Month: May 2018

The No. 1 thing Bill Gates wishes he’d done in college

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard two years into his college education to start Microsoft, the business that would make him a millionaire by age 26. Now, over 40 years later, Gates says there is still one thing he regrets about his Harvard years.

“Well, I wish I had been more sociable,” Gates told students at Harvard during a Q&A on Thursday.

Instead of mingling with his peers, Gates said his college priorities were almost solely academics. “I wish I had gotten to know more people,” he said. “I was just so into being good at the classes and taking lots of classes.”

The sparse social life Gates said he did have was thanks to his classmate and good college friend Steve Ballmer. The two started out as dorm hall neighbors who would go see movies and study together, even though “Ballmer was very different from Gates on the surface,” according to the Harvard Gazette. Unlike Gates, Ballmer was extroverted and involved in a variety of extracurricular activities, including social clubs and campus publications.

In their sophomore year, Ballmer helped Gates make the cut from a pool of over 200 students to join one of Harvard’s exclusive all-male social clubs.

“I was so antisocial, I never would have even known [the social clubs] existed, but Steve Ballmer decided I needed to have some exposure to, I guess, drinking,” Gates said with a laugh at the Q&A.

“He got me punched through the Fox Club,” Gates added, referring to the selection process. “So I would go to those events, and that was highly educational.”

Ballmer went on to become one of Microsoft’s earliest employees, later succeeding Gates as the company’s CEO in 2000.

To Gates, the Fox Club was fun, but he now wishes he’d found more camaraderie around Harvard.

“I wish I had mixed around a bit more,” he said. “It was a fun time, though, because you had people around you could talk to 24 hours a day.”

At the time, Harvard was also accepting more women into the college, which Gates was pleased about.

“The male-to-female ratio was 1-to-1, which was an unusual thing at the time,” he said. “It didn’t help me, but it was a visual improvement for me.”

Gates also noted he could have done a better job of engaging in the Crimson team spirit.

“I never went to a football game or a basketball game or, you know, whatever other sports teams Harvard might happen to have,” Gates said.

Though Gates went on to launch his multibillion-dollar company and give away billions of dollars through his philanthropy, he still thinks about all of the missed social opportunities.

“You know, it worked out in the end,” Gates said. “But I missed a lot.”

Source: Make It, CNBC.com

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

With elections in mind, government to push for worker friendly laws

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The government will push for labour bills that will be favorable to country’s half a billion strong labour force, reported The Economic Times.

The decision comes with the government gearing up for general elections.

The report said that the labour ministry has been asked to speed up the passage for pro-worker laws, while those that are seen as to be against their interest are to be held back.

As per an official quoted in the report, this would mean that bills on codes on wages, universal social security and those on occupational safety, health and working conditions at commercial establishments could see a smoother passage.

An important one among them is the codes on wages that seeks to empower the centre to set a minimum wage across sectors that states will have to abide by, as per the report.

On the other hand, ‘work on the controversial code on industrial relations, parts of which makes it easier to fire workers and was drafted in 2015, is unlikely to move forward,’ the report said.

The ministry is expecting to send the pro-worker laws to the cabinet soon after which, they will be forwarded to the parliament.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Kim Jong-un may meet Donald Trump at the demilitarized zone

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has agreed to meet US President Donald Trump at the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, an informed source told CNN.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in convinced Kim to meet Trump at the DMZ during their historic summit in the border village of Panmunjom on April 27 that led to an agreement to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula and formally end the Korean War, the source said on Monday.

According to the source, there was a “strong possibility” the summit will be held at the site, with some events possibly scheduled on the northern side of the military demarcation line separating the two countries.

The venue makes the most sense logistically for Kim, the source told CNN, because media facilities and equipment are already in place, which could the allow the summit to take place “in late May”.

The idea of meeting at the DMZ was not a complete surprise to aides, since Trump has been talking about it all weekend and raised it in his Sunday phone call with Moon, a senior US official told CNN.

Trump loved the images from the Kim-Moon summit and the fact the entire meeting was televised, the official said. The US President wants to be involved in similar scenes when he becomes the first sitting US President to meet a North Korean leader.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump said he was enthusiastic about the idea of holding the summit in the DMZ.

