This week showed that the energy crisis is not in the rear-view mirror just yet. Germany’s energy regulator suspended its certification process of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline on Tuesday, owing to issues regarding the organisational structure of the pipeline’s ownership (rather than a political energy supply security assessment). Markets took the surprise delay, which was not previously expected to be an issue in the approval process, badly as prices soared by 18%.
It is now increasingly unlikely that gas flows through Nord Stream 2 will ease the shortage of stocks in Europe over this winter. What’s more, there is little evidence that flows from Russia have increased as suggested might happen by President Putin. And European stocks are both much lower than normal levels and now falling in line with seasonal norms. As a result, we suspect that gas prices will remain high over the next few months.
Looking to the week ahead, the main data release will be November’s batch of flash PMIs on Tuesday. We expect that those in the Euro-zone will soften and show the impact of recent surges in virus cases, which probably dampened international and domestic travel and oil demand.
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