2025-06-19 21:26
MEXICO CITY, June 19 (Reuters) - Mexican authorities this week discovered a clandestine mini-refinery in the eastern state of Veracruz, along with half a million barrels of crude oil they suspect were stolen from the country's pipelines. The government has sought to clamp down on theft of crude oil and refined products as well as illegal imports, known as huachicol, a practice that generates substantial losses for state energy company Pemex and the government. Sign up here. Authorities have previously linked organized crime and Pemex employees to the illegal trade. Reuters was unable to contact the owners of the clandestine refinery. Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch said on Wednesday on X that during intelligence actions and overflights, "a clandestine operation was identified." It produced artisan or alternative diesel, light naphtha or solvents, and treated oils or light fuel oil, he said, all without the proper permits in operations that posed a risk to local ecosystems. Authorities discovered 500,000 liters of crude oil as well as production infrastructure that fed the country's illicit fuel market. A Pemex source said that although the discovery was not significant in terms of the volume, it highlighted the impunity with which criminals operate freely in the country, as well as the extensive network of complicity between various sectors. Separately, authorities also discovered 1.2 million liters of hydrocarbons, fuel trucks and containers in the northern state of Nuevo Leon. In late May, authorities also recovered more than 3 million liters of hydrocarbon products in the southeast of the country. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/mexican-authorities-discover-clandestine-mini-refinery-crackdown-illegal-2025-06-19/
2025-06-19 21:26
June 19 (Reuters) - A federal judge on Thursday blocked President Donald Trump's administration from forcing 20 Democratic-led states to cooperate with immigration enforcement in order to receive billions of dollars in transportation grant funding. Chief U.S. District Judge John McConnell in Providence, Rhode Island ruled , opens new tab that the U.S. Department of Transportation lacked authority to require the states to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to obtain transportation funding and that the condition violated the U.S. Constitution. Sign up here. McConnell said the administration provided no plausible connection between cooperating with immigration enforcement and the purposes Congress intended for the funding, which is to support highways, bridges and other transportation projects. "Congress did not authorize or grant authority to the Secretary of Transportation to impose immigration enforcement conditions on federal dollars specifically appropriated for transportation purposes," McConnell wrote. The judge, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama, issued a preliminary injunction preventing such a condition from being enforced against the 20 states that sued along with their government subdivisions, like cities. The Trump administration did not respond to a request for comment. It has argued the policy was within the department's discretion. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by a group of Democratic state attorneys general who argued the administration was seeking to unlawfully hold federal funds hostage to coerce them into adhering to the Republican president's hardline immigration agenda. They sued after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on April 24 notified states they could lose transportation funding if they do not cooperate with the enforcement of federal law, including with ICE in its efforts to enforce immigration law. Since returning to office on January 20, Trump has signed several executive orders that have called for cutting off federal funding to so-called sanctuary jurisdictions that do not cooperate with ICE, as his administration has moved to conduct mass deportations. Sanctuary jurisdictions generally have laws and policies that limit or prevent local law enforcement from assisting federal officers with civil immigration arrests. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, in a statement, hailed McConnell's ruling, saying Trump had been "treating these funds – funds that go toward improving our roads and keeping our planes in the air – as a bargaining chip." The 20 states are separately pursuing a similar case also in Rhode Island, challenging new immigration enforcement conditions the Homeland Security Department imposed on grant programs. https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-judge-blocks-trump-plan-tie-states-transportation-funds-immigration-2025-06-19/
2025-06-19 20:40