“There’s something I like about it, because you’re there, if things work out, there’s a great celebration to be had on the site, not in a third party country,” he said.

Millions watched Moon’s meeting with Kim, the first meeting between two leaders of North and South Korea in over a decade.

Cameras followed the leaders’ movements throughout the day, from Moon’s departure from Seoul to the moment Kim crossed the demarcation line into the south — and encouraged Moon to cross to the North.

However, administration officials were still arguing for Singapore as a possible location for the talks, telling Trump it presents a more neutral option, the source told CNN.

A close ally to the US during the Cold War and currently host to a US military presence, Singapore also has a diplomatic relationship with North Korea.

It is one of only 47 countries to feature a North Korean embassy.

Another option previously suggested by both sides was Ulaanbaatar, the sparsely-populated capital of Mongolia to the northwest of North Korea.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

US dollar trades higher against other major currencies

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The US dollar traded higher against other major currencies as inflation neared the US Federal Reserve’s target, potentially signalling a faster increase in US interest rates.

In late New York trading on Monday, the euro was down to $1.2081 from $1.2123 in the previous session, and the British pound decreased to $1.3749 from $1.3784 in the previous session, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Australian dollar decreased to $0.7529 from $0.7581.

The US dollar bought 109.29 Japanese yen, higher than 109.03 Japanese yen of the previous session. The US dollar rose to 0.9907 Swiss franc from 0.9879 Swiss franc, and it increased to 1.2841 Canadian dollars from 1.2834 Canadian dollars.

The US personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, excluding food and energy, a key inflation gauge preferred by the Federal Reserve, rose 1.9 per cent in the 12 months through March, according to data released by the US Department of Commerce on Monday.

The figure nearly matched the Fed’s 2 percent target.

Meanwhile, the US personal income and spending rose 0.3 percent and 0.4 percent respectively in March, the same filing said.

The uptick in inflation came a day before the Federal Reserve two-day policy meeting that begins on Tuesday.

Analysts expected the Fed to keep rates on hold when they conclude their meeting on Wednesday, but the rate setters could signal they are ready to hike in June.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, increased 0.31 percent at 91.828 in late trading.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

White House delays tariffs on EU, Canada and Mexico

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The White House said Monday it would postpone a decision on imposing tariffs on US imports of steel and aluminum from the European Union, Canada and Mexico for 30 days, avoiding the potential for a trade battle with Europe as the US prepares for tense trade talks in China this week.

The Trump administration said it had reached an agreement with South Korea on steel imports following discussions on a revised trade agreement, the outlines of which were previously announced by US and South Korean officials. And the administration said it had also reached agreements in principle with Argentina, Australia and Brazil on steel and aluminum that will be finalized shortly.

Announcing the trade actions, the White House said “in all of these negotiations, the administration is focused on quotas that will restrain imports, prevent transshipment and protect the national security.”

Facing a self-imposed deadline, President Donald Trump was considering whether to permanently exempt the EU and Mexico, Canada, Australia, Argentina and Brazil from tariffs that his administration imposed last month on imported steel and aluminum. The White House provided temporary exemptions in March and had until the end of Monday to decide whether to extend them.

The EU has said if it loses its exemption it will retaliate with its own tariffs on US goods imported to Europe.

The confrontation stems from the president’s decision in March to slap tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on imported aluminum. Trump justified the action by saying it was needed to protect American metal producers from unfair competition and bolster national security. But the announcement, which followed an intense internal White House debate, triggered harsh criticism from Democrats and some Republicans and roiled financial markets.

At the time, Trump excluded several vital trading partners — the European Union, Mexico, Canada, Australia, Argentina and Brazil — from the tariffs.

That meant the steel tariff covered just 30 percent of all imports, according to Oxford Economics. If all the exemptions were ended, it would have deepened the impact of the tariffs on American companies that use steel and potentially affect financial markets. Stock prices fell nearly 2 percent when the tariffs were announced.

Two people familiar with the process said the Trump administration had been considering whether to provide a short-term extension of the exemptions to allow for more time to review the countries’ efforts to secure permanent exemptions.

One of the officials said the US trade representative has been overseeing the process for all of the countries except for the European Union, whose tariffs are being evaluated by the Commerce Department.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to describe internal deliberations.

