Energy, Petrochemicals and Plastics 27

Friday, July 26, 2019

Energy, Petrochemicals and Plastics 27

1              Oil on track for weekly gain as Iran tensions support
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-oil-idUSKCN1UL02Z
Oil prices rose on Friday and were on track for a weekly increase as geopolitical tensions over Iran remained unresolved, although flagging prospects for global economic growth amid the U.S.-China trade war capped gains.

2              Oil Price Fundamental Daily Forecast – Strong GDP Data Could Ease Concerns Over Lower Demand
https://www.fxempire.com/forecasts/article/oil-price-fundamental-daily-forecast-strong-gdp-data-could-ease-concerns-over-lower-demand-588926
Although speculative buyers continue to buy futures and options contracts in case there is a supply disruption in the Middle East, traders don’t really believe a military conflict is imminent.

3              Natural Gas Price Fundamental Daily Forecast
https://www.fxempire.com/forecasts/article/natural-gas-price-fundamental-daily-forecast-low-demand-could-trigger-break-under-2-192-588917

From a technical perspective, the market will remain bearish as long as it stays below this week’s high at $2.305. A move through this level will change the main trend to up. Even before buyers get a shot at this top, buyers will have to overtake retracement level resistance at $2.253 and $2.296.

4              Global PE market faces ‘most formidable set of issues,’ PP keeps rolling
https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/global-pe-market-faces-most-formidable-set-issues-pp-keeps-rolling

The global polyethylene resin market might be facing more challenges than the polypropylene market is at least in the short term. “Global polyethylene is groping with the most formidable set of issues ever,” IHS Markit analyst Nick Vafiadis said at the Global Plastics Summit, June 4-6 in Houston.

5              PE at center of mixed resin pricing picture for June
https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/pe-center-mixed-resin-pricing-picture-june

North American prices for polyethylene resin led a chaotic market in June. A number of PE buyers in the region saw prices fall an average of 3 cents in June. Although the number of buyers seeing the drop was not as high as anticipated by market watchers, buyers who did not see the drop in June are expected to see it by the end of July.

6              Demand for recycled PET complicates market outlook, PS has ‘some options’
https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/demand-recycled-pet-complicates-market-outlook-ps-has-some-options
Global markets for PET bottle resin and polystyrene are keeping their heads above water in 2019. Virgin PET is facing challenges from sustainability-fueled demand for more recycled PET, IHS Markit analyst Tison Keel said at Global Plastics Summit 2019, June 4-6 in Houston.

7              Did Trump’s ‘Plan B’ For Iran Just Fail?
https://oilprice.com/Geopolitics/Middle-East/Did-Trumps-Plan-B-For-Iran-Just-Fail.html

The Trump administration’s plan to rally global naval powers to protect shipping lanes in the Persian Gulf is not progressing very well.

8              Mexico’s Very Risky Energy Bet
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/Mexicos-Very-Risky-Energy-Bet.html
Mexico’s new government came into power with promises to turn around the country’s oil industry and boost production after, it said, the previous government failed. Despite these promises and the first decisive steps towards them, some analysts remain skeptical about the prospects of success.

9              Market braces for Mexico’s annual oil hedge, trading surges: sources
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-oil-markets-mexico-idUSKCN1UH0CX

The global oil derivatives market braces itself every year in late spring and summer for the hedge, the market’s largest and most secretive financial oil deal. This year, Mexico has faced several challenges in executing the hedge and timing has become a crucial factor.

10           Phillips 66 quarterly profit rises as it ships more crude
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-phillips-66-results-idUSKCN1UL1C0

U.S. refiner Phillips 66 reported a 4.3% rise in quarterly adjusted profit on Friday as it earned more by shipping crude through its pipelines, which more than offset a fall in refining margins.

11           Brazil’s Petrobras reports 3.8% growth in Q2 oil, gas output
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-petrobras-production-idUSKCN1UL17T
Brazil’s state oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA said on Friday total second-quarter oil and gas production was 2.633 million barrels per day of oil equivalent (BOE), up 3.8% from the previous quarter.

12           $5.6 billion petrochemical facility in the works for Prince George Prince George, Northern BC
https://ckpgtoday.ca/2019/07/24/5-6-billion-petrochemical-facility-in-the-works-for-prince-george/

West Coast Olefins of Calgary has purchased a 300-acre site in the BCR Industrial Area within the City of Prince George in preparation of a $5.6 billion petrochemical project at the site.

13           ExxonMobil announces new PE plant startup in Beaumont, Texas
https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/market-insights/latest-news/petrochemicals/072419-exxonmobil-announces-new-pe-plant-startup-in-beaumont-texas

ExxonMobil on Wednesday announced the startup of a new 650,000 mt/year polyethylene plant at its Beaumont, Texas, refining and chemical complex, the latest in more than 13 million mt/year of new US PE capacity online, under construction or planned through 2028.

14           Valero Energy profit falls 32% on higher heavy crude prices
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-valero-energy-results-idUSKCN1UK1CX

Valero Energy Corp (VLO.N) reported a 32.2% fall in quarterly profit on Thursday, as the company struggled to find low-cost heavy crude, hurting its refining margins.

