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Oil Prices Fall On Fears Of Further Interest Rate Hikes From The Fed

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Despite rising earlier this week, crude oil prices are set to end the week with a loss, largely driven by concern that the Federal Reserve is not done with aggressive rate hikes.

Both Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate were down in Asian pre-noon trade today, Reuters noted, although the decline was minor, at 0.75 percent. It also quoted economic data from the United States, namely the latest producer price index report, which gained 0.7 percent in January after declining 0.2 percent in December.

The PPI report followed the latest consumer price data, which showed that inflation had risen by 0.5 percent on a monthly basis in January and by 6.4 percent on an annual basis—more cause for concern that the Fed will continue with its aggressive approach to inflation control.

“Strong U.S. data bolstered concerns over rate hikes and prompted a rise in U.S. Treasury yields, which weighed on oil and other commodity prices,” Fujitomi Securities chief analyst Kazuhiko Saito told Reuters.

“Inflation is easing but the path to lower inflation will not likely be smooth,” Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at LPL Financial, told CNBC earlier this week in comments on the latest CPI release.

“The Fed will not make decisions based on just one report but clearly the risks are rising that inflation will not cool fast enough for the Fed’s liking.”

Another analyst noted to Reuters the recent increase in U.S. crude oil inventories, which, according to him suggested demand was on the wane. Others, however, have pointed out the massive inventory increase the EIA reported in its latest weekly update was the result of a data adjustment.

Meanwhile, prices received some support from the IEA, which forecast oil demand will reach a record high this year, driven by China, which will account for 50 percent of the expected demand growth.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Netflix’s subscriber growth slows as gains from password-sharing crackdown subside

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Netflix on Thursday reported that its subscriber growth slowed dramatically during the summer, a sign the huge gains from the video-streaming service’s crackdown on freeloading viewers is tapering off.

The 5.1 million subscribers that Netflix added during the July-September period represented a 42% decline from the total gained during the same time last year. Even so, the company’s revenue and profit rose at a faster pace than analysts had projected, according to FactSet Research.

Netflix ended September with 282.7 million worldwide subscribers — far more than any other streaming service.

The Los Gatos, California, company earned $2.36 billion, or $5.40 per share, a 41% increase from the same time last year. Revenue climbed 15% from a year ago to $9.82 billion. Netflix management predicted the company’s revenue will rise at the same 15% year-over-year pace during the October-December period, slightly than better than analysts have been expecting.

The strong financial performance in the past quarter coupled with the upbeat forecast eclipsed any worries about slowing subscriber growth. Netflix’s stock price surged nearly 4% in extended trading after the numbers came out, building upon a more than 40% increase in the company’s shares so far this year.

The past quarter’s subscriber gains were the lowest posted in any three-month period since the beginning of last year. That drop-off indicates Netflix is shifting to a new phase after reaping the benefits from a ban on the once-rampant practice of sharing account passwords that enabled an estimated 100 million people watch its popular service without paying for it.

The crackdown, triggered by a rare loss of subscribers coming out of the pandemic in 2022, helped Netflix add 57 million subscribers from June 2022 through this June — an average of more than 7 million per quarter, while many of its industry rivals have been struggling as households curbed their discretionary spending.

Netflix’s gains also were propelled by a low-priced version of its service that included commercials for the first time in its history. The company still is only getting a small fraction of its revenue from the 2-year-old advertising push, but Netflix is intensifying its focus on that segment of its business to help boost its profits.

In a letter to shareholder, Netflix reiterated previous cautionary notes about its expansion into advertising, though the low-priced option including commercials has become its fastest growing segment.

“We have much more work to do improving our offering for advertisers, which will be a priority over the next few years,” Netflix management wrote in the letter.

As part of its evolution, Netflix has been increasingly supplementing its lineup of scripted TV series and movies with live programming, such as a Labor Day spectacle featuring renowned glutton Joey Chestnut setting a world record for gorging on hot dogs in a showdown with his longtime nemesis Takeru Kobayashi.

Netflix will be trying to attract more viewer during the current quarter with a Nov. 15 fight pitting former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson against Jake Paul, a YouTube sensation turned boxer, and two National Football League games on Christmas Day.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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All Magic Spells (TM) : Top Converting Magic Spell eCommerce Store

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CPC Practice Exam

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