The biggest news of the day is the fact that May crude oil futures traded to negative prices, posting a daily low of negative $40.34 (-$40.32) before settling slightly higher. U.S. crude oil storage capacity is basically nonexistent right now, helping create the price weakness and today’s collapse. May futures posted a $56/barrel drop today while June futures fell a mere $4.60 and closed at $20.43/barrel.
Some news outlets are reporting that a U.S. exchange traded fund (ETF), USO, is also partly responsible for the crash. According to Forbes, the USO fund owned 25 percent of the outstanding volume of May WTI crude oil futures as of last week. Because funds, especially ETFs, do not typically want to take delivery of futures co...
Energy: Risk Over Rules Fighting between the United States and Iran over control of the Strait of Hormuz escalated overnight. Tehran accused U.S. forces of striking a residential area after U.S. Central Command said its second round of attacks in three days targeted Iranian radar systems and mi...
Key Takeaways: Paraguay typically ranks among the world’s largest soybean exporters, with roughly two-thirds of its production destined for export markets, although most shipments remain within South America. As a landlocked country, Paraguay relies heavily on the Paraguay-Paraná...
Russian Grain Markets: 24–28 August 2026 During the fourth week of August, the Russian grain market continued to slide, although the pace of the decline slowed. The immediate market reaction and collapse in export activity have placed significant pressure on farmers. Price declines vary b...