15           Total plans $5 billion in asset sales as second-quarter profit falls
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-total-results-idUSKCN1UK0KO

French energy giant Total (TOTF.PA) will sell around $5 billion worth of assets, mostly from its upstream exploration and production business, as it seeks to focus on low breakeven projects that can weather weak oil prices, it said on Thursday.

16           Dow cuts capital budget by $500M amid global uncertainty
https://www.chron.com/business/energy/article/Dow-cuts-capital-budget-by-500M-amid-global-14129183.php

Dow Chemical will cut its capital expenditure budget by $500 million this year amid global uncertainty and a slowdown in buying, the chemical maker said Thursday. Dow, which has operations in the Houston area, said it plans to reduce its capital spending for this year to $2 billion from $2.5 billion.

17           Higher Production Helps Suncor Quarterly Profits Soar
https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Higher-Production-Helps-Suncor-Quarterly-Profits-Soar.html

An increase in crude oil production and refining during the second quarter helped to boost Suncor’s operating profit for the period to US$950 million (C$1.253 billion) despite the negative effect of lower benchmark oil prices, the company said in its second-quarter financial report.

18           Major Setback For EVs Could Delay Peak Oil Demand
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/Major-Setback-For-EVs-Could-Delay-Peak-Oil-Demand.html

Peak oil demand might be delayed as the U.S. and China scale back support for fuel efficiency and electric vehicles.

Business Intelligence and Analytics 27

Friday, July 26, 2019

Business Intelligence and Analytics 27

1              GM’s A. Charles Thomas on the Evolution of Chief Data Officer
https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/evolution-of-chief-data-officer/
From a lone statistician toiling over narrowly defined problems for the marketing department, to a C-level executive overseeing a mission-critical area impacting every function of the company, the meaning of “data and analytics professional” has changed a lot in recent years. A. Charles Thomas’s career has reflected those developments.

2              Improving strategic execution with machine learning
http://mitsloanexperts.mit.edu/improving-strategic-execution-with-machine-learning-michael-schrage/
Machine learning (ML) is changing how leaders use metrics to drive business performance, customer experience, and growth. A small but growing group of companies is investing in ML to augment strategic decision-making with key performance indicators (KPIs).

3              Green Cloud Computing – The Sustainable Way to Use the Cloud -Big Data Analytics News
https://bigdataanalyticsnews.com/green-cloud-computing-sustainable-use/
The growing demand for cloud infrastructure has led to a dramatic increase in energy consumption. This desire for power has significantly contributed to the environment’s carbon footprint.  The ever increasing demand for energy is primarily due to the exponential growth of data centers with thousands of servers and other infrastructures.

4              Fantastic Four of Data Science Project Preparation
https://www.kdnuggets.com/2019/07/fantastic-four-data-science-project-preparation.html

In classic comic form, the Fantastic Four of Data Science Project Preparation were originally introduced via cameo in the Data Avengers… Assemble! article. So if you happen to have that post, hang on to it. It will undoubtedly be worth something some day.

5              3 Ways Your Customers Can Help Your Company Turn Around a Failing Product
https://www.business2community.com/strategy/3-ways-your-customers-can-help-your-company-turn-around-a-failing-product-02223065

In the world of SaaS products, fine-tuning is a near constant endeavor. Every product goes through the process of checks and balances, and sometimes there are more downs than ups. Just because you have a ‘failing’ product doesn’t mean it’s time to pack up shop. Instead, this could be the perfect opportunity to revamp and refocus your go-to-market strategy.

6              9 Formidable Big Data Analytics Tools for 2019
https://datafloq.com/read/9-formidable-big-data-analytics-tools-for-2019/6658
Typically big data is reckoned by its size, but experts also give credit to information technologies that are assisting analysts in analyzing huge clusters of unstructured data to make sense of data trends, patterns, and anomalies. Big Data is a crucial asset for Business Intelligence (BI) for industries ranging from manufacturing to banking, professional services to entertainment, including the federal government. International Data Corporation (IDC) has forecast that global spending on big data technologies will reach $260 billion by 2022.

7              6 BI Implementation Issues to Avoid and AI for Better Decisions
https://medium.com/@InDataLabs/6-bi-implementation-issues-to-avoid-and-ai-for-better-decisions-2e8402be5f95

Business intelligence (BI) is a set of strategies and tools that companies can employ to handle the analysis of business data. The tools and solutions, especially custom-made ones, facilitate the work of experts in monitoring KPIs of business, analyzing fast-changing market realities and factors impacting performance. Business intelligence solutions are a trend that is here to empower business owners to make decisions based on rich data, not their gut instinct.

8              Best Practices for Using Endpoint Security to Protect Your Data
https://datafloq.com/read/best-practices-endpoint-security-protect-data/6643
Endpoint security is the protection and monitoring of end-user devices, such as smartphones, laptops, desktop PCs and POS devices, and network access paths, such as open ports or website logins. It goes beyond antivirus tools and includes the use of security software, like Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tools, on central servers as well as tools on the device itself, such as ad blockers.

