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​​Российская нефть в итоге пострадала от санкций в отношении ее танкеров - Индийские нефтеперерабатывающие заводы отказываются принимать танкеры, принадлежащие ПАО "Совкомфлот", из-за риска санкций.  - США ужесточили санкции против более широкого парка танкеров, перевозящих российскую сырую нефть.  - Эти шаги потенциально могут ограничить доходы России от продажи нефти, что является ключевой политической целью США и их союзников.  - Подход "Большой семерки" к санкциям в отношении России характеризуется отказом причинять ущерб своей собственной экономике.  - Россия продолжает экспортировать огромные объемы нефти, несмотря на усиление санкционного давления.  - Индия избегает своего флота, что является символическим ударом по Кремлю.  - Россия может использовать "теневой флот" судов для своих поставок, но затраты на доставку российской нефти огромны.  Об этом пишет #Bloomberg @Bloomberg4you 🇷🇺🇪🇺🇺🇸 #санкции #нефть

​​Cocoa futures have doubled in less than three months as a landmark price run-up intensifies, boosting sweet costs for consumers and sending chocolate makers scouring for supply. The most-active contract in New York rose to $8,394 a metric ton, the highest on record. Crops in West Africa — the heavyweight growing region — have been battered by diseases and a series of weather extremes, putting the world on track for a third straight supply deficit. Processing plants there are already suffering shutdowns, and new environmental regulations looming in European importers are adding to the hurdles to source beans. The cocoa rally is accelerating just ahead of Easter, a major chocolate-consuming holiday in countries like the US. While manufacturers buy beans months ahead of time, the rally is beginning to bite and some bars are getting more expensive, smaller or filled with other flavors to blunt the impact. “There are lots of players who have already announced price increases. We are also part of that group,” Martin Hug, chief financial officer at chocolate maker Lindt & Spruengli AG, said on a March earnings call. “It is very difficult to predict at the moment what will happen with the cocoa market. But I think we have controlled it as well as we can.” @Bloomberg4you #BloombergEconomics

​​No American car buyer today can purchase a Chinese brand’s electric vehicle. And no one is really sure when these EVs will arrive on US shores. But the prospect of cheap Chinese-made EVs is already causing sleepless nights in Detroit. The primary threat comes from cars such as BYD Co.’s Seagull hatchback, which features angular styling, a two-tone dashboard shaped like a seagull’s wing and six airbags. There’s even a 10-inch rotating touchscreen for its infotainment system. BYD’s company slogan, “Build Your Dreams,” is embossed on the rear of the vehicle. The car’s most extraordinary feature, though, is its $9,698 price tag. That undercuts the average price of an American EV by more than $50,000 (and is only a little more than a high-end Vespa scooter). Such aggressive pricing by BYD, which surpassed Tesla Inc. in late 2023 to become the world’s largest producer of electric vehicles, is indicative of how Chinese auto manufacturers will likely force US makers to pivot away from mainly producing expensive second cars for the affluent and toward more reasonably priced EVs for the Everyman. Just as the long-feared prospect of a revolutionary EV from US tech giant Apple Inc. receded, American carmakers now face a possibly greater challenge from Asia. China, long a manufacturing hub for Western companies’ products, is hellbent on expanding its own companies’ reach around the globe. It’s already the biggest market for EVs, and it’s using that scale and manufacturing know-how to help expand sales of competitively priced Chinese models to an increasingly climate-conscious world. For now, the Chinese onslaught is being kept at bay in America by stiff tariffs and moves to erect even tougher trade barriers against the US’s geopolitical adversary. But the Chinese market accounts for about 70% of all EVs sold globally, so China’s push to lower prices is causing a ripple effect that can’t be ignored in the long term—even if political maneuvering by American lawmakers manages to slow the Asian giant’s automotive advance toward the US, the world’s most profitable car market. “This threat has put everybody on alert,” says Jeff Schuster, global vice president for automotive research for consultant GlobalData. “It forces innovation in a way that might not have happened as quickly.” @Bloomberg4you 🇺🇸🇪🇺🇨🇳 #BloombergEconomics

