ASX 200 energy shares have soared in the year to date, but what’s the outlook for oil prices?

Oil producers on the ASX 200 include Santos Ltd (ASX: STO), Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) and Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT).

All three ASX 200 energy shares have enjoyed tailwinds this year to date amid soaring gas and oil prices. Let’s take a look at what could lie ahead.

‘Turning point’ for oil

Woodside shares have exploded a massive 76% in the year to date. Meanwhile, Beach Energy shares have soared nearly 40% year to date, while Santos shares have climbed nearly 19%.

Looking at the outlook for the oil price, a decision by OPEC to cut production could benefit oil prices, according to analysts.

In a research note, ANZ senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes and commodity strategist Soni Kumari said:

OPEC’s move to cut production by 2 million b/d could be a turning point for the oil market and it is starting from this month.

This, along with Russian oil sanctions by the EU from December, could tighten the market in Q4.

Possible headwinds?

On the flip side, the strategists noted the impact of the slowing global economy and Chinese demand on the oil price and pointed out that the oil market was strong. They said:

A slowing global economy and sustained soft demand from China are key headwinds, but the oil market is fundamentally in a stronger position that it has been in previous economic downturns due to depleted stocks for oil and refined products.

Underinvestment in the sector remains a structural factor that is supporting prices.

Woodside reported in its recent quarterly results it achieved a portfolio average realised price of $102 per barrel of oil equivalent in the third quarter. Santos said it achieved a crude oil price of US$108 a barrel.

The post Here’s the good oil on what’s coming up for ASX 200 energy shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why are Santos shares missing out on the ASX 200 party today?
• This fund has been selling down its Woodside shares. Should you?
• Why these 4 ASX dividend shares stand out from the crowd: fund manager
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
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Motley Fool contributor Monica O’Shea has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Cryptocurrency prices like those of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) have been incredibly volatile this week, although that is nothing too new.

Unfortunately for crypto investors, volatile in this case means they have fallen in value, and substantially so. At the start of this week, you could exchange one Bitcoin for just under US$21,000. Today, that same coin is going for around US$17,000. That’s a drop close to 20%. Ouch.

It’s been even worse for the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation, Ethereum. Ethereum has fallen from around US$1,550 at the start of the week to the US$1,232 it is commanding today, a fall of more than 21%.

These falls can probably be attributed to the disaster of the global cryptocurrency exchange FTX. As my Fool colleague Bernd dug into this week, FTX is, or at least was, one of the largest exchanges in the world. But after a liquidity crisis, FTX is now in deep trouble and could be facing collapse.

All of this roiled crypto markets and sent Bitcoin to its lowest price in two years. But could this affect the share market?

Has Bitcoin’s woes affected ASX shares this week?

After all, many cryptocurrency investors also invest in shares, and vice versa. So investors might be wondering how this massive volatility in the crypto markets could affect their ASX shareholdings.

We’re used to hearing arguments in favour of investing in cryptocurrencies that involve the supposed lack of correlation these markets have with other assets like shares. After all, many investors still call Bitcoin ‘digital gold’.

Well, what happens in cryptocurrency markets can certainly affect shares that are involved in the crypto markets. Fellow crypto exchange Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ: COIN) shares have lost more than 15% over the past five trading days. And the ASX-listed BetaShares Crypto Innovators ETF (ASX: CRYP) has lost more than 20%.

But apart from these crypto-linked companies, the markets overall seem unfazed. Over those same five days, the NASDAQ-100 (NASDAQ: NDX) has risen by a very healthy 6.4% or so. The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 3.85%, while the American benchmark S&P 500 Index (SP: .INX) has gained over 5%. Even gold is up big.

So it seems that, at least this time, volatility in the cryptocurrency markets has not even touched our share portfolios.

The post How might volatile crypto prices impact your ASX shares? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• If cryptocurrency prices continue to plummet, what should you do?
• Why did the Bitcoin price just hit 2-year lows?
• Why Ethereum crashed today
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• This one trend could send Bitcoin even higher

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in Bitcoin, Coinbase Global, Inc., and Ethereum. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Betashares Crypto Innovators ETF, Bitcoin, Coinbase Global, Inc., and Ethereum. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Arafura Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: ARU) share price was a strong performer on Friday.

The rare earths developer’s shares ended the day 7.5% higher at 35.5 cents.

Why did the Arafura share price charge higher?

Although the Arafura share price was chugging along nicely for most of the day, it went into overdrive late in the session after the company released an update.

That update relates to the 100%-owned Nolans Neodymium-Praseodymium (NdPr) Project in the Northern Territory.

