2025-08-06 19:28

Trump cites progress in talks with Putin Trump's tariffs on India affect oil market dynamics US crude inventories decline more than expected, supporting prices OPEC+ supply increase and US inventory decline sway market NEW YORK, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Oil prices slid about 1% to an eight-week low on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump's remarks about progress in talks with Moscow created uncertainty on whether the U.S. would impose new sanctions on Russia. Brent crude futures fell 75 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $66.89 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 81 cents, or 1.2%, to settle at $64.35. Sign up here. Those moves marked a fifth consecutive day of losses for both crude benchmarks, with Brent closing at its lowest since June 10 and WTI closing at its lowest since June 5. Trump said on Wednesday that his special envoy Steve Witkoff made "great progress" in his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as Washington continued its preparations to impose secondary sanctions on Friday. Trump has threatened additional sanctions on Moscow if no moves are made to end the war in Ukraine. "Everyone agrees this war must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come," Trump said, without providing further details. Russia is the world's second-biggest producer of crude after the U.S., so any potential deal that would reduce sanctions would make it easier for Russia to export more oil. Earlier in the day, oil prices rose after Trump issued an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on goods from India, saying it directly or indirectly imported Russian oil. The new import tax will go into effect 21 days after August 7. India, along with China, is a major buyer of Russian oil. "For the time being, the 21-day start to the new Indian tariffs, while Russia tries to put together some kind of cease fire agreement ahead of President Trump’s August 8 deadline, still leaves too much uncertainty around the situation," Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho, said in a note. In addition to the tariff and sanction uncertainty, analysts said a planned OPEC+ supply increase has weighed on the market in recent days. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, meanwhile, will visit China for the first time in over seven years, a government source said on Wednesday, in a further sign of a diplomatic thaw with Beijing as tensions with the U.S. rise. In other news, Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, on Wednesday hiked its September crude oil prices for Asian buyers, the second monthly rise in a row, on tight supply and robust demand. OIL INVENTORIES Oil markets found support earlier in the day from a bigger-than-expected decline in U.S. crude inventories last week. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said energy firms pulled 3 million barrels of crude from inventories during the week ended August 1. , That was much bigger than the 0.6-million-barrel draw analysts forecast in a Reuters poll, but was smaller than the decline of 4.2 million barrels that market sources said the American Petroleum Institute trade group cited in its figures on Tuesday. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-prices-slide-8-week-low-us-russia-talks-stir-sanction-uncertainty-2025-08-06/

2025-08-06 19:27

Dollar resumes fall on rate cut expectations Traders focused on nominations for next Fed Chair Bank of England expected to cut rates on Thursday NEW YORK, Aug 6 (Reuters) - The dollar dropped on Wednesday and the euro hit a one-week high as traders bet that the Federal Reserve will cut rates more times than previously expected this year, following weaker than expected jobs data for July. With no major U.S. economic releases on Wednesday traders continued to focus on the implications from Friday's jobs report. Sign up here. U.S. employment growth was weaker than expected in July while the nonfarm payrolls count for the prior two months was revised down by a massive 258,000 jobs, suggesting a sharp deterioration in labor market conditions. The greenback fell sharply after the report, paring gains from what had been a relatively strong July for the currency, the first month this year in which the dollar index posted a gain. “We had the first dollar bounce under Trump's second term, and many people thought that maybe it had some legs, but I think Friday's jobs data killed it,” said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex in New York. “The renewed speculation of not only a cut in September, but another cut at the end of the year, has capped the dollar's bounce.” Fed funds futures traders are now pricing in a 95% probability of a 25 basis point cut at the Fed’s September meeting, up from 48% a week ago, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool. In total, traders see 62 basis points in cuts this year. The Fed may need to cut interest rates in the near term in response to a slowing U.S. economy, even though it remains unclear whether tariffs will continue to push inflation higher, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said on Wednesday. Trump issued an executive order on Wednesday imposing an additional 25% tariff on goods from India, saying the country directly or indirectly imported Russian oil, adding to 25% tariffs already announced. The dollar index <=USD> was last down 0.56% on the day at 98.18, the lowest since July 28. It posted a 1.35% drop on Friday, the largest one day fall since April. The dollar spiked briefly in late morning New York time in line with Treasury yields, which may have been due to traders placing large futures bets before a 10-year Treasury auction. The greenback extended losses after the Treasury Department saw soft demand for the $42 billion sale of the 10-year notes. The euro rose 0.76% to $1.1662, the highest since July 28. It recorded a 1.48% gain on Friday. Investors are also focused on Trump’s expected nomination to fill a coming vacancy on the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors and the candidates for the next Fed Chair. Trump said on Tuesday he would decide on a nominee to replace outgoing Fed Governor Adriana Kugler by the end of the week and had separately narrowed the possible replacements for Fed Chair Jerome Powell to a short list of four. Trump said he has narrowed his list of candidates to replace Powell to economic adviser Kevin Hassett, former Fed governor and Trump supporter Kevin Warsh, and two other people. Trump did not name those people, but one is thought to be current Fed Governor Christopher Waller. “From what we can ascertain, Warsh seems to be the most hawkish of the three, while Waller is clearly the most dovish, having dissented at the last FOMC meeting, so any shift in the odds towards the latter would likely be bearish for the dollar,” Matthew Ryan, Head of Market Strategy at Ebury said in a note. The dollar fell 0.35% to 147.09 yen . It dropped 2.24% against the Japanese currency on Friday, the largest daily decline since January 2023. Taro Kono, touted as a candidate to become the next prime minister, said that Japan must balance its budget and push the central bank to raise interest rates to alleviate concern over the country's finances. Ruling party heavyweight Ken Saito, meanwhile, told Reuters that the Bank of Japan must be cautious about raising interest rates given the expected hit from U.S. tariffs on the fragile economy. Sterling rose 0.47% to $1.3362 before the Bank of England on Thursday is expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points. Against the Swiss franc , the dollar weakened 0.17% to 0.806. Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter said she had a "very good meeting" with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday as Switzerland strives for a deal to avert a crippling 39% tariff on its exports to the United States. In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin gained 1.63% to $115,516. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/dollar-falls-traders-bet-more-rate-cuts-2025-08-06/

