Oil at 7-week high after Iran tries to block British tanker: Morning Brief

Thu, 11 Jul 2019, 6:23 am

Thursday, July 11, 2019

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WHAT TO WATCH

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell takes the hot seat for a second day, and Delta Air Lines will deliver quarterly financial results on a busy day.

Powell’s second day of congressional testimony follows a more than three-hour long testimony in front of the House on Wednesday. In his prepared remarks, Powell noted that there are “uncertainties” surrounding the trade war and global economy. His comments all but guaranteed a rate cut at the Fed’s policy-setting meeting at the end of the month, and it lit up the markets. The S&P 500 briefly broke through the 3,000 level Wednesday. Investors will be paying close attention to day two for more insight and clarity into Powell and the central bank’s plans for monetary policy.

Delta Air Lines (DAL) earnings ahead of the opening bell will be another focal point among market watchers. Analysts polled by Bloomberg are expecting the airline to report adjusted earnings of $2.28 cents per share on $12.49 billion in revenue. Yahoo Finance will be speaking to Delta CEO Ed Bastian with coverage beginning at 9 a.m. ET.

In this image from file video provided by UK Ministry of Defence, British navy vessel HMS Montrose escorts another ship during a mission to remove chemical weapons from Syria at sea off coast of Cyprus in February 2014. The British Navy said it intercepted an attempt on Thursday, July 11, 2019, by three Iranian paramilitary vessels to impede the passage of a British commercial vessel just days after Iran’s president warned of repercussions for the seizure of its own supertanker. A U.K. government statement said Iranian vessels only turned away after receiving “verbal warnings” from the HMS Montrose accompanying the commercial ship through the narrow Strait of Hormuz. (UK Ministry of Defence via AP) — British navy vessel HMS Montrose escorts another ship during a mission to remove chemical weapons from Syria at sea off coast of Cyprus in February 2014. (UK Ministry of Defence via AP)

Oil at 7-week high after Iran tries to block British tanker: Oil prices on Thursday hovered at a seven-week high, with a potential hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico and an Iranian attempt to impede a British tanker raising fears that supply may be interrupted. The Royal Navy said on Thursday it had intercepted an Iranian bid to block a British commercial oil tanker from leaving the Persian Gulf. Oil futures (CL=F) rose 0.41% to well over $60 a barrel, remaining at levels not seen since May. [Yahoo Finance UK]

PG&E judge demands response to WSJ report on faulty lines: PG&E Corp. (PCG) was ordered by a federal judge overseeing its probation to respond to a Wall Street Journal story claiming the utility knew its power lines could cause wildfires and failed to perform upgrades. [Bloomberg]

Deutsche Bank faces U.S. probe over 1MDB: The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating Deutsche Bank AG as part of a broadened probe of Malaysia’s scandal-plagued 1MDB investment fund, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. [Bloomberg]

Bitcoin extends losses after Fed chief urges halt to Facebook's Libra: Bitcoin (BTC-USD) dipped almost 8% on Thursday, extending losses the day after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell called for a halt to Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency project until concerns ranging from privacy to money-laundering were addressed. [Reuters]

Powell on stepping down if Trump asked : Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated on Wednesday that he would serve out his full four year term, despite continued criticism from President Donald Trump—the man who appointed him. In testimony on Capitol Hill, the Fed chief was asked by Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA) if he’d heed a theoretical call by Trump to step down. The president has been Powell’s harshest critic, and in recent days hinted about his authority to demote or fire him. [Yahoo Finance]