Iran said last week it would soon open enrichment plant Would have been the country's fourth in operation Israel launched military strikes the next day Isfahan nuclear complex has been hit, IAEA says VIENNA, June 19 (Reuters) - U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi on Thursday identified Isfahan, home to one of Iran's biggest nuclear facilities, as the location of a uranium enrichment plant that Iran said it would soon open in retaliation for a diplomatic push against it. The day before Israel launched its military strikes against Iranian targets including nuclear facilities last Friday, Iran announced it had built a new uranium enrichment facility, which it would soon equip and bring online. Tehran did not provide details such as the plant's location. Sign up here. Iran's announcement was part of its retaliation against a resolution passed by the International Atomic Energy Agency's 35-nation Board of Governors declaring Tehran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations over issues including its failure to credibly explain uranium traces found at undeclared sites. Had it gone online, the new enrichment plant would have been the fourth in operation in Iran. But Israel's attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities destroyed one of those plants and put another out of action by killing its power supply, the IAEA has said. "There was an announcement, quite coincidentally, on the eve of the start of the military operation by Israel of a new enrichment facility in Isfahan, precisely, that we were going to be inspecting immediately, but this inspection had to be postponed, we hope, because of the start of the military operation," Grossi said. He did not say where exactly in Isfahan the planned plant was, but he said the nuclear complex there is "huge". The IAEA has previously reported that Israeli military strikes on Friday damaged four buildings at Isfahan, including the Uranium Conversion Facility that transforms "yellowcake" uranium into the uranium hexafluoride feedstock for centrifuges so that it can be enriched. Grossi told the BBC on Monday that the "underground spaces" at Isfahan did not seem to have been affected. Officials say those spaces are also where much of Iran's most highly enriched uranium stock has been stored. The IAEA has not, however, been able to carry out any inspections since the strikes. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iaea-chief-identifies-isfahan-irans-planned-uranium-enrichment-site-2025-06-19/
2025-06-19 20:06
Palmeiras dominate second half and score twice Match halted because of concerns over weather Red card for Palmeiras player overturned after referee reviews his own decision EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., , June 19 (Reuters) - Brazil’s Palmeiras scored twice in the space of 10 second-half minutes to beat Al Ahly of Egypt 2-0 in their Group A Club World Cup clash which was halted for 50 minutes because of fears over stormy weather at the MetLife Stadium on Thursday. Ahly’s Palestine international striker Wessam Abou Ali headed into his own net trying to defend a free kick whipped in by Anibal Moreno, getting into a mix-up with his defenders to hand Palmeiras a 49th minute lead. Sign up here. The first goal in the group was followed 10 minutes later by a swift counter-attack from the Brazilian club, expertly finished by Jose Manuel Lopez, who had come on at halftime. Immediately after the second goal, English referee Anthony Taylor took the two teams off the field while spectators were told by the public address announcer to leave their seats and seek shelter under the stadium concourse because of a “severe weather threat”. The precaution came despite no obvious signs of any storm, and after 30 minutes, spectators were told they could return to their seats. The game eventually restarted after a 50-minute delay, with Palmeiras keeping up their second-half dominance. "It favours the team that is leading when you have a break like that," said Palmeiras coach Abel Ferreira. "They were a difficult opponent but we kept our focus." The first period had been evenly contested, with a surprisingly high tempo for a game kicking off at midday in 31-degree Celsius heat and 60% humidity, which made it feel much hotter. “It was an equal first half and we felt a goal could come for us at any time and that we had the game under control," said Ahly coach Jose Riveiro. "But in the second half we didn’t have that good a half." Teenage prodigy Estevao displayed the talent that has seen him secure a move to Chelsea, notably in the 18th minute when he sprinted down the right wing before cutting inside across the Ahly box but scuffed his shot wide as the Cairo club’s defence seemed mesmerised by his pace. Ahly had drawn 0-0 with Inter Miami in the tournament opener, while Palmeiras and FC Porto both failed to score when they played at the New Jersey stadium on Sunday. But the scoring drought in the group ended when Abou Ali inadvertently steered the ball into his own net soon into the second half. There were four Palmeiras players involved in a swift break from their own penalty area for the second goal, which Argentine striker Lopez expertly finished shrugging off a defender to place the ball in the net. A first red card of the tournament was brandished by Taylor after Raphael Vega’s dangerous-looking tackle on Ahmed Zizo, but the referee changed his mind after reviewing the action on the pitchside VAR screen. It was downgraded to a yellow card and Vega was replaced at halftime by coach Abel Ferreira. Inter Miami and Porto meet in their next Group A fixture later on Thursday in Atlanta. https://www.reuters.com/sports/soccer/club-world-cup-clash-halted-because-storm-threat-2025-06-19/
2025-06-19 19:58
