Someone has bombed the port area of Beirut in Lebanon but it is impossible to decide who. Such is the Middle East. While the oil price fell 1.8% in European trading its price has now risen back up. So too for gold which hit a new historic high of over $2000 so far, between the Levant, the Washington split over a further payment to the jobless.

The possible good news is that Argentina has reached a deal to pay back $53.50 of every hundred dollars it owes after its return to the bond market in 2015 and its 100-year bond issue in 2017.

Today one of my non-ADR uranium stocks Ur-Energy which was supposed to report later put out its paperwork early, apparently because of a mistake by their investor relations firm. This business of piling on the report over report is not only a menace for shareholders and analysts. It is also proving tough on the pros who are in charge of distribution.

Tomorrow a troubled Israeli stock I cover is due to report before the opening but the one thing they are good at is slick PR.

Miscellaneous

*Toray Industries, TRYIY, was sold yesterday at $9.09. The Japanese company makes fibers and textiles used mostly for seat covers for cars and airplanes, not exactly a best-seller these days. I wrote in my Sunday table that there may have been a split since the share price halved. It was not a split. It was a poor outlook. I didn't expect to be exercised so soon but if you sell today you will get $9.22.

*Spanish Banco Santander SAN is up 2.8% because it is now expected to make up for lost business during the pandemic by Q3 of this year. It opened 2020 at $4.4 and now is half that.

Oil and War

*BP reported a quarterly loss of $16.83 bn, or $1.98/sh.It had net of $800 mn in Q1. It missed consensus forecasts by more provisions than expected. It also missed on sales which came in at $31.9 bn vs the analysts e expectation of $42.23 bn. BP also cut its dividend by half and said it would cut its upstream (refining) business by 40% over the next decade to be able to invest in renewable energy.

And amazingly, the market reacted by buying BP shares which rose 8.4%.

*Fellow oil giant Royal Dutch Shell (RDS-B) gained 4.11%.

*Schlumberger Ltd SLB gained 2.7%. It announced that it would tap the market for more funds based on its April 25, 2019, senior 10-yr notes paying 2.65% in dollars, backed by the Euroland parent. Citigroup is book-runner.

*BAE Systems, which fell yesterday won today on the hope of a lovely war, up over $27. BAESY planes are popular in the Middle East where someone bombed Beirut and someone else may retaliate.

*Smallcap Earthstone Energy rose 7.77% to a new high. It reports tomorrow. I own ESTE which produces oil in Texas, where there a no nasty neighbors setting off bombs.

Pharma

*The reporting Israeli tomorrow is Teva Pharmaceuticals TEVA.

*BiolineRX gained 6.7 % on Wall Street today. BLRX is also Israeli.

*Dr. Reddy's of India rose another 2.41% to another new high. RDY makes generics and is active in making them for coronavirus.

*Beigene fell 0.8$ on news of insider selling and fear that if Tik Tok is barred BGNE will be too.

*Roche has found a new way to tackle Covid-19. Wit the Ontario Regional Lab of Canada RHHBY is developing a diagnostic. Its shares fell 0.89% on the news.

*Other European drug stocks are up today: GlaxoSmithKline GSK by 2.41%; Novartis NVS by 1.85%.

Food

*Greencore GNCGY of Ireland rose 7.4% to $6.55 on now news. It makes ready meals sold via UK supermarkets and smaller chains which you have to schlepp home with you, but which are cheaper than delivered meals.

*Nutrien NTR rose 4.32% on hopes that people will have enough money to eat despite the Senate Republicans. The Canadian firm makers fertilizer.

*However Grupo Bimbo BMBOY of Mexico, a global bakery giant, fell 7.46% today.

*Orbia Advance MXCHF fell 2.35% in Mexico City to 32.43 pesos. It makes PVC watering systems for farms. It may just be that Cemex CX is luring in investors because Biden plans infrastructure spending (as Trump has promised but not fulfilled.)

*Alimentation Couche-Tard ANCUF dropped 3.01%, maybe because other highway stores will be sold or funded, Speedway by Marathon and Blink by Cushman & Wakefield.

Funds

*Templeton Emerging Income Fund cut is dividend to 3.5 cents from 5.06 cents TEI.

*Western Assets Emerging Markets (EMD) wo;

*Eaton Vance Tax-Managed Global Diversified Equity Income Fund EXG rose to $7.6 despite its dividend cut tanks to its holdings. In order: Alphabet C; Amazon; Microsoft; Apple—all between 3.13 and 4.64% of its positions. The first global stock I found was Nestle at 1.967%. EXG.

*And then there is SPDR Gold, GLD. Enough said.