Brent crude topped US$50 a barrel last week for the first time since March, a milestone for an oil market that's been grinding its way back out of a deep slump for months. Things aren't back to normal yet, but the positive signals are proliferating. The enormous glut of fuel that accumulated this year on everything from tiny barges to giant supertankers is being steadily depleted. While the coronavirus pandemic is worse than ever in the US, demand in Europe is bouncing back as a second wave of lockdowns eases and Asia continues to pull in huge volumes of crude.

But there's more to this than a realignment of supply and demand - huge financial flows are also driving the price rally. In a world that's expecting to see travel recover sharply next year, crude has become a hot Covid-vaccine trade.

We are dropping coverage of EC World REIT and Penguin International with immediate effect due to reallocation of resources. The previous recommendation can no longer be relied upon.

Law firm Maurice Blackburn has launched a second-class action lawsuit against Crown Resorts, it said on Monday, alleging that the Australian casino giant's corporate failings caused a massive share price plunge in October.

AstraZeneca, one of the drugmakers leading the fight against Covid-19, highlighted where its growth will come from after the pandemic with a US$39 billion deal for rare-disease specialist Alexion Pharmaceuticals.

Britain's trade talks with Australia are advancing well, Trade Minister Liz Truss said on Sunday, speaking after the latest round of negotiations and with both sides having made initial offers on goods market access. Britain stands on the brink of a disruptive break with the European Union, its largest trading partner, as talks to secure a long-term trade deal grind into their final days ahead of Jan 1, when transition arrangements that have kept it in the EU single market and customs union since formally leaving the bloc in January run out.

United States began shipping vaccine nationwide on Sunday as it launched a massive immunisation effort, while in Germany an explosion of cases forced a return to partial lockdown. Delivery trucks with special refrigeration equipment rolled out of a facility in Kalamazoo, Michigan, as part of an ambitious public-private plan to ship millions of doses of the newly approved Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine to vulnerable Americans.

Iran on Sunday said a fire caused by the spillage from a ruptured oil pipeline in the southwest of the country has been brought under control, state news agency Irna reported.

Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust (LMIRT) on Sunday night acknowledged that on Dec 11, it received another letter purporting to be issued by 50 unitholders on the extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to vote on the proposed acquisition of Lippo Mall Puri. It said that the contents of the the latest letter are substantially similar to the Dec 3 letter, containing a request for the postponement of the EGM which is scheduled to take place on Monday, Dec 14 or convening another EGM not earlier than three months from the scheduled date.

Keppel Corporation launched a new two-year programme under its partnership with the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation (CFPA) at a signing ceremony held on Saturday in Kunming City, Yunnan Province. This is to further support the Chinese government's plans to uplift rural communities and stimulate the development of remote regions. It is also part of the five million yuan (S$1 million) collaboration between Keppel Corporation and the CFPA launched in 2018.

Source: SGX Masnet, The Business Times, Bloomberg, Channel NewsAsia, Reuters, PSR