigh 5 to 8 pounds or more.

With the very, very significant decrease in weight, it's my hunch that this will really, really please those who don't use Apple laptops, but won't mean a thing to Apple users. For all intents and purposes, non-Apple laptops have simply matched what Apple has been doing for some time.

I doubt folks will switch from Apple to PC (or vice versa) based on weight. The "aha" moment for these non-Apple PCs was the comparison not to Apple but to the older non-Apple PCs. 

I don't think it even comes down to price any more.

Bottom line: with regard to laptops, folks fall into two groups and they aren't going to switch (if they do, the switch will be in Apple's favor). Nor will folks choose their next laptop based on the processor (or processors). 

Non-Apple PC users will buy new non-Apple PCs based on two things:

  • memory, and
  • cost.

Apple laptops users will buy new Apple laptops based on two things:

  • memory, and
  • cost.  

Having said that, let's look at the technology inside.

Link here. 

The lede: 

Soon, the Zenbook A14 won't be an outlier: Almost every PC maker had an exceptionally thin and light model in tow at CES 2026. Like the Zenbook A14, which got a subtle next-gen update (and a sibling), the new laptops have premium magnesium alloy chassis, OLED displays, and builds that hover around 2.2 pounds. 
They make the 2.7-pound Apple MacBook Air feel chonky. [We'll see.]
Weight: 
  • a difference of 8 ounces (0.5 pounds = 8 ounces);
  • 2.2 pounds = 35.2 ounces
  • 2.7 pounds = 43.2 ounces 
  • 35.2 ounces is about 81% of 43.2 ounces. 
  • the lightest below: 2.15 pounds = 34.4 ounces 

If 2025 was the year of the ultra-thin phone, then 2026 is shaping up to be the year of the ultra-ultraportable Windows laptop.

Most of these super-svelte Windows laptops run on new Intel Ultra Core Series 3 chips, which offer broader app compatibility than ARM-based Qualcomm models and promise up to 27 hours of battery life. 
The refreshed Zenbook A14 and the new HP OmniBook Ultra 14 will come with Qualcomm's new Snapdragon X2 chips, and the former is rated for up to 35 hours of stamina. 
(The 2025 model held out for about 22 hours in our testing.) 
The OmniBook's spec sheet just lists "multi-day" battery life for now.

Stay tuned for final pricing and availability info for most of these CES laptops — and brace for impact, as the ongoing RAM shortage is expected to jack up costs.

I'm not sure if I have this correct, but it comes down to processors from two companies:

  • Intel
  • Qualcomm 

Computers made by the following companies:

  • Acer: Taiwanese
  • Asus: multinational based in Taiwan
  • HP: American, I assume
  • Lenovo: Chinese
  • Dell: American 

The non-Apple PCs highlighted at CES 2026:

  • Acer Swift Edge 14 AI
    • Intel Core Ultra 9 386H processor
  • Asus ExpertBok Ultra
    • Intel Core Ultra X9 Series 3 processor, Intel's new high-end chip;
    • requires large fans: "minimal noise"
  • Asus Zenbok A14 (and A16)
    • Snapdragon X2 Elite chip
    • Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme (for the A16): Qualcomm's most powerful processor yet
  • HP EliteBook X G2i
    • Intel Core Ultar 7 or 7 processor (sic)
  • HP OmniBook Ultra 14
    • thinnest laptop at CES 2026
    • maybe the thinnest laptop ever
    • 10.7 mm in the back; 7.4 mm in the front
    • Intel Core Ultra 3 chip, or
    • Snapdragon X2 Plus or Elite chip
  • Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Ultra Aura Edition
    • at 2.15 pounds, the lightest laptop at CES 2026
  • Honorable mention (the death knell of reviews): Dell XPS 13

AI prompt: laptop market share of these non-Apple laptops: Acer: Taiwanese Asus: multinational based in Taiwan HP: American, I assume Lenovo: Chinese Dell: American.

With memory costs, it will be interesting to see how laptop costs compare by the end of the year (2026).

Someone's Feeling The Heat In DC -- January 14, 2026

Locator: 49914TECH.

