2025-02-12 20:22
WASHINGTON, Feb 12 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republicans on Wednesday proposed a pair of bills to kill the country's $7,500 electric vehicle tax credit and impose a new $1,000 tax on EVs to pay for road repairs. Senator John Barrasso, joined by 14 senators including Senate Majority Leader John Thune introduced legislation to repeal the tax credit for new EVs and kill the $4,000 used EV credit, end the federal investment tax credit for EV charging stations and end credits for leased EVs. The credits would end 30 days after the bill was signed into law. Detroit automakers have been pushing to retain the credits, or at least see them phased out over time, after investing billions of dollars in EV and battery production. The other bill would impose a one-time $1,000 fee charged at the time of purchase, which would be roughly equivalent to what drivers of conventional vehicles pay in federal gas taxes over 10 years for highway funds, said Senator Deb Fischer, the lead sponsor of the measure that also includes Senators Pete Ricketts and Cynthia Lummis. “EVs can weigh up to three times as much as gas-powered cars, creating more wear and tear on our roads and bridges," Fischer said, saying gasoline-vehicle users typically pay $87 to $100 annually to the trust fund. Most revenue for federally funded road repairs is collected through diesel and gasoline taxes, which EVs do not pay. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said last month he thought EVs should pay for road use. "How to do that, I think, is a little more challenging," said Duffy. Some states charge fees for electric vehicles to cover road repair costs. Congress for the past three decades has opted not to hike fuel taxes to pay for rising road repair costs. Since 2008, more than $275 billion - including $118 billion from the 2021 infrastructure law - has been shifted from the general fund to pay for road repairs. The Trump administration has frozen EV charging funds and is moving to rescind aggressive emissions rules that the Biden administration estimated would force automakers to build a rising numbers of EVs to comply. EVs still face hurdles among consumers including that they are typically more expensive than equivalent gasoline-powered versions. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/republican-senators-call-1000-tax-new-ev-sales-pay-road-repairs-2025-02-12/
2025-02-12 20:07
SAO PAULO, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Brazilian miner Vale (VALE3.SA) , opens new tab will announce on Friday a 70 billion real ($12.2 billion) investment to expand its iron ore and copper mining operations at the Carajas complex in northern Brazil, the presidential palace said on Wednesday. The investments will be carried out through 2030, the presidential palace said, adding the announcement will be made at an event with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and members of his cabinet. Vale, one of the largest iron ore producers in the world, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Carajas, which is located in Brazil's Para state, is Vale's largest iron ore production complex, contributing 177.5 million metric tons last year, or more than half of the firm's total output of the steel ingredient in the period. Vale has faced criticism from Lula and cabinet members in the past. Lula's mining minister last year complained about the company's lack of investment in Brazil and delays to a repair deal over a 2015 dam collapse. An agreement was ultimately sealed in October. Last month, Vale's Chief Executive Gustavo Pimenta held his first official meeting with Lula, where, according to the company, the executive highlighted there was "enormous convergence" between Vale's projects and the country's development agenda. Brazil's presidential palace said Vale will present its "New Carajas" project at the event on Friday, but it did not give further details. Vale also produces copper and nickel in Para, at its Sossego, Salobo and Onca Puma mines. ($1 = 5.7587 reais) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/vale-announce-12-billion-investment-brazils-carajas-brazil-government-says-2025-02-12/
2025-02-12 19:48
Barrick lowers gold output forecast due to mine's suspension Mali's would get $550 mln in revenue this year if not for suspension - CEO CEO warns that mine cannot remain under temporary closure forever Decision on future of mine to be made in a few weeks TORONTO, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Barrick Gold (ABX.TO) , opens new tab will resume operations at its shuttered Loulo-Gounkoto mine in Mali once authorities in the country allow it to resume gold shipments, CEO Mark Bristow told Reuters on Wednesday. The Toronto-based miner and Mali have been locked in a dispute since 2023 over the implementation of the West African country's new mining code. In January, Barrick suspended mining operations after the military-led government blocked shipments from the Loulo-Gounkoto complex and then seized three metric tons of gold. Barrick has been assured by Mali that the gold worth about $245 million seized by authorities still belongs to the company, Bristow said at the company's Toronto headquarters. Shares in the world's No. 2 gold miner rose more than 7% in New York trading on Wednesday afternoon after the company reported a surge in 2024 profit, buoyed by a rally in bullion prices. Barrick also announced a new $1 billion share buyback. Tensions between Mali and Barrick, the country's largest investor, escalated last year when authorities detained four of the company's employees and issued an arrest warrant for Bristow. "We will start the operations as soon as we get