9              Microsoft Adds Machine Learning, UI and Enterprise Features to Power BI
https://solutionsreview.com/business-intelligence/microsoft-adds-machine-learning-ui-and-enterprise-features-to-power-bi/

Microsoft has announced a new version of its Power BI platform featuring new machine learning and enterprise functionality, as well as a redesigned user interface. The update, which was made at the Microsoft Business Application Summit, provides capabilities that are familiar to users of Excel and PowerPoint. Users get monthly enhancements that include navigation, streamlined viewing, and user collaboration. According to the official release, several of the feature adds have come directly from community feedback.

Energy, Petrochemicals and Plastics 26

Friday, July 19, 2019

Energy, Petrochemicals and Plastics 26

1              Oil Price Fundamental Daily Forecast – Underpinned by US-Iran Tensions, Capped by Demand Worries
https://www.fxempire.com/forecasts/article/oil-price-fundamental-daily-forecast-underpinned-by-us-iran-tensions-capped-by-demand-worries-587647

Escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran could underpin prices today, but gains are likely to be limited by concerns over demand. Furthermore, don’t expected a prolonged rally unless there is an actual supply disruption in the region, especially after bullish speculators were blown out of the market earlier in the week.

2              OPEC’s Oil Giants Give Trading Houses A Run For Their Money
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/OPECs-Oil-Giants-Give-Trading-Houses-A-Run-For-Their-Money.html

OPEC is currently restricting production to keep oil prices from tumbling in an oversupplied market fearful of faltering demand growth. But the national oil companies (NOCs) of the cartel’s largest producers are thinking long term and vying for a large slice of the oil trading pie.

3              Summer natural gas prices on track to be the lowest in more than 20 years – Today in Energy
https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=40132

In its July 2019 Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts Henry Hub natural gas spot prices for June, July, and August this year will average $2.37 per million British thermal units (MMBtu).

4              IEA does not expect ‘huge increase’ in crude prices: executive director
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iea-oil-india-idUSKCN1UE0BR
The International Energy Agency (IEA) doesn’t expect oil prices to rise significantly because demand is slowing and there is a glut in global crude markets, its executive director said on Friday.

5              Oil Will Go ‘’Bust’’ If Recession Hits
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Oil-Will-Go-Bust-If-Recession-Hits.html

Oil prices plunged again on Thursday, dragged down by fears of slowing demand. An unexpected increase in inventories underscored the downside risk to oil prices. The EIA reported a drawdown in crude stocks, but a huge 9.25 million barrel combined increase in gasoline and diesel inventories, which surprised traders. Also, gasoline demand plunged by 0.5 mb/d in the week ending on July 12, although week-to-week changes are typical and make the data a bit noisy.

6              Allies play hard to get on U.S. proposal to protect oil shipping lanes
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-iran-tanker-allies-idUSKCN1UE0KI
The United States is struggling to win its allies’ support for an initiative to heighten surveillance of vital Middle East oil shipping lanes because of fears it will increase tension with Iran, six sources familiar with the matter said.

7              Mexico Goes Full Steam Ahead With $8 Billion Oil Refinery Against Advice
https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Mexico-Goes-Full-Steam-Ahead-With-8-Billion-Oil-Refinery-Against-Advice.html

Mexico’s controversial Dos Bocas oil refinery project will indeed be built despite investor criticism, Mexican Energy Minister Rocio Nahle said during a radio broadcast on Thursday

8              LyondellBasell JV to add PP capacity in Thailand
https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/lyondellbasell-jv-add-pp-capacity-thailand

LyondellBasell Industries plans to add more than a half-billion pounds of annual polypropylene resin production through a joint venture in Thailand.

9              China to drive global propylene industry growth
https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/petrochemicals/18072019/china-to-drive-global-propylene-industry-growth/

China is expected to drive the global propylene industry growth from planned and announced plants between 2019 and 2030, contributing around 33% of the total propylene capacity additions,

10           Tetra Pak becomes ‘first carton packaging’ company to launch paper straws in Europe
https://www.packagingnews.co.uk/news/environment/marine-litter-environment/tetra-pak-becomes-first-carton-packaging-company-launch-paper-straws-europe-19-07-2019

The carton packaging giant said it is the first company to provide such straws for beverage cartons in the region.

11           H2 Outlook: Unfavorable economics will test appetite for sustainability
https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/market-insights/latest-news/petrochemicals/071619-h2-outlook-unfavorable-economics-will-test-appetite-for-sustainability

Increased media coverage on the environmental impacts of single-use plastics has fueled huge demand growth in recycled plastics, particularly of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) — used to make plastic beverage bottles — and also more recently high density polyethylene ( HDPE), used for a plethora of other consumer goods packaging.

12           Stepped-up cooperation between Borealis and Erema tackles challenge of plastics recyclability
https://www.plasticstoday.com/recycling/stepped-cooperation-between-borealis-and-erema-tackles-challenge-plastics-recyclability/153272341961161

Resin supplier Borealis and recycling systems provider Erema have signed a letter of intent (LOI) for the purpose of deepening their cooperation in the field of mechanical recycling.

