Briefs for page

June 22, 2020 Updated Mon., June 22, 2020 at 10:16 p.m.

Almost a third of U.S. shale producers will not be able to cover debt payments with crude trading at $35 a barrel. Prices rebounded Monday to $40.06, but the industry faces acute financial strain, according to an analyst.

The price rebound Monday will do little to prevent 15 years of debt-fueled production growth catching up with many shale producers, Deloitte said in a study.

Shale was just getting on a more solid footing and learning to live with $50 a barrel oil before the COVID-19 pandemic ripped through global crude demand causing prices to plunge. Now, shale producers may be forced to write down their assets by $300 billion this year, Deloitte said.

Bayer AG wins Roundup ruling

Bayer AG won a court ruling blocking California from requiring the company to tell consumers that a chemical in its Roundup herbicide is known to cause cancer.

A federal judge in Sacramento on Monday granted Bayer’s request to block the state from requiring the company or any businesses from providing a “clear and reasonable warning before exposing any individual to glyphosate.”

Bayer’s Monsanto unit has aggressively resisted California’s move to add glyphosate to a list created by a voter-approved ballot initiative.

From wire reports

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