(Bloomberg) -- It's a busy week for earnings, with Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp. and Shell Plc kicking off Big Oil's reporting season and Nucor Corp., Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. and United States Steel Corp. highlighting the metals sector. The OPEC+ monitoring committee also meets to discuss production levels.
Here are five notable charts to consider in global commodity markets as the week gets underway.
Big Oil Earnings
Supermajor peers Exxon and Chevron report fourth-quarter results on Friday. While investors await details of their oil-refining and chemical businesses — which posted disappointing results in the prior period — attention will also be placed on the integration of their blockbuster deals announced last year. The earnings reports come amid a backdrop of ample global supplies, uncertain demand and ongoing risks associated with the Israel-Hamas war. Exxon is one of 11 companies in the 23-member S&P 500 Energy Index to see shares advance this year, while Chevron is little changed.
Crude Oil
After a lackluster start to the year, oil prices are starting to come to life. West Texas Intermediate and Brent futures are both on track for their first monthly advance in four months thanks to escalating tensions in the Middle East, prospects of demand growth in China amid policymaker efforts to shore up the economy and an unexpectedly large drawdown in US inventories in the most recent reporting period. The OPEC+ Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee is due to convene online Thursday, although the cartel isn't expected to make any changes to policy, several delegates have said.
Liquefied Natural Gas
With the US election less than 10 months away, President Joe Biden is making an appeal to climate-conscious voters by pausing approvals of new liquefied natural gas export facilities while the administration reviews the criteria it uses to green light them. While the move doesn't impact existing or previously authorized facilities and won't upend the country's status as the world's largest LNG exporter, it casts a significant cloud over many proposed projects. Here's a look at the 10 largest recipients of American gas last year, which was dominated by Europe in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The region now finds itself flush with supplies even as the end of winter draws to a close.
Metals
While Nucor, Cleveland-Cliffs and US Steel are reporting earnings this week, all eyes will be on US Steel following the $14.1 billion takeover offer from Nippon Steel Corp. Shares of US Steel have doubled since the iconic steelmaker announced a strategic review in August. The stock is now back above 70 on the 14-day relative strength index, a technical indicator used to identify turning points — signaling the stock may be due for a breather. It's also well above three key moving averages.
Electric Vehicles
While the cost of electric vehicles is coming down, there's still a hurdle to greater adoption: charging networks. Globally, networks can barely keep pace with the uptake of EVs, posing a profound problem, writes Bloomberg Opinion's David Fickling. Poor availability of charging is one of the main reasons potential EV buyers cite in holding them back from a purchase, which in turn has encouraged a widening group of automakers to slow down their targets for going electric. This could become a vicious circle, as a smaller-than-expected fleet of battery cars shrinks the future revenue pool for charging companies, causing a pullback in investment and exacerbating consumer concern about finding a plug socket. The two-day BloombergNEF Summit San Francisco begins Tuesday and will focus on all-things EV, as well as other advanced transportation technologies and the energy transition.
--With assistance from Jennifer A. Dlouhy, Ruth Liao, Anna Shiryaevskaya and Joe Deaux.
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