2026-01-28 12:49
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 28 (Reuters) - French rare earths specialist Carester and Malaysian miner Malaco Mining Group have teamed up to work on a rare earths separation plant, and will also collaborate on rare earth mining, an adviser to French President Emmanuel Macron said in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday. The cooperation agreement on the separation plant project, which is in its "pilot stage", will include technology transfers to Malaco as well as expertise to ensure environmental compliance, said Benjamin Gallezot, an adviser on strategic minerals, after meeting with Malaysian government officials. Sign up here. Western countries are trying to develop sources of rare earths, used in electric vehicles, smartphones and other high-tech products, to reduce reliance on China, the world's largest rare earths producer. Malaysia is looking to foreign partners to help develop its domestic rare earths industry. The country has an estimated 16.1 million tonnes of rare earths deposits but lacks the technological capacity to mine and process them. Gallezot said the companies would seek to build a Malaysian plant focused on rare earths separation, a process needed before the elements can be used to make advanced magnets for the manufacture of electric vehicles and clean technologies. Malaco was already in touch with several European magnet makers, Gallezot said, declining to identify the companies. The Japanese government has also expressed interest in the joint project, he said. Malaco Mining did not respond to a request for comment made outside office hours. The Japanese embassy in Malaysia also did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Separately, Gallezot said G7 countries would look to hold discussions with foreign partners outside the group on critical minerals during its meetings this year. “We consider that to diversify the supply chain, international cooperation is key,” he said. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/french-company-carester-teams-up-with-malaysian-miner-malaco-rare-earths-project-2026-01-28/
2026-01-28 12:35
Jan 28 (Reuters) - Indian Oil Corp (IOC.NS) , opens new tab expects its annual diesel exports to rise sharply to up to 5 million metric tons from 2027 as it expands refining capacity, the company's head of marketing told reporters at the India Energy Week conference. IOC is raising its annual refining capacity to 98 million tons in a year and a half from 80 million tons currently, S.P. Srivastava said. Sign up here. The company operates nearly 41,000 retail fuel stations in India, but Srivastva said that IOC's retail network would be expanded to more than 44,000 over the next two years, adding that he expects India's jet fuel demand to grow 10% a year until 2030. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/indian-oil-corp-raise-diesel-exports-with-refining-capacity-boost-official-says-2026-01-28/
2026-01-28 12:19
Jan 28 (Reuters) - A major winter storm that hit the United States in recent days is expected to cause billions of dollars in insured losses, analysts at brokerage UBS said in a note. The heavy storm has left much of the central and eastern U.S. gripped by snow, ice, and below-freezing temperatures. At least 38 people across 14 states had died as of Tuesday, according to local officials and news reports. Sign up here. The storm started to turn severe on Friday, with the snow snarling road traffic and leading to widespread flight cancellations and power outages. It subsided on Monday, but left behind bitter cold that is expected to linger. "For insurers, there will likely be meaningful insured losses from commercial property and package policies, homeowners' insurance policies, and auto insurance," UBS analysts wrote earlier this week. The brokerage added that the 2021 winter storm was the closest comparable event, which resulted in catastrophe losses of between $15 billion and $20 billion for the insurance industry. Catastrophe losses have intensified over the past few years, significantly hurting profits across the industry, due to substantial payouts tied to widespread property damage, business interruptions and liability claims. It can often take weeks after such events to arrive at a more accurate figure for insured losses, as claims are filed and assessed. UBS said it expects the largest share of insured losses from the latest storm to come from commercial property lines, followed by homeowners and personal auto. Commercial property losses typically arise when extreme cold damages buildings and disrupts operations, including frozen pipes, roof damage and prolonged power outages. Personal auto claims also surge as icy roads and poor visibility lead to accidents and vehicle damage. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/winter-storm-cause-billions-dollars-insured-losses-ubs-estimates-2026-01-28/
2026-01-28 12:18
BERLIN, Jan 28 (Reuters) - RWE (RWEG.DE) , opens new tab, Germany's biggest power producer, expects governments to prioritise long-term resilience and security in energy supply, its CEO said on Wednesday, as a direct consequence of geopolitical tensions. "We are certainly entering a new era in energy supply," Markus Krebber told reporters at a Handelsblatt energy summit, saying the economic focus was increasingly shifting to a "a long-term energy supply strategy absent of new dependencies". Sign up here. Germany, Europe's biggest economy, is among Western nations seeking new alliances as trusted relationships, most notably with the United States, have suffered as a result of trade tensions triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump's policies. At the same time Germany faces some of the highest energy costs globally, hurting its industry and curbing growth as Berlin severs energy ties with former main supplier Russia. With no major fossil fuel reserves of its own, Germany has sought to diversify its supply, driving up prices. Krebber also seemed to pour cold water on hopes for more share buybacks by RWE, something activist investor Elliott (ECAL.UL) has called for, saying the group had "outstanding" investment opportunities in new power plants in Germany, offshore wind in Britain and solar and batteries in the U.S.. RWE announced a 1.5 billion euro ($1.8 billion) share buyback in late 2024 which Krebber said runs until May 2026, with the company's share price gaining nearly 50% to more than 50 euros since the programme was announced. "We have always said that whether or not we do a share buyback depends on the share price and what investment opportunities we have," Krebber said. "It will come as no surprise to you when I say that a share buyback at 28 euros is, of course, a different matter to a share buyback at 52 euros." ($1 = 0.8356 euros) https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/rwe-ceo-says-energy-sector-has-entered-new-era-geopolitics-shift-2026-01-28/
