Author: omc_admin
Confusion over President Donald Trump’s tariffs remains following a weekend of questions around trade in consumer electronics. On Friday the Trump administration paused its new taxes on electronics imported into the U.S. — signaling some relief from trade wars that have particularly escalated with China, a major exporter of technology from smartphones to laptops. But these goods remain subject to other levies. And officials have also indicated that additional, sector-specific tariffs targeting electronics are on the way — all of which economists warn will raise costs and lead to higher prices for consumers.Here’s what we know. Are electronics exempt from…
Crude oil is set to end another week with substantial losses as markets reel from President Trump’s tariff offensive, despite the fact he pulled the punch at the last second. With one notable exception: China. As Beijing and Washington take turns to up the ante, the outlook for oil and energy in general has gone from bright to really dim.Brent crude is about to end this week relatively unchanged but down by $6 per barrel from a month ago. West Texas Intermediate has slipped below $60 per barrel and might spend some time there. The drop is all a result…
Global economic shifts are pushing nations and businesses to find new paths for growth. For Germany, the idea of Zeitenwende (a turning point) now includes economics, highlighting the need to diversify markets and supply chains. Changes in established relationships, like moving away from Russian energy and managing risks with other major partners require finding reliable alternatives. Kazakhstan stands out as a key strategic and economic partner seeking international help for its own transformation. Kazakhstan, Germany’s top trading partner in Central Asia, is pursuing balanced foreign policies and reforms to diversify its economy beyond natural resources. While challenges exist, Kazakhstan offers…
WASHINGTON– The Department of Energy (DOE) today announced a new policy action aimed at halting inefficient spending by colleges and universities while continuing to expand American innovation and scientific research. In a new policy memorandum shared with grant recipients at colleges and universities, DOE announced that it will limit financial support of “indirect costs” of DOE research funding to 15%. This action is projected to generate over $405 million in annual cost savings for the American people, delivering on President Trump’s commitment to bring greater transparency and efficiency to federal government spending.“The purpose of Department of Energy funding to colleges…
By Julianne Geiger – Apr 11, 2025, 12:12 PM CDT The total number of active drilling rigs for oil and gas in the United States fell this week, according to new data that Baker Hughes published on Friday, following a 2 rig dip in the prior week.The total rig count in the US fell by 7 to 583 rigs, according to Baker Hughes, down 34 from this same time last year.The number of oil rigs fell by 9 to 480—down by 26 compared to this time last year. The number of gas rigs rose by 1 this week to 97…
ADVERTISEMENTIt’s not uncommon to see products sold on shop shelves that market themselves as ‘carbon neutral’ or ‘environmentally friendly’. But these claims are not always clear or backed up by evidence – and courts are forcing companies to take them down.German non-profit Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) has been on an anti-greenwashing litigation spree over the last three years, stopping more than 100 firms from advertising their products or corporate activities as good for the environment. These include the makers of shower gel and trainers, and cruise and airline operators.Agnes Sauter, head of ecological market surveillance at DUH, says companies are increasingly…
Košice Region, in collaboration with 22 partners from 7 European countries, has been successfully granted financial aid of 9 million EUR in order to build the very first Hydrogen Valley in Slovakia. Hydrogen Valleys are used for hydrogen processing, starting from its production to the ultimate consumption. The call for proposals was launched by Clean Hydrogen Joint Undertaking under the Horizon Europe framework. To this day, it is the biggest success of Slovak scientists who have applied for a grant from the Clean hydrogen Joint Undertaking. The project is called EastGate H2V and is set to begin in April 2025.…
Just ahead of the production increase beginning in April, the OPEC+ group boosted its oil production to an eight-month high in March, according to the Platts OPEC+ Survey from S&P Global Commodity Insights.The total oil production from the alliance rose to 41.04 million barrels per day (bpd) in March, up by 30,000 bpd from February.The producers in OPEC+ who have quotas busted their overall output ceiling by a massive 319,000 bpd, according to the Platts survey.Kazakhstan remained the producer, exceeding its quota the most.The OPEC+ producer, which is not part of OPEC, is in negotiations with the companies operating in…
China hit back at the U.S. tariffs by raising on Friday the Chinese tariff on U.S. goods to 125% from 84% earlier, escalating the U.S.-China standoff.“The U.S. imposition of abnormally high tariffs on China seriously violates international and economic trade rules, basic economic laws and common sense and is completely unilateral bullying and coercion,” China’s Finance Ministry said in a statement.Oil prices, which had been climbing before China’s announcement, dropped in response to the news. At the time of writing, both WTI and Brent were in the red at $59.91 and $63.16, respectively.U.S. President Donald Trump backed down earlier this…
China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (Sinopec) and Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Aramco) are partnering on a project to integrate petrochemical operations into jointly owned Yanbu Aramco Sinopec Refining Co. Ltd.’s (Yasref) 430,000-b/d refinery along the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu Industrial City. On Apr. 8, the partners signed a venture framework agreement to advance the Yanbu refinery expansion project (Yasref+), which aims to enhance integrated refining and petrochemical synergies at the site to help competitively meet growing global market demand for high-end petrochemical products, Aramco and Sinopec said in separate Apr. 9-10 releases. The proposed Yasref+ project would include…