Oil prices edged higher on Tuesday boosted by Opec+ supply cuts and as investors awaited key macroeconomic data that could signal the direction of interest rates.
Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil, was trading 0.68 per cent higher at $91.26 a barrel at 4.11pm UAE time. West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, was up 0.82 per cent at $88.01 a barrel.
On Monday, Brent settled 0.01 per cent lower at $90.64 a barrel, while WTI closed down 0.25 per cent at $87.29 a barrel.
"Oil prices are creeping higher again on Tuesday ... despite there being a mixed view on the economic outlook," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda.
"As we heard from the European Commission yesterday, growth in the euro area is going to be relatively minor, with Germany struggling to avoid another recession. The UK has shown a lot more resilience than anticipated but still faces recession risks and marginal growth at best," Mr Erlam said.
"One thing we're guaranteed is supply to continue to be restricted until the end of the year at least following the recent announcement by Saudi Arabia and Russia."
The US consumer price index data for August is expected to be released on Wednesday, a week ahead of the US Federal Reserve Policy meeting on September 19-20.
After pausing its tightening cycle in June, the Fed increased its policy rate in July for the 11th time since March 2022, as it aims to bring inflation down to its 2 per cent target range.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell has warned the central bank may not be done raising interest rates, arguing more proof is needed to show a cooling economy.
Higher interest rates dampen economic growth, lowering crude demand.
Meanwhile, US car workers are set to go on strike this week if carmakers General Motors, Ford and Stellantis fail to meet their demands for pay raises and the restoration of concessions.
A 10-day strike could reduce US gross domestic product by $5.6 billion, Mr Moya said.
Last week, Goldman Sachs said the probability of the US economy, the world’s largest, slipping into a recession had declined further amid encouraging inflation and job market trends.
The chances of an economic contraction in the US dropped to 15 per cent over the 12-month period, down from a previous estimate of 20 per cent, the biggest US investment bank said in its latest economic views report.
The US economy grew at a higher-than-expected 2.4 per cent in the second quarter of this year. Bloomberg economists had forecast a GDP growth rate of 1.8 per cent.
Libya, Opec’s seventh-largest crude oil producer, has closed four major oil ports after Storm Daniel caused devastating floods in the North African country.
The oil ports – Ras Lanuf, Zueitina, Brega and Es Sidra – were closed from Saturday evening for three days, Reuters reported on Monday, citing two oil engineers.
The closure of the ports will lead to some export disruptions, but those exports are "likely" to recover once the ports re-open, Giovanni Staunovo, strategist at UBS, told The National.
"I am not aware of any production disruptions at the moment," he added.
On September 10, Libya's National Oil Corporation said the country's crude production reached 1.213 million barrels a day.
Opec+ and the International Energy Agency will release their monthly oil market reports this week.
The Paris-based agency expects demand to expand by a record 2.2 million bpd this year, supported by a recovery in China’s economy, the second largest in the world.
However, the Asian country's post-coronavirus economic recovery has lost momentum mainly due to a deepening property slump and weak consumer spending.
China, the world’s largest crude importer, has announced a string of stimulus measures over the past few weeks, including halving the stamp duty on stock transactions and easing mortgage rates.
China's consumer price index rose by 0.1 per cent in August, after falling by 0.3 per cent in July, the National Bureau of Statistics said at the weekend.
Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
Price: From Dh147,000
Available: Now
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Company profile
Name: The Concept
Founders: Yadhushan Mahendran, Maria Sobh and Muhammad Rijal
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 7
Sector: Aviation and space industry
Funding: $250,000
Future plans: Looking to raise $1 million investment to boost expansion and develop new products
SPECS
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
What is dialysis?
Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.
In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.
It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.
WTL%20SCHEDULE
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Company%C2%A0profile
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The specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 849Nm
Range: 456km
Price: from Dh437,900
On sale: now
The specs
Engine: 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 540hp at 6,500rpm
Torque: 600Nm at 2,500rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Kerb weight: 1580kg
Price: From Dh750k
On sale: via special order
Liverpool's all-time goalscorers
Ian Rush 346
Roger Hunt 285
Mohamed Salah 250
Gordon Hodgson 241
Billy Liddell 228
The Rub of Time: Bellow, Nabokov, Hitchens, Travolta, Trump and Other Pieces 1986-2016
Martin Amis,
Jonathan Cape
It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
Funk Wav Bounces Vol.1
Calvin Harris
Columbia
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Episode list:
Ep1: A recovery like no other- the unevenness of the economic recovery
Ep2: PCR and jobs - the future of work - new trends and challenges
Ep3: The recovery and global trade disruptions - globalisation post-pandemic
Ep4: Inflation- services and goods - debt risks
Ep5: Travel and tourism
Hidden killer
Sepsis arises when the body tries to fight an infection but damages its own tissue and organs in the process.
The World Health Organisation estimates it affects about 30 million people each year and that about six million die.
Of those about three million are newborns and 1.2 are young children.
Patients with septic shock must often have limbs amputated if clots in their limbs prevent blood flow, causing the limbs to die.
Campaigners say the condition is often diagnosed far too late by medical professionals and that many patients wait too long to seek treatment, confusing the symptoms with flu.
