2025-07-22 06:41
MADRID, July 22 (Reuters) - Spanish gas grid operator Enagas (ENAG.MC) , opens new tab said on Tuesday it booked a net profit of 176 million euros ($205.66 million) in the first half of the year after a capital loss on the sale of an asset in the U.S. plunged it in the red a year ago. Gains from a disposal and the upwards revision of the amount it was awarded in an arbitration on an investment in Peru also contributed to the swing. Sign up here. Enagas had booked a net loss of 211 million euros in the first half of 2024, dragged by a 360 million euro capital loss on the sale of an asset in the U.S. The Spanish firm is diversifying into managing a network of hydrogen infrastructure, while also targeting ammonia and CO2 capture. To this end, earlier this year it pledged to invest more than 4 billion euros by the end of the decade, with more than three quarters of that earmarked for hydrogen infrastructure. Enagas made a 41.2 million euro gain from a decision by the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) to raise the amount the company was entitled in an arbitration process over an investment to build a natural gas pipeline in Peru, known as Gasoducto Sur Peruano (GSP). Gains from a disposal in Mexico generated another 5.1 million euros, it said. The company said it is on track to achieve its targets for the year. ($1 = 0.8558 euros) https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/spains-enagas-swings-first-half-net-profit-2025-07-22/
2025-07-22 06:37
BANGKOK, July 22 (Reuters) - Vitai Ratanakorn, the incoming governor of the Bank of Thailand, by his own admission, will start his new job in October at a difficult time. Growth in Southeast Asia's second-largest economy has stalled, tense negotiations with the United States over trade tariffs continue, industrial sentiment is tepid and critical sectors, including tourism and manufacturing, aren't firing. Sign up here. "We must accept that the Thai economy is not doing so well," Vitai, who has been approved by the cabinet as the next central bank chief but awaits royal endorsement, told reporters last week. "And what is worrying is the sluggishness that may be prolonged." The 54-year-old, who currently serves as president and chief executive of the Government Savings Bank, Thailand's largest state-owned lender, has a prescription: more rate cuts. The central bank late last month left the key interest rate unchanged, underlining the need to save some policy ammunition, after cuts in October, February and April. Those reductions brought the one-day repurchase rate (THCBIR=ECI) , opens new tab to 1.75%, the lowest in more than two years. "Proactive easing is important," Vitai told Thai financial daily Krungthep Turakij on June 20, when he was locked in the race for the top job with central bank insider Roong Mallikamas. "It's not just another one or two cuts. We may have to reduce them for a long time and more deeply. So, from 1.75%, if you ask me personally, I think it can go down much further." Thailand's ruling Pheu Thai party, which took power in 2023, has been at loggerheads with current Bank of Thailand chief Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput for not cutting rates enough to support a sluggish economy. In May last year, before she became prime minister, Pheu Thai leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra said the central bank's independence was an "obstacle" in resolving economic problems, underlining the scale of the friction. Vitai's stance will likely tone down some of that conflict, but it has also raised questions about his own ability to lead the central bank without succumbing to pressure from the ruling party - an issue he has publicly addressed. "I am confident that I can make decisions independently, based on principles and prioritising the nation's interests, free from the influence of any groups," Vitai wrote on his Facebook page on July 8. Vitai studied economics and law at Thailand's Chulalongkorn and Thammasat universities, and finance at Drexel University in the United States, and entered the Thai private sector, where he worked at Charoen Pokphand Group and budget carrier Nok Air. A former colleague, who worked alongside Vitai at a private firm, described him as a team player who preferred to work with consensus. "He is more of a practicalist than a theorist, focusing on getting the job done," he said, asking not to be named because he is not authorised to speak to media. In 2018, Vitai was appointed the Secretary-General of the Government Pension Fund, which manages assets worth about 1.4 trillion baht ($43 billion), and two years later became the head of the Government Savings Bank. Thirachai Phuvanatnaranubala, a former Thai finance minister, said Vitai's long experience as a government banker should help him manage relationships with senior finance ministry leadership. "However, his lack of work experience and zero exposure to high level macro public policy is a cause for concern," Thirachai told Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/thailands-next-central-bank-chief-champions-rate-cuts-revive-growth-2025-07-22/
2025-07-22 06:23
HONG KONG, July 22 (Reuters) - Heavy rain in China's eastern province of Shandong killed two people and left 10 people missing after half a year's worth of rain fell in five hours, drenching the Laiwu district in the city of Jinan, the local government reported on Tuesday. The area saw maximum precipitation of 364 millimeters (14.3 inches) that fell from midnight on Tuesday till 5am local time, half of Jinan's average yearly precipitation of 733 millimeters (28.9 inches). Sign up here. Flash floods occurred near Jinan's mountainous villages of Shiwuzi and Zhujiayu, washing away or damaging 19 houses. Rescue efforts are underway and all efforts were being deployed to rescue missing people, authorities said. The deluge is part of a broader pattern of extreme weather across the country due to the East Asia monsoon which has caused disruptions in the world's second largest economy. Southern regions have also been inundated with heavy rain after Typhoon Wipha pounded Hong Kong on Sunday. Extreme rainfall and severe flooding, which meteorologists link to climate change, increasingly pose major challenges as they threaten to overwhelm ageing flood defences, displace millions and wreak havoc on a $2.8 trillion agricultural sector. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/two-dead-10-missing-after-colossal-rain-chinas-shandong-2025-07-22/
2025-07-22 06:11
