2025-07-05 01:52

KUALA LUMPUR, July 5 (Reuters) - Malaysia said on Saturday it has imposed provisional anti-dumping duties ranging from 3.86% to 57.90% on certain iron and steel imports from China, South Korea and Vietnam. The duties on imports of galvanised iron coils or sheets or galvanised steel coils or sheets were imposed based on a preliminary determination made in an anti-dumping duty investigation initiated on February 6, the investment, trade and industry ministry said in a statement. Sign up here. "The government finds that there is sufficient evidence that the importation of the subject goods... is being dumped and that the investigation should be continued," it said. The provisional duties be in effect from Monday for up to 120 days with a final determination to be made by November 3, the ministry said. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/malaysia-puts-anti-dumping-duties-some-china-south-korea-vietnam-iron-steel-2025-07-05/

2025-07-04 23:58

Shipping rates likely to increase as vessels forced to reduce loads In the past, such levels more usual in August Driest June for more than a century, weather institute says BUDAPEST, July 4 (Reuters) - Unusually low water levels on the Danube river in Hungary are affecting shipping, agriculture, and local ecosystems along Europe's second-longest river, which is a major transport route across the continent. Temperatures peaked at 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) in Budapest this week as much of Europe baked in an early summer heatwave linked to the death of at least eight people. Sign up here. As a result of the low water levels, cargo ships must leave behind more than half of their cargo and can only operate at 30-40% capacity, Attila Bencsik, deputy president of the Hungarian Shipping Association, said. Shipping rates might increase by as much as 100% as a surcharge is added when a ship cannot sail fully loaded, he said. Such low water levels have been previously recorded on the Danube, but they usually happen in August, Attila Szegi, a deputy spokesman for the Hungarian General Directorate of Water Management, said. Szegi said that rain was expected in the Danube catchment area next week, which should lead to a slight rise in water levels and an improvement in the shipping situation. The Hungarian state meteorological institute HungaroMet said that rainfall in June was only 17% of the average for that month, making this June the driest since 1901. "June is one of the most rainy months of the year in our climate, and now we have this low water level," Gyorgy Matavovszki said, as he stopped with his kayak on a sandbank at Szob, a town north of Budapest. "It has its beauty because the water is clear, it is easy to paddle in it ..., but it is worrying." The Vistula river was at a record low in Warsaw, and the Rhine in Germany was also unusually low. Michał Sikora, a meteorologist and hydrologist at Poland's IMGW, said that the Vistula River reached a record low level of 19 centimetres (7.48 inches) on Friday, adding that it is expected to decline further in the coming days, possibly to below 15 centimetres. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/low-water-levels-danube-disrupt-shipping-heatwave-hits-hungary-2025-07-04/