approval to ship the gold and we need to ship the gold to pay anything to the government," Bristow said. He said that Barrick paid $460 million to the Mali government last year and would have contributed about $550 million to the nation's treasury this year if operations had not been suspended. Barrick lowered its gold output forecast this year to between 3.2 million ounces and 3.5 million ounces due to the temporary halt at the Mali mine. Barrick's gold output was 3.9 million ounces last year and 4.1 million ounces in 2023 Mali's aggressive push for higher taxes and a bigger state shareholding in mining projects has soured ties with its mining investors. Gold output plunged 23% to 51 metric tons last year, the nation's mines ministry said. Both Mali and Barrick are losing out from the closure of Loulo-Gounkoto, Bristow said. "So if you calculate that to per week ... and every week we don't do this it hurts everyone," he said. The CEO also proposed that an independent expert be hired to "review the facts (in the dispute) and on that basis we can find a way forward", adding that Mali's new law adds costs that could shorten the life of Loulo-Gounkoto mine. "Ultimately, it's the people of Mali that lose," Bristow said. "The investors will move on to another country, another project and other opportunities." Barrick said it is not sure whether it can keep the mine under temporary closure. "We can go for a couple of weeks and a month and seek closure with Malian government," Bristow said. "After that we have to take a decision." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/barrick-will-resume-operations-mali-once-it-can-ship-gold-ceo-says-2025-02-12/
2025-02-12 19:38
Embrapa plans 12-year cannabis research program Anvisa expected to approve cannabis research this year Court ruling allows hemp planting for medicinal use SAO PAULO, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Brazil's agricultural research agency Embrapa, which helped turn the country into a leading grains exporter, is preparing a 12-year research program that could do the same for cannabis cultivation in the farming powerhouse. Embrapa scientists, who bred genetic varieties of grains, cotton and vegetables best suited for Brazil's tropical climate, expect health agency Anvisa to give a green light this year for the cannabis research program. "Can you imagine if we had already carried out the genetic improvement of this plant like we've done with cotton in the last 50 years?" said Daniela Bittencourt, a researcher with the cannabis work group at Embrapa. Embrapa's plans include creating a cannabis seed bank and adapting varieties to the Brazilian soil and climate, while helping to identify and develop regional cannabis production hubs around the country, she said. Bittencourt said about ten domestic and international companies have already contacted Embrapa about cannabis research partnerships. The firms are interested in applications ranging from medicine to food products, as well as exploring traits to facilitate crop rotation or fix carbon in soil. Similar efforts by Embrapa since the 1970s opened up vast regions of Brazil for productive soybean farming, for example, kicking off a ten-fold increase in Brazil's soy output to make it the world's largest producer. A Brazilian higher court ruling in November legalized planting of a type of cannabis known as hemp for medicinal purposes, giving Anvisa until May to establish regulations. Another court hearing on Wednesday denied Anvisa's request to extend that deadline by six months. The health agency did not comment immediately on the decision. Recreational marijuana sale remains illegal in Brazil, unlike trailblazers such as Uruguay and Canada in the Western Hemisphere, which have encouraged domestic cannabis industries. For now, November's court ruling opened the door in Brazil to planting hemp, a version of cannabis with less than 0.3% of the psychoactive compound THC. The variety is often cultivated for cannabidiol (CBD), used for medical purposes, and its fibers, which have various industrial applications. Kiara Cardoso, founder of DNA Solucoes em Biotecnologia, which won the court case allowing it and other interested firms to apply for a planting permit, said she eventually expects large-scale hemp production in Brazil to supply the paper, textile and food industries. For the moment, she said, planting rules may restrict cultivation to small, indoor spaces that meet rigorous protocols for pharmaceutical supply chains. China, Brazil's biggest trading partner, is the world's largest producer and exporter of hemp, according to academic research. Countries such as France and Paraguay have also authorized cultivation for industrial and medicinal purposes. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/brazil-agriculture-agency-plans-long-term-research-into-cannabis-cultivation-2025-02-12/
2025-02-12 19:07
Lab closures affect seed, equipment tech, and market development Stop-work orders issued after Trump froze foreign aid, affecting 17 labs Feb 12 (Reuters) - The Trump administration's dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development has halted work at a network of farm research laboratories at land grant universities in 13 states, according to six lab directors. The lab closures are another hit to U.S. agriculture from President Donald Trump's overhaul of the federal government, by blocking research work designed to advance seed and equipment technology and develop markets abroad for U.S. commodities. Farmers have already seen disruptions to government food purchases for aid, and to agricultural grant and loan programs. Land-grant universities were founded on land given to states by the federal government. "For U.S. farmers, this is not good," said Peter Goldsmith, who leads the University of Illinois' Soybean Innovation Lab, one of the affected labs. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment. The network of 17 laboratories was funded by USAID through a program called Feed the Future Innovation Labs, and pursued research in partnership with countries such as Malawi, Tanzania, Bangladesh, and Rwanda, the lab directors said. Their research helps U.S. farmers because programs conducted overseas can develop production practices that may be useful in the U.S. or provide advance warning of pests, directors said. "It really reduces our capacity to help farmers fight pests and diseases and help American farmers prevent incursions," said David Hughes, director of the USAID Innovation Lab on Current and Emerging Threats to Crops at Penn State University. One study that has been halted was working to control a viral disease spread by an aphid that was hurting banana crops in Tanzania, Hughes said. David Tschirley, who runs an agency-funded lab at Michigan State University and is chair of the Feed the Future Innovation Lab Council, which represents the lab network, said about 300 people are employed by the labs, and they have as many as 4,000 collaborators abroad. "It presents an American face to the world that is a very appreciated face," he said, adding that such work benefits national security. STOP-WORK ORDERS All 17 labs received stop-work orders at the end of January after Trump froze most foreign aid, and have not received additional guidance or responses to queries from the State Department, which oversees USAID, Tschirley said. Some labs are petitioning their host universities to cover some costs, with mixed success, the lab directors said. Michigan State is allowing Tschirley's lab to keep employees based on the expectation USAID will eventually approve the costs, he said. Goldsmith said he laid off all 30 staff at his lab last week, and plans to close it on April 15. He said his lab has provided technical assistance to farmers planting soy in African countries and to companies building soy-processing plants. Some of that lab's partners have included agribusiness companies Bayer (BAYGn.DE) , opens new tab, Corteva (CTVA.N) , opens new tab, BASF (BASFn.DE) , opens new tab, and Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM.N) , opens new tab, according to a 2020 report on the lab's website. Bayer, one of the world's biggest producers of crop seeds and chemicals, said it was assessing the funding halt. The other companies declined to comment or did not respond to questions. Some of Trump's other actions to reshape government have also affected U.S. farmers. Tens of millions of dollars of U.S. commodity purchases, for example, were temporarily halted after the Trump administration's January 24 order freezing most foreign aid. Farmers across the country also say they are not receiving payments from a range of federal farm programs under Trump's directive to freeze federal loans and grants, which has been blocked in court. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/cuts-usaid-halt-us-farm-research-universities-sources-say-2025-02-12/
2025-02-12 18:32
By Promit Mukherjee and David Ljunggren OTTAWA, Feb 12 (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada's governing council felt that a protracted trade conflict with the U.S. would permanently shrink the level of domestic GDP, the minutes of a policy decision meeting showed on Wednesday. The BoC trimmed its key policy rate by 25 basis points to 3% on January 29, its sixth reduction in a row, but cited the risks to the economy should U.S. President Donald Trump go ahead with a threat to impose a tariff on all imports from Canada. Trump agreed last week to pause those tariffs on almost all goods imports for a month, but on Sunday said he would impose a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports. "It was clear that a protracted trade conflict would lead to a decline in economic activity," the minutes said. "Governing Council members also noted that the adverse impact on the level of GDP would be permanent, and the growth of GDP would be reduced until the Canadian economy adjusts to the tariffs." Canada, which sends almost 75% of all its goods and services exports to the United States, has made clear it would retaliate, which the bank said could send inflation higher. Consumer prices in Canada have been around the mid-point of the bank's 1% to 3% target range for almost six months but the economy is sluggish, prompting the rapid rate cuts. The decision to cut rates by 25 basis points was influenced by the threat and uncertainty of tariffs as well as by a desire to support growth, the minutes said. The BoC last month said the constant threat of tariffs was clouding its forecasts. "Members acknowledged that it was impossible to predict what would happen with U.S. trade policy," the summary said. The six-member team, which will be expanded to seven members from March, also noted a trade conflict would reduce incomes in Canada, disrupt supply chain, stoke inflation and weaken the Canadian dollar further. Anecdotal evidence showed that some businesses in Canada were already evaluating moves to the U.S. and a tariff war could spur capital flight and hurt Canadian competitiveness, the minutes said. The council will continue to monitor the impact of tariffs on the economy in real-time, paying more attention to supply chains and the links between sectors. (Reuters Ottawa editorial) Keywords: CANADA CENBANK/ Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/bank-canada-gdp-level-would-be-permanently-hit-by-protracted-us-trade-war-2025-02-12/
