Tougher outlook for oil and gas - Berenberg
STOXX 600 up 0.9%
Traders bet on ECB rate cut
Miners, tech rise
Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of markets brought to you by Reuters reporters. You can share your thoughts with us at markets.research@thomsonreuters.com
TOUGHER OUTLOOK FOR OIL AND GAS
After a period of high oil and gas prices, analysts at Berenberg see a tougher environment for oil and gas going forward.
"The outlook for oil, European gas/liquified natural gas (LNG) and refining margins all appear materially worse, which will likely put pressure on sector earnings, cash flow and buybacks over the coming quarters," they said.
Part of this appears to already be priced in, the analysts said, while lowering their forecast for Brent prices to $75/bbl, $75/bbl and $70/bbl for the fourth quarter of 2024, 2025 and 2026 respectively.
They see the market in surplus next year on solid non-OPEC supply growth as well as slightly weaker demand.
They expect European gas prices to remain high in the near term, but anticipated prices to potentially decline from 2025 as supply intensifies.
They said they are 7% and 11% below consensus for 2025 and 2026 respectively across the sector, but see a further 10% downside if Brent fell to $60/bbl, and a 25% downside if Brent went to $50/bbl for 2025.
Oil prices rose more than 1% on Thursday, extending a rebound driven by concern over Hurricane Francine's impact on U.S. output, though a gloomy demand outlook capped gains.
"Given the current turmoil in commodity markets, there may not be an immediate need to rush to buy stocks in the sector," Berenberg analysts noted.
Earlier in the week, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cut its outlook for global oil demand growth this year and lowered its expectation for 2025, its second consecutive downward revision.
But analysts still see "value for patient investors", thanks to lower capital intensity, which should drive capital towards more profitable projects, and higher payout, mainly through buybacks.
Their top picks are TotalEnergies TTEF.PA and Shell SHEL.L, while they also upgrade Equinor EQNR.OL to "hold" from "sell".
(Linda Pasquini)
*****
FOR WEDNESDAY'S OTHER LIVE MARKETS POSTS
EUROPE SET FOR OPENING BOUNCE AHEAD OF ECB CLICK HERE
TECH STOCKS CUE RALLY WHILE ECB LOOMS CLICK HERE
Related Assets
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
