2025-08-04 16:55
LONDON, Aug 4 (Reuters) - (This Aug. 4 story has been refiled to remove reference to Marshall Wace, which was not specifically named by Goldman Sachs, in paragraph 4) British hedge fund Marshall Wace returned mixed results in two of its funds in July, a source close to the matter told Reuters on Monday. Sign up here. Co-founded by British financier Paul Marshall, the $76.9 billion firm returned 1.6% in July culminating in a 6.1% performance for 2025 so far in its Eureka Fund, the source said. The hedge fund's Market Neutral Tops fund returned -0.22% for July and is up 10.99% year to date the source added. Systematic stock trading hedge funds are up roughly 10% for 2025 so far, Goldman Sachs said in a note to clients on Monday. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/uk-hedge-fund-marshall-wace-posted-mixed-returns-july-source-says-2025-08-04/
2025-08-04 16:20
U.S. tariff on Lesotho was slashed to 15% from 50% Threat of 50% tariff led to cancelled orders and job cuts Lesotho will struggle to compete even with new rate - minister MASERU, Aug 4 (Reuters) - A reprieve from a 50% U.S. tariff on goods from Lesotho has come too late to prevent damage to the tiny African kingdom's textiles industry, which has been hit hard by months of trade uncertainty, officials and industry players said. Lesotho's tariff rate was slashed to 15% in last week's executive order by U.S. President Donald Trump, down from the level of 50% tariff threatened in April - which was the highest of any U.S. trading partner. Sign up here. Textile industry players in the country - which produces jeans and other garments for popular U.S. brands such as Levi's and Walmart - said the uncertainty around tariffs over the past few months had already devastated the sector, with orders cancelled and jobs cut. "We were on the verge of building (our) American market," Teboho Kobeli, founder and managing director of Afri-Expo Textiles, told Reuters at his factory in Maseru. He said the U.S. market made up 10% of his company's production - about $1 million a year - and that he had to lay off 200 workers, or 40% of his workforce, after the announcement in April as orders dried up. "That is a lot lost," he said. Lesotho, which Trump had ridiculed in March as a country "nobody has ever heard of", is a poor and landlocked country with a gross domestic product of just over $2 billion. Trade Minister Mokhethi Shelile said that Lesotho would struggle to compete against other African textile manufacturers such as Kenya and Eswatini, which got a lower U.S. tariff rate of 10%. "We have close to 12,000 jobs that are directly on the firing line because of this tariff," he told Reuters. The sector, which is the country's leading export industry and biggest private employer, was heavily dependent on the Africa Growth and Opportunities Act, a U.S. trade initiative granting duty-free access to qualifying African nations. It employs around 40,000 people and accounts for roughly 90% of manufacturing exports, according to Oxford Economics. One of the people affected by the uncertainty is Matsoso Lepau, a 48-year-old who lost his job at protective outerwear maker Leo Garments in April. "I have a big problem because the money that I was making is not there anymore," he said, adding he used to earn the equivalent of $167 a month. "Now that Mr Trump has lowered the tariffs, I am still hoping that we will get our jobs back." Kobeli, the head of Afri-Expo Textiles, said he was confident he could get his business back on track now that the reduced 15% rate has been set, noting the uncertainty over U.S. trade policy had weighed on investors' and retailers' decisions globally. "It was a global problem, even the buyers in America were stagnant as they did not know where to go... Now with the 15% we are starting to talk, it's not like we were affected alone," he said. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/despite-tariff-reprieve-lesotho-says-it-is-already-hurting-2025-08-04/
2025-08-04 12:56
LAGOS, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Nigeria's oil production surpassed 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) last month, with current average output at 1.78 million bpd, the head of the country's upstream regulator said on Monday. The West African country, Africa's largest oil producer, relies on crude oil for nearly two-thirds of government revenue and over 80% of foreign currency earnings, making production gains critical for stabilising its economy. Sign up here. But widespread oil theft, unrest and years of underinvestment curtailed output and strained public finances before Nigeria stepped up a crackdown in the oil-rich Niger Delta region. Gbenga Komolafe, chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, told delegates at an energy conference that the output increase, largely possible due to the step-up in security operations, is part of a push to boost oil production by 1 million bpd to 3 million bpd. Oil output last reached 1.8 million bpd in November. Komolafe said the commission would continue working with stakeholders to sustain production gains and improve industry transparency. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/nigerias-oil-production-topped-18-million-barrels-per-day-july-regulator-says-2025-08-04/