13           ‘Circular Economy’ Will Be Unifying Theme at K 2019 Show: Plastics Technology
https://www.ptonline.com/blog/post/circular-economy-will-be-unifying-theme-at-k-2019-show
Under the shadow of spreading bans of single-use plastic products and growing public concern over “ocean plastics” pollution, the dominant theme at this October’s K 2019 show in Dusseldorf, Germany, will be recycling, under the currently fashionable label of “Circular Economy.”

14           Americas petrochemicals outlook, w/c July 15
https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/market-insights/latest-news/petrochemicals/071519-americas-petrochemicals-outlook-w-c-july-15

Prompt July ethylene prices moved higher over the week. The market closely watched the potential impact of Hurricane Barry, which has been minimal to the operations of the olefins plants. Market participants are still closely watching the timing of the return of the BASF-TOTAL cracker back to operations, as well as ethane prices. The July polymer-grade propylene contract rose over the week. Ongoing turnarounds at the propane dehydrogenation plant of Flint Hills Resources and BASF-TOTAL’s cracker and metathesis unit will be the primary focus of the market participants. The market is watching the duration of those turnarounds, which will impact US propylene stocks, which dropped over the week.

15           IEA launches new tool for tracking oil and gas-related methane emissions
https://www.iea.org/newsroom/news/2019/july/iea-launches-new-tool-for-tracking-oil-and-gas-related-methane-emissions.html

The International Energy Agency has launched a new online tool that tracks oil and gas-related sources of methane, a major and often overlooked greenhouse gas. The new “methane tracker” offers the most comprehensive global picture of methane emissions, covering eight industry areas across more than seventy countries.

Business Intelligence and Analytics 26

Friday, July 19, 2019

Business Intelligence and Analytics 26

1              4 Ways to Harness Business Intelligence for Smart, Data-Driven Decisions
https://www.ilounge.com/articles/4-ways-to-harness-business-intelligence-for-smart-data-driven-decisions

Data-led Business Intelligence is helping millions of businesses make better data-driven decisions. But it’s only being used by the few rather than the many. If you’re thinking about implementing Business Intelligence in future, what are the challenges you might face when choosing the ideal solution? Here’s what you need to know.

2              Four Challenges to Overcome for AI-Driven Customer Experience
https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/four-challenges-to-overcome-for-ai-driven-customer-experience/
Are you ready to turn your company’s customer service over to AI-powered virtual agents? Whether your goals include creating a fully digital business, improving customer experience, or cutting costs, virtual agents and automation offer many benefits. But, as with any technology, making the switch isn’t trivial.

3              Comparing Model Evaluation Techniques Part 1: Statistical Tools & Tests
https://www.datasciencecentral.com/profiles/blogs/comparing-model-evaluation-techniques

Evaluating a model is just as important as creating the model in the first place. Even if you use the most statistically sound tools to create your model, the end result may not be what you expected. Which metric you use to test your model depends on the type of data you’re working with and your comfort level with statistics.

4              The Five Steps of Sustained Change
https://www.business2community.com/strategy/the-five-steps-of-sustained-change-02220183
There are five steps that are universal in sustaining change. Whether it is an organizational change or a personal change, if you want it to be sustained, or permanent, you must follow every step.

5              5 Social Media Marketing Tools for Teams That Won’t Break The Bank
https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/5-social-media-marketing-tools-for-teams-that-wont-break-the-bank/558751/

Are you looking for social media marketing tools that’ll make your work easier and more effective? Want to improve collaboration between your team and see real results? At the same time, you probably want to achieve these at a low cost. Some tools are simply too costly for your social media budget.

6              Big Data, AI & IoT, Part Three: What’s Stopping Us?
https://www.forbes.com/sites/charlestowersclark/2019/02/22/big-data-ai-iot-part-three-whats-stopping-us/

The progress of AI, Big Data and IoT has been well-documented, but there are still major hurdles to cross before they achieve their full potential.

This series of articles has looked at the promise of Big Data, AI, and IoT, and how they all make up one ecosystem. So after looking at the benefits of these technologies in specific environments, it is worth a review of the obstacles faced before they will realize their full potential.

7              The Death of Big Data and the Emergence of the Multi-Cloud Era
https://www.kdnuggets.com/2019/07/death-big-data-multi-cloud-era.html
The Era of Big Data passed away on June 5, 2019, with the announcement of Tom Reilly’s upcoming resignation from Cloudera and subsequent market capitalization drop. Coupled with MapR’s recent announcement intending to shut down in late June, which will be dependent on whether MapR can find a buyer to continue operations, June of 2019 accentuated that the initial Era of Hadoop-driven Big Data has come to an end.

8              Evolution of the Role of Data Organization Methodologies in Software D
https://datafloq.com/read/evolution-data-organization-methodologies/6582
The software development industry is evolving with changes in big data. The need for programmers is growing, but this does not mean that all programmers will benefit. In the United States, software developers face growing challenges in finding work. The BLS estimates that the demand is going to decline by 7%between 2016 and 2026, due to outsourcing overseas.

9              The Role of AI in Data Security
https://datafloq.com/read/role-of-ai-data-security/6616

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is considered by many to be the present and future of the tech industry. Many industry leaders use AI for various applications to provide valuable services and prepare their businesses for the future.