The Nasdaq Stock Market said it was investigating issues with connectivity, without providing details on whether trading was impacted. “Nasdaq is investigating an issue with its matching engine at this time and will provide further updates as soon as possible,” it said in a statement on its website. A Nasdaq spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment outside regular US business hours. @Bloomberg4you 🇺🇸 #BloombergEconomics

European natural gas prices extended gains for a fourth day, the longest streak since the end of January, as traders focus on the fragility of global energy supplies. Benchmark futures jumped as much as 6.2% on Monday, extending last week’s gains. Prices have started to rally recently after plunging as much as 30% since the start of the year, indicating that traders are paying more attention to factors that will affect fuel purchases ahead of next winter. Outages at global gas liquefaction facilities — from Malaysia to the US — are sending jitters through the market as Europe approaches the last weeks of its heating season. Colder-than-normal temperatures are expected across parts of northern Europe next week before heading higher. Meanwhile, flows to the Freeport LNG export plant in Texas remain reduced as the operator has said some works will last through April. Gas gains are tracking advances in oil contracts following Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries, which raise “the geopolitical temperature,” said Ole Sloth Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank A/S. “Freeport and Ukraine attacks on Russian energy infrastructure are probably the main drivers,” he said. With carbon prices also up as much as 3.4%, there are “no bearish drivers today.” Dutch front-month futures, Europe’s gas benchmark, advanced 5.7% to €28.57 a megawatt-hour at 9:28 a.m. in Amsterdam. @Bloomberg4you 🇪🇺🛢 #BloombergEconomics

​​China’s output of thermal coal has fallen for the first time in years, adding to signs that Beijing’s long campaign to bolster energy security by digging more of the fuel may have reached its apex. Coal production dropped 4.2% from a year earlier to 705 million tons for January and February combined, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics. That’s the first year-on-year decline since September 2021. Authorities in China put renewed emphasis on coal after a 2021 energy crisis — and the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — made energy security a top priority for President Xi Jinping. Coal output soared to record levels late last year. Mine safety has become a bigger issue in recent months, with a rising death toll triggering more government scrutiny and forcing a slowdown in output in some key coal hubs. Still, falling mine output doesn’t yet mean less reliance on coal-fired power, which expanded by 9.7% in the first two months by relying on a burst of imports to offset declining domestic coal supplies. That outpaced overall power generation, and offset softness in renewable power. The coal numbers were part of China’s broader dump of data on Monday that showed a mixed picture for the economy and for commodities activity. Oil processing reached record levels for the first two months of the year as refiners cranked up plants to feed a travel boom around the lunar holiday. Steel output edged up, while aluminum production was close to all-time highs. China combines output data for January and February to smooth out the impact of the Lunar New Year holiday, which this year fell in the middle of last month. The leap year also included an extra day in February. @Bloomberg4you 🇨🇳 #BloombergEconomics

China processed a record amount of crude at the start of the year as refiners ramped up operations to meet holiday demand. The volume of oil processed in January and February was 118.76 million tons, an all time high and 3% more than the same period last year, government data released on Monday show. That’s equivalent to 14.51 million barrels a day, according to Bloomberg calculations. China’s fuel demand jumped as people traveled for the Lunar New Year holiday that started mid-February. Trips in private vehicles soared, with expressway passenger volumes 54% higher than 2019 levels, while airlines saw 19% more people than the pre-pandemic peak, according to BloombergNEF. Apparent oil demand in January-February gained 6.1% to 14.36 million barrels a day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Nationwide crude production was 35.11 million tons, 2.9% higher than a year ago, official figures show. @Bloomberg4you 🇨🇳 #BloombergEconomics