2025-08-04 12:56
OPEC+ to raise output by 547,000 bpd in September US threatens secondary tariffs against Russian oil buyers India to keep buying Russian oil despite threats, sources say LONDON, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell to their lowest in a week on Monday after OPEC+ agreed to another large output increase in September, though traders remained wary of further sanctions on Russia. Brent crude futures fell $1.55, or 2.2%, to $68.12 a barrel by 1254 GMT, their lowest since July 23, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude declined by $1.72, or nearly 2.6%, to $65.61. Sign up here. Both contracts lost about $2 on Friday. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, together known as OPEC+, agreed on Sunday to raise oil production by 547,000 barrels per day (bpd) for September. The latest in a series of accelerated output increases aimed at capturing market share was in line with market expectations and marks a full and early reversal of the group's largest tranche of output cuts, amounting to about 2.5 million bpd, or about 2.4% of global demand. Oil prices are under pressure because of the OPEC+ decision, said PVM analyst Tamas Varga, adding that potential discussions to unwind a further 1.65 million bpd of cuts added to the downside price pressure. Analysts at Goldman Sachs expect that the actual increase in supply from the eight OPEC+ countries that have raised output since March will be 1.7 million bpd because other members have cut output after overproducing. Investors also continued to digest the impact of the latest U.S. tariffs on exports from dozens of trading partners and remain wary of further U.S. sanctions on Russia. U.S. President Trump has threatened to impose 100% secondary tariffs on Russian crude buyers as he seeks to pressure Moscow into halting its war in Ukraine. "The view that tariffs are effectively tax on the consumer is playing out once again. In the medium term, oil prices will be shaped by a mix of tariffs and geopolitics. Any price jump triggered by energy sanctions is expected to be ephemeral," PVM's Varga said. At least two vessels loaded with Russian oil bound for refiners in India have diverted to other destinations after new U.S. sanctions, trade sources said on Friday and LSEG trade flows showed. About 1.7 million bpd of crude supply will be at risk if Indian refiners stop buying Russian oil, ING analysts wrote. However, two Indian government sources told Reuters on Saturday that the country will keep purchasing oil from Russia despite Trump's threats. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-falls-opec-proceeds-with-september-output-increase-2025-08-03/
2025-08-04 12:49
Aug 4 (Reuters) - Crypto exchange Bullish is targeting a valuation of up to $4.23 billion in its United States listing, the company said in a filing on Monday, launching its roadshow to capitalize on the momentum built by digital assets amid regulatory clarity. Companies leveraging crypto and related technologies have rallied on friendly policymaking from the Trump administration, such as the recent passage of the GENIUS Act, which provides an initial regulatory framework for stablecoins. Sign up here. Bullish is seeking up to $629.3 million by offering 20.3 million shares priced between $28 and $31 each, marking its second attempt to go public in four years. At the top of its proposed range, the company will list at a more than 52% discount to its $9-billion valuation target in a 2021 blank check merger that it called off in 2022, citing regulatory hurdles. "When an IPO begins marketing, the bankers would rather undershoot on valuation and then price up, rather than overshoot and price down," said Matt Kennedy, senior strategist at Renaissance Capital, a provider of IPO-focused research and ETFs. Bullish, backed by billionaire Peter Thiel, plans to convert a significant portion of the IPO proceeds to U.S.-dollar-denominated stablecoins with the assistance of one or more issuers of such tokens, it said in the filing. Major stablecoin-issuer Circle Internet had a blowout debut on the NYSE in June and currently trades at more than 400% of its IPO price. INVESTOR FOCUS Bullish, whose CEO Thomas Farley previously served as president of the New York Stock Exchange, operates a crypto-trading exchange targeting institutions. It also operates crypto news website CoinDesk, which it acquired from Barry Silbert's Digital Currency Group in 2023. Bullish swung to a $349 million loss for the quarter ended March 31, compared with a profit of $105 million a year earlier, reflecting a fall in fair value of its crypto holdings. Meanwhile, largest public crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN.O) , opens new tab reported a drop in second-quarter adjusted profit on Friday, due to a slowdown in trading, which dragged its shares down nearly 17%, even though the company recorded portfolio gains. Some investors tend to overlook the impact of quarterly swings in crypto prices when evaluating such companies, analysts have said. According to Renaissance Capital's Kennedy, investors will focus on "how efficient (Bullish is) and how profitable it is as a pure exchange, without the impact of quarterly price changes." Bullish aims to list on the NYSE under the symbol "BLSH". J.P.Morgan, Jefferies and Citigroup are the lead underwriters. https://www.reuters.com/business/peter-thiel-backed-bullish-seeks-up-42-billion-valuation-us-ipo-2025-08-04/