2026-01-28 11:52
Jan 28 (Reuters) - GE Vernova (GEV.N) , opens new tab on Wednesday forecast annual revenue above Wall Street expectations, backed by strong sales of its gas turbines and storage equipment to power generation firms that are rushing to meet rising demand from data centers. Shares of the company rose nearly 4% in trading before the bell. Sign up here. GE Vernova is one of the biggest beneficiaries of rising global electricity demand, driven by data centers that are powering an artificial intelligence boom. The company expects 2026 revenue between $44 billion and $45 billion, higher than average analyst estimate of $41.97 billion, according to data complied by LSEG data. The company reported $59.3 billion in orders during the quarter, a 34% jump, compared with the same reporting period a year earlier, led by growth in its power and electrification units. Its electrification unit reported a core profit of $505 million, up 78.4% from a year ago, while the power unit posted $971 million, nearly a 20% rise. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/ge-vernova-raises-annual-revenue-forecast-2026-01-28/
2026-01-28 11:51
Jan 28 - What matters in U.S. and global markets today By Mike Dolan , opens new tab, Editor-At-Large, Finance and Markets Sign up here. The dollar managed to get a toehold on Wednesday after a withering drop to a four-year low , opens new tab overnight. President Donald Trump appeared to embrace the move, saying the dollar was "great." This adds to growing market speculation that the administration wants a more significant depreciation of what it sees as an overvalued currency. Markets will immediately wonder if that tallies with the view of Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. He has been tight-lipped since U.S. authorities on Friday joined Japan in a 'rate check' , opens new tab of the dollar/yen exchange rate that precipitated the latest downturn in the greenback, which has now snowballed across the globe. I’ll get into all that and more below. But first, check out my latest column on why a weaker dollar risks opening a Pandora’s box for global markets. And listen to the latest episode of the Morning Bid daily podcast. Subscribe to hear Reuters journalists discuss the biggest news in markets and finance seven days a week. MAKING A WEAK DOLLAR "GREAT" AGAIN The dollar’s slump on Tuesday came as selling intensified amid nonchalant , opens new tab comments from President Trump on the greenback's recent weakness. When asked about the sudden dollar relapse on Tuesday, Trump said it was “doing great” and should “just seek its own level.” , opens new tab The dollar seemed to take a breather first thing on Wednesday , opens new tab, as the Federal Reserve gets set to make its first policy decision of the year in the afternoon and Trump continues to tease the announcement of his new pick , opens new tab for Fed Chair. But the prospect of another significant down-leg in the greenback may add to the Fed’s wariness about imported inflation, as dollar weakness could exaggerate the already sizeable impact on that front from tariffs. It may also exaggerate the rebound in oil , opens new tab prices, and, of course, the surge in gold – which zoomed to new records above $5,300 per ounce today , opens new tab. The calming of the dollar selloff was due as much to possible reactions in Europe to the euro vaulting $1.20 for the first time in four years , opens new tab, something that's spurred renewed speculation about another European Central Bank rate cut later in the year. Indeed, Austria's central bank boss Martin Kocher warned the ECB would have to react if the euro appreciated further , opens new tab. Perhaps the biggest concern about another sharp slide in the dollar, which has seen one-month implied currency volatility surge to its highest since July, is that it unnerves gigantic foreign holdings of US assets. Wall Street stocks shrugged it off and pushed higher on Tuesday , opens new tab, likely seeing the dollar’s doldrums as another boost to overseas earnings. And optimism remained high as investors awaited megacap results from the likes of Microsoft, Meta and Tesla after the bell on Wednesday. Treasuries are a different matter and long-term yields jumped on the dollar drop and oil pop before stalling on news of a plunge in U.S. consumer confidence to its lowest level in more than 11 years , opens new tab. Chart of the day U.S. consumer confidence slumped to its lowest level in more than 11-1/2 years in January amid mounting anxiety over a sluggish labor market and high prices. This is likely a big concern for the Trump administration in an election year. Today's events to watch * U.S. Federal Reserve policy decision (2:00 PM EST), Chair Jerome Powell holds a news conference (2:30 PM EST) * Bank of Canada policy decision (9:45 AM EST) * U.S. corporate earnings: Meta, Microsoft, Tesla, IBM, AT&T, United Rentals * British Prime Minister Keir Starmer begins a three-day visit to China Want to receive the Morning Bid in your inbox every weekday morning? Sign up for the newsletter here. You can find ROI on the Reuters website , opens new tab, and you can follow us on LinkedIn , opens new tab and X. , opens new tab Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles , opens new tab, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/global-markets-view-usa-2026-01-28/