2025-08-06 19:18

WASHINGTON, Aug 11 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump has launched a global trade war with an array of tariffs that target individual products and countries. Trump has set a baseline tariff of 10% on all imports to the United States, as well as additional duties on certain products or countries. Sign up here. Here is a list of targeted tariffs he has implemented or threatened to put in place. COUNTRY-SPECIFIC TARIFFS Afghanistan - 15% Algeria - 30% Angola - 15% Bangladesh - 20% Bolivia - 15% Bosnia and Herzegovina - 30% Botswana - 15% Brazil - 50%, with lower levels for sectors such as aircraft, energy and orange juice Brunei - 25% Cambodia - 19% Cameroon - 15% Canada - 10% on energy products, 35% for other products not covered by the U.S.-Canada-Mexico Agreement Chad - 15% China - 30%, with additional tariffs on some products. This agreement, which was due to expire on August 12, has been extended for another 90 days through an executive order, according to a White House official. Costa Rica - 15% Cote d'Ivoire - 15% Democratic Republic of the Congo - 15% Ecuador - 15% Equatorial Guinea - 15% European Union - 15% on most goods Falkland Islands - 10% Fiji - 15% Ghana - 15% Guyana - 15% Iceland - 15% India - 25%, additional 25% threatened to take effect Aug. 28 Indonesia - 19% Iraq - 35% Israel - 15% Japan - 15% Jordan - 15% Kazakhstan - 25% Laos - 40% Lesotho - 15% Libya - 30% Liechtenstein - 15% Madagascar - 15% Malawi - 15% Malaysia - 19% Mauritius - 15% Mexico - 25% for products not covered by USMCA Moldova - 25% Mozambique - 15% Myanmar - 40% Namibia - 15% Nauru - 15% New Zealand - 15% Nicaragua - 18% Nigeria - 15% North Macedonia - 15% Norway - 15% Pakistan - 19% Papua New Guinea - 15% Philippines - 19% Serbia - 35% South Africa - 30% South Korea - 15% Sri Lanka - 20% Switzerland - 39% Syria - 41% Taiwan - 20% Thailand - 19% Trinidad and Tobago - 15% Tunisia - 25% Turkey - 15% Uganda - 15% United Kingdom - 10%, with some auto and metal imports exempt from higher global rates Vanuatu - 15% Vietnam - 20% for some products, 40% on transshipments from third countries Zambia - 15% Zimbabwe - 15% PRODUCT-SPECIFIC TARIFFS Steel and aluminum - 50% Autos and auto parts - 25% Copper pipes, tubes and other semi-finished products - 50% PRODUCT-SPECIFIC TARIFFS THREATENED BUT NOT IN EFFECT Pharmaceuticals - up to 200% Semiconductors - 25% or higher Movies - 100% Timber and lumber Critical minerals Aircraft, engines and parts Apple (AAPL.O) , opens new tab iPhones - 25% https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/trumps-tariffs-whats-effect-what-could-be-store-2025-08-11/

