The refinery strike in Great Britain that sent oil prices rising a couple of days ago is over.  This had a cooling effect on oil prices today and could help spur a decline if the Fed doesn’t lower rates tomorrow.  The inventory report that is due out tomorrow will also play a role in prices.
To [...]

Crude oil supplies rose by over 2 million barrels exceeding expectations.  However, Gasoline and Distillates stocks declined. 
To view a related article, please click here:
http://money.cnn.com/2008/04/23/markets/oil_eia/?postversion=2008042311
JamesvSutliff

Islamic Finance is a growing at over 10% a year.  Currently, the estimate is that over $500 billion in assets fall in this category. 
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http://www.forbes.com/markets/2008/04/21/islamic-finance-sharia-islamic-finance-islamicfinance08-cx_ee_mn_0421islam_land.html
Jim Sutliff

Hedge Funds brought in $16.5 billion in the first quarter.  This is the lowest for a quarter since 2005.  Lack of investor enthusiam is blamed for the numbers.  However, these numbers are still indicative the strong appeal of hedge funds.  These numbers are still strong for a weakening economy.  
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Global warming has helped to reveal large deposits of crude oil in Greenland.  In an ironic twist, global warming seems to have been an aid to the discovery of oil deposits in Greenland.  The initial thaw in the 1990s allowed for the discovery when oil was found seeping out of the rocks.  The amount of [...]

CME and Nymex shareholders voted to approve the merger.  CME is the world’s largest derivative exchange and NYMEX is the energy and metals market. 
To view a related article, please click here:
http://www.forbes.com/topstories/feeds/reuters/2008/08/18/2008-08-18T204808Z_01_N18475834_RTRIDST_0_CME-NYMEX-VOTE-URGENT.html
James Sutliff

Crude oil supplies fell almost two and a half million barrels last week.  This was a surprise since supplies were expected to increase.  Also, refinery activity fell to a surprisingly low level.
To view a related article, please click here:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601009&sid=aD5CFYcy0vXA&refer=commodities”>\r\nhttp://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601009&sid=aD5CFYcy0vXA&refer=commodities</a>\r\n<br
Jim Sutliff

Even with the credit crunch the private equity sector rolls forward.  Dealmaking still happens and money still flows in the funds.
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http://www.wwj.com/Private-Equity-Cash-Rolls-In/1987927″>\r\nhttp://www.wwj.com/Private-Equity-Cash-Rolls-In/1987927</a>\r\n<br
Jim Sutliff

Oil soared after an inventory report showed a steep decline in supplies rather than the gain that was expected.  This should not have a lasting effect when traders take into account the supply gains of the previous week.  A number of posts back, we suggested looking at the inventory report as a bi-weekly net rather [...]

To check out the market data due out on Wednesday visit CNBC.  It’s a good article that covers a wide range of markets.
To view a related article, please click here:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/24020208
Jim Sutliff