2025-05-15 06:37
Q1 adj EBIT down 90% due to weak demand, prices Steel division swung to Q2 loss Warship division grew profits by 24% Shares indicated 6.9% lower FRANKFURT/DUESSELDORF, May 15 (Reuters) - Thyssenkrupp's operating profit plunged in the second quarter, hurt by what the German conglomerate said was high economic uncertainty among most of its customers and regions, most notably in automotive and steel. Shares in the submarines-to-car parts group were indicated 3.5% lower in pre-market trade following a 90% drop in quarterly adjusted EBIT to 19 million euros ($21 million), far below the 146 million average forecast in a poll provided by the company. Sign up here. Thyssenkrupp, through its sprawling global structure that also covers materials trading and hydrogen, is exposed to global trade frictions and on Thursday warned that tariffs would negatively impact global automotive production in 2025. "The introduction of universal import tariffs and individual customs tariffs for major trading partners like the EU and China are having a negative impact on global trade and destabilising international supply chains," the group said in its first-half report. Thyssenkrupp's steel division, in which Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky owns 20%, swung to a 23-million-euro loss, compared with a 68-million profit last year, also hit by maintenance-related outages. The German conglomerate said it still expects adjusted operating profit (EBIT) of 600 million to 1 billion euros and free cash flow before M&A of between 0 and 300 million euros. Second-quarter adjusted EBIT at the group's submarine division, which is currently being prepared for a spin-off later this year, rose 24% to 31 million euros. "In the second half of the year, we are expecting a more stable market environment and positive effects from the measures we have initiated," Thyssenkrupp CEO Miguel Lopez said. ($1 = 0.8934 euros) https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/thyssenkrupp-keeps-outlook-expects-more-stable-environment-h2-2025-05-15/
2025-05-15 06:23
OSLO, May 15 (Reuters) - Norway's Labour Party government plans to spend more than originally planned from the country's sovereign wealth fund in 2025 to pay for increased support to Ukraine and other priorities, it said in a proposal to parliament on Thursday. Cash spending from the $1.8 trillion sovereign wealth fund is now expected to reach 542.4 billion Norwegian crowns ($52.19 billion) this year, up from 460.1 billion originally planned last October, the government said in a revised fiscal budget. Sign up here. "Uncertainty is high, and the risk of a global economic downturn has increased," the government said in a statement. Parliament in March agreed to more than double its financial pledge to Ukraine this year to help the country in its fight against the Russian invasion, and Thursday's spring budget bill formalised the spending. In its budget, the Norwegian government also cut its forecast for economic growth (non-oil GDP) outside the oil industry to 1.8% in 2025 from a previous estimate in March of 2.0%. ($1 = 10.3926 Norwegian crowns) https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/norway-raise-2025-wealth-fund-spending-52-bln-2025-05-15/
2025-05-15 06:19
May 15 (Reuters) - The pound climbed against the U.S. dollar on Thursday after data showed the British economy grew faster than expected, further making the case for fewer interest rate cuts from the Bank of England. Sterling rose 0.2% to $1.327 against a sluggish dollar as excitement faded over the U.S.-China trade deal announced earlier this week. Sign up here. Official figures showed the British economy expanded 0.7% between January and March, up sharply from 0.1% growth in the last three months of 2024, and beating the 0.6% growth forecast by the BoE and a Reuters poll of economists. In March alone, the economy unexpectedly expanded by 0.2% from February, compared with the flat reading expected by economists. However, the global impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war and British businesses warning of a hit from an increase in UK employment taxes that came into effect last month could weigh on the outlook. Speaking after the data, finance minister Rachel Reeves said there were clearly economic headwinds approaching, while emphasising the significance of the government's recently-announced trade agreements with the United States and India. "While a UK-U.S. trade deal will see the U.S. lower tariffs on some goods, the UK, as a highly open economy, will still suffer from any global slowdown," said George Brown, senior economist at Schroders. Against the euro , sterling was flat at 84.27 pence after hitting a six-week high earlier this week. After the BoE lowered rates by a quarter point last week, traders have scaled back 2025 rate cut bets. Money markets have priced in 44 basis points of easing by the BoE by December from 70 bps of easing expected a week ago. A hawkish tilt in comments from BoE policymakers Catherine Mann and Huw Pill this week also influenced those bets. BoE policymaker Swati Dhingra is expected to deliver a speech in Brussels at 1400 GMT. Dhingra has been the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee member who has voted most often for looser monetary policy since she joined in August 2022. Focus will also be on a spate of U.S. data at 1230 GMT including retail sales that could offer clues on U.S. Federal Reserve's rate trajectory. At a UK-EU summit next week, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is hoping to clinch a new defence agreement with the bloc and improve post-Brexit trade ties. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/sterling-rises-after-uk-gdp-growth-beats-forecast-march-2025-05-15/
2025-05-15 06:17