According to the release, the company has updated the findings of the 2021 Feasibility Study Update, which “re-confirms Nolans as an exceptionally valuable world-class NdPr rare earths project.”

The release reveals that based on a life of mine NdPr Oxide price of US$130.10 per kg, the company expects to generate annual revenue of US$587 million from its rare earths sales.

As for earnings, including estimated phosphoric acid sales revenue of US$65 million per annum and based on operating costs of US$195 million per annum, management expects Nolans to generate EBITDA of US$409 million per annum.

‘Exceptionally valuable’

Arafura’s managing director, Gavin Lockyer, was pleased with the update. He said:

This Update re-confirms Nolans as an exceptionally valuable world-class NdPr rare earths project, with the capacity to deliver strong financial returns over an initial long mine life of 38 years. With NdPr offtake progress at the binding contract stage and the opportunity for strategic investment, particularly from quality partners such as the Hyundai Motor Company, we anticipate that project financing will continue to gain momentum.

The Nolans NdPr Project is one of the only construction ready rare earth oxide projects of scale in the western world. The significant size of the Nolans deposit provides customers with improved security of supply for critical raw materials. Our “Ore to Oxide” process at a single site provides comfort that the product is being derived from processes aligned with those customers’ ESG priorities. Forecast long-term sustained demand growth for NdFeB magnets, required to support the manufacture of electric vehicles and wind turbines, is being driven by global commitment to a net zero future.

Lockyer also notes that a lack of NdPr sources outside of China puts the company in a strong position. He said:

Also, given the lack of alternative NdPr sources outside of China, there is the rising imperative for nations to secure sustainable diverse supply chains. This market environment provides a supportive platform which positions Arafura as the next global rare earth oxide producer and the immediate impetus to move ahead with greater confidence than ever before.

The post Why did the Arafura share price surge over 7% higher on Friday? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why Arafura Rare Earths, BHP, Capricorn Metals, and Newcrest shares are rising today
• Arafura share price rockets 10% on Hyundai and Kia rare earths deal
• Why have shares in ASX 300 rare earths miner Arafura just been halted?
• Could this news be helping the Sayona share price light up today?
• Why is the Arafura share price sliding 6% on Friday?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) surged to a five-month high on Friday following a ripper session on Wall Street. The index closed 2.79% higher at 7,158 points. That left it 3.85% higher week-on-week.

It followed a major rally in New York as the latest US inflation data drove the nation’s markets sky-high. The US consumer price index lifted 0.4% in October and 7.7% over the prior 12 months, bolstering hopes the Federal Reserve might ease up on rate hikes.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) lifted 3.7% overnight while the S&P 500 Index (SP: .INX) gained 5.5% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) rocketed 7.3%.

It likely comes as no surprise, therefore, that the S&P/ASX 20 Information Index (ASX: XIJ) led the Aussie bourse today, gaining 5%.

The S&P/ASX 200 Health Care Index (ASX:XHJ) and the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) were also bright sparks, lifting 3.6% and 3.7%, respectively.

Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ) was the only sector to close in the red, falling 0.5%.

The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) also underperformed, gaining just 0.7%.

But which ASX 200 share topped the lot on a day of massive gains? Keep reading to find out.

Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown

Today’s top-performing ASX 200 share was Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1). The stock followed its home sector higher on Friday, lifting 13.6%.

The company dropped a non-price sensitive release yesterday evening, announcing its major shareholder, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group had upped its stake in the company by 1% to 12% last night.

Today’s biggest gains were made by these shares:

ASX-listed company	Share price	Price change
Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1)	$6.11	13.57%
Pinnacle Investment Management Group Ltd (ASX: PNI)	$9.00	12.5%
Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL)	$13.87	11.67%
Block Inc (ASX: SQ2)	$100.91	11.53%
Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME)	$58.50	11.45%
Credit Corp Group Limited (ASX: CCP)	$20.35	11.2%
St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM)	$0.62	10.71%
WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC)	$57.86	10.38%
Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG)	$10.00	9.77%
REA Group Limited (ASX: REA)	$121.70	9.65%

Our top 10 shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary to let you know which companies were making big moves on the day. Check in at Fool.com.au after the weekday market closes to see which stocks make the countdown.

The post Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Analysts say these ASX growth shares are buys
• Why Accent, Block, Nufarm, and Zip shares are racing higher
• Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• 5 of the craziest things making news on the ASX this week
• 3 ASX 200 tech shares booming 10% or more on Friday

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Block, Inc., MEGAPORT FPO, Netwealth, PINNACLE FPO, Pro Medicus Ltd., and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Block, Inc., Netwealth, PINNACLE FPO, Pro Medicus Ltd., and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended MEGAPORT FPO and REA Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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