2026-01-27 23:42

Woodside beats Q4 revenue view despite a 13% drop Full‑year output hit a record 198.8 million boe Scarborough reached 94% completion First ammonia flowed at Beaumont in December Jan 28 (Reuters) - Australia's Woodside Energy (WDS.AX) , opens new tab on Wednesday flagged a lower production outlook for 2026, tempering a stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter revenue that was underpinned by resilient output despite weaker oil and gas prices. Shares in the oil and gas major rose as much as 2.2% at A$24.86 by 1122 GMT, in tandem with a 0.3% rise in the broader benchmark (.AXJO) , opens new tab. Sign up here. The country's top gas producer beat market expectations for December-quarter revenue as stronger production helped cushion the impact of softer realised prices. Oil prices closed 2025 nearly 20% lower - their steepest annual decline since the pandemic-hit year of 2020 - following a volatile final quarter marked by supply gluts and heightened geopolitical uncertainty linked to the Russia-Ukraine war and ongoing Middle East conflicts. Weaker seasonal demand on Australia's east coast also weighed on gas sales. Woodside achieved an average realised price of $57 per barrel of oil equivalent (boe) for the quarter, down from $63 per boe a year earlier. For the full year, however, output reached a record 198.8 million boe, exceeding guidance on the back of strong operating performance across key assets, including Sangomar, Shenzi and Pluto LNG. Looking ahead, Woodside forecast 2026 production of 172–186 million boe, below the record levels achieved in 2025. The softer outlook reflects planned maintenance and a major turnaround at Pluto LNG in the second quarter, as well as the timing of new volumes from the Scarborough project, the company said. Scarborough, which is 94% complete, will supply gas to Pluto LNG, but production from the project is not expected to begin until the fourth quarter of 2026, creating a temporary gap in output during the year while Pluto undergoes maintenance, Woodside added. The company also confirmed first ammonia production at its Beaumont New Ammonia project in December, with commissioning continuing into early 2026. Smaller rival Santos (STO.AX) , opens new tab last week reported quarterly output below estimates, as weaker realised prices weighed on revenue year-on-year. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/australias-woodside-posts-13-fall-fourth-quarter-revenue-2026-01-27/

