MONEY MASTER

Malaysian energy stocks are hitting their peak, but the real shift is happening beneath the surface. Key Points Energy earnings likely peak in 2Q2026 Oil stabilising around  ~US$80/barrel Geopolitical risk premium is fading  after US-Iran deal Earnings to  gradually ease from July onwards Sector remains  overweight , but momentum is slowing The oil story is no longer about war risk, it’s about how quickly supply returns and whether demand is strong enough to keep prices near US$80. From War Rally to Normalisation The past few months were driven by: Supply disruptions Shipping constraints Risk premium from Middle East tensions Now, that narrative is shifting: Supply is  gradually returning Production is  coming back online Logistics are  normalising The energy sector is transitioning from a geopolitical-driven rally to a normalisation phase Why Oil Won’t Crash (Yet) Even with peace developments: Infrastructure repairs take time Tanker flows recover grad...

Oil prices nudged higher early Thursday, with  Brent crude at US$67.80  and  WTI at US$65.12 , following a bullish inventory report from the US. Key Drivers US crude inventories fell by 5.8 million barrels , far exceeding forecasts of a 797,000-barrel draw. Gasoline stocks also dropped  by 2.1 million barrels despite expectations of a build, with demand hitting its highest level since December 2021. Geopolitical Watch Market sentiment remains cautious due to ongoing uncertainty around the  Iran-Israel ceasefire . While a tentative peace holds, traders are watching for developments. Opec+ in Focus Rosneft's CEO hinted that  Opec+ may advance its production hikes , which could cap gains in the medium term. Outlook & Forecast Economists like Nomura's Yuki Takashima project  WTI could stabilize between US$60-US$65 , assuming Middle East tensions remain contained. MoneyMaster Take — Key Insights: Stronger-than-expected US demand  is boosting crude ...

Retain HOLD with a target price (TP) of RM7.35 MISC Bhd (April 18, RM7.33) Maintain hold with a fair value of RM7.35:  Further to our update last Friday, management has claimed that the upstream report on Chevron’s award of another floating, storage and offloading vessel (FSO) to MISC Bhd is incorrect as the project’s details are still at a preliminary stage and far from completion. Recall that the report had indicated that the FSO could be used for the Ubon field in the Gulf of Thailand. The Ubon project has been downsized in the past year as Chevron and its joint-venture partners sought to improve the project’s economic viability. The revised version of the development plan includes a downsized processing platform and an FSO for associated liquids. Back in August last year, MISC secured its maiden project in Thailand with a US$230 million charter from Chevron to lease and operate an FSO for the Benchamas 2 project, at Block B8/32 in the Pattini bas...

Saudi Arabia is not afraid of low oil price and this will send the already gloomy oil & gas industry even further downwards. Saudi Arabian Oil Co. is maintaining investment in oil and natural gas projects and has formulated a new strategy in response to cheaper crude as it studies options to sell shares in its parent company and downstream refining and chemical operations, Chairman Khalid Al-Falih said Monday at a conference in Riyadh. The state-run producer, known as Saudi Aramco, can sustain low oil prices for “a long, long time,” he told reporters. It is a signal that the Saudi is sending across....that this is a fight they will not lose.  “Saudi Arabia is well-documented to be the clear lowest-cost producer -- we have scale, capabilities, and technology to help us maintain our low cost as we go forward,” he said.  He also mentioned how the company encourage fiscal discipline and in the company's investments capacity, oil and gas had not slowed down. LOW...

It was difficult to imagine that the oil price will be at 70 per barrel 6 months ago but today, the oil price has plunged to $70.15 per barrel.  OPEC's decision not to cut production is indirectly a declaration of price war in the crude market and the challenge to US shale drillers.  Here is a look at why the sharp drop in the oil price. First, US production has nearly doubled in recent years to 9 million barrels a day and analysts expect the production to rise by more than 1 million next year. And like all commodities and trades, an oversupply will drive the prices down. With this supply, Saudi Arabia and OPEC have essentially surrender to the inevitability of the lower prices from the exploding improvement in the US energy production. As OPEC maintained their output target, the oil price plunged to a point where some of the shale projects may lose money. This is a new era, where the market itself will manage supply. Saudi Arabia and OPEC kne...