"Tidbits From TNT" Saturday Morning 12-3-2022

Dec 3

TNT:

CandyKisses: The Iraqi Parliament completes the cabinet of the Sudanese government by granting confidence to two ministers

Today, Saturday, the Iraqi Parliament voted to grant confidence to the Minister of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and Public Works, Bankin Abdullah Rikani, and to Minister Nizar Muhammad Saeed Amidi.

Shafaq News agency reporter said that the parliament held its session headed by Muhammad al-Halbousi, Speaker of Parliament, after the completion of the legal quorum, in the presence of 208 members.

A statement issued by the Media Department of the House of Representatives stated that an absolute majority voted to grant confidence to the two ministers, and thus the ministerial cabinet of the current federal government headed by Prime Minister Mohamed Shia Al-Sudani has been completed.

It is noteworthy that the House of Representatives had voted, at the end of last October, on the cabinet of the Sudanese, with the exception of the Ministries of Environment, Construction and Housing, as a result of the differences that took place over the two positions by the two Kurdish parties (the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan), as the political agreements that preceded the government specified a share The Kurdish component has four ministries, in addition to the position of the President of the Republic, and the second deputy speaker of Parliament.

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RVAlready: Yeah Baby!!! Cabinet done. Another possible RV hurdle put to bed. GO RV!!! Now, we just need a surprise announcement from the CBI.

Annie68: I don't think that news is very far away!!

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Tishwash: The Speaker of the British Parliament stresses the importance of Iraq adopting an active role to limit foreign interference.

The Speaker of the British Parliament, Lindsey Hoyle, stressed, on Friday, the importance of Iraq adopting an active role in limiting the destabilizing external interventions in the region.

And the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in a statement, a copy of which Mawazine News received, that "the Ambassador of the Republic of Iraq in London, Muhammad Jaafar al-Sadr, met with the Speaker of the British Parliament, Lindsay Howell, at the British Parliament headquarters."

During the meeting, the ambassador appreciated the efforts made by the United Kingdom to combat the terrorist organization ISIS through its participation in the international coalition, expressing Iraq's desire to cooperate with the British side in various fields.

The ambassador welcomed the "reformation of the group of all parties for Iraq in the British Parliament," expressing his "aspiration for the members of the group to visit Iraq to open horizons for parliamentary cooperation between the two countries."

And he stressed, "Iraq will not be part of the axes in the region, but rather seeks to be a meeting point for all parties to gather on its soil, and that this desire culminated in the holding of the Baghdad Conference for Cooperation and Partnership in Baghdad in 2021, just as the visit of Prime Minister Muhammad Shia' al-Sudani to Kuwait, Jordan and Iran are a realistic reflection of this strategy."

The ambassador presented the Iraqi flag to the Speaker of Parliament to be among the flags of other countries inside the British Parliament building.

For his part, Lindsey Howell expressed the United Kingdom's desire to provide full support to Iraq to assume its leading role in the region, and the United Kingdom's aspiration for Iraq to enjoy security, stability, independence and prosperity, pointing to "the importance of Iraq adopting an active role to limit destabilizing external interference in the region." link

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CandyKisses: Next Sunday. Oil experts say OPEC and its allies are likely to resort to "new" production cuts

Energy analysts said that oil producers from OPEC and non-OPEC from the OPEC+ group may decide to reduce oil production next Sunday, as the alliance tries to limit the potential effects of the European Union's decision to impose sanctions on Russian crude exports and the possibility of imposing a certain ceiling on Russian oil prices.

OPEC+, a group of 23 oil producers led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, will meet on Sunday to decide on the next phase of production policy.

The meeting comes ahead of the imposition of "devastating" sanctions on Russian crude and the possibility of a decline in Chinese demand for crude, raising fears of a recession that could eventually lead to lower prices.

Claudio Galimberti, an analyst at energy consultancy Rystad, told CNBC from OPEC's headquarters in Vienna that the group would do well to change its current output policy.

Reports that OPEC+ is considering production cuts based on falling demand, especially in China, over the past few days.

Players in the global energy market remain concerned about EU sanctions on Russia's exports of seaborne crude, which will take effect on the fifth of this month.

In addition, the prospect of a cap on Russian oil prices by the Group of Seven increases uncertainty in the oil market.

The 27-nation European Union agreed in June to ban the purchase of Russian seaborne crude from Dec. 5 as part of a concerted effort to curtail Moscow's imports following its invasion of Ukraine.

However, concern that a total ban on imports of Russian crude could lead to higher oil prices, has prompted the Group of Seven major industrialized nations to consider capping the price of Russian crude.

No formal agreement has been reached so far, although Reuters reported on Thursday that EU governments had agreed in principle to a cap on the price of Russian seaborne oil at $60 a barrel.

"The other factor OPEC has to consider is the price cap, and this increases the uncertainty" in the oil market, Galimberti said.

The OPEC+ alliance recently hinted it could impose deeper production cuts to stimulate prices, which have fallen over the past three weeks but have risen slightly on Friday, two days before the expected meeting.

Reuters says the OPEC+ group is widely expected to stick to its latest target of cutting oil output by two million barrels per day when it meets on Sunday, but some analysts believe crude prices could fall if the group does not decide on further cuts.

OPEC+, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies led by Russia, turned Sunday's meeting, which was due to be live in Vienna, into a virtual online meeting, which sources in the group say suggests policy may remain unchanged.

The group agreed in early October to cut its oil production target of 2 million barrels per day from November until the end of 2023.

Given the production constraints imposed on some members of the group, the expected actual cut by OPEC+ is close to 1 million to 1.1 million barrels per day.

Sources told Reuters that OPEC+ now wants to assess the impact of the looming price cap on the market and get a clearer picture of the outlook for oil demand in China, the world's biggest crude importer, which is expected to ease strict coronavirus restrictions after unprecedented protests.

However, some analysts do not rule out a surprise, warning that with supply currently in the market, OPEC+ risks a downturn in the price of oil if it does not cut production targets further at the meeting.

BVM Oil analyst Stephen Brennock said: "Further production cuts cannot be ruled out... Failure to do so risks triggering another sell-off," he said, without elaborating on the low level he believes prices could reach.

Brent crude prices, which hit a 14-year high above $139 a barrel after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, fell to around $88 a barrel in trading on Thursday, recovering somewhat from a one-year low near $80 a barrel hit earlier this week.

China's economic COVID-19 restrictions and a delayed EU agreement on a ceiling on Russian oil prices have put pressure on the market, with analysts at ING pointing to recent weakness as one reason "it is not possible" to rule out" further supply cuts.

The co-founder of Jefferies Bank consulting firm Energy Aspects, Amrita Sen, said it did not expect OPEC+ to change course now.

Energy Aspects expects OPEC+ to bring some of the discounted volumes back to the market after the second quarter of next year in order to balance supply and demand.

UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said that while a lack of clarity on Russian supply could prompt OPEC+ to change its current quotas, weak Chinese demand and the prospect of releasing new volumes of U.S. strategic oil reserves could prompt the group to further cut. link

Mot: .... every year I wonder ………..