2025-08-29 20:53

FEMA extends freeze on hiring any new employees until at least end of December Trump plans to phase out FEMA after 2025 hurricane season Agency says it is committed to delivering for Americans Former FEMA staff criticize Trump administration's inexperience WASHINGTON, Aug 29 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency has extended a hiring freeze through at least the end of this year, according to three sources familiar with the matter, as the peak of hurricane season approaches. The Trump administration froze hiring government-wide through October 15, with exceptions for public safety employees and a few other categories. FEMA is extending that freeze, according to the sources. Sign up here. The Department of Homeland Security "is committed to ensuring FEMA delivers for the American people," a FEMA spokesperson said in a statement. The spokesperson did not respond to a question about the hiring freeze. The agency is overseen by the Department of Homeland Security. News about the freeze trickled through the agency the same week that three dozen former and current FEMA employees signed a public letter of dissent against the agency’s leaders. The letter, sent by a mix of former political appointees and permanent staff, said the inexperience of the Trump administration’s top appointees could lead to catastrophe at the level of Hurricane Katrina. This week marks the 20th anniversary of the storm that devastated towns across the Gulf Coast. The Trump administration put staff named in the letter on leave. Trump said in June that he plans to phase out FEMA after the 2025 hurricane season. The peak of the Atlantic hurricane season is September 10. The end of FEMA would mean big changes for the millions of Americans who rely on the agency after hurricanes, wildfires, floods, tornadoes and other natural disasters each year. FEMA sends , opens new tab billions of dollars annually to states to shelter people who have lost their homes, distribute food and rebuild damaged buildings. Several high-ranking officials have left the agency since President Donald Trump took office, raising concerns about whether FEMA will be equipped to handle a large-scale disaster. In May, FEMA's then-acting administrator, Cameron Hamilton, was fired abruptly and replaced by David Richardson, a DHS official with no prior experience in managing responses to natural disasters. In an early meeting with staff, Richardson vowed to "run right over" employees who resisted reforms. https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/fema-extends-hiring-freeze-through-2025-hurricane-season-looms-2025-08-29/

2025-08-29 20:44

SAO PAULO, Aug 29 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Friday he is in "no rush" to reciprocate tariffs imposed by the United States on goods from his country, and reiterated that his administration is open to negotiations. Lula's remarks came as his Foreign Ministry ordered trade body Camex to start analyzing whether a local reciprocity law could be used against the United States, after President Donald Trump slapped 50% duties on Brazilian goods. Sign up here. "This is a process that takes a bit of time," Lula said in an interview with Itatiaia radio. "We have to tell the United States that we also have actions we can take against them. But I am in no rush. What I want is to negotiate." Brazil's Foreign Trade Secretary Tatiana Prazeres said also on Friday that the country's reciprocity law ultimately aims to help Brazil come to an understanding with the Trump administration. Speaking at an event hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce-Brazil on Friday, Prazeres said any countermeasures would involve a lengthy process and require consultations with the United States. Officials from Latin America's largest economy have repeatedly complained about the lack of room to negotiate tariffs with U.S. counterparts, with a letter sent in May by Lula's administration proposing talks so far going unanswered. Prazeres stressed that the newly launched reciprocity law process is "meant to support Brazil's negotiating effort, while placing us at the table under different negotiating conditions." Washington raised tariffs on Brazilian goods to 50% from 10%, with Trump denouncing what he called unfair trade and accusing Brazil of a "witch hunt" against former President Jair Bolsonaro, his far-right ally on trial for allegedly plotting a coup. Key exports such as orange juice and aircraft were exempted from the tariff hike, but other major products sold by Brazil to the U.S., including coffee and meat, are now subject to the full tariff. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-lula-no-rush-retaliate-against-us-tariffs-2025-08-29/

2025-08-29 20:35

WASHINGTON, Aug 29 (Reuters) - The Trump administration said on Friday it was cancelling $679 million in federal funding for 12 offshore wind projects, including $427 million for a California project. The move is the latest in a full-throated effort by the administration to undermine an industry that was central to former President Joe Biden's climate and energy agendas. Sign up here. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the awards, made under the Biden administration, were a waste of funds "that could otherwise go towards revitalizing America's maritime industry." Last year, the department awarded $427 million to construct a new marine terminal to support construction and maintenance of offshore wind turbines in Humboldt County, California. The Humboldt Bay project was intended to be the first offshore wind terminal on the Pacific coast. The funds were aimed at revitalizing a defunct marine terminal to be used for wind turbine assembly, launch and project staging. A spokesperson for California Governor Gavin Newsom criticized the action as an example of the Trump administration "assaulting clean energy and infrastructure projects – hurting business and killing jobs in rural areas, and ceding our economic future to China." The department is also cutting a $47 million grant for an offshore wind logistics and manufacturing hub near the Port of Baltimore in Maryland and $48 million for an offshore wind terminal project in New York's Staten Island awarded in 2022, along with $33 million for a port project in Salem, Massachusetts, to redevelop a vacant industrial facility for offshore wind projects. Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey said cancelling the Salem grant will cost 800 construction workers their jobs. "The real waste here is the Trump administration canceling tens of millions of dollars for a project that is already under way to increase our energy supply," she said. U.S. agencies, including the departments of defense, energy and commerce, said they are reviewing offshore wind farms approved by the Biden administration along the Atlantic coast after two recent major cancellations. The transportation department has also canceled major grants for California high-speed rail and other environmental infrastructure projects. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/trump-cancels-679-million-federal-funding-offshore-wind-projects-2025-08-29/