10           Analyzing the future
http://mitsloanexperts.mit.edu/analyzing-the-future-thomas-davenport/

The rise of data analytics is one of the hallmarks of 21st-century business. By the turn of the century, companies had been accumulating data in various transaction systems for several decades, and many desired to analyze the data to make better decisions. Their interest intensified in the early 2000s as they saw the great success of online firms from Silicon Valley, many of which were highly analytical.

Energy, Petrochemicals and Plastics 25

Friday, July 12, 2019

Energy, Petrochemicals and Plastics 25

1              Gulf of Mexico oil firms evacuate workers ahead of storm
https://www.offshoreenergytoday.com/gulf-of-mexico-oil-firms-evacuate-workers-ahead-of-storm/
U.S. Gulf of Mexico operators are evacuating offshore workers from rig and platforms in response to tropical weather activity.

2              Why This Oil Rally Won’t Last
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Why-This-Oil-Rally-Wont-Last.html

After weeks of gloom, the oil market is tightening up once again. But it’s not clear how long the upward cycle will last. OPEC admitted this week that it may need to keep the production cuts in place, perhaps beyond the latest extension, because of soaring production from U.S. shale.

3              IEA sees oil market oversupplied in 2019 on U.S. production
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iea-oil-idUSKCN1U70V5

Surging U.S. oil output will outpace sluggish global demand and lead to a large stocks build around the world in the next nine months, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday.

4              Oil Price Fundamental Daily Forecast – Short-Term Weather Concerns Outweighing Long-Term Demand Worries
https://www.fxempire.com/forecasts/article/oil-price-fundamental-daily-forecast-short-term-weather-concerns-outweighing-long-term-demand-worries-586187

The demand concerns are a longer-term issue. The potential supply concerns due to the approaching tropical storm are a real short-term problem. Therefore, unless the weather conditions suddenly improve and production resumes, this story is likely to drive the price action today.

5              Output cuts boost Asia oil refining margins to highest since Sept 2017
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-asia-oil-idUSKCN1U70US
Asia oil refining margins have more than tripled in the past four weeks to hit their highest since September 2017, Refinitiv data showed on Friday, after refiners cut output and tightened fuel supplies.

6              Natural Gas Price Fundamental Daily Forecast
https://www.fxempire.com/forecasts/article/natural-gas-price-fundamental-daily-forecast-tropical-storm-weighing-on-short-term-demand-586209

As long as the influence of the tropical storms is short-term, prices could rebound late Friday or early next week with the return of hotter temperatures. If all comes down to whether traders are willing to buy strength, or play for a pullback into support or value.

7              Global LNG – Asian price steady as global supply still ample
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-lng-idUSKCN1U70AZ

Asian spot prices for liquefied natural gas (LNG) held steady this week, with traders looking for signs of potential demand ahead of winter amid ample supplies.

8              H2 outlook: Global polyethylene market seen bearish on weak demand, rising supply
https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/market-insights/latest-news/petrochemicals/071019-h2-outlook-global-polyethylene-market-seen-bearish-on-weak-demand-rising-supply

The outlook for the polyethylene market globally is bearish for the remainder of the year due to a combination of weak feedstock costs, weak global demand and anticipated plant startups, according to market participants.

9              Pemex under pressure with AMLO ruling Mexico’s economy
https://www.worldoil.com/news/2019/7/11/pemex-under-pressure-with-amlo-ruling-mexico-s-economy

The surprise departure of Mexico’s finance minister has the state oil company’s watchers biting their nails.

10           U.S. crude stocks fall nearly 10 million barrels: EIA
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-oil-eia-idUSKCN1U51U8
U.S. crude oil stockpiles fell by nearly 10 million barrels last week, far more than expected, as refineries processed the most crude oil since January, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

11           IISRP panel says styrene, butadiene seeing less volatility
https://www.rubbernews.com/suppliers/styrene-butadiene-seeing-less-volatility
Feedstock supplies and prices can have a great impact on both synthetic rubber producers and down the line to end product makers. So a lot of attention is paid to market conditions to try to plan as much as possible for potential volatility in supply and pricing.

12           Borealis pledges to quadruple amount of recycled content on offer by 2030
https://www.plasticstoday.com/sustainability/borealis-pledges-quadruple-amount-recycled-content-on-offer-2030/54582863561118

Resin supplier Borealis has made a commitment to the market to quadruple the quantity of recycled content contained in its resins by 2030 but this could, in fact, happen as early as 2025.

13           Weekly resin report: Upstream PP inventories at their lowest point in 15 years
https://www.plasticstoday.com/resin-pricing/weekly-resin-report-upstream-pp-inventories-their-lowest-point-15-years/120259858061120

Trading activity did not set off any fireworks, perhaps, but the spot resin markets began July moderately busy. A nice flow of processor buy orders came in through mid-week, reflecting some seemingly pent-up demand at the start of the third quarter, reports the PlasticsExchange (Chicago) in its Market Update.

