Podcast & Video Of The Week

A Look At The Tanker Shipping Sector & An Update On Current Events In The Oil Market

I’m finally back in Boise after a hectic couple weeks. Like always, I have been watching the commodity sector and I have been enjoying the run coal stocks have been on lately. One of the videos this week covers oil in detail, which is nothing new. The other video is a look at the tanker shipping sector, which is something I have started to dig into over the last couple days. I don’t own any stocks in the sector yet, but I think the transportation of crude and refined products could be an interesting place to be over the next 3 to 5 years.

Tanker Shipping Sector Webinar

I have been interested in what is going on in energy markets, and one of the sectors I have started looking into more recently is the shipping sector. More specifically, the tanker sector, which is responsible for transporting crude oil and refined products all over the world. The webinar includes 5 CEOs from the tanker sector and is an interesting discussion on what is going on with the sector, as well some of the companies in the sector. They talk about day rates, how long a potential upcycle could last, as well as the age of the global tanker fleet and how long a new build will take and how much it could cost.

I don’t have any positions yet, but I’m looking into the sector because it has some of the same characteristics as the offshore sector. Rising day rates, low valuations, and low new build order book all point to good times for companies in the sector. My hesitance comes from the long history of investors getting blown out investing in shipping for a wide variety of reasons. I find it easier to understand the offshore bull case, but I will be keeping an eye on the tanker sector to see if any opportunities start to get interesting.

Wall Street For Main Street w/ Josh Young

I know more about the energy space than the average joe, but I still consider myself a generalist investor. I go where I think the best opportunities are, regardless of the sector. That has led me to focus primarily on commodities, but at some point there will be a huge opportunity in different sectors, and I plan to catch that change ahead of time. Josh Young, founder of oil hedge fund Bison Interests, is not a generalist when it comes to oil and gas. In this video, he goes through a bunch of things that have had an impact on oil and gas markets this year. Just a disclaimer, but if you want news or opinions that is bearish on oil or natural gas, you probably shouldn’t listen to an oil hedge fund manager for his opinions on oil and natural gas.

They cover a wide range of topics, and while both of them lean bullish, they think we are probably in for a trading range in oil prices, probably from $75-$95, and potentially higher. They both think oil demand has been more resilient than recession fear mongers say. Oil demand has been growing despite industrial weakness, and countries outside of North America and Europe are showing significant oil demand growth. One thing worth noting is that US oil consumption per capita is more than 5 times that of China (this number varies depending on where you get your stats). The point is that places like India, China, Southeast Asia, and Africa are going to drive oil demand growth over the next decade.

They also discuss recent mergers and acquisitions in the oil space, including Exxon’s XOM 0.00%↑ purchase of Pioneer PXD 0.00%↑ and Chevron CVX 0.00%↑ taking out Hess HES 0.00%↑. This includes some of the events going on between Venezuela and Guyana, with rumors of Venezuela invading Guyana. I doubt it has an impact on oil production in either country, but it’s something that is worth keeping an eye on. The also discuss other geopolitical current events, including OPEC and the potential geopolitical impact of events in the Middle East on oil markets.