​​Some creditors of Glory Health Industry Ltd. convinced a New York state court that they have standing to sue the Chinese property developer for missing payments on its bond, a ruling that further clarifies which bondholders are eligible to file legal claims. Glory Health, which missed payments on its $335 million bond, sought to dismiss a lawsuit from a group of investors by arguing they aren’t the trustee or holders of the notes. But the fact that investors — who hold 42% via prime brokers — received approval from the notes’ clearing agent was enough for their standing to sue, the Supreme Court of the State of New York ruled March 11 while tossing Glory Health’s motion to dismiss. The court released the order on its website later in the week. The ruling provides a glimpse of a possibly expedient way for creditors to sue financially strapped bond issuers to get paid under New York law, the state with jurisdiction on a large bulk of Chinese companies’ dollar notes. Glory Health’s predicament is also notable because it may foreshadow Chinese developers’ legal options in fending off creditors of their dollar-denominated bonds amid cratering property prices and demand. The order could make New York law-governed dollar notes “more easily enforceable as a general matter, which could even impact pricing,” said Kobre & Kim LLP attorney John Han, who represents bondholders in the case. Investors “may no longer need to form groups to take action, and can make and quickly execute on strategic decisions without going through a bond trustee.” About $244 billion of Chinese companies’ outstanding dollar-notes principal are governed by New York law, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. That’s more than a third of all their outstanding dollar bonds. “Defendants’ assertion that only the trustee or holder can bring suit under the Indenture is not supported by the case law,” Judge Joel M Cohen wrote in the order. @Bloomberg4you 🇺🇸🇨🇳 #BloombergEconomics

​​Almost all British landlords selling homes from April will end up paying more tax on their profits despite a cut to the capital gains levy announced by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt this month. That’s because the tax reduction in Hunt’s Spring Budget pledge won’t benefit sellers when an annual personal tax-free allowance has also been shrinking at the same time, according to a report from broker Hamptons International. Some 89% of sellers belonging to a higher tax-rate group will see their capital gains tax bill rise from 2022 levels, along with all lower-rate payers, the report said. “The chancellor made it clear he was hoping to encourage landlords to sell up and add new housing supply into the market,” said Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons. However, “most landlords leaving the market this year will end up paying more tax than two years ago, not less,” she added. Hunt this month pledged to reduce the higher rate of CGT to 24% from 28% on residential sales in a bid to encourage some landlords to sell and free up stock. But over a year ago, the chancellor more than halved the tax exempt allowance for CGT to £6,000 ($7,640) starting April 2023 and pledged to cut it to £3,000 for the new fiscal year beginning April 6. Homeowners in the UK generally do not pay capital gains on their main residence, so the changes will mainly affect private landlords and second homeowners. Given that the average landlord who sold a home last year reported a gross gain of £110,000, it means almost all investors will pay more tax if they sell — and it will hit newer landlords and those selling in cheaper markets the hardest, Hamptons warned. UK landlords are under pressure from higher mortgage rates and tougher regulation, prompting many to sell. @Bloomberg4you 🇬🇧📈📉 #BloombergEconomics

​​Germany and France joined 12 other European Union countries in calling for the European Investment Bank to enhance its financing for defense as a means to boost the bloc’s security in light of Russian "aggression". The countries sent a letter dated March 17 to EIB President Nadia Calvino, European Council President Charles Michel and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo calling for a new financing strategy, according to a copy of the letter seen by Bloomberg. EU leaders will meet March 21-22 to discuss security, including the EIB’s role in defense readiness. The letter comes as Ukraine is struggling to acquire more ammunition and convince allies to give more aid. Bloomberg reported this month that the EIB was considering ways to expand its support for the defense industry. “We need to explore different possibilities that would enable the EIB to invest in defense related activities beyond existing dual-use projects,” the letter said. “This would mean discussing and re-evaluating current definitions of dual-use projects and the list of excluded activities as well as reconsidering its defense industry lending policy and other restrictive elements.” Leaders from Finland, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Sweden signed the letter. The EU’s lending arm is in talks with the bloc’s executive and other stakeholders to begin investing in military companies that produce defensive products, #Bloomberg reported. @Bloomberg4you 🇪🇺 #BloombergPolitics