14           Drop in petchems margins in the first half illustrates wider malaise
https://www.icis.com/explore/resources/news/2019/07/09/10388840/insight-drop-in-petchems-margins-in-the-first-half-illustrates-wider-malaise

The second quarter ended with variable margins for the major petrochemicals and plastics largely down sharply in the year to date.

15           ‘‘Psychological War’’ With Iran Fails To Move Oil Markets

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Oil-Prices/Psychological-War-With-Iran-Fails-To-Move-Oil-Markets.html

The Trump administration refrained from a military strike last month, but the U.S. and Iran’s cycle of escalation continues.

Business Intelligence and Analytics 25

Friday, July 12, 2019

Business Intelligence and Analytics 25

1              Annotated Heatmaps of a Correlation Matrix in 5 Simple Steps
https://www.kdnuggets.com/2019/07/annotated-heatmaps-correlation-matrix.html

A heatmap is a graphical representation of data in which data values are represented as colors. That is, it uses color in order to communicate a value to the reader. This is a great tool to assist the audience towards the areas that matter the most when you have a large volume of data.

2              Is Micro Learning a Better Way to Train Our Workforce?
https://www.industryweek.com/talent/micro-learning-better-way-train-our-workforce

The days of piling into a large auditorium of a company and sitting for hours, watching PowerPoint presentations might just be over. It turns out, that way of teaching information isn’t very effective since it’s hard for people to absorb so much information at one time.

3              MLaaS platforms for novices and pros: opt the one you need
https://towardsdatascience.com/mlaas-platforms-for-novices-and-pros-opt-the-one-you-need-6b64c377a89c

Machine learning is rather new technology, although the first computer learning software was created in the 1950s. Thus, machine learning technology is integrated today into many types of software that turn each software into a smart project that may help people solve many daily routines.

4              Practical Speech Recognition with Python: The Basics
https://www.kdnuggets.com/2019/07/practical-speech-recognition-python-basics.html

Have you ever wanted to try out a speech recognition project but found it all just too intimidating? What about creating something a few steps beyond and a bit more complex, like a full audio chatbot or a voice assistant?

5              Struggling to Get More Leads? Write Great Content!
https://www.business2community.com/content-marketing/struggling-to-get-more-leads-write-great-content-02218718

Content creation is more than “just writing” or plopping in as many meme-worthy Shutterstock images as possible – it’s a daring dance that involves being creative, engaging, and targeting the right audience. Not everyone gets that, including most competitors, so take advantage of that lapse in judgement and make your brand stand out as something unique.

6              Eat, sleep, market, repeat: How not to let your marketing strategy fail
https://www.thedrum.com/opinion/2019/07/09/eat-sleep-market-repeat-how-not-let-your-marketing-strategy-fail

The marketing sector can be a complicated place as new marketing tools and techniques are launched, almost on a weekly basis. Powered by The Drum Network, this regular column invites The Drum Network’s members to demystify the marketing trade and offer expert insight and opinion on what is happening in the marketing industry today that can help your business tomorrow.

7              Bridging the Leadership Gap Between Tech and Business
https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/bridging-the-leadership-gap-between-tech-and-business/

IT has a brand problem. It has lost trust with its customers — from C-suite stakeholders to individual contributors — who have come to associate IT with bottlenecks, frustration, constraints, and cost overruns. In fact, if IT were a consumer brand, it would have been discontinued years ago.

8              What’s wrong with the approach to Data Science?
https://www.kdnuggets.com/2019/07/whats-wrong-with-data-science.html

Data science is the application of statistics, programming and domain knowledge to generate insights into a problem that needs to be solved. The Harvard Business Review said Data Scientist is the sexiest job of the 21st century. How often has that article been referenced to convince people?

9              Effectively Manage Data With CRM Customization
https://blog.hubspot.com/customers/manage-data-with-crm-customization

An underlying problem businesses face today is organizing their database to visualize the data points they need to make effective decisions that will reduce friction and increase force in their flywheel. But what is the basis of effective data management and what HubSpot tools can you use to structure your database for future data visualization?

10           6 Customer Identity and Access Management Fundamentals for Enterprises
https://datafloq.com/read/6-ciam-fundamentals-for-enterprises/6574
Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) is a strategic need for businesses to deliver a seamless, personalised omnichannel brand experience and revenue to consumers.

Energy, Petrochemicals and Plastics 24

Friday, July 5, 2019

Energy, Petrochemicals and Plastics 24

1              Oil Price Fundamental Daily Forecast – Weak Jobs Data Will Increase Concerns Over Future Demand
https://www.fxempire.com/forecasts/article/oil-price-fundamental-daily-forecast-weak-jobs-data-will-increase-concerns-over-future-demand-584750

Crude oil traders will be watching closely the U.S. Non-Farm Payrolls report, due to be released at 12:30 GMT. A weaker-than-expected report will likely drive prices lower since this will support the case for lower future demand.

2              Oil Prices Set For Worst Weekly Drop In Five Weeks | OilPrice.com
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Oil-Prices/Oil-Prices-Set-For-Worst-Weekly-Drop-In-Five-Weeks.html

Concerns about weakening global economy and oil demand growth trumped simmering U.S.-Iran tensions and OPEC and allies’ rollover of the production cuts into 2020, sending oil prices early on Friday on course to book their largest weekly decline in five weeks.