2025-08-29 20:32

August US employment report due on Sept 5 Prior weak jobs report sets stage for Fed rate cut at Sept meeting Investors eye Fed independence as Trump seeks removal of Fed official NEW YORK, Aug 29 (Reuters) - A U.S. labor market report late next week will give a crucial read into the economy's health and test investors' confidence that interest rate cuts are coming soon, a view that has helped lift U.S. equities to record-high levels. Last month's release of surprisingly weak U.S. payrolls data raised expectations that the Federal Reserve will start cutting rates again at its next meeting in September, as the central bank moves to support the labor market despite inflation worries. Sign up here. A soft August employment report next Friday could raise concerns about a slowing economy, but it also might lead the market to price in more aggressive cuts, said Jack Janasiewicz, lead portfolio strategist at Natixis Investment Managers Solutions. "Lower rates probably trump a modestly slowing labor market, and that probably puts a floor underneath the economy and ... the stock market," he said. U.S. equities have charged higher since hitting their lows for the year in April. Investors have shaken off concerns that U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs would send the economy into a recession, while a wide swath of tech and other stocks have benefited from optimism about the business potential of artificial intelligence. Stock indexes fell on Friday, as declines in AI-related names added to recent shakiness in tech stocks, with earnings reports from heavyweight chipmaker Broadcom (AVGO.O) , opens new tab due on Thursday. Still, the benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab ended the traditionally challenging month of August up 1.9%, pushing its year-to-date gain up to about 10%, near record-high levels. Markets remain in a historically treacherous patch on the calendar. Over the past 35 years, September has ranked as the worst-performing month of the year for the S&P 500, with an average decline of 0.8% during that period, according to the Stock Trader's Almanac. The index has fallen 18 of 35 times in September, the only month to have been down more than up in that period, according to the Almanac. The jobs report is September's first major economic release. Employment in August is expected to have climbed by 75,000 jobs, according to a Reuters poll. In the prior month's report, nonfarm payrolls grew by 73,000, a surprisingly weak number compounded by sharp downward revisions to growth in the prior two months. Alex Grassino, global chief economist and head of macro strategy at Manulife Investment Management, said he expects components of the jobs report, such as the unemployment rate and hourly earnings, "to point to basically the same message, which is the U.S. labor market has cooled." The weak July report raised market expectations that the Fed would cut rates at its next meeting in September, bets that firmed after Fed Chair Jerome Powell recently said job market risks were rising. Fed funds futures as of Friday suggested an 89% chance the central bank will reduce rates by 25 basis points at its September 16-17 meeting, LSEG data showed. "It would take very broad-based strength in the report in order to get the Fed to rethink the idea of moving rates lower," Drew Matus, chief market strategist at MetLife Investment Management said, adding the odds such a report are "pretty low." "We could see an OK report, and an OK report isn't going to dissuade the Fed from cutting," Matus said. While a September cut may be close to locked in, the jobs data also could sway expectations about the amount of easing in the months ahead. Fed funds futures suggest about 55 basis points, or just over two standard cuts, are expected by December. Other developments at the Fed will also be in focus for the market in the coming week, after Trump moved to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook as he seeks to reshape the central bank's board. Cook filed a lawsuit on Thursday, claiming Trump has no power to remove her from office. The controversy has reignited concerns over the Fed's credibility and its ability to conduct monetary policy free of political pressure, after Trump for months railed against the Fed and Powell specifically for not lowering rates to the extent he wants. While the situation has ramped up speculation in capital markets around Fed independence, those risks are probably appropriately priced in, for now, Grassino said. "A lot of things that traditional market participants would have taken as a given are being questioned," he said. "So as they are coming up, you are widening out the tail risks that you could potentially see." https://www.reuters.com/business/wall-st-week-ahead-us-jobs-data-poses-hurdle-rate-cut-hopes-stocks-rally-2025-08-29/

