Daily Brief Energy/Materials: Crude Oil, SGX Rubber Future TSR20, Iron Ore, Gujarat Fluorochemicals, Shell , Schlumberger Ltd, JSW Steel Ltd, Gevo, Corcel Exploration and more

• Strong gains in oil prices attributed to tightening sanctions against Russia and Iran by outgoing Biden administration
• Market anticipating decline in Russian and Iranian oil exports, with potential disruptions and price increases
• Russian oil exports showing resilience despite sanctions, with logistics and companies excluded from restrictions providing room for maneuvering

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• Greenfield tire production facility to come up in Sindh, Pakistan
• JK Tyre to get US$100 million sustainability loan for expansion
• Sustainability-linked loan a first in India’s tire industry

• Mixed steel prices reflected short-term boosts from rising hot metal output and policy support, offset by lingering property sector woes, trade uncertainties, and structural market challenges.
• IO prices consolidated and closed slightly above the 200-day DMA indicating the strengthening of the bullish trend. Bulls risk facing a consolidation or downward correction from these levels. 
• Managed Money, Physicals participants & Others are net short with 129.1k, 5.1k & 18.6k lots respectively across all F&O expiries. Managed Money decreased net shorts while FIIs decreased net longs.

• The U.S. oil and gas rig count dropped for the third consecutive week, falling by 4 to 576 for the week ending 24/Jan.
• For the week ending 17/Jan, U.S. oil production moderately fell to 13.477m bpd from 13.481m bpd the week prior.
• The number of active U.S. oil rigs fell by 6 to 472, while gas rigs grew by 1 to 99. U.S. producers cut four rigs in Texas.

• Gujarat Fluorochemicals (FLUOROCH IN) new Fluoropolymer(FP) segment is projected to be a key revenue growth driver for the company in the medium term.
• The company is committed to significant capacity expansion in the FP segment and aims to commercialize new FP products, particularly EV battery chemicals, in the second half of fiscal 2025.
• While the FP segment holds strong growth potential, the ramp-up of new-age FPs and the potential reliance on debt-funded capex are areas to monitor. 

• Shell set to report its Q4 earnings on 30/Jan, with revenue and EPS projected to fall sequentially and annually. For fiscal 2024 also, revenue and EPS are expected to drop.
• As of 27/Jan, Shell’s implied volatility (IV) stands at 21.65%, with an IV rank of 61.12% and an IV percentile of 80%.
• Shell’s OI by strike for the 31/ Jan expiry shows calls concentrated at strikes 60, 66, and 67, while puts dominate at 64 and 65.

• SLB’s latest financial performance highlights a mix of operational resilience and strategic initiatives aimed at driving shareholder value.
• The company reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.92, beating analyst forecasts of $0.90.
• Revenue rose 3% year over year to $9.28 billion, surpassing estimates by $100 million.

• In the US, the S&P preliminary services PMI fell to 52.8 (56.5 e / 56.8 p), while the manufacturing PMI edged up to 50.1 (49.8 e / 49.4 p).
• The preliminary composite PMI declined to 52.4 (55.6 e / 55.4 p). Separately, the January (final) University of Michigan consumer sentiment index decreased to 71.1 (74.0 p).
• Treasuries climbed slightly, following the weaker than expected January preliminary PMI data. 

• The podcast covered discussions on: (1) why the latest DC policy guidelines are a win for biofuel producers, farmers, the public and the environment, and a milestone for market-based ag conservation,
• (2) the importance of homegrown US energy and the economic benefits to the rural economy,
• (3) evidence of strong bipartisan support for biofuels and support for CCS by key figures in the Trump administration, (4) nearing close of the Red Trail acquisition and being on track with the DOE Loan, and (5) other updates.

• Intervention activities will soon restart at the Tobias-13 and Tobias-14 wells on Block KON-11, aiming to re-establish production at the Tobias field.
• Discovered in 1961, the Tobias field initially had an estimated 94 mmbbl of oil in place.
• Twelve wells were drilled, with eight producers reaching peak production of 17.5 mbbl/d.