The EU and others had been asked to spell out what limits they could accept on the amount of steel they export to the United States, how they would address the issue of excess production of steel and aluminum and how they would support the US before international bodies like the World Trade Organization. Security relationships with the US have also been part of the criteria.

South Korea agreed to limit its exports to the United States as part of broader discussions involved in updating its bilateral trade agreement with the US and was granted a permanent exemption.

China, Japan and Russia haven’t received exemptions from the duties. That will likely reduce steel shipments from those countries over time. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said late Friday that quotas on imports from Europe and other countries are necessary so imports from those countries don’t simply replace Chinese imports. The goal of the tariffs is to reduce total steel imports and boost US production, Ross said.

“If you let everybody back out of the tariff, and you let them out of any kind of quota, how would you ever reduce the imports here?” Ross asked at a conference of business journalists. Ross is set to discuss the issue Monday with EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom.

Germany, the EU’s largest steel exporter to the US, accounted for about 5 percent of US steel imports last year. South Korea made up the largest share, shipping about 13 percent of US imports, according to an American Iron and Steel Institute analysis of government data.

The EU has compiled a list of retaliatory tariffs worth about $3.5 billion it will impose if its steel and aluminum isn’t exempted.

European leaders have resisted the idea of a quota. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in a statement Sunday that she discussed the issue with French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Theresa May after returning from a White House visit Friday.

The three European leaders “agreed that the US ought not to take any trade measures against the European Union,” which is “resolved to defend its interests within the multilateral trade framework,” Merkel’s statement said.

In her meeting with Trump, Merkel said, she saw little progress in obtaining permanent exemptions. “The decision lies with the president,” she said Friday.

In a separate trade battle with China, the United States has threatened to impose tariffs on $150 billion of Chinese goods in retaliation for what it argues are Beijing’s unfair trade practices and its requirement that US companies turn over technology in exchange for access to its market. The White House also wants China to agree to reduce its $375 billion goods trade surplus with the US

China has said it would subject $50 billion of US goods to tariffs if the US taxes its products. Trump has announced that an administration delegation led by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and trade adviser Peter Navarro will visit Beijing for negotiations on Thursday and Friday this week.

In addition to Mnuchin, Lighthizer, Ross and Navarro, the group will include economic adviser Larry Kudlow, US Ambassador to China Terry Branstad and Everett Eissenstat, deputy assistant to the president for International Economic Affairs.

“We’re going to have very frank discussions,” Mnuchin in an interview broadcast Monday on Fox Business.

Most analysts, however, think it’s unlikely the talks will reach permanent agreements and will more likely mark the start of longer-term negotiations.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Gold inches down as dollar stays firm

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Gold prices inched lower early on Tuesday, hovering close to a nearly six-week low touched in the previous session, as the US dollar held firm near a 3-1/2-month high.

FUNDAMENTALS

** Spot gold fell 0.1 percent to $1,314.00 per ounce at 0106 GMT. Prices slipped to $1,310.11 on Monday, their lowest since March 21.

** US gold futures for June delivery eased 0.3 percent to $1,315.10 per ounce.

** The dollar index was little changed at 91.832. The greenback touched 91.986 on Friday, its highest since since Jan. 11.

** Most markets in Asia are closed for a Labour Day holiday.

** Federal Reserve officials are scheduled to convene on Tuesday and Wednesday for a regular policy meeting. The central bank is widely expected to stand pat on policy and investors will be watching for hints of a rate hike in June.

** US consumer prices accelerated in the year to March, with a measure of underlying inflation surging to near the Fed’s 2 percent target as weak readings from last year dropped out of the calculation.

* President Donald Trump has postponed a decision on imposing steel and aluminium tariffs on Canada, the European Union and Mexico until June 1, and has reached an agreement in principle with Argentina, Australia and Brazil, a source familiar with the decision said on Monday.

** South Korean trust in North Korea has surged since last week’s feel-good summit at which their leaders declared an end to hostilities and to work towards denuclearisation of the peninsula.

** Sales of US Mint American Eagle gold coins dropped to their weakest April since 2007, while silver coin purchases for the month rose 10 percent higher than last year, US government data showed on Monday.

** India raised gold holdings by 2.2 tonnes to 560.3 tonnes in 2018 March -IMF Data

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

US stock futures pare losses after US extends tariff exemptions

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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US stock futures pared small losses while Asian shares were little changed on Tuesday after the US extended the deadline on steel and aluminium tariffs by one month to major allies.