3              Natural Gas Price Fundamental Daily Forecast
https://www.fxempire.com/forecasts/article/natural-gas-price-fundamental-daily-forecast-low-demand-expectations-capping-early-gains-depressed-prices-supportive-584746

Prices are currently straddling a minor retracement zone at $2.201 to $2.308 while investors await an updated weather forecast.

4              Why Natural Gas Prices Collapsed | OilPrice.com
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Natural-Gas/Why-Natural-Gas-Prices-Collapsed20700.html

U.S. natural gas prices have collapsed since the end of winter, even as inventory levels remain below average levels for this time of year.

Henry Hub prices spiked in the fourth quarter of 2018 due to record levels of demand, cold weather, and historically low inventories. But prices remained elevated, over $4/MMBtu, for only a brief period of time. Production continued to soar, so traders were not overly concerned about market tightness.

5        How serious are oil and gas companies about the energy transition?

https://www.woodmac.com/news/the-edge/how-serious-are-oil-and-gas-companies-about-the-energy-transition/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=inside-track&utm_content=ed201927iss29

New energy’s time has come. It’s less than four years since the Paris Agreement set the long-term goal to limit the rise in global temperature to well below 2°C. Back then, the oil and gas industry had zero appetite to invest in decarbonisation. Paris lit the fuse. I caught up with Valentina Kretzschmar, Research Director, to find out what’s happening.

6              The world has 12 years to limit greenhouse gas emissions or face severe impacts from global warming.

https://www.woodmac.com/news/feature/deep-decarbonisation-the-multi-trillion-dollar-question/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=inside-track&utm_content=ed201927iss29

So proclaimed the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in its updated report on climate change in October 2018, setting off alarm bells around the world. A growing list of countries, states, local communities and global businesses has heeded the call to action and adopted more aggressive measures to limit their carbon footprints.

7              Hyundai Oilbank to expand aromatics capacity
https://www.argusmedia.com/en/news/1933723-hyundai-oilbank-to-expand-aromatics-capacity

South Korean refiner Hyundai Oilbank is undertaking 260bn won ($222.2mn) in projects to expand its aromatics production capacity, in a bet that an increased weighting toward petrochemicals will boost its profitability.

8              The Plastics Backlash has Some Oil Giants Worried | Rigzone
https://www.rigzone.com/news/the_plastics_backlash_has_some_oil_giants_worried-04-jul-2019-159224-article/

Faced with sooner than anticipated peak demand from transportation, industry, buildings and the power sector, BP Plc, Total SA and Exxon Mobil, amongst others, are investing in factories and refineries that convert fossil fuels into plastics and chemical feedstocks–a sector that is, according to the BP Energy Outlook 2019“the single-largest projected source of oil demand growth in the next twenty years.” Indeed, the EIA expects U.S. demand for feedstock to increase from 40 million metric tons a year today to 60 million by 2040.

9              INTERACTIVE INSIGHT: ICIS global price index down 15% in second quarter
https://www.icis.com/explore/resources/news/2019/07/03/10387182/interactive-insight-icis-global-price-index-down-15-in-second-quarter

Petrochemical and polymer prices have come under increasing downward pressure as end use markets slow and the oil price falls.

The ICIS Petrochemical Index (IPEX) shows how difficult the first half was for producers with the indexes for the three main producing and consuming regions trending downwards.

10           Plastics
https://www.plasticstoday.com/resin-pricing/weekly-resin-report-trading-activity-shows-slight-improvement/90937743961085

Commodity resin trading improved again last week compared to the dismal start to the month, but overall volumes still tallied the lowest of 2019, reports the PlasticsExchange (Chicago) in its Market Update. The volumes were still above November and December levels, however.

11           Americas petrochemicals outlook, w/c July 1
https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/market-insights/latest-news/petrochemicals/070119-americas-petrochemicals-outlook-w-c-july-1

Prompt July ethylene contracts slightly rose over the week. The market is closely watching the timing of the return of the BASF/Total cracker back to operations, which will most likely be sometime this week. Moreover, ethane prices will most likely impact ethylene prices to a great extent.

12           South Korea’s S-Oil says Saudi Aramco to give advice on $6 billion petchem project
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-southkorea-s-oil-saudi-aramco-idUSKCN1TR0NO

S-Oil, South Korea’s No.3 oil refiner by capacity, said it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with its top shareholder, Saudi Aramco, for technical advice on a multi-billion dollar petrochemical plant it is looking to build.

13           Packaging Outlook Shifts With New Data: Gardner Intelligence
https://www.gardnerintelligence.com/blog/post/packaging-outlook-shifts-with-new-data

The latest projections for revenues and earnings now contain estimates through the third quarter of 2021. According to these more distant projections, expectations are for less than 1% industry growth before accounting for inflation which could easily result in contracting real revenues and earnings in 2021.