2026-01-27 23:34

Jan 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar extended losses to sink to a four-year low against a basket of currencies on Tuesday. The weakness was exacerbated by President Donald Trump saying the dollar's value was "great", when asked whether he thought it had declined too much. Sign up here. Here are some trader and investor quotes on the dollar's decline: PRASHANT NEWNAHA, SENIOR RATES STRATEGIST, TD SECURITIES: "Trump said he’s not concerned about the currency’s decline and that's after the 10% fall in 2025. Trump's strategy is simple. Run the economy hot into the mid-terms and get ahead of the Fed that appears reluctant to cut by letting the USD slide. Trump is green lighting selling the dollar. "Imagine holding USTs at 4% but losing 10% on the USD as a foreign investor. For investors it's all about hedging inflation risks. Hard assets and EM should outperform." ANTHONY DOYLE, CHIEF INVESTMENT STRATEGIST, PINNACLE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT, SYDNEY: "For Asia, a softer USD can be genuinely helpful, it eases imported inflation and takes some pressure off local currencies. "But if the reason the dollar is falling is that investors are slapping a bigger credibility premium on the U.S., that usually brings more volatility and tighter financial conditions, and Asia doesn’t love that mix. Trump’s comment matters not because it’s a forecast, but because it signals tolerance and that thins the perceived backstop under the dollar, which affects positioning." KYLE RODDA, SENIOR MARKET ANALYST, CAPITAL.COM, MELBOURNE: "It shows there's a crisis of confidence in the U.S. dollar and it would appear that while the Trump administration sticks with its erratic trade, foreign and economic policy, this weakness could persist. The weak U.S. dollar flies in the face of otherwise strong fundamentals. The U.S. economy remains exceptional and the dollar should be reflecting that. But because of Trump's behaviour, it's not." CAROL KONG, CURRENCY STRATEGIST, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA, SYDNEY: "To be clear, Trump’s comments this morning are not new. He has repeated many times in the past that he favours a weaker USD and complained about the weakness of Asian currencies. But his comments come at a time when there is widespread speculation of coordinated FX intervention between the U.S. and Japanese authorities, and therefore further fuelled expectations of a concerted attempt to weaken the USD." STEVE SOSNICK, MARKET STRATEGIST, INTERACTIVE BROKERS, GREENWICH, CONNECTICUT: "A weaker dollar is a two-sided coin. On the one hand, it’s good for multinationals, which is why stocks didn’t move too much. If you have operations around the world and foreign currency revenue that will have a conversion advantage when you turn it into U.S. dollars, that will be good. On the other, it makes imported goods more expensive and there might be some inflationary impact from that, which is why we saw a bit of a move in bonds." JACK ABLIN, CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER, CRESSET CAPITAL, CHICAGO: “The dollar is front and center of this sell America trade. It is funny that foreign investors still want to own U.S. bonds and stocks, they just don’t like the dollar, so they’re hedging the dollar exposure of doing that. There is a risk that the dollar falls too much and the Fed has to raise rates to stabilize it." MARC CHANDLER, CHIEF MARKET STRATEGIST, BANNOCKBURN GLOBAL FOREX, NEW YORK: “It's not just that the President talked about foreign exchange today, but last Friday, it seemed that at least according to our best information, that the Federal Reserve checked on rates and said they were doing it on behalf of the Treasury, making it seem like the Treasury was doing a type of verbal intervention. “That means that in the past, say, three sessions, you've had the Treasury Secretary of the United States and the President of the United States seeming to give people carte blanche to sell the dollar. They were already selling the dollar. … What they did was throw gasoline on the fire.” SAM STOVALL, CHIEF INVESTMENT STRATEGIST, CFRA, ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA: “What I think Trump is trying to say is that a lower dollar is good for exports, which he is happy about. But if people are driving the dollar down, they are probably selling Treasuries, which is just going to exacerbate the carry trade unwinding that we’re already seeing. It will also propel gold and silver prices higher still. I don’t think it’s going to lead to a general market tantrum, though.” STEVEN ENGLANDER, HEAD OF GLOBAL G10 FX RESEARCH AND NORTH AMERICA MACRO STRATEGY, STANDARD CHARTERED, NEW YORK: “FX market participants are always looking for a trend to jump on. Often officials push back against abrupt currency moves but when the President expresses indifference or even endorses the move it emboldens USD sellers to keep pushing.” EUGENE EPSTEIN, HEAD OF TRADING AND STRUCTURED PRODUCTS, MONEYCORP, NEW JERSEY: “I think the reason he was pressed to comment is because, obviously in the last couple of weeks, the dollar has started dipping against most currency pairs. I’ve been saying for the past six months now or maybe a year that the administration wants a weaker dollar. If you think about it, in some capacity, it helps monetize debt and improves the trade deficit, probably more the latter really. The point is, he’s basically making clear that he’s a president that cares about the trade deficit.” JIM CARROLL, PORTFOLIO MANAGER, BALLAST ROCK PRIVATE WEALTH, CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA: “Trump wants U.S. exports to benefit from a weaker dollar. But of course, not every part of the U.S. economy will benefit from a low dollar, so we’ll have to see how that plays out. "The bigger problem is the way all of this uncertainty plays out. There is nothing markets hate more, but the administration keeps throwing out hand grenades to see how the markets will respond.” https://www.reuters.com/business/dollar-sinks-four-year-low-trump-brushes-off-decline-2026-01-27/

