2025-04-14 17:46

Exchange-rate overhaul welcomed but immediate sales unlikely due to delayed harvest Soy and corn sales slow amid Easter holidays and uncertain peso value Farmers focus on harvesting; potential tax break extension uncertain BUENOS AIRES, April 14 (Reuters) - Argentina's grain industry welcomed an exchange-rate overhaul on Monday, though the new measures will likely not translate into immediate sales as the harvest remains behind schedule, experts said. Late on Friday, Argentina's central bank loosened foreign-exchange controls, a long-awaited measure twinned with billions of dollars to be disbursed by development banks including the International Monetary Fund. Sign up here. Lifting of the controls is also meant to speed up agricultural sales, a prime source of cash from abroad. Despite that, soy and corn sales should remain slow this week, with Easter holidays cutting trading short and exporters still unsure of where the peso currency will settle. The soybean harvest has also fallen behind due to heavy rainfall. "Producers are more focused on harvesting than on the exchange rate, which they already know will be above Friday's 1,129 pesos per dollar," said analyst Lorena D'Angelo, based in grains hub Rosario. With the capital controls lifted on Monday, the peso was allowed to float freely within a moving band between 1,000 and 1,400 pesos per dollar. By midday, it was trading around 1,190 pesos per greenback. Farmers are now rushing to bring in the soy crop amid a break in rains. More precipitation could cause fungus and infection, hitting the harvest's yield. "We're harvesting as much as we can," said Noelia Castagnini, a farmer near Venado Tuerto in grain province Santa Fe. "Right now, all my machines are covered in mud, but we'll worry about the fields later." President Javier Milei, in an interview on Monday with local radio El Observador, pushed for farmers to speed up their sales. "Tell the farmers that if they need to sell, they need to do it now," he said. Argentina currently taxes soy exports at 26% and shipments of derived oil and meal at 24.5%. Milei hinted that a temporary tax break, set to expire at the end of June, would not be extended. WAIT AND SEE "We'll have to wait today and maybe tomorrow to see where the market settles," said Federico Zerboni, head of corn association MAIZAR, when asked if the weakened peso would further slow grains sales. "Today, it's hard to evaluate the new measures without that information." Grain prices were not available by midday, D'Angelo said. "The government clearly made a positive, favorable decision to normalize the foreign-exchange market," said Gustavo Idigoras, head of the grains export and processing chamber. "In any case, the harvest is delayed, so we're not expecting a quick market reaction." Grain sales as of April 2 were at their slowest rate in the last decade, data from the Agricultural Ministry showed. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/argentina-farmers-focus-harvest-over-sales-despite-currency-boost-2025-04-14/

2025-04-14 16:16

MEXICO CITY, April 14 (Reuters) - Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Monday that she had instructed Finance Minister Edgar Amador to speak with banks so they can lower interest rates for both commercial and development loans. Sheinbaum said that banks should follow the central bank, known as Banxico, in cutting rates as it was still expensive and bureaucratic for Mexicans to access credit. Sign up here. Economists have argued that this has hindered growth in Latin America's second-largest economy. Weaker economic growth has stoked fears of a recession in recent months. In late March, Banxico cut its benchmark interest rate to 9%, highlighting progress on inflation, but warning of heightened uncertainty relating to trade tensions and the weakening economic outlook. Mexico's benchmark rate is now at the lowest level since September 2022. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/mexicos-finance-minister-ask-banks-lower-interest-rates-president-says-2025-04-14/

