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CNN 10
Oil Recently Saw Negative Prices on the U.S. Stock Market for the First Time in History; Trip to Beaches of Florida Report Silver Linings to the Corona Virus; Trip to A City Near the Only Remaining Wonder of the Ancient World
Aired April 22, 2020 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Welcome everyone. My name is Carl Azuz and today`s edition of CNN 10 starts with a report about oil, aka "black gold",
"Texas tea", at least that`s what it`s been called in the past. Currently demand for it and the price of it has fallen to the basement. Lower oil
prices can translate to lower gasoline prices and those are being seen around the United States and beyond. But crude oil is known as the mother
of all commodities because it`s used in so many other products. From plastic, to petroleum, to paint and it`s necessary for the machines that
help make those products.
Rising crude oil prices mean that global demand is increasing and that can indicate the global economy is growing. But the price of oil which is sold
by the barrel has fallen dramatically because of the corona virus pandemic and it made headlines in history this week because at one point, U.S. stock
market oil prices were negative. On Monday afternoon, oil was at minus 37.63 per barrel. What this meant is that there was so much supply in the
oil market that the world was running out of places to store it and oil producers were essentially paying people to take their oil barrels. It`s
the first time that`s happened since oil futures started trading in the U.S. stock market in 1983.
Crude prices did turn positive again yesterday though they were still incredibly low. No one knows how long they`ll stay so low and that`s a
concern especially for American oil companies because they can`t make money. Industry analysts say several hundred oil companies will file for
bankruptcy by the end of next year if prices don`t climb back up. Countries outside the U.S. that export huge amounts of crude oil have
agreed to reduce their production of it to try to stabilize prices but that won`t happen until next month.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 2020 has not been a good year for the oil industry. Because of the global corona virus pandemic, commerce is at a standstill.
Billions of commuters are staying home and airlines are essentially paralyzed. Demand for oil is in freefall. Before the outbreak, the world
was consuming around 100 million barrels a day of oil. It`s estimated that demand will drop by 12 million barrels a day in the first quarter of 2020.
To put that into perspective, during the 2008 financial crisis demand dropped close to 5 million barrels a day. If that weren`t enough a price
war between Russia and Saudi Arabia hurt the oil market even further.
As demand dropped due to the virus, the 13 member states of OPEC which account for almost 80 percent of global oil reserves agreed to cut
production to keep prices stable. Russia, now part of the broader alliance called OPEC Plus, initially refused to cut production deeper and for
longer. Saudi Arabia reacted by ramping up its output kicking off a price war. Oil prices plummeted and dragged down local stock markets with them.
In April after Donald Trump intervened, Russia and Saudi Arabia called off their brutal price war. To reduce the mushrooming global oil surplus, OPEC
Plus agreed to cut production by over 2 million barrels until the end of 2020.
It remains to be seen whether the decision is too little, too late. None of this is good for American oil producers. Under the Trump presidency,
the U.S. oil market has boomed taking advantage of production curbs by OPEC Plus. In 2019, the U.S. became the top producer of oil attracting nearly
13 million barrels a day after a huge shale boom. Dozens of small and mid- sized oil companies are now facing bankruptcy. The end isn`t in sight. When the world comes back online after the corona virus demand is likely to
surge causing further volatility. We just don`t know when or how strong the recovery will be.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AZUZ: 10 Second Trivia. Which of these animals has the longest gestation period? Wombat, bullfrog, chipmunk or sea turtle. Baby sea turtles hatch
from their eggs after about 60 days giving them the longest gestation period on this list.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AZUZ: The next destination in our series on virtual vacations is a city who`s name means "the Victorious". Cairo, the capital of Egypt is home to
almost 21 million people. It`s also near the Great Pyramid, the only one of the ancient world`s seven wonders that still exists. But we`re staying
inside the capital today for a walking tour that helps us and the photographers who join in get a clear picture of the ancient city.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Cairo has stood on the banks of the Nile for over 2,000 years. Imposing, magnificent. This sprawling home to around 20
million people is a hive of activity. For local architect photographer Kareem El Hilan (ph), there`s beauty in these alleyways and with every walk
the city reveals unexpected treasures.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m very, very passionate about photography. Cairo and all the layers that you have to unveil gradually. In itself, this is a
journey. For a local like me living here, this is a pursuit. This is a photographers or artists haven in - - in terms of - - of understanding and
observing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s Saturday. Kareem (ph) is on his way to meet a group of (inaudible) photographers on a journey through downtown Cairo.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I started exploring the streets every Saturday as some sort of practice and then some friends started joining me and it reached
out to an international crowd. We created a hash tag and Instagram and everyone started pooling in their photographs.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Connecting through social media, a growing number of locals and tourists now join Kareem (ph) on his walks. There are memories
of Cairo`s rich past on every corner. To the untrained eye, this is just an abandoned family home dating back to the 1800s`. To Kareem (ph) and his
friends, it`s intricate, ornate wooden facade, artwork.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It makes an interesting picture because of the amount of perspectives. They are basically endless, the detail.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kareem`s (ph) Saturday walks delve into the lives of everyday Egyptians. Finding beauty in the mundane.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So you get to see the city in a whole new light. You get to pause. You get to go to different areas of the city that you
normally wouldn`t go to. So it`s a whole different experience than you would get in your day to day living in Cairo.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AZUZ: An emergency room doctor named Jason Barnes (ph) has this sweet tree house in his backyard in Texas. So he moved into it. His wife suggested
this but it`s not because she`s mad at him. They`re concerned about his family`s potential exposure to COVID-19. The doctor`s new digs has air
conditioning, a bed, a cooler with a jar of pickles if he gets hungry and it allows him to keep his family safe while still staying close to home.
It might be built on rock but it`s as strong as "oak" and you can`t "sway" him from it. Now some people say tree houses are for the "birds" but those
who "dog" it are "barking" up the wrong tree. If he puts down "roots" there, gets all "sappy" about it. He may never want to "leaf". Terrible.
Don`t blame me for our puns. Blame our viewers like those at Mt. Vernon High School in Mt. Vernon, Indiana for putting up with them. You guys are
awesome by the way for doing that. I`m Carl Azuz for CNN.
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