2025-08-04 12:41
Talks resume in Geneva on Tuesday on treaty to curb plastics pollution Oil states challenge treaty provisions, push for voluntary measures US seeks treaty focused on waste disposal, not production limits Small island states demand funding for pollution cleanup GENEVA, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Hopes for a "last chance" ambitious global treaty to curb plastic pollution have dimmed as delegates gather this week at the United Nations in Geneva for what was intended to be the final round of negotiations. Diplomats and climate advocates warn that efforts by the European Union and small island states to cap virgin plastic production - fuelled by petroleum, coal and gas - are threatened by opposition from petrochemical-producing countries and the U.S. administration under Donald Trump. Sign up here. Delegates will meet officially from Tuesday for the sixth round of talks, after a meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) in South Korea late last year ended without a path forward on capping plastic pollution. The most divisive issues include capping production, managing plastic products and chemicals of concern, and financing to help developing countries implement the treaty. Delegates told Reuters that oil states, including Saudi Arabia and Russia, plan to challenge key treaty provisions and push for voluntary or national measures, hindering progress toward a legally binding agreement to tackle the root cause of plastic pollution. Government spokespeople for Saudi Arabia and Russia were not immediately available for comment, Andres Del Castillo, senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), a non profit providing legal counsel to some countries attending the talks, said oil states were questioning even basic facts about the harm to health caused by plastics. "We are in a moment of revisionism, where even science is highly politicized," he said. The U.S. State Department told Reuters it will lead a delegation supporting a treaty on reducing plastic pollution that doesn't impose burdensome restrictions on producers that could hinder U.S. companies. A source familiar with the talks said the U.S. seeks to limit the treaty's scope to downstream issues like waste disposal, recycling and product design. It comes as the Trump administration rolls back environmental policies, including a longstanding finding on greenhouse gas emissions endangering health. Over 1,000 delegates, including scientists and petrochemical lobbyists, will attend the talks, raising concerns among proponents of an ambitious agreement that industry influence may create a watered-down deal focused on waste management, instead of production limits. ISLAND STATES VULNERABLE Plastic production is set to triple by 2060 without intervention, choking oceans, harming human health and accelerating climate change, according to the OECD. "This is really our last best chance. As pollution grows, it deepens the burden for those who are least responsible and least able to adapt," said Ilana Seid, permanent representative of Palau and chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS). Small island states are particularly impacted by plastic waste washing ashore, threatening their fishing and tourism economies. They stress an urgent need for dedicated international funding to clean up existing pollution. "Plastics are a concern for human health because (plastic) contains about 16,000 chemicals, and a quarter of these are known to be hazardous to human health," said Dr. Melanie Bergmann of the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany. Jodie Roussell, global public affairs lead at food giant Nestle (NESN.S) , opens new tab and a member of a 300-company coalition backing a treaty to reduce plastic pollution, told Reuters that harmonizing international regulations on packaging reduction and sustainable material use would be the most cost-effective approach. French politician Philippe Bolo, a member of the global Interparliamentary Coalition to End Plastic Pollution, said that a weak, watered down treaty that focuses on waste management must be avoided. Bolo and a diplomatic source from a country attending the talks said the potential of a vote or even a breakaway agreement among more ambitious countries could be explored, as a last resort. Inger Andersen, executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme, however, said countries should push for a meaningful pact agreed by consensus. "We're not here to get something meaningless... you would want something that is effective, that has everybody inside, and therefore everybody committed to it," she said. (This story has been corrected to say that virgin plastic production is fuelled by 'petroleum, coal and gas,' not 'coal and gas,' in paragraph 2, and to say Inger Andersen, not Inger Anderson, in paragraph 19) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/oil-producer-pressure-trump-rollbacks-threaten-last-chance-global-plastics-2025-08-04/