2025-04-14 15:31

Trader's position, bought for $5 mln, was worth as much as $14 mln on Monday morning Analysts note that the trade was likely based on tariff exemption hopes Apple shares rise 7% after tariff exemption news NEW YORK, April 14 (Reuters) - An unidentified options trader's multi-million dollar bet on a short-term rebound in Apple Inc.'s shares was set to reap a sizable profit as the iPhone-maker's shares soared on Monday following the Trump administration's weekend move to grant tariff exclusions for smartphones. On Monday, Apple shares rose as much as 7% to a high of $212.94 before paring gains to trade up 4.5% at $206.05, after the Trump administration, late on Friday, granted exclusions from the steep reciprocal tariffs on smartphones and a set of other electronics products, a move seen as a big break for technology firms such as Apple that rely on imports from China. Sign up here. The jump in Apple's share price means a bullish options trade opened Friday for about $5 million was, on paper, valued at about $14 million early on Monday, a gain of 180%, according to a Reuters calculation. Friday's bullish trade could have been a trader speculating on a reprieve for Apple from tariffs or China in general over the weekend, Ophir Gottlieb, chief executive of Los Angeles-based research and financial technology firm Capital Market Laboratories, said. "That rumor was floating around during market hours on Friday," he said. With Apple shares trading at around $192.69 on Friday, some 35,000 of Apple 25, 210-220 call spreads appeared to be bought for about $5.25 million, according to a Reuters analysis of Trade Alert data. Call spread trades involve simultaneous buying and selling of call options. Friday's spread trade in Apple's options, one of the largest that day by contracts volume for individual stock options, was counting on Apple shares rising in the next two weeks to finish above $210 by April 25, with a maximum potential gain capped at around $30 million, if the shares rose above $220 by then. Based on Apple's share price at the time of the trade, the trader was counting on Apple shares to appreciate by as much as 14% to finish near where the stock was trading before President Donald Trump's April 2 announcement on tariffs. About 10,000 of these spreads appeared to have been closed early on Monday at an average price of about $4, according to Trade Alert data. Apple shares tumbled as much as 23% in the days following the tariff announcement amid a market-wide selloff as investors fretted over the business impact from the tariffs on China, a major production hub for iPhones. The shares recovered ground late last week as markets rebounded and investors grew more optimistic about Apple securing an exemption from tariffs. "I knew (the trade) was a China exemption play," said Joe Kunkle, founder of options analytics firm OptionsHawk.com, who noticed the trade on Friday. "It was just positioning for what most of us knew would happen anyhow," Kunkle said. https://www.reuters.com/technology/bullish-trade-apple-options-reaps-gains-shares-jump-tariff-exemption-2025-04-14/

2025-04-14 14:49

April 14 (Reuters) - Kraken, one of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges, began a phased national rollout of commission-free trading for over 11,000 U.S.-listed stocks and exchange-traded funds on Monday, marking its latest move to expand across asset classes. Crypto firms such as Kraken are looking to expand their businesses to traditional financial spaces on the back of U.S. President Donald Trump's promise of a more industry-friendly regulation. Sign up here. "Expanding into equities is a natural step for us, and paves the way for the tokenization of assets. The future of trading is borderless, always on and built on crypto rails," Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi said. Kraken users will be able to trade stocks and ETFs in some U.S. states, including New Jersey, Connecticut, Wyoming and Oklahoma, starting Monday. "Another step taken by Kraken to become a full-service app offering both traditional finance (TradFi) and crypto services," Oppenheimer analyst Owen Lau said. The San Francisco, California-based company plans on expanding stock trading to more U.S. states, followed by key international markets such as the UK, Europe and Australia. "We believe more TradFi companies will offer crypto products, and more crypto native companies will offer products for traditional asset classes," Lau said. In the long run, the new services will also help Kraken drive tokenization of traditional asset classes by leveraging blockchain, he added. The move, which comes weeks after Kraken struck a $1.5 billion deal for retail futures trading platform NinjaTrader, underscores the increasing intertwining of traditional and digital finance. "Crypto isn't just evolving, it's becoming the backbone for trading across asset classes, such as equities, commodities and currencies. As demand for 24/7 global access grows, clients want a seamless, all-in-one trading experience," Sethi said. Financial technology firms and crypto companies are also seeking to become state or national banks to expand their businesses and gain credibility with customers. Kraken's multi-asset class ambitions also include plans for payments offerings. https://www.reuters.com/technology/kraken-announces-launch-commission-free-trading-2025-04-14/

