Jun 22, 2018

Oil market prices rise 1% ahead of OPEC decision

Oil market prices rose 1% on Friday after news came out that there seemed to be disagreement between OPEC leaders in Vienna on how whether output should be raised to compensate for tightness in the market, per Reuters.

The big picture: A decision hasn't been formally announced yet, but market analysts expect OPEC to announce 500,000 to 600,000 barrel per day production increase to keep the market moving without overloading the market.

The state of play: Benchmark Brent Crude prices went up 1.54% to $73.92 as of 7:30am ET Friday. WTI Crude jumped 1.24% at the same time.

The backdrop: Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih pushed for a 1 million barrel per day hike on Thursday during a monitoring committee meeting. Iran's oil minister Bijan Zanganeh stormed out but eventually returned to the negotiating table, per Bloomberg.

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Bob Herman, Andrew Witherspoon

12 mins ago - Health

Coronavirus hospitalizations keep falling

Data: COVID Tracking Project, Harvard Global Health Institute; Note: Alabama, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska, Tennessee and Puerto Rico have not reported hospitalizations consistently. Chart: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 continues to decline, particularly in New York and other northeastern states that were among the hardest hit by the virus.

Yes, but: Some states are still recording stagnant or rising amounts of hospitalizations.

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Rebecca Falconer, Orion Rummler

Updated 54 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Updates: George Floyd protests continue past curfews

Protesters on Tuesday evening by the metal fence recently erected outside the White House. Photo: Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images

Largely peaceful protests over the death of George Floyd and other police-related killings of black people continued Tuesday night across the U.S. for the eighth consecutive day.

The latest: Protesters were out en masse after curfews were in force in areas including Washington, D.C., New York City, Los Angeles and Portland — one of the cities where there was a late-night flash-point between police and protesters.

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Ursula Perano, Zachary Basu

Updated 6 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Primary elections test impact of protests, coronavirus on voting

Election official at a polling place at McKinley Technology High School in Washington, D.C. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

In the midst of a global pandemic and national protests over the death of George Floyd, eight states and the District of Columbia held primary elections on Tuesday.

Why it matters: Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, needs to win 425 of the 479 delegates up for grabs in order to officially clinch the nomination. There are a number of key down-ballot races throughout the country as well, including a primary in Iowa that could determine the fate of Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa).

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