PM Carney announces measures to support steel, aluminum firms Changes reciprocity on procurement rules for federal projects US has imposed 50% tariffs on imports of steel, aluminum OTTAWA, June 19 (Reuters) - Canada could increase counter-tariffs on U.S.-produced steel and aluminum if it does not reach a broader trade deal with President Donald Trump within 30 days, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Thursday. Trump increased import duties on steel and aluminum to 50% from 25% earlier this month, prompting industry calls for an official response. Trump's move could hurt Canada, which is the largest seller of the metals to the U.S. Sign up here. Carney said on Monday he had agreed with Trump that the two nations should try to wrap up a new economic and security deal by July 21. "Canada will adjust its existing counter-tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum products on July 21 to levels consistent with progress made in the broader trading agreement with the United States," Carney told a press conference. Carney refrained from immediately matching Trump's June tariff hike, saying he wanted to see progress on talks to create a new economic and security relationship. On March 13, Canada imposed 25% retaliatory tariffs on a list of steel products worth C$12.6 billion and aluminum products worth C$3 billion. As part of Thursday's announcement, Canada will implement new procurement rules, under which Canadian producers and trading partners who have tariff-free reciprocal access can compete for federal procurements of steel and aluminum. Carney said Canada would establish new tariff-rate quotas of 100% of 2024 levels on imports of steel products from non-free trade agreement partners "to stabilize the domestic market and prevent harmful trade diversion." Canada ships over 90% of its total steel and aluminum exports to the U.S. and consumes about a fifth of U.S. exports of steel and 50% of its aluminum exports, according to the Royal Bank of Canada, highlighting the critical metals trade between the two countries. Under Carney, Canada has also lined up an array of projects to build infrastructure, starting from defense, oil and gas pipelines to doubling housing capacity all of which will require tons of steel and aluminum. "We are united in working on all forms of support for the industry... that starts with buying Canadian steel and aluminum for federal projects," Carney said while addressing questions from the media. As part of the new measures the government will also favor the use of Canadian steel and aluminum in Canadian-made products and will create a task force to monitor how the steel and aluminum markets are evolving under the tariff regime. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canada-address-unfair-trade-steel-aluminum-sectors-says-carney-2025-06-19/
2025-06-19 19:10
June 19 (Reuters) - An escalation of the Iran-Israeli hostilities could keep Brent oil prices trading about 15% to 20% above pre-conflict levels if the war disrupts 1.1 million barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian oil exports, analysts at Citibank said on Thursday. "This implies Brent prices should be in the $75 to $78/bbl range," Citi said in a note. Prices had been hovering around $65 per barrel in May. Sign up here. Brent crude futures were up $1.48, or 1.9%, to $78.18 a barrel by 1230 ET on Thursday, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for July was up $1.72, or 2.3%, at $76.86. Separately, JP Morgan said in a note that in the most extreme case of a broader regional conflagration that includes the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, it estimates that oil prices could surge to $120-$130 per barrel. The Iran-Israel conflict has raised fears of potential supply disruptions in the Middle East, a key oil-producing region, pushing crude prices higher as traders react to the growing geopolitical risk. Iran is OPEC's third-largest producer, extracting about 3.3 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil. According to Citi, a disruption of about 3 million bpd over a multi-month period could push prices to $90 bbl. Any closure of the Strait of Hormuz could cause a sharp price spike, but Citi believes it would be brief as efforts would focus on a quick reopening. Iranian oil export disruptions may have a smaller impact on oil prices than expected due to falling exports and reduced Chinese purchases as prices are higher now, it said. "Production elsewhere globally may have risen sufficiently to offset the disruption impact, particularly if the production disruption was expected," Citi noted. Increased supply from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries could also mitigate the impact of potential Iranian oil export disruptions, it added. On Wednesday, Goldman Sachs noted that it estimates a geopolitical risk premium of around $10 per barrel following the rise in Brent prices to $76-77 per barrel, while Barclays said that if Iranian exports are reduced by half, crude prices could rise to $85 per barrel and that prices could move past $100 in the "worst-case" scenario of a wider conflagration. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/citi-sees-oil-prices-75-78bbl-if-war-disrupts-11-mln-bpd-irans-oil-exports-2025-06-19/
