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1. Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar, Venezuela Agree to Freeze Oil Production — Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar and Venezuela reported that they wouldn’t increase crude-oil output above January’s levels as long as other major oil producers followed suit, in the first coordinated move to boost oil prices in years. The agreement came with a significant caveat: Iran and Iraq must also halt production increases.
2. Venezuela Hikes Fuel Prices, Devalues Bolivar — cash-strapped Venezuela has finally taken action to address its ailing economy, raising the price of the world’s cheapest gasoline and devaluing its currency by 37%. President Nicolas Maduro said the government would also “simplify” the country’s complex three-tier exchange rate system to just two rates: a protected official rate for food/medicine imports and a parallel “floating” rate for other transactions. The measures are meant to help shore up the OPEC nation’s finances as it battles a severe recession, triple-digit inflation and chronic product shortages.
3. Buffett Discloses Stake in Pipeline Operator Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) — Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) opened a new 26.5M share stake in the energy infrastructure company during Q4, translating into stock worth roughly $395.9M at year end. This is a new investment in pipeline operator. George Soros also added 50.7K shares of Kinder Morgan (KMI) during the fourth quarter.

The week ahead — Economic data from Econoday.com: