As Russia’s war against Ukraine rages on, global trade sanctions against it just keep on tightening. Europe just slapped its toughest penalties to date on the former Soviet superpower.

Yet Russia refuses to let the restrictions interfere with its export strategy. Somehow, someway, this conflict continues to drag on.

The Wall Street Journal puts it this way:

“Some fuels believed to be partially made from Russian crude landed in New York and New Jersey last month.

“The cargoes were brought through the Suez Canal and across the Atlantic from Indian refineries, which have been big buyers of Russian oil, according to shipping records, Refinitiv data, and analysis by Helsinki-based think tank Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.”

Let me explain that one further…

Under the squeeze of U.S. and European sanctions, traders are trying to obscure Russian crude by concealing the oil in refined products such as gasoline and diesel. It’s being not-so-secretly transferred between cargo ships and smuggled into West Africa and China via the Black Sea.

So yes, the U.S. embargo outlaws imports of oil, petro products, liquefied natural gas, and coal from Russia. But the fuels we use, such as diesel, are often made from fusions of different substances.

Typically, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) judges origin by looking at composition: if it’s 25% or more of a given substance. But they don’t evaluate goods that have been substantially transformed into foreign-made products.

So whether refined oil into commodities like gasoline or diesel counts in the embargo isn’t clear.

What is clear, so far as I can see, is that we’ve put way too much stock in foreign oil – which now seems to be tied up in clandestine operations, if it wasn’t already. With so much of our energy supply in the wrong hands, when is the right time to ask if this warrants home-based production?

Hopefully, these findings along with inflated energy costs will give the administration something to consider. Anything seems to be a better option at this point.

More Non-REIT News to Know About 

This summer, forget everything you know about earning extra income.

Don’t waste your time day trading. Ditch passion projects. And leave your entrepreneurial aspirations at the door.

Instead, you’re going to want to learn CPR, swimming, and the subtle art of sunbathing. Because lifeguards are apparently making more than any of us – at least in Los Angeles.

According to the watchdog website, Open the Books, L.A.’s highest-paid lifeguard last year made $510,283. Admittedly, that was with a ton of overtime. But still! This Los Angeles County Captain was able to secure over a half-million dollars for sitting in the sun.

Obviously, he did more than that. But the amount paid does still seem shockingly high.

The same goes for the $463,517 another high-ranking rescuer socked away without overtime but with $142,000 in benefits and over $78,000 in “other pay,” according to Open the Books.

$78,000 is what many people make in a year!

And while those instances were at the far end of the spectrum, another 90+ lifeguards made more than $200,000. And 20 banked over $300,000.

With numbers like this, it makes me wonder just how much lifeguards in other areas are pulling in. It certainly sheds some light on why sunblock has become so expensive.

The World According to REITs 

Plymouth Industrial REIT (PLYM) owns and operates distribution centers, warehouses, light industrial assets, and small bay industrial properties. Yesterday, it announced a quarterly cash dividend of $0.46875 for its 7.50% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock (PLYM-PrA) for Q2.

The Boston-based real estate investment trust (REIT) has a solid portfolio of 201 properties and 33 million square feet scattered throughout the Midwest and along the East Coast. Those facilities are pretty sought after considering PLYM’s average same-store portfolio occupancy of about 97%.

So it should come as no surprise that the company’s Q1 revenue was $42.8 million, up from Q1-21’s $31.9 million.

Its stock hasn’t had the greatest month, admittedly, shedding about 14% since early May. But PLYM boasts a solid backbone and balance sheet. Plus, its acquisitions so far this year include 38 industrial buildings totaling approximately 3.5 million square feet.

Add that to its high occupancy rate, and this REIT seems to be doing something right. Just make sure that, if you do decide it’s right for you, that the valuation makes sense before you buy it up.