Key Currency Exchange Rates for Friday, 12/1/23

Oil prices are likely to rise this year thanks to supply disruptions and an OPEC-led deal to limit production, but doubts over the future of compliance with the multilateral agreement and rising U.S. production could stem the upward momentum, a Reuters poll showed on Thursday. A survey of 31 economists and analysts polled by Reuters showed Brent crude LCOc1 would average nearly $64 a barrel in 2018, versus $63 forecast in the February survey, but below the $67.18 average for the benchmark so far in 2018.

Mary Kay Inc.’s Cadillac incentive might be pink, but is is also going green.  The multilevel marketing company is transforming its beloved pink Cadillac incentive into an electric vehicle. The pink Cadillac Optiq (pronounced Optic) made its debut during Mary Kay’s annual Seminar, hosted for the first time in Charlotte, North Carolina. The transition from internal combustion to electric symbolizes more than just a vehicle upgrade. It marks a recharged vision for the future of the iconic beauty brand, according to the company. The new Cadillac model is a significant step forward in Mary Kay’s commitment to innovation, environmental responsibility, and meeting expectations of the next generation of both Mary Kay independent sales force members and their customers, per a press release.

Oil prices steadied on Friday after almost a week of sharp rises as Hurricane Irma, one of the most powerful storms in a century, drove towards Florida after tearing through the Caribbean. Irma is the second major hurricane to approach the United States in two weeks and has already killed 14, flattening whole islands. Its predecessor, Harvey, shut a quarter of U.S. refineries and 8 percent of U.S. oil production. “Hurricanes can have a lasting effect on refinery and industry demand,” said Eugen Weinberg, head of commodities research at Commerzbank in Frankfurt. “The impact of the forces of nature on U.S. oil production should not be overestimated – nor should their impact on demand be underestimated.”