2025-08-06 18:41

US official's statement on Russia sends oil futures lower Euro gains against dollar Trump orders additional tariffs on goods from India NEW YORK/LONDON, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Wall Street indexes gained on largely upbeat corporate earnings, and U.S. yields also rose on Wednesday, while European shares closed flat and broke a two-day winning streak. U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on goods from India, saying the country has imported Russian oil. Sign up here. Oil prices reversed earlier gains and touched fresh lows after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated there would be an announcement later on Wednesday regarding potential sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine. MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe (.MIWD00000PUS) , opens new tab rose 0.72% to 933.94. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 0.32% to 44,254.95, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 0.76% to 6,347.26 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab added 1.16% to 21,160.02. "Earnings are seeing a mixed reaction. Particularly for a few of the AI names, expectations were just extremely high, but by and large, the earnings in aggregate have been good enough to keep a floor under the market," said Ross Mayfield, investment strategy analyst at Baird. Europe's broad STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) , opens new tab closed 0.06% lower, dragged down by healthcare stocks after Trump announced a tariff plan for the pharmaceutical sector. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) , opens new tab closed lower by 0.08% to 654.33, while Japan's Nikkei (.N225) , opens new tab rose 0.60% to 40,794.86. The health of the U.S. economy is a major focus for markets, and Wall Street closed lower on Tuesday after data showed services sector activity unexpectedly flatlined in July. That reinforced the message from Friday's soft jobs data, which caused markets to significantly increase bets on the Federal Reserve cutting rates in September. "There's this tug-of-war going on between the more concrete signs that we have seen that the U.S. economy is slowing and the fact that rate cuts are coming, which removes some of the pressure on valuations," said Samy Chaar, chief economist at Lombard Odier. Traders have been focused on tariff impacts. "The market is more focused on the fact that we're not getting maximalist tariffs, but I wonder if it isn't focusing enough on the fact that we are still getting something moderate, and more could be coming, pharmaceuticals for example," Chaar said. Trump on Tuesday said he would announce tariffs on semiconductors and chips in the next week or so, while the U.S. would initially impose a "small tariff" on pharmaceutical imports before increasing it substantially in a year or two. He said the U.S. was close to a trade deal with China, and he would meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping before the end of the year if an agreement was struck. Brazil's government has filed a consultation request at the World Trade Organization over U.S. tariffs. In the government bond market, Treasury yields gained ground. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes rose 4.2 basis points to 4.238%, from 4.196% late on Tuesday. Fed funds futures imply a 94% chance of a rate cut next month, with at least two cuts priced in for this year, according to the CME's FedWatch. Investors are waiting for Trump's pick to fill a coming vacancy on the Fed board of governors. Trump said the decision will be made soon, while ruling out Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as a contender to replace current chief Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May 2026. The euro was 0.71% higher at $1.1656. The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, fell 0.53% to 98.20. Brent oil futures lost 0.95% to $67 a barrel and U.S. crude fell 1.14% to $64.43. Spot gold prices fell 0.33% to $3,369.62 an ounce. U.S. gold futures settled flat at $3,433.4. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/global-markets-wrapup-6-graphics-2025-08-06/

2025-08-06 18:17

BRASILIA, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Brazil posted a trade surplus of $7.1 billion in July, down 6.3% from a year earlier, as imports grew at a faster pace than exports, official data showed on Wednesday. Exports rose 4.8% to $32.3 billion, while imports jumped 8.4% to $25.2 billion, driven by strong demand across a broad range of goods. Sign up here. Year-to-date, the trade surplus shrank by a quarter to $37 billion when compared to the same period last year, as resilient domestic activity continued to support import growth. The government expects Latin America's largest economy to expand 2.5% this year despite an aggressive monetary tightening cycle that began last September to curb inflation and that has put the country's benchmark interest rate at a near 20-year high of 15%. July import growth was widespread, with double-digit increases across key categories including fertilizers, fuels, machinery and engines, auto parts, and pharmaceuticals. Export value gains, typically driven by commodities, were supported by modest increases in soybean shipments and more robust growth in coffee, crude oil and beef exports. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-july-trade-surplus-narrows-63-imports-outpace-exports-2025-08-06/

2025-08-06 16:08

BOGOTA, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Colombian state-run oil producer Ecopetrol hit its highest output in a decade in the second quarter, CEO Ricardo Roa told journalists on Wednesday. He did not give exact production figures as the firm is set to publish its second-quarter earnings next week, but said that "a good portion" of the output had come from Ecopetrol's domestic operations. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/colombias-ecopetrol-logs-highest-output-decade-second-quarter-2025-08-06/