Tag Archive
Will Precious Metals Shine Through Recovery – US-FOREX.US
Prices of both precious and industrial metals continued to climb during the second quarter, but with economic data gradually improving, sparking investors’ interest in recovery-related assets, precious metals could be losing their appeal. As economic indicators increasingly point to the early stages of a turnaround, investors shift from safe-haven-seeking mode to a recovery-minded approach.Gold and… »
Applied Materials Weathers Storm – US-FOREX.US
Investors have accepted that 2009 isn’t the year for Applied Materials, making Tuesday’s fiscal-third quarter report an assessment of how well the semiconductor equipment maker has handled the downturn and positioned itself for the future.
In June, Applied Materials
‘ chief executive Mike Splinter warned of more failures in the industry as the number of customers declines…. »
Sunocos Slow Quarter – US-FOREX.US
Analysts don’t expect much from Sunoco this quarter.Profit weakness plaguing all U.S. refiners stemming from gasoline overproduction, recessionary summer demand and brimming inventories has already been priced into shares. According to Citi analyst Faisel Khan, these factors have pulled the sector down roughly 30% this year. But while Khan’s expectations that the sector’s second- and… »
Summer Wont Cure Big Oil Blues – US-FOREX.US
Norway’s StatoilHydro was the latest oil major to report a slump in second-quarter earnings on Tuesday, with operating profits down 61% and net income at a clean zero. The 40%-50% slump in oil prices over the year has also depressed profitability at heavyweights like BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Total, and forced a cost-cutting drive… »
Can Grocers Serve Up Profits – US-FOREX.US
Commodity costs are much cheaper than a year ago, so you’d think the food sector would have an easier time pleasing the Street with higher profits. But it’s not that simple: Consumers remain a challenge as companies vie for a bigger portion of their limited spending.
Whole Foods Market
has seen its number of shoppers dwindle amid… »
Big Oil Slick – US-FOREX.US
Taking stock can sometimes lead to taking profit, especially for the oil industry. Total and Eni were the last of the big European majors to report quarterly earnings on Friday-with the exception of StatoilHydro-and the industry-wide pattern of slumping profits, falling production levels and crumbling refining margins were all on display. After a week of… »
Shell CEOs Baptism Of Fire – US-FOREX.US
It’s not easy taking the helm of a company in the midst of an industry slump, but that’s exactly what Peter Voser did a month ago at Royal Dutch Shell. And now the pressure is on for him to expand his cost-cutting drive, after the oil major announced a 70% drop in second-quarter profits on… »
Exxon Chevron Next Up – US-FOREX.US
Steep second-quarter profit declines aren’t over yet for the oil sector as Exxon Mobil reports second-quarter results on Thursday and Chevron releases its second-quarter report on Friday. By now the market is well-versed in the difficult year-over-year comparisons plaguing oil companies so far. During 2008’s second quarter crude oil traded at 125 a barrel, about… »
Big Oil Aint What It Used To Be – US-FOREX.US
A year ago, the world’s major oil companies were at the peak of a commodities boom-fueled by volatility in other areas of the financial marketplace-that had pushed up the price of black gold to nearly 150 per barrel. The recession put paid to that particular bubble, and on Tuesday BP revealed its second-quarter profits had… »
Valero Energy Holds Up Amid Widespread Weakness – US-FOREX.US
High gasoline inventory levels and pricing pressures have been hitting refiners during the second quarter as the market will see when Valero Energy reports results on Tuesday. “While gasoline cracks mostly improved quarter-over-quarter, very depressed distillate cracks and lower crude differentials have taken a heavy toll on refining profitability: almost all refiners are expected to… »