S&P mini futures traded flat, erasing an earlier loss of 0.2 percent. Japan’s Nikkei ticked down 0.2 percent while Australian shares were flat.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan were down 0.2 percent though most markets in the region are closed for a Labour Day holiday.

US shares lost steam late on Monday as worries about rising costs for companies kept investors on edge, despite solid corporate earnings overall.

The market got a small relief after the United States decided to postpone its deadline on steel and aluminium tariffs for the European Union, Canada and Mexico to June.

The United States also reached agreements in principle on tariffs with some other countries, including Australia and Brazil, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The news, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, eased worries the temporary exemptions for several US allies might expire.

“Markets are kind of expecting the Trump way of negotiation to continue. So I do not think markets are overly concerned about them at this point,” said Masahiro Ichikawa, senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management.

Without an extension from US President Donald Trump, the exemptions would have expired at 12:01 a.m. in US Eastern time (0401 GMT) on Tuesday.

In the currency market, the euro traded at $1.2078, not far from 3 1/2-month low of $1.2055 touched on Friday, after weaker-than-expected German retail sales figures.

Although the data is known to be volatile and is often subject to revision, it added to recent signs that Germany’s economy could be losing some momentum after surprisingly strong growth last year.

The dollar has been supported against many other currencies thanks to the relative strength of US economy and its yield advantage.

The Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates on hold at its two-day policy meeting starting later on Tuesday, with a June hike already priced in.

The British pound stood at $1.3769, having hit a two-month low of $1.3715 on Monday, as recent data suggested a rate hike by the Bank of England this month, once almost seen as a certainty, could be delayed.

The dollar changed hands at 109.25 yen, near Friday’s 2 1/2-month high of 109.54.

Oil prices held firm near 3 1/2-year highs after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stepped up pressure on the United States to pull out of a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, presenting what he said was evidence of a secret Iranian nuclear weapons programme.

Intelligence experts and diplomats said he did not seem to have presented a “smoking gun” showing that Iran had violated the agreement and Iran dismissed Netanyahu’s accusations, calling them propaganda.

But US President Donald Trump, who has threatened to pull the United States out of the international deal unless it is renegotiated by May 12, repeated his criticism of the deal after Netanyahu’s presentation, suggesting he backed the Israeli leader’s remarks.

The White House said on Monday that information released by Israel on Iran’s nuclear programme provides “new and compelling details”.

US crude futures traded flat at $68.56 per barrel, not far from last month’s peak of $69.56, its highest level since late 2014.

Brent crude futures $74.64 per barrel, near its 3 1/2-year high of $75.47 set last week.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

WhatsApp co-founder to quit in loss of privacy advocate at Facebook

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The co-founder of WhatsApp, a messaging service owned by Facebook Inc with more than 1 billion daily users, said on Monday he was leaving the company, in a loss of one of the strongest advocates for privacy inside Facebook.

Jan Koum’s plan to exit comes after clashing with the parent company over WhatApp’s strategy and Facebook’s attempts to use its personal data and weaken its encryption, the Washington Post earlier reported, citing people familiar with the internal discussions.

“It’s been almost a decade since Brian and I started WhatsApp, and it’s been an amazing journey with some of the best people,” Koum, WhatsApp’s chief executive, said in a post on his Facebook page referring to co-founder Brian Acton.

“But it is time for me to move on.” He did not give a date for his departure and could not immediately be reached for comment.

Acton left the messaging service company in September to start a foundation, after spending eight years with WhatsApp.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg commented on Koum’s post, saying he was grateful for what Koum taught him about encryption “and its ability to take power from centralized systems and put it back in people’s hands. Those values will always be at the heart of WhatsApp.”

Facebook has battled European regulators over a plan to use WhatsApp user data, including phone numbers, to develop products and target ads. The plan is suspended, but WhatsApp said last week it still wanted to move forward eventually.

Stanford alumnus Acton and Ukrainian immigrant Koum co-founded WhatsApp in 2009. Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014 for $19 billion in cash and stock.

WhatsApp, a pun on the phrase “What’s up?,” grew in popularity in part because its encrypted messages are stored on users’ smartphones and not on company servers, making the service more private.