2025-07-04 22:46

Firefighters battling Crete wildfire for a third day Thousands of tourists returning to their hotels Europe sweltering in early summer heatwave Twenty cities in Italy placed on heat red alert ATHENS, July 4 (Reuters) - Gale force wind gusts complicated efforts on Friday to contain wildfires on Crete that have razed forests and olive groves and forced thousands of residents and tourists to evacuate. Around 130 firefighters, 48 vehicles and six helicopters were deployed on the third day of the effort, with the wind and dry conditions raising the risk that blazes might restart in areas of the island where they had already been contained. Sign up here. In Greece's capital Athens, about 800 people were evacuated from the suburb of Koropi where more than 120 firefighters battled a blaze supported by eight airplanes and eight helicopters, a fire brigade spokesperson said. The fires in Crete and in Athens come as much of Europe swelters in an early summer heatwave, which officials have linked to at least eight deaths on the continent. The blazes in Crete, which broke out in a village about 16 km (10 miles) east of Ierapetra on Wednesday, have consumed swathes of agricultural land in the southeastern corner of the island, leaving dead animals and scorched farmhouses. Olive farmer Giorgos Poulis was sorting out destroyed farming equipment beside his burned-out truck. "The damage is incalculable in every way, from water drilling equipment, pipes, tires, cars, the cement mixer," he said, gesturing around him. George Tzarakis, head of Hoteliers of Ierapetra and southeastern Crete, told Reuters most of the 3,500 tourists who had been evacuated were returning to their hotels. Tourism is a key earner in Crete, the largest island in Greece, and local hoteliers were concerned about future bookings as the fire hit at the start of the peak summer holiday season. Temperatures in Greece were forecast to reach up to 38 degrees Celsius (100.4 Fahrenheit) on Friday, the Greek weather service said. In another Athens suburb, Pikermi, some 148 firefighters battled a fire that broke out on Thursday, threatening many homes, cutting power and prompting authorities to move more than 300 people to safety. The fire was contained but not extinguished, the fire brigade official said. In Italy, the health ministry put 20 of the 27 cities it monitors for heatwaves on red alert on Friday. RAI public broadcaster said temperatures would go as high as 38 C in Florence and 37 C in Rome, Bologna and Perugia. Spain's Health Ministry estimates that 341 deaths have been attributable to heat-related illnesses since the beginning of June, as the country grapples with soaring temperatures. With the heat comes a higher risk of wildfires. Greece and other Mediterranean countries are in an area dubbed "a wildfire hotspot" by scientists - with blazes common during hot and dry summers. These have become more destructive in recent years due to a fast-changing climate, prompting calls for a new approach. "With multiple heatwaves and fire risks expected through September, there is an urgent need to shift from reactive response to proactive preparedness," the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said this week. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/greece-battles-wildfire-crete-third-day-temperatures-rise-2025-07-04/

2025-07-04 21:10

CAMPINAS, Brazil, July 4 (Reuters) - Rebuilding global coffee stocks may take at least a couple of good crops following successive deficits in the supply-demand balance, coffee industry officials said on Friday during a Coffee Dinner & Summit event in Brazil. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT Global coffee prices hit a record high earlier this year, amid supply issues and resilient demand. Sign up here. Even with a large harvest expected next season in Brazil, the world's largest producer and exporter, that may not bring immediate relief for coffee consumers. KEY QUOTES "I do not believe (the industry will be able to) build up stocks from this year to next year. I think we would need at least two good harvests," the commercial superintendent of Brazilian coffee co-operative Cooxupe, Luiz Fernando dos Reis, told Reuters on the sidelines of the event. "To replenish the stocks we had four years ago, it will take at least two years of very good harvests, if everything goes well," said Louis Dreyfus Company's coffee research director Charles Chiapolino. "And we know how difficult it is to keep the climate aligned across the world for two years in a row, it's almost impossible," Chiapolino added. "At the moment, no one can build stocks with demand stable, or growing in some countries," said the chief executive of the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation, German Bahamon. WHAT'S NEXT Reis, from Cooxupe - the world's largest coffee cooperative - said that even if Brazil produces a large harvest in the 2026/27 season, the following crop is not expected to be as good since the main coffee variety grown in the country, arabica, alternates in a biennial cycle of high and low output. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/rebuilding-global-coffee-stocks-may-need-least-two-good-crops-experts-say-2025-07-04/

2025-07-04 20:15

SAO PAULO, July 4 (Reuters) - Ethanol producer Inpasa said on Friday that a fund linked to its founder's family had invested in Brazilian fuel distributor Vibra (VBBR3.SA) , opens new tab, adding that the investment has strictly financial goals and no relation to Inpasa operations. Late on Thursday, news outlet Brazil Journal reported that Inpasa, which was founded in Paraguay and is the largest producer of corn ethanol in Brazil, had been acquiring shares in Vibra, coming up to a 3% stake and wanting to increase it further. Sign up here. In a statement, Inpasa did not disclose the size of the stake in Vibra owned by the fund. "This fund has a diversified portfolio, with stakes in several listed companies, including Vibra, without this representing any corporate, strategic or partnership link with Inpasa," the firm said. Vibra declined to comment. Sao Paulo-traded shares of Vibra settled up 2.7%, which positioned the firm as the top gainer among stocks on Brazilian equities benchmark index Bovespa (.BVSP) , opens new tab in the session. ($1 = 5.4226 reais) https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/inpasa-says-founders-family-invested-vibra-financial-goals-2025-07-04/