2025-08-29 20:22

US reports solid July consumer spending Dell, Marvell fall after dour quarterly forecasts Caterpillar falls after forecasting bigger 2025 tariff hit S&P 500 -0.64%, Nasdaq -1.15%, Dow -0.20% Aug 29 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 ended down from record highs on Friday, with losses in Dell, Nvidia and other AI-related stocks, while investors parsed inflation data showing tariffs have started feeding into prices. Dell (DELL.N) , opens new tab tumbled almost 9% and was among the deepest decliners in the S&P 500 after high manufacturing costs for AI-optimized servers and intensifying competition overshadowed the company's bullish demand forecast for artificial intelligence infrastructure. Sign up here. Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab dipped 3.4%, down for a third straight day. The AI heavyweight's quarterly report on Wednesday fell short of investors' high expectations but confirmed that spending related to artificial intelligence infrastructure remains strong. "Today is just weakness in the top of the market, in tech," said Zachary Hill, head of portfolio management at Horizon Investments in Charlotte, North Carolina. "This is not the first time that we've had some worries about over-investment in AI, lack of monetization opportunities and that type of thing." U.S. consumer spending increased by the most in four months in July while services inflation picked up, but economists did not believe the signs of strong domestic demand would prevent the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates next month against a backdrop of softening labor market conditions. The report from the Commerce Department on Friday showed mild price pressures from tariffs on imports. A U.S. tariff exemption for package imports valued under $800 also ended on Friday, raising costs for businesses and, in turn, consumers. Traders widely expect the Fed will cut interest rates by 25 basis points at its September meeting. "Even if we see an uptick in inflation, which it looks like we are, the Fed may look past that, given that this is going to be tariff-related and temporary," said Jim Smigiel, chief investment officer at SEI. The U.S. stock market will be closed on Monday for the Labor Day holiday. Expectations of interest rate cuts helped lead the benchmark S&P 500 and the blue-chip Dow to their fourth straight month of gains, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq logged its fifth consecutive monthly rise. U.S. shares of Alibaba soared 13% and were among the most-traded on Wall Street after the Chinese company reported stronger-than-expected quarterly growth in its cloud computing business, driven by AI-related demand. As well, the Wall Street Journal reported that Alibaba has developed a new AI chip. The S&P 500 declined 0.64% to end the session at 6,460.26 points a day after notching a record-high close. The Nasdaq declined 1.15% to 21,455.55 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.20% to 45,544.88 points. Six of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes rose, led by healthcare (.SPXHC) , opens new tab, up 0.73%, followed by a 0.64% gain in consumer staples (.SPLRCS) , opens new tab. The S&P 500 technology index (.SPLRCT) , opens new tab fell 1.63%. The Russell 2000 index (.RUT) , opens new tab of smaller companies dipped 0.5%, and it logged a 7% gain in August. For the month, the S&P 500 rose 1.9%, the Dow rose 3.2% and the Nasdaq added 1.6%. Fed Governor Christopher Waller, a candidate for the central bank's top job, said on Thursday he wants to start cutting rates next month, in line with President Donald Trump's calls to lower borrowing costs. A court hearing on Trump's attempt to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook ended on Friday with no immediate ruling from the judge hearing the unprecedented legal fight, meaning the U.S. central bank policymaker will remain in place for now. Chipmaker Marvell (MRVL.O) , opens new tab slumped almost 19% after forecasting quarterly revenue below expectations. Global economy bellwether Caterpillar (CAT.N) , opens new tab dropped 3.65% a day after the heavy-equipment maker forecast higher tariff-related expenses for 2025. Advancing issues outnumbered falling ones within the S&P 500 (.AD.SPX) , opens new tab by a 1.3-to-one ratio. The S&P 500 posted 21 new highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 76 new highs and 67 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was relatively light, with 14.8 billion shares traded, compared to an average of 16.4 billion shares over the previous 20 sessions. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/sp-500-ends-lower-dell-nvidia-drop-2025-08-29/

2025-08-29 20:13

Plaquemines plant receives FERC approval for nitrogen in Block 15 Commissioning to continue in phases over two years Plaquemines pulls 20% of total US LNG gas demand HOUSTON, Aug 29 (Reuters) - Venture Global (VG.N) , opens new tab could soon be producing liquefied natural gas from all blocks at its 27.2 million metric tons per annum Plaquemines facility, regulatory filings show. The company received permission on Friday to introduce nitrogen at Block 15, a precursory step toward natural gas production, according to an order from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The regulator's move followed a Wednesday authorization to introduce natural gas at Block 18. Sign up here. The Louisiana complex has 18 blocks, each comprising two plants that are also called trains. It had initially skipped starting up at Block 15 after receiving permission to begin output at the remainder of the facility, according to regulatory filings. Plaquemines is the second-largest LNG plant in the U.S., after Cheniere Energy's (LNG.N) , opens new tab Sabine Pass. Commissioning is expected to continue in phases for the next two years, with Venture Global likely earning higher liquefaction fees from the sale of early cargoes on the spot market before having to supply long-term customers including Exxon (XOM.N) , opens new tab, Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab and Orlen (PKN.WA) , opens new tab, according to the company. Venture Global did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Since it began producing LNG at the end of December last year, Plaquemines has increased output every month and is a major reason the U.S. has been able to export the superchilled gas at record levels in 2025, according to data from financial firm LSEG. On Friday, Plaquemines was pulling 3.2 bcf of gas, or almost 20% of all gas coming out of U.S. plants, LSEG data showed. A mere startup three years ago, Venture Global has grown to become the second-largest LNG exporter in the U.S. When it completes construction of CP2, its 28-mtpa export facility in Louisiana, the company will take the number one spot. Plaquemines has been the fastest greenfield LNG plant built in the U.S., having produced its first cargo in less than three years from its initial approval. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/venture-global-may-soon-produce-lng-all-blocks-plaquemines-filings-show-2025-08-29/