PARIS, May 15 (Reuters) - French utility Engie (ENGIE.PA) , opens new tab is slowing its development of new U.S. renewable energy projects due to uncertainty over tariffs on imported materials needed for solar installations and batteries, it said on Thursday. U.S. President Donald Trump has slapped tariffs on all of the country's top trade partners, including China, the main producer of the world's solar panels and batteries, although recent negotiations have seen the duties slashed. Sign up here. Engie, Europe's largest gas network operator, also has a growing renewable energy asset base, particularly in the U.S., with 11 gigawatts of renewables and storage installed or under construction. However, finance chief Pierre-Francois Riolacci told journalists on a call that the group was slowing down approvals of new U.S. projects because of uncertainty over tariffs, "and because, in reality, we have difficulty... defining what the final price is that we are able to transfer to customers". He added he was confident in the long-term potential of renewable energy and batteries due to strong electricity demand growth in the U.S. Riolacci's comments came as Engie reported a 0.5% year-on-year rise in earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), excluding nuclear power, to 3.7 billion euros ($4.14 billion). The group's renewables and flex power divisions recorded a 15% drop in EBIT due to lower hydropower output and weaker European power and gas prices. However, its network operations - which includes transmission grids and gas transit - saw a 63% EBIT increase. Engie maintained its 2025 forecast for net recurring income of 4.4 billion to 5 billion euros. The market will likely see the guidance as conservative with potential to increase if second-quarter performance is again robust, analysts at JPMorgan said. ($1 = 0.8932 euros) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/frances-engie-reports-marginal-rise-first-quarter-profit-2025-05-15/
2025-05-15 06:17
UK GDP +0.7% in Q1 vs Reuters poll +0.6% Economy grew by 0.2% in March vs poll 0.0% Reeves says UK outgrew peers in early 2025 Employer tax and trade tariffs pose tests for rest of year Business investment grows by most in 2 years LONDON, May 15 (Reuters) - Britain's economy grew more strongly than expected in early 2025, giving a boost to the government and finance minister Rachel Reeves, who nevertheless faces a stiffer test ahead due to her tax hike on businesses and Donald Trump's trade wars. Between January and March, the economy accelerated to show growth of 0.7%, up sharply from an increase of 0.1% in the last three months of 2024, official data showed on Thursday. Sign up here. That was above the 0.6% growth forecast in a Reuters poll of economists and which was also expected by the Bank of England. In March alone, the economy grew unexpectedly, expanding by 0.2% from February, the Office for National Statistics said. The Reuters poll had pointed to a flat reading of 0.0%. Sterling edged up against the U.S. dollar after the data was announced. Reeves, who has been under fire from business leaders and opposition parties for her decision to increase social security contributions from April, said the data was a show of strength in the economy and its potential. "In the first three months of the year, the UK economy has grown faster than the U.S., Canada, France, Italy and Germany," she said in a statement. Reeves and Prime Minister Keir Starmer are trying to kick-start the economy via increased spending on infrastructure and other reforms that they hope will boost investment. However, the BoE said last week it expected the strong growth in the January-to-March period would prove temporary with output likely to expand by 1% this year, speeding up only slightly to 1.5% growth in 2027. Trump's trade tariffs are expected to slow the global economy while British businesses have said they will be hit by big rises in employment taxes ordered by Reeves and in the minimum wage, which both came into effect in April. Suren Thiru, economics director at ICAEW, an accountancy body, said the first-quarter growth spurt was likely to prove temporary with some businesses rushing to meet orders before the U.S. tariffs took effect. "This robust quarterly reading is probably the pinnacle for economic growth this year, with activity likely to slow sharply going forward as tax and tariff rises and global uncertainty bite," Thiru said. But last week's new trade deal signed with the United States could limit the blow to Britain's economy. Under the deal the U.S. will reduce higher tariffs on steel and aluminium but will continue to impose a new 10% tariff on imports of most British goods. So far, Britain's consumers have remained largely unfazed by worries about the outlook for the economy. Data published this week showed a rise in their spending over March and April. The ONS said growth in the first three months of 2025 was largely driven by the services sector although production grew significantly too after a period of decline. Business investment grew strongly, expanding by 5.9% from the last quarter of 2024, the biggest increase in two years. Elliott Jordan-Doak, senior U.K. economist at consultancy Pantheon Macroeconomics, said some of the jump in business investment reflected a big increase in imports of aircraft, which count as investment. Real GDP per head - which gives a better sense of how economic growth is being felt by people - grew by 0.5%, following two consecutive quarterly falls, the ONS said. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/sustainable-finance-reporting/uk-economy-beats-forecast-grow-by-02-march-ons-says-2025-05-15/
2025-05-15 06:17
PARIS, May 15 (Reuters) - French utility Engie (ENGIE.PA) , opens new tab posted a 0.5% rise in first-quarter earnings on Thursday, as weaker hydropower conditions and lower power prices weighed on gains in its transmission business. The company, which produces, transports and sells gas and electricity, said earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), excluding nuclear, came to 3.7 billion euros ($4.14 billion), up 0.5% compared to the same period a year earlier. Sign up here. That was slightly lower than analyst estimates of 3.8 billion euros, according to a consensus gathered by LSEG. ($1 = 0.8932 euros) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/frances-engie-posts-slight-rise-first-quarter-profit-2025-05-15/