OSLO, July 22 (Reuters) - Norway's biggest utility, state-owned Statkraft, reported on Tuesday a deeper net loss for the second quarter, driven primarily by impairments due to lower expectations for future power prices. The net loss for the April-June period stood at 6.5 billion Norwegian crowns ($638.56 million), against a year-ago loss of 992 million crowns, its report showed. Sign up here. Statkraft, which has continued this year to scale back its growth ambitions amid rising costs, said on Tuesday it will concentrate on its core competitive advantages and prioritise investments in near-term profitable opportunities. "Given the current market situation and geopolitical realities, combined with Statkraft's recent high activity and investment level, we are adjusting our strategic ambitions," CEO Birgitte Ringstad Vartdal said in a statement. Ratings agency Fitch earlier this month cut Statkraft's credit rating by one notch to BBB+ from A-, citing weakening performance and financial metrics. ($1 = 10.1791 Norwegian crowns) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/norwegian-utility-statkraft-books-640-mln-q2-loss-after-impairments-2025-07-22/
2025-07-22 06:10
EU sanctions unlikely to impact Russia's oil revenue severely India and China may continue buying discounted Russian crude Trump's secondary sanctions could pressure Russia but risk global oil price surge LONDON, July 22 - The European Union's latest effort to restrict Russia's oil revenue is unlikely to hurt Moscow's war effort severely, leaving U.S. President Donald Trump's threat of secondary sanctions one of the few remaining economic levers to pressure the Kremlin. The EU on Friday agreed on the 18th package of sanctions against Russia, which foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said was one of the strongest to date. Sign up here. The package lowers the price cap on Russian crude to $47.60 a barrel from $60, meaning shippers and insurance companies seeking to avoid sanctions can’t handle purchases made above this level. The new cap, which takes effect on September 3, also includes a mechanism to ensure it is always 15% below average Russian crude prices. A significant new addition is an import ban on refined oil products made from Russian crude. The ban, which would likely kick in next year, seeks to close a loophole created after the EU halted most imports of Russian crude and refined products in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. This action led to sharp rises in European imports of fuels, particularly diesel and aviation fuel, from China, India and Turkey. The effectiveness of these initial measures was limited, however, as refiners in those three countries sharply increased imports of Russian feedstock due to the discounts created by the price cap. Ultimately, the biggest loser from the new ban would likely be India, which accounted for 16% of Europe's imports of diesel and jet fuel last year, according to Kpler data. Russian crude also accounted for 38% of India's crude imports in 2024. The new ban would exempt countries that are net exporters of crude, meaning the biggest beneficiaries of the new restriction will likely be Gulf producers with large refining operations such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait that could pick up the slack from Indian refineries and export more fuel to Europe. PAIN AND GAIN The Western sanctions on Russia's oil sector since 2022 have been carefully crafted to avoid creating a severe energy price shock while still aiming to constrain the revenue of Moscow, the world's third-largest oil exporter. They haven’t been overly successful on the latter point. Russia's crude oil and oil products export revenues reached $192 billion in 2024, significantly more than its defence budget of $110 billion that year. That compared with oil export revenue of $225 billion in 2019. While Russia’s oil exports declined slightly in June to 7.23 million barrels per day, revenue rose by $800 million from May to $13.6 billion thanks to higher global oil prices, according to International Energy Agency estimates. This partly reflects the fact that Russia has found some workarounds, including developing a vast and opaque network of tankers, insurance and payment schemes that allow it to export its oil above the price cap. The EU’s latest package has also placed 105 additional tankers under sanctions for evading the original price cap, in addition to the 342 already sanctioned. But Moscow will likely find ways to evade the worst effects of the new sanctions, perhaps by expanding the shadow fleet or further obscuring the origin of its oil through measures such as mid-ocean ship-to-ship transfers. Moreover, India and China will likely continue buying discounted Russian crude to benefit their domestic markets, while re-routing fuel exports previously bound to the EU to new markets. So even though, on paper, the new price cap could collectively reduce Russia’s oil revenue, in reality, the new EU measures are unlikely to choke off Moscow's financial lifeblood. SECONDARY TRUMP TARIFFS One way to hit Moscow’s finances would be for President Trump to implement the "secondary sanctions" he threatened last week, whereby countries that buy oil from Moscow will be hit with 100% tariffs unless the Kremlin reaches a deal to end the war in Ukraine within 50 days. These secondary tariffs mean any country buying Russian oil would face severe restrictions on its ability to trade with the world's largest economy. Would Trump actually take this drastic step? Trump has expressed significant frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent weeks. And given that the multiple rounds of EU and U.S. sanctions on Russia have had a limited impact on Moscow’s war chest, secondary sanctions could be one of the few effective tools left. But in a global energy market, this effectiveness is precisely the problem. If this drastic escalation of the West's economic war on Moscow were to severely curtail Russia's oil exports, this would also likely lead to a sharp increase in global oil prices and higher inflation – two things the U.S. president certainly does not want. And that’s likely why – despite all these developments – Moscow and oil traders both appear relatively unfazed for now. Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI) , opens new tab, your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI , opens new tab can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn , opens new tab and X. , opens new tab https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/holes-eu-russia-sanctions-put-attention-back-trump-oil-threat-2025-07-22/
2025-07-22 05:58
BEIJING, July 22 (Reuters) - A 2025 government subsidy scheme for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid purchases ended last month in three districts in the city of Xian, the capital of China's Shaanxi province, local official media Shaanxi Daily reported on Tuesday. The three districts are set to stop accepting applications for the subsidies later in July, according to the report. It did not give a reason for the pause or disclose what might happen in other districts. Sign up here. Some Chinese cities, including Zhengzhou and Luoyang, suspended trade-in subsidies for car buyers because the first round of funding allocated by Beijing for the scheme was running out, Reuters reported in June. The state planner and finance ministry said last month that consumer trade-in subsidies for the remainder of the year would be issued in July and October respectively. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/chinas-ev-buying-subsidies-2025-end-parts-xian-local-media-says-2025-07-22/