2025-07-04 20:13

Authorities search for girls from Christian summer camp Guadalupe River transformed into life-threatening torrent July Fourth fireworks shows canceled across rain-soaked region July 4 (Reuters) - Torrential rains unleashed flash floods along the Guadalupe River in Texas on Friday, killing at least 24 people as rescue teams scrambled to save dozens of victims trapped by high water or reported missing in the disaster, local officials said. Among the missing were 23 to 25 people listed as unaccounted for at an all-girls Christian summer camp located on the banks of the rain-engorged Guadalupe, authorities said. Sign up here. At a news conference late on Friday, almost 18 hours after the July Fourth crisis began, Texas Governor Greg Abbott said search-and-rescue operations would press on through the night and into Saturday. Abbott said resources devoted to the effort would be "limitless." Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One at the end of a day of public events, President Donald Trump said "we'll take care of them," when asked about federal aid for the disaster. The U.S. National Weather Service declared a flash flood emergency for parts of Kerr County in south-central Texas Hill Country, about 65 miles (105 km) northwest of San Antonio, following thunderstorms that dumped as much as a foot of rain. Dalton Rice, city manager for Kerrville, the county seat, told reporters the extreme flooding struck before dawn with little or no warning, precluding authorities from issuing advance evacuation orders as the Guadalupe swiftly rose above major flood stage. "This happened very quickly, over a very short period of time that could not be predicted, even with radar," Rice said. "This happened within less than a two-hour span." State emergency management officials had warned as early as Thursday that west and central Texas faced heavy rains and flash flood threats "over the next couple days," citing National Weather Service forecasts ahead of the holiday weekend. But the weather forecasts in question "did not predict the amount of rain that we saw," W. Nim Kidd, director of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, told a news conference on Friday night. July Fourth fireworks displays ended up being canceled in flood-stricken communities throughout the region, including Kerrville, where the waterfront site for Friday night's planned U.S. Independence Day celebration was submerged by the rain-swollen river. At Friday night's briefing, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 24 flood-related fatalities had been confirmed, up from 13 tallied earlier in the day. One more person found dead in neighboring Kendall County was not confirmed to be a flood-related casualty, Leitha said. PRAYERS FOR THE MISSING Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said on Friday afternoon that authorities were searching for 23 girls listed as missing from among more than 750 children at summer camp sites along the banks of the Guadalupe River when the area was inundated by floodwaters at around 4 a.m. local time. The missing campers had all been attending Camp Mystic, a private Christian summer camp for girls. "We're praying for all those missing to be found alive," Patrick said. It was not clear whether anyone unaccounted for might have ended up among the deceased victims tallied countywide by the sheriff. Otherwise, all other campers were safe, authorities said, with campers being evacuated throughout the day. "Everybody is doing everything in their power to get these kids out," Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the top local elected official, had said at a news briefing on the disaster hours earlier. Kelly said a number of scattered residential subdivisions, recreational vehicle parks and campgrounds were hit hard. Pressed by reporters why more precautions were not taken with stormy weather in the forecast, Kelly insisted a disaster of such magnitude was unforeseen. "We have floods all the time. This is the most dangerous river valley in the United States," Kelly said. "We had no reason to believe this was going to be anything like what's happened here. None whatsoever." In an alert on Thursday, the Texas Division of Emergency Management said it had increased its readiness level and "activated additional state emergency response resources" as parts of west and central Texas braced "for continued heavy rainfall and flash flooding threats heading into the holiday weekend." Lieutenant Governor Patrick said the Guadalupe River had risen 26 feet (8 m) in 45 minutes as heavy showers soaked the region. As of Friday night, emergency personnel had rescued or evacuated 237 people, including 167 by helicopter. With additional rain forecast in the region, Patrick warned that an ongoing threat for possible flash flooding extended from San Antonio to Waco for the next 24 to 48 hours. On Friday night, Governor Abbott signed a disaster declaration to hasten emergency assistance to Kerr and a cluster of additional counties hardest hit by the floods. Personnel from the U.S. Coast Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency also were activated to assist local authorities in confronting the crisis, officials said. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/officials-confirm-deaths-after-flash-floods-central-texas-2025-07-04/