2026-01-27 22:58

Jan 27 (Reuters) - Packaging Corp of America (PKG.N) , opens new tab missed Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter profit and revenue on Tuesday, weighed down by softer sales in its core packaging segment ‌and higher operating costs. Shares of the company were down 2% in after-market trading. Sign up here. The company has been grappling with weak demand in the consumer goods sector, as major customers such as ‌Procter & Gamble (PG.N) , opens new tab, McDonald's (MCD.N) , opens new tab and Conagra Brands (CAG.N) , opens new tab pull back on orders amid rising inflation and macroeconomic uncertainty. Last month, Packaging Corp said it would shut down a facility in ‍Washington, resulting in about $205 million in charges and a job cut of roughly 200 employees. The Lake Forest, Illinois-based company supplies paper and ⁠packaging products to customers in the food and beverages, ‍paper products and the retail trade industries. CEO Mark Kowlzan said corrugated shipments ‌dipped ‌slightly from the record levels seen in 2024, reflecting a seasonally softer mix driven by strong holiday e-commerce demand and ongoing inventory discipline from customers. The company's fourth-quarter adjusted ⁠profit came in ⁠at $2.32 per share, below analysts' expectations of $2.41 apiece, according to data compiled by LSEG. Total revenue for the quarter ended December 31 was $2.36 billion, ‍below analysts' expectations of $2.44 billion. The company said it is still assessing the impact of last weekend's winter storm, which forced temporary shutdowns at several plants and may weigh ‍on shipments as well as operating and transportation costs. https://www.reuters.com/business/packaging-corp-america-posts-quarterly-results-miss-softer-demand-higher-costs-2026-01-27/

2026-01-27 22:06

ORLANDO, Florida, Jan 27 (Reuters) - World stocks and the S&P 500 hit new highs on Tuesday, boosted by a flood of strong U.S. earnings reports, while anxiety over U.S. President Donald Trump's policy direction sent safe-haven gold to fresh peaks and sank the dollar to a four-year low. More on that below. In my column today I look at why Japanese authorities might still unilaterally intervene in the FX market to support ‌the yen, even though the chances of joint action with the United States are probably quite remote. Sign up here. If you have more time to read, here are a few articles I recommend to help you make sense of what happened in markets today. Today's Key Market Moves Today's Talking Points * Dollar torpedoed ... The U.S. dollar is under extreme pressure, with the latest wave of selling pushing it to new four-year lows on a broad basis. Unnerved by geopolitics, Trump's ⁠policies, Washington wanting a lower exchange rate, or worries over Fed independence, investors are dumping the greenback. Like last year, the "Sell America" trade is manifesting ‍in FX - U.S. stocks are probing record highs and Treasuries are pretty steady. Short-term technicals and momentum are not on the dollar's side, and longer term, the dollar ‌still looks ‌expensive on a broad real effective exchange rate basis. * ... while safe-haven Swissie soars Given the dollar's travails, and with the Japanese yen suffering from domestic policy uncertainty and a plunging bond market, the Swiss franc is living up to its traditional FX status as the safe-haven king. On Tuesday, euro/Swiss fell to 0.9163 francs. That's the lowest since January 15, 2015, when the SNB abandoned its exchange rate cap, sending the franc up as much as 30%. ⁠Excluding that day, the Swissie has ⁠never been stronger against the euro. It is also at an 11-year high against the dollar. * And yet, stocks to the moon! Despite the political, policy and trade storms tearing through currency and precious metals markets, stocks are soaring blissfully to new high after new high. Strong U.S. earnings, solid growth, and confidence in the AI boom are doing the job. The ‍question is, how long can equities remain immune from the rising uncertainty and volatility elsewhere, particularly FX. Sharp dollar declines, especially if accompanied by selloffs in the bond market, are bound to put equity investors on edge. What could move markets tomorrow? Want to receive Trading Day in your inbox every weekday morning? Sign up for my newsletter here. 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/world/asia-pacific/global-markets-trading-day-graphic-2026-01-27/