DC: link here. What's going on? Trump administration looking for "leakers." 

****************************
Tech 

TSMC: just bought 900 acres of land in Phoenix for $197 million. Link here. Adjacent to its existing property. 

TSMC: expansion. 

TSMC: could see lower tariffs. Even before the US Supreme Court ruling.

TSMC: link here.

CAT: hits milestone. Link here. 

Vera Rubin: ahead of schedule.  

Amazon Prime: NFL streaming.

Apple: the subscription model.  

Micron: SK Hynix plans $3 billion memory-chip plant (South Korea). MU plummets. New fab won't come on-line until 2027. Link here.  

AMD: three ways AMD becomes a successful 2026 story. Shay. Link here. Last five days: 

Finally Something To Be Happy About -- CVX -- This Past Month -- January 14, 2026

Locator: 49913WTI.

CVX:


 

Already Wednesday -- WTI Up Another 1% -- January 14, 2026

Locator: 49912B.

Inflation numbers: 3% vs 2.7% prior. 

Misery index: haven't seen this in awhile .... link here. 

 

******************************
Back to the Bakken

WTI: $61.79.

New wells reporting:

  • Thursday, January 15, 2026: 23 for the month, 23 for the quarter, 23 for the year, 
    • 41364, conf, BR, Sandie 1B MBH, 
    • 40912, conf, Hess, GO-Layton-156-97-1931H-2, 
  • Wednesday, January 14, 2026: 21 for the month, 21 for the quarter, 21 for the year,
    • 40582, conf, KODA Resources, Stout 1831-5BH, 

RBN Energy: private-sector midstreamers eye expansion to Mexico's gas pipeline network. Part 2. Link here. Archived.

Mexico’s process for planning new natural gas pipelines and gas-fired power plants is very top-down, with state-owned Cenagas (owner of Pemex’s legacy pipeline network) and Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) playing key roles. But the massive buildout of pipelines south of the border has been largely accomplished by private-sector companies like TC Energy, Esentia Energy and Grupo Carso, which have the financial and technical wherewithal to execute complex projects costing many billions of pesos. Now, these midstreamers are working to advance another round of projects that will spur additional gas exports from the U.S. In today’s RBN blog, we continue our look at the leading publicly and privately held companies in Mexico’s gas-pipeline space. 

In Part 1, we noted that (1) U.S. gas exports to Mexico have been rising steadily as new gas pipelines and gas-fired plants come online and (2) two successive presidential administrations in Mexico have seen the value of having the private sector play a major role in pipeline development — as long as Cenagas and CFE take the lead in pipeline planning, support and oversight. We also began a review of the leading private-sector companies involved in building new pipelines in Mexico with a look at TC Energy, which owns and operates eight large pipelines there.

Today, we follow that up with profiles of three other companies that have built — or are planning to build — gas pipelines in Mexico: Esentia Energy, Grupo Carso and Engie SA.

Esentia Energy

Esentia got its start back in the mid-1990s as Fermaca Enterprises, a family-owned company formed to develop gas pipelines and related infrastructure in Mexico. By 2014, Fermaca had developed a handful of projects, including the Tarahumara Pipeline in Chihuahua state in northern Mexico (just south of El Paso, TX; more on Tarahumara later). That same year, Swiss-based private-equity firm Partners Group acquired an unspecified majority interest in Fermaca for an estimated $750 million. Over the next several months, Partners refinanced Fermaca’s debt and raised more than $500 million in additional equity to help finance a substantial buildout of the midstream company’s Mexican portfolio. Fermaca also co-developed with ONEOK (and still holds a 50% ownership in) the Roadrunner Pipeline from the Waha Hub in West Texas to the origin point of the Tarahumara Pipeline (again, more on these in a moment).

By the early 2020s, Partners Group was transitioning the Fermaca Enterprises name to Esentia Energy, and in November 2025 it launched an Esentia initial public offering (IPO) that raised more than $600 million. Partners said it would use most of the proceeds to help fund planned capacity expansions along the midstreamer’s primary pipeline corridor down Mexico’s spine and the rest to reduce Esentia’s debt.