2025-04-14 12:56

Suspect used Molotov cocktails to attack governor's mansion Balmer charged with attempted murder, arson and terrorism Shapiro's family evacuated by trooper after mansion set on fire Suspect made first court appearance on Monday April 14 (Reuters) - The suspect in a weekend arson attack on Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's official residence said he "harbored hatred" against the Democrat and would have beaten him with a hammer if he had encountered the governor inside the mansion. After turning himself in to the state police, the 38-year-old suspect, Cody Balmer, said he used homemade Molotov cocktails to set the mansion on fire on Sunday. Sign up here. The attack took place while the governor and his family were asleep at the residence in the state capital of Harrisburg, according to a summary of a police interview with Shapiro filed in court. It was the latest episode of political violence directed at a U.S. elected official and bore similarities to the October 2022 home invasion of the San Francisco residence of Nancy Pelosi, then the Democratic speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. In that incident, a man beat her husband, Paul Pelosi, with a hammer. The attacker had also used a hammer to break into the Pelosi house. Balmer has been charged with attempted murder, arson, burglary and terrorism intended to coerce "the conduct of a government," among other felonies. Shapiro, who is Jewish, said his family held a seder on Saturday to celebrate the first night of Passover, a major Jewish holiday, with his family and guests in the dining room of the mansion. A state trooper banged on a door of the residence at around 2 a.m. on Sunday morning to wake Shapiro and rush him and his family and pets to safety. Balmer told troopers he had filled beer bottles with gasoline from a lawnmower before walking about an hour to reach the governor's mansion, according to the police summary. Once he arrived, he scaled a fence, smashed the window of the mansion's piano room with a hammer and threw a Molotov cocktail inside, police said, citing video from security cameras. He then smashed his way inside and ignited the dining room before fleeing, according to the police account. Photographs taken after the fires were extinguished, distributed by the state government, showed a grand room entirely blackened and littered with debris, a charred chandelier, a grand piano blistered by flames and stuffing spilling out of sooty upholstered furniture. Balmer, who describes himself as a certified master mechanic on his Facebook page, remained in custody on Monday. It was not clear whether he had a lawyer. The suspect made his first court appearance on Monday. He arrived at the Dauphin County Prison courthouse in a state police cruiser wearing a light brown pullover and gray trousers, his hands shackled in front of him. Balmer stuck his tongue out as he was escorted past members of the media and brought into the courthouse, where cameras were not allowed. A judge denied him bail and set a preliminary hearing for April 23. 'SHOCKING ATTACK' In a March 2021 Facebook post, Balmer expressed his displeasure with high gasoline prices with a picture of himself and the caption, "Biden owes me 2 Grand." In June 2022, he posted a picture of an embroidery that appeared to depict a Molotov cocktail – a green bottle with flames shooting from it and the words: "Be the light you want to see in the world." In January 2023, Balmer was charged with three counts of assault for allegedly striking his stepsons, 10 and 13, and his wife, whom he also bit during an altercation, according to a Penbrook Borough Police Department report. He pleaded not guilty in that case. A police officer who responded to the incident wrote that Balmer told him he had "taken a bottle full of pills in an attempt to kill himself." Pennsylvania was also the scene of last year's attempt to assassinate Donald Trump during his successful campaign for the presidency. In July, a man used a rifle to shoot at the then-Republican candidate, grazing his ear, during a rally in Butler, about 200 miles (322 km) west of Harrisburg. "The shocking attack on Governor Shapiro and his family is inexcusable, and such evil cannot be tolerated. Thankfully, they are unharmed," House Speaker Mike Johnson posted on the X social media platform. "The perpetrator must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law." Shapiro, seen as a potential candidate for his party's presidential nomination in 2028, said at a press conference on Sunday that FBI Director Kash Patel had spoken to him and promised "all the resources of the federal government" in investigating the attack. The residence was set on fire hours after Shapiro posted , opens new tab a picture of his family's seder table, which he described as a celebration of going "from slavery into freedom." "I refuse to be trapped by the bondage that someone attempts to put on me by attacking us as they did here last night," he said on Sunday. When asked whether the attack could have been motivated by antisemitism, Shapiro said he would defer to the findings from federal authorities and Pennsylvania law enforcement. Dauphin County District Attorney Francis Chardo said he believed Balmer acted alone. “We are investigating motive and whether antisemitism played a role," Chardo said in an email. "We have no indication of the involvement of others.” https://www.reuters.com/world/us/suspect-arson-attack-pennsylvania-governors-residence-charged-with-attempted-2025-04-14/

2025-04-14 12:23

April 14 (Reuters) - NextDecade (NEXT.O) , opens new tab said on Monday France's TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) , opens new tab will buy 1.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of liquefied natural gas (LNG)for 20 years from Rio Grande LNG Train 4. U.S. liquefied natural gas producer said it has contracted a total of 4.6 MTPA of LNG from Train 4 on a long-term basis and expects existing long-term commercial agreements to be sufficient to support a favourable Final Investment Decision (FID). Sign up here. The Rio Grande LNG export plant has suffered repeated delays and has been in development for years, with the first train expected to reach completion by 2027. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/nextdecade-strikes-lng-supply-deal-with-total-2025-04-14/