2026-01-27 22:00

Indexes: Dow down 0.83%, S&P 500 up 0.41%, Nasdaq up 0.91% Health insurers plunge on disappointing Medicare proposal General Motors rallies on earnings Corning shares soar after $6 bln Meta deal announceent Boeing shares end choppy session down after mixed report Jan 27 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 barely managed a record closing high on Tuesday, its fifth straight day of gains with investor optimism ahead of megacap earnings reports being countered by a mixed reception to the latest earnings reports and a massive selloff in health insurer stocks. UnitedHealth (UNH.N) , opens new tab led losses in ‌healthcare stocks and in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab with a 19.6% tumble after the Trump administration proposed an increase in Medicare insurer payment rates. The plan was another woe added to the insurer's disappointing revenue forecast for 2026. Following suit were insurance peers Humana (HUM.N) , opens new tab, down 21% and CVS (CVS.N) , opens new tab, down 14.2%. Sign up here. Investors were more encouraged by General Motors (GM.N) , opens new tab earnings, which saw its shares rally 8.7% after it reported higher fourth‑quarter core profit. And with some high-profile earnings reports due out this week, technology stocks extended Monday's gains, with heavyweights Microsoft (MSFT.O) , opens new tab, Amazon (AMZN.O) , opens new tab, Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab, Apple (AAPL.O) , opens new tab, and Broadcom (AVGO.O) , opens new tab providing the market's biggest boosts. With this, the Nasdaq touched its highest level since late October and the S&P 500 also touched ‌an intraday record high and neared the 7,000 milestone, while also marking its fourth record closing high so far in 2026. "There's a little bit of a bifurcated market today with the Dow down because of the announcements around Medicare premiums," said Phil Blancato, chief market strategist at Osaic Wealth in New York. "When you look at everything else, the market seems to be hanging in there waiting for a big week of earnings." Also on Tuesday, U.S. consumer confidence unexpectedly deteriorated in January, slumping to its lowest level since 2014, but Blancato noted that surprisingly, the "pretty terrible number" didn't have ‍much of an impact on the stock market. Along with investor focus on earnings reports and U.S. policy decisions, Adam Rich, deputy chief investment officer and portfolio manager at Vaughan Nelson Investment Management noted that the recent decline in the U.S. dollar, including a drop of over 1% on Tuesday, is good news for U.S. equities as a weak dollar helps U.S. exports. "This currency move is really positive for S&P earnings going forward," said Rich. The Dow Jones Industrial ⁠Average (.DJI) , opens new tab fell 408.99 points, or 0.83%, to 49,003.41, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 28.37 points, or 0.41%, to 6,978.60 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab gained 215.74 points, or 0.91%, to 23,817.10. The technology sector (.SPLRCT) , opens new tab rose 1.4% ‍to lead gains among the S&P 500's 11 major industry sectors. Corning(GLW.N) , opens new tab was the biggest gainer in the S&P 500 and the technology sector with a massive 15.6% rally. The Gorilla Glass maker signed a deal with Meta (META.O) , opens new tab ‌worth up to $6 ‌billion for fiber-optic cables in AI data centers. All eyes will be on Meta , Microsoft and Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab on Wednesday when they kick off earnings reports for the so-called "Magnificent Seven" group of high-flying stocks. Their reports will test the resilience of the AI trade, which has underpinned Wall Street's rally for much of the past year. In total, 102 S&P 500 companies are set to post earnings results this week. Of the 64 that had reported as of Friday, 79.7% have topped analyst expectations, as per data compiled by LSEG. Elsewhere in earnings, trading in Boeing (BA.N) , opens new tab was choppy after it swung to a fourth-quarter profit due to a unit sale but ⁠reported bigger-than-expected losses in its two biggest divisions. ⁠Shares in the aerospace company ended down 1.6% after rising more than 2% earlier in the day. And in airlines, American Airlines (AAL.O) , opens new tab closed down 7% with the weekend's winter storm expected to weigh on its first-quarter results although its 2026 profit forecast topped estimates. JetBlue (JBLU.O) , opens new tab shares tumbled 6.9% on a wider‑than‑expected quarterly loss as it cited bad weather and the government shutdown during the quarter. Bellwether United Parcel Service (UPS.N) , opens new tab projected higher revenue for 2026 but by the end of the day its advance had dwindled to 0.2% ‍while shares in rival FedEx (FDX.N) , opens new tab rose 2.6%. FED WATCH As if that wasn't enough, investors were also waiting to hear from the U.S. Federal Reserve, which will make a policy announcement on Wednesday after its two-day meeting. Investors have been broadly expecting the central bank to leave interest rates unchanged but attention will be on policymakers' guidance on rates and its commentary on the economy while traders will also be alert to any signals around the Fed's next leadership. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.61-to-1 ratio on the NYSE where there were 693 new highs and 95 new lows. On the Nasdaq, 2,725 stocks rose ‍and 2,056 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.33-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 36 new 52-week highs and 13 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 104 new highs and 123 new lows. On U.S. exchanges 18.03 billion shares changed hands, just ahead of the 17.99 billion moving average from the last 20 sessions. https://www.reuters.com/business/sp-nasdaq-futures-rise-going-into-mega-week-earnings-medicare-rates-hit-insurers-2026-01-27/

2026-01-27 21:56

Dollar weakness due to Fed rate cuts, tariff uncertainty, and fiscal deficits Trump's comments accelerate dollar index losses Weaker dollar benefits exporters, but raises import costs and inflation risk Jan 27 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday the value of the dollar was "great", when asked whether he thought it ‌had declined too much, adding to pressure on the greenback which hit a four-year low. The dollar's recent weakness stems from multiple factors: expectations of continued Federal Reserve rate cuts, tariff uncertainty, policy volatility including threats to Fed independence and rising fiscal deficits, all of which have eroded investor confidence in U.S. economic stability. Sign up here. A lower dollar can also benefit U.S. exporters, though Trump said he was not seeking for its value to decline further. "I would want it to... just seek its own level," he said. Trump made ‌the comments to reporters in Iowa ahead of a speech expected to center on the economy as he seeks to rally his stalwart rural supporters in a state that hosts key congressional races in November. "No, I think it's great, the value of the dollar ... dollar's doing great," Trump said when asked by a reporter if he thought the value of the dollar had declined too much. Losses in the dollar index , which measures its ‍strength against a basket of six major currencies, accelerated after Trump's comments, hitting a session low of 95.566 and the lowest since February 2022. "If you look at China and Japan, I used to fight like hell with them, because they always wanted to devalue," Trump said. His comments came after an extended period of weakness in the greenback. The dollar has ⁠come under pressure in recent sessions as traders braced for a possible coordinated currency intervention by U.S. and Japanese authorities to prop up the weak ‍yen. The yen rallied by as much as 4% over the past two sessions on talk of the U.S. and Japan conducting rate checks - often seen as a precursor to ‌official intervention. "FX ‌market participants are always looking for a trend to jump on," said Steven Englander, head of global G10 FX research and North America macro strategy at Standard Chartered in New York. "Often officials push back against abrupt currency moves but when the President expresses indifference or even endorses the move it emboldens USD sellers to keep pushing.” DOLLAR WEAKNESS HAS SOME BENEFITS While the dollar's fall reflects investor worries about the U.S. economy's strength and could lead to inflationary pressures due to ⁠the rising cost of imports, it ⁠can help some businesses. A weaker greenback makes it cheaper for multinational companies to convert foreign profits into dollars, while also boosting the competitiveness of U.S. exporters' products. A weaker U.S. dollar also eases the burden for foreign countries and corporations with debt denominated in dollars, as they need less of their local currency to repay it. “The administration wants a weaker dollar," said Eugene Epstein, ‍head of trading and structured products at Moneycorp in New Jersey, adding that it also helped improve the trade deficit. "The point is, he’s basically making clear that he’s a president that cares about the trade deficit,” said Epstein. Steve Sosnick, market strategist at Interactive Brokers, Greenwich, Connecticut, said that a weaker dollar "was a two-sided coin". "On the one hand, it’s good for multinationals... If you have operations around the world and foreign currency revenue that will have a ‍conversion advantage when you turn it into U.S. dollars, that will be good. On the other, it makes imported goods more expensive and there might be some inflationary impact from that." https://www.reuters.com/world/trump-says-value-dollar-is-great-2026-01-27/