Concerns about Facebook’s handling of personal information have grown since the social network’s admission in March that the data of millions of users was wrongly harvested by political consultancy Cambridge Analytica.

Facebook has taken steps to generate revenue from WhatsApp, which unlike Facebook does not have advertising.

WhatsApp’s management has fiercely opposed advertising, saying in 2012 that they did not want to be “just another ad clearinghouse” where the engineering team “spends their day tuning data mining.”

Instead, WhatsApp charged a $1 annual subscription. It dropped that in 2016, moving towards a plan to charge businesses for specialised accounts.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Alibaba cannot block cryptocurrency firm from using similar name, says US judge

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A US judge on Monday rejected Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd’s bid for a preliminary injunction to block the Dubai cryptocurrency firm Alibabacoin Foundation from using the Alibaba name.

US District Judge Paul Oetken in Manhattan said Alibaba did not show he had jurisdiction, having failed to establish a “reasonable probability” that Alibabacoin’s interactive websites were used to transact business with customers in New York.

The judge said it did not matter that Alibabacoin might eventually list its cryptocurrency on US exchanges or that a New York company hosted one of its websites.

He also said any injury Alibaba might have suffered to its business, goodwill and reputation from alleged trademark infringement likely occurred in China, where the e-commerce retailer is based.

The Chinese company had alleged Alibabacoin hurt its business in the United States, causing actual confusion among customers there, in violation of federal and state laws.

A US-based lawyer for Alibaba declined to comment. Lawyers for Alibabacoin did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Oetken dissolved a temporary restraining order issued on April 2 by another judge against Alibabacoin.

He also said Alibaba deserved another chance to show why the case belongs in Manhattan.

Alibabacoin, which is also known as ABBC Foundation, has argued that it was not trying to piggyback off the Alibaba name.

It has also said China’s ban on initial coin offerings in September eliminated a key source of potential confusion among consumers about its lack of ties to Alibaba.

The case is Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd v. Alibabacoin Foundation et al, US District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 18-02897.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Oil gains after Netanyahu says Iran lied after signing nuclear deal

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Oil prices rose on Monday, bouncing off early losses after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had proof that “Iran lied” about its nuclear capabilities, and that he was sure US President Donald Trump would do “the right thing” in reviewing the country’s nuclear deal with western powers.

Prices of the Brent June contract, which expires Monday, gained 53 cents to settle at $75.17 a barrel. Prices for the more actively traded Brent July contact gained 90 cents to settle at $74.69.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were up 47 cents on the day to settle at $68.57 a barrel.

Earlier in the session, both benchmarks had been down about 1 percent. Both started to gain after Netanyahu said he would soon have an announcement regarding Iran.

“Oil reacted very severely” to Netanyahu’s announcement, said Phil Flynn, analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago.

Oil prices jumped after Netanyahu said Israel has evidence that Iran lied about its nuclear program after signing the 2015 agreement with global powers.

Iran dismissed Netanyahu’s accusations, calling them “propaganda.”

“Netanyahu may be the flavour of the day, but the larger issue driving this is what will Trump do with Iran? And what will Iran do in response? And that uncertainty is the fundamental driver, not so much Netanyahu,” said Walter Zimmerman, chief technical analyst for United-ICAP.

Trump has until May 12 to decide whether to restore sanctions on Iran that were lifted after the international agreement.

Oil prices have risen this month to their highest since late 2014, driven by concern over potential disruptions to Iranian crude flows. Analysts said the market is extremely sensitive to any developments on the nuclear deal and sanctions.

“Until May 12, you’re not going to see any significant downward correction,” PVM Oil Associates strategist Tamas Varga said. “Reimposing US sanctions is not a foregone conclusion just yet.”

Meanwhile, US crude production jumped 260,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 10.26 million bpd in February, the highest on record, the Energy Information Administration said in a monthly report on Monday.

In the latest development in the US shale boom, Marathon Petroleum Corp agreed to buy rival Andeavor for more than $23 billion. The largest-ever tie-up between US refiners will give the combined company a nationwide presence and increased access to growing export markets.

The deal gives Marathon more exposure to US shale, thanks to Andeavor’s existing logistics and terminal operations in Texas and North Dakota shale regions.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow