2025-04-07 22:20
Profit fell from record levels of 2022-2023 Still exceeds rivals by wide margin Made around $45 billion in net profit in last 5 years LONDON, April 7 (Reuters) - The world's top energy trader, Vitol, made a net profit of $8 billion to $8.5 billion in 2024, a steep drop from record highs of 2022 and 2023 but still exceeding rivals by a wide margin despite lower volatility, two industry sources familiar with the results said. Energy traders earned record profits in 2022 and 2023 as the market began to recover from the pandemic and also faced gas shortages following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Sign up here. Vitol declined to comment. Combined with $15 billion in net profits in 2022 and $13 billion in 2023, Vitol made nearly $45 billion in the last five years - figures that were previously unimaginable for oil traders and could only be generated by oil majors. Vitol has held the crown of the world's biggest and most profitable trader for over a decade, but before the pandemic it made between $1 billion and $2 billion in annual profits. The company is owned by 400 to 500 employees, many of them traders, who are rewarded based on their annual performance. The firm paid a record dividend of $6.5 billion to its employee shareholders on its 2023 results. A dividend for 2024 has not yet been announced. Vitol has also spent billions of dollars acquiring oil production and refining assets around the world and diversifying into gas, power and more recently coal and metals trading. The firm traded 7.2 million barrels per day of oil and fuels in 2024, down slightly from the previous year, and amounting to around 7% of global supply. Vitol, which ramped up gas trading amid Europe's gas crisis of 2022-2023, expanded its LNG trading volumes by 10% to 19.4 million tons of oil equivalent in 2024. Vitol's rival Trafigura made a $2.8-billion profit in 2024 following $7.3 billion in 2023 and $6.8 billion in 2022. By comparison, oil major BP's (BP.L) , opens new tab profit was $1.2 billion in 2024, down from $15.9 billion in 2023. BP's bigger rival Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab reported a net profit of $16.52 billion in 2024, down from $19.6 billion in 2023. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/vitol-posts-80-85-bln-net-profit-2024-sources-say-2025-04-07/
2025-04-07 21:49
WASHINGTON, April 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday issued Texas' first permit to allow drilling to inject and store carbon dioxide to oil company Occidental (OXY.N) , opens new tab. The company's Oxy Low Carbon Ventures received a so-called Class VI permit to drill three CO2 wells in Ector County in the Permian Basin for its Stratos direct air capture joint venture with asset manager BlackRock (BLK.N) , opens new tab, to inject 8.5 million metric tons of CO2. Sign up here. “EPA is committed to approving permits as quickly as possible and ensuring they meet requirements to protect drinking water sources,” said EPA Regional Administrator Scott Mason. Carbon sequestration had been a key part of former President Joe Biden's administration, which sought to reduce emissions that cause global warming. Biden's 2022 Inflation Reduction Act had included billions of dollars' worth of subsidies for CCS projects. The future of those tax credits is uncertain as Republicans seek to slash tax credits to achieve steep spending cuts in the budget reconciliation process. The Trump administration is weighing a cut in federal support for two major DAC projects, including another Occidental DAC project in Texas. In its announcement, the Trump EPA did not mention reducing emissions but said the technology "will provide well-paying jobs and can be implemented in an environmentally responsible way." Texas had received a surge of interest from companies hoping to bury carbon dioxide in its oilfields, with 43 projects seeking federal permits for injection. But concerns are also growing that pumping CO2 into the ground could exacerbate earthquakes and well blowouts happening in the Permian Basin as Texas struggles to manage wastewater disposal under a different federal well permitting program, potentially undermining public support. The Texas Railroad Commission, which oversees wastewater injection, is also seeking authority from the EPA to oversee its own permitting program for carbon sequestration to speed up approvals. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/us-epa-approves-texas-first-co2-injection-well-2025-04-07/
2025-04-07 21:47
Brent crude futures, options contracts traded hit record high Trump tariffs, OPEC+ hike hinder investor sentiment Money managers likely to lower net-long Brent positions HOUSTON, April 7 (Reuters) - Brent crude futures and options contracts traded on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) hit record volumes on Friday, surpassing levels seen during the COVID-19 pandemic as investors braced for a global trade war and OPEC+ oil output hikes. Heavy selling drove oil prices to four-year lows at the end of last week, marking the largest weekly decline in a year and a half. Sign up here. Market participants traded 4.067 million ICE Brent futures and options contracts, surpassing the previous daily record set in 2020, according to ICE, when the global pandemic shocked energy markets and sent traders scrambling as oil demand shrank. U.S. President Donald Trump stunned financial markets on Wednesday by imposing sweeping tariffs on most U.S. imports, with some countries, including China, facing significantly higher levies. The oil market reeled further after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) decided to advance plans for output increases. The group now aims to return 411,000 barrels per day to the market in May, up from the previously planned 135,000 bpd. Futures continued their fall on Monday, with Brent trading as low as $62.52 a barrel during the session, as Trump threatened even higher tariffs on China and major banks raised their recession risk forecasts. Benchmark Brent is a price barometer for three quarters of the world's internationally traded crude oil, according to the ICE, making it a bellwether for the health of the oil market. "People were waiting on the sidelines to take a position in the market and then once they started to see some of these tariffs unfold, along with the OPEC news, they started to take a bearish position," said Alex Hodes, director of market strategy at financial services firm, StoneX. OIL INVESTOR WHIPLASH In the days before Trump announced reciprocal tariffs, the oil market had been focused on demand growth, low oil inventories and the risk of sanctions on Russia, Iran and Venezuela disrupting supply, said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo. Trump threatened on March 30 to impose secondary tariffs of 25% to 50% on buyers of Russian oil if he felt Moscow was blocking his efforts to end the war in Ukraine. In the week to April 1, money managers had raised their net-long Brent crude futures and options positions on ICE to their highest since April 30, 2024, according to data from LSEG. Brent futures had closed at a one-month high on March 31, at $74.74 a barrel, helping buoy bullish sentiment. "Now the focus has switched to how much will the global economy weaken down as a result of the trade war and how much will oil demand growth slow down over the coming months," Staunovo said. StoneX's Hodes said he expected this week's commitment of traders data to be much more bearish. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/brent-futures-options-volumes-surpass-pandemic-record-oil-market-reels-2025-04-07/
2025-04-07 21:40
SANTIAGO, April 7 (Reuters) - The CEO of copper producer Freeport-McMoRan (FCX.N) , opens new tab said on Monday she was concerned about the health of the global economy and the possibility of recession and inflation in the wake of U.S. tariffs rolled out last week. The comments from the world's largest publicly traded copper producer join the chorus of concern from top executives since U.S. President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs ranging from 10% to 50%, triggering losses in financial markets and ratcheting up tensions with China and the European Union. Sign up here. "We can't ignore the fact that a trade war could cause people to not invest, to not buy, to change their patterns and affect demand," CEO Kathleen Quirk told the CESCO conference in Santiago, one of the copper industry's largest annual gatherings. Copper is used widely across the global economy in power generation, electronics and construction, a ubiquity from which its nickname "Dr. Copper" is derived. Although Quirk noted that mining companies needed to wait and see how the tariff situation unfolds, she said the recent copper price drop was not good long-term for the industry, which depends on multi-billion dollar investments. Quirk told Reuters last month that while U.S. copper tariffs could boost Freeport's profits by $400 million annually, she was worried about their impact on the global economy, comments that she reiterated on Monday. "All of us will rely on a market that will be growing in demand and not subject to these big recessions that we've seen over time," she said, pointing to the effects of the 2008 downturn. U.S.-based Freeport also has major operations in Chile, Peru, Europe and Indonesia. Quirk said she welcomed the idea of producing more copper in the United States, a goal in line with Trump's aim of boosting domestic production to offset the dominance of China. The company is already the largest U.S. copper producer and operates one of two U.S. smelters for the red metal. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/freeport-mcmoran-ceo-flags-concern-over-global-growth-amid-us-tariffs-2025-04-07/
2025-04-07 21:12
BRUSSELS, April 7 (Reuters) - The European Commission bowed to pressure from EU countries to water down countermeasures against U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminium, removing U.S. bourbon from its list of targets. The European Commission had planned to impose extra duties on up to 26 billion euros ($28.4 billion) of U.S. imports in response to U.S. 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium and drew up a list of products in mid-March. Sign up here. This is the current plan, on which EU members will vote on Wednesday. WHAT IS THE EU RESPONDING TO? Trump reinstated 2018 tariffs on steel and aluminium semi-finished and finished products, such as steel pipes and tin foil. Washington has also raised the rate applicable to aluminium to 25% from 10%, removed multiple exemptions and extended the tariffs to cover products made from the metals, including cookware, window frames, machinery, gym equipment and furniture. WHICH MEASURES WILL EU IMPOSE FIRST? The EU responded in 2018 to Trump's tariffs, which it said affected 6.4 billion euros of EU metal shipments, with duties on 2.8 billion euros of U.S. imports. Tariffs on a further 3.6 billion euros of imports were due to take effect three years later, but were suspended as President Joe Biden and the bloc agreed a truce. These tariffs will be reapplied on April 15, targeting U.S. products including steel and aluminium, motorcycles, motorboats and orange juice, but no longer reapplied to bourbon. Trump had threatened 200% tariffs on EU alcoholic drinks if the EU targeted U.S. whiskey, prompting concern from France and Italy, Europe's largest wine exporters The tariff rates vary from 10%, such as for diamonds, to 25% for most products. WHICH NEW PRODUCTS ARE THE EU TARGETING? The commission, which coordinates EU trade policy, also drew up a new list of U.S. imports valued at 21 billion euros and planned to narrow them down to 18 billion euros worth on which to impose tariffs. These tariffs of 25% are to be imposed on May 16. However, the proposal on Monday removed dairy products, spirits and wines from the initial list. The list still includes poultry, other meat, fruit, cereals, vegetable oils, beer, wines, wood, carpets, clothing and glassware, as well as chewing gum, dental floss, other precious stones, lawn mowers, vacuum cleaners and toilet paper. The list also shows that EU tariffs will still apply to soy beans and almonds, but only from December 1. ($1 = 0.9143 euros) https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/dental-floss-diamonds-eu-sights-counter-us-tariffs-2025-03-12/
2025-04-07 21:10
April 7 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Monday directed a powerful U.S. national security panel to take a fresh look at Nippon Steel's bid for U.S. Steel to help determine if "further action" is appropriate, raising hopes for an elusive greenlight for the deal. "I direct the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States...to conduct a review of the acquisition of U.S. Steel by (Nippon Steel) to assist me in determining whether further action in this matter may be appropriate," the memo reads. Sign up here. Nippon Steel said it was pleased by the news. "We have been confident from the outset that an objective, fact-based review of our proposed partnership with U.S. Steel will show that it strengthens American economic and national security," it said. A spokesperson for U.S. Steel said the company looks forward "to continuing to work closely with President Trump and his administration to finalize this significant and important investment." The White House directive sent the share price of U.S. Steel up nearly 14%, as investors took it to mean the administration was considering greenlighting the merger, which former President Joe Biden blocked in January on national security grounds. After Biden's decision, the two companies sued CFIUS, which scrutinizes foreign investments for national security risks, alleging that Biden had prejudiced the committee's decision and violated the companies' right to a fair review. They argued Biden did so in 2024 by expressing opposition to the deal when he was running for re-election, to win support from the United Steelworkers union in the swing state of Pennsylvania, where U.S. Steel is headquartered. The Biden administration had defended the review as essential to protecting security, infrastructure, and supply chains. Last month, the Trump administration filed a motion to extend two deadlines in U.S. Steel (X.N) , opens new tab, and Nippon Steel's (5401.T) , opens new tab lawsuit against a U.S. national security panel to give the government more time to wrap up merger talks with the firms. Late on Monday, the Trump administration and the companies asked an appeals court to pause their litigation until June 5 while CFIUS reviews the tie-up again, noting that the process has the potential to "fully resolve" the companies' claims. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/trump-orders-fresh-review-nippon-steels-bid-us-steel-statement-2025-04-07/
