RIYADH: Iran’s energy exports have soared compared to last year as oil prices nearly doubled. America’s Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is anticipating a drop in price of three key battery metals over the next two years.
Also, Italy’s Confindustria is expecting a 2 percent drop in gross domestic product if natural gas imports from Russia stop flowing.
Meanwhile the UAE’s Al Seer Marine has bought two major tankers to back high liquified petroleum gas demand, or LPG.
Looking at the bigger picture:
·Iran’s energy exports surged 60 percent in the period between March 21 and May 21 when compared to the corresponding period a year ago, Reuters reported, citing an official from the Iranian oil ministry. Oil prices have almost doubled as a result of pandemic repercussions, and as the war between Russia and Ukraine escalated, but no additional reason was linked to the increase in revenue.
Through a micro lens:
·American multinational investment bank and financial services company Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has forecast that prices associated with cobalt, lithium, and nickel will drastically drop over the next two years amid oversupply, Bloomberg reported. Nevertheless, prices are expected to rise once again beyond 2024 as high demand overcomes the current supply growth.
·Italian employers' federation and national chamber of commerce Confindustria has projected that the country’s gross domestic product is to slip 2 percent per year in 2022 and 2023 respectively, should natural gas imports from Russia come to a halt in June, Reuters reported. This comes as Russia — Italy’s biggest supplier — is accountable for 40 percent of total natural gas imported by the European country. It is important to note that this figure is the equivalent to 29 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
·UAE-based leading marine company in the Arabian maritime region Al Seer Marine, or ASM, has acquired two ships worth 246 million dirhams ($67 million) amid rising demand for the transportation of liquified petroleum gas, Trade Arabia reported. A subsidiary of Abu Dhabi’s International Holding Co., ASM aims to buy as much as 15 ships in 2022, as part of its expansion strategy in order to become a major world leader in commercial shipping.