14           Eni produces first oil from Miztón field offshore Mexico
https://www.offshoreenergytoday.com/eni-produces-first-oil-from-mizton-field-offshore-mexico/

Italian oil company Eni has started the early production phase from the Miztón field in Area 1, located in the Campeche Bay offshore Mexico, making Eni the first international company to start offshore production in Mexico after the Energy Reform.

15           Russia remains top crude supplier to China’s independent refineries in June
https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/market-insights/latest-news/oil/070419-russia-remains-top-crude-supplier-to-chinas-independent-refineries-in-june

Russia remained as the top crude supplier to China’s independent refineries in June — the second consecutive month — with 2.32 million mt arrived, far outpacing the second supplier in Angola, S&P Global Platts monthly survey showed Thursday.

Business Intelligence and Analytics 24

Friday, July 5, 2019

Business Intelligence and Analytics 24

1              8 Data Analytics Acquisitions That Will Re-Shape the Industry
https://solutionsreview.com/business-intelligence/data-analytics-acquisitions-that-will-re-shape-the-industry/

Big data is big business, and the marketplace for data analytics and business intelligence software is gushing with innovative providers and advanced technologies. The proliferation of enterprise data science has seen an already vibrant landscape grow even brighter, with continued interest from major players and outside firms looking to expand their product portfolios. With millions invested and billions in valuation, analytics and BI providers are emerging as some of the fastest-growing (and most profitable) companies on the planet.

2              Why It’s So Hard to Fight Instinct vs. Data in BI Decision-Making
https://www.smartdatacollective.com/how-big-data-changes-business-intelligence-decision-making/

In the days before robust business intelligence (BI) platforms existed, professionals usually had to rely on experience and gut instinct when making decisions. Now, data analysis tools can give solid conclusions gleaned from months or years of compiled information. Even so, the people who dig through data still have difficulty trusting what the data says and quieting their gut instincts.

3              A digital reality for oil and gas
https://www.energyvoice.com/oilandgas/202660/a-digital-reality-for-oil-and-gas/

Good data analysis can have a direct impact on operational efficiencies and the potential reduction in operating costs as well as improved production and hydrocarbon recovery.

4              Cloud-Based CRM System: Is it Safe and What are the Benefits?
https://datafloq.com/read/cloud-based-crm-system-safe-benefits/6541
From their humble beginnings back in the 1980s, CRM (customer relationship management) systems have come a long way to become what they are today.

5              What is the Impact of Data Science Automation?
https://www.ibmbigdatahub.com/blog/what-impact-data-science-automation
On June 12th, IBM debuted AutoAI, a new set of capabilities for Watson Studio designed to automate critical yet time-consuming tasks associated with designing and optimizing AI in the enterprise. As a result, data scientists can be liberated to execute more data science and AI projects in their organizations. Read more about AutoAI in the announcement.

6              How to Communicate Your SaaS Marketing Performance to Your CEO
https://www.business2community.com/marketing/how-to-communicate-your-saas-marketing-performance-to-your-ceo-02216140

Whether you’re giving an impromptu presentation or running the show in a recurring meeting, communicating your SaaS marketing performance to your CEO may have you on edge.

7              When Your Boss Is an Algorithm – New York Times Opinion
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/opinion/sunday/uber-driver-life.html

There are nearly a million active Uber drivers in the United States and Canada, and none of them have human supervisors. It’s better than having a real boss, one driver in the Boston area told me,”except when something goes wrong.”

8              The Benefits of Customer Lifetime Value: Why It Matters
https://www.business2community.com/customer-experience/the-benefits-of-customer-lifetime-value-why-it-matters-02215821

What do America’s longest running companies all have in common? They focus on the big picture: customer lifetime value.

9              Make your Data Talk! – Towards Data Science
https://towardsdatascience.com/make-your-data-talk-13072f84eeac
What is data, nothing but numbers. If we are not visualizing it to get a better understanding of the world inside it, we are missing out on lots of things. I.e. we can make some sense out of data as numbers, but magic happens when you try to visualize it. It makes more sense and it suddenly it becomes more perceivable.

10           Probability Distributions Every Data Scientist Should Know
http://www.datastuff.tech/data-science/5-probability-distributions-every-data-scientist-should-know/
Probability Distributions are like 3D glasses. They allow a skilled Data Scientist to recognize patterns in otherwise completely random variables.

In a way, most of the other Data Science or Machine Learning skills are based on certain assumptions about the probability distributions of your data.

11           4 Most Popular Alternative Data Sources Explained
https://www.kdnuggets.com/2019/07/4-most-popular-alternative-data-sources-explained.html
Yes, alternative data is the new game changer.

It’s data which is curated from a variety of non-traditional sources. Alternative data basically implies data that is created with the advent of connected devices, varied sensors, transactional systems, social networking sites and of course, the Internet.

12           Machine Learning Drives Skyrocketing Demand for Entry Level Python Cod
https://datafloq.com/read/machine-learning-drives-skyrocketing-demand-python/6539

Even professional engineers are often dismayed by the pace of change in the technology industry. One of the biggest examples is with the emergence of machine learning. Only a few years ago, very few people had ever heard of the term. Today, it is growing faster than ever. One study shows that the machine learning market will be worth over $19 billion by 2023.