2025-02-11 11:22

NEW DELHI, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Decisions from oil producer group OPEC+ take a long-term view of the global markets and are aimed at providing price stability, Secretary General Haitham Al-Ghais said at the India Energy Week conference on Tuesday. The comments came after U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly called on the producer group to increase oil production to help reduce prices. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies, a group known as OPEC+, said earlier this month that it remained on schedule to begin the unwind of its output cuts gradually in April. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/opec-takes-long-term-view-global-oil-markets-aims-stability-2025-02-11/

2025-02-11 11:18

NEW DELHI, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Tanzania is discussing tax incentives with investors in a stalled project to construct a $42 billion liquefied natural gas plant in the country, Energy Minister Doto Biteko said on Tuesday, adding the talks could be completed by June. Equinor (EQNR.OL) , opens new tab and Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab are joint operators of the country's mega gas project, while Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) , opens new tab, Pavilion Energy, Medco Energi (MEDC.JK) , opens new tab and Tanzania's national oil company TPDC are partners. The development has been stalled by proposed government changes to a financial agreement reached in 2023. "The project hasn’t stopped, we are negotiating on the terms of how we can make the project viable for both of us," Biteko told Reuters at the India Energy Week conference. He added that some government incentives would have to be given, and that the production volume depends on negotiations. "Can't say when until we complete the negotiations, but I think the negotiations will be complete within this financial year, between now and June," Biteko said. The project would unlock 47.13 trillion cubic feet of natural gas deposits in the country. Tanzania also plans to launch an exploration licensing round for 26 oil and gas blocks on March 5, Biteko said. Together with France's TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) , opens new tab and China's CNOOC , Uganda and Tanzania are also developing a 1,445-kilometre-long pipeline to transport Ugandan crude oil to Tanzania's Indian Ocean coast. Biteko said construction is progressing well, with the pipeline 47% complete. "Likely in 36 months we will realize the completion," he added. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/tanzania-hopes-conclude-talks-lng-project-by-june-2025-02-11/

2025-02-11 11:15

A look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets from Mike Dolan Old and new economy stocks keep Wall Street pumped up this week as tech and steel sectors advance on a mix of tariff news and an artificial intelligence buzz, with Treasuries in thrall to Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell's latest trip to Congress. U.S. President Donald Trump raised tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on Monday to a flat 25% "without exceptions or exemptions," in a move he hopes helps struggling U.S. firms in the sector but which risks sparking a multi-front trade war. Steel imports account for 23% of American steel consumption in 2023, according to American Iron and Steel Institute data, with Canada, Brazil and Mexico the largest suppliers. Trump also said he would, within two days, follow Monday's action with reciprocal tariffs on all countries that impose duties on U.S. goods, looking at tariffs on cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals. And in another aside, he said he had spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping since taking office on January 20 - without offering details on the topics of their conversation. The upshot of the tariffs was a lift to U.S. steelmakers on Monday, with shares in overseas rivals taking another marginal hit on Tuesday. Thyssenkrupp (TKAG.DE) , opens new tab and Salzgitter (SZGG.DE) , opens new tab in Germany, for example, were down 1% each earlier. The lift to U.S. metals firms - with the likes of Nucor (NUE.N) , opens new tab, U.S. Steel (X.N) , opens new tab and Steel Dynamics (STLD.O) , opens new tab gaining 4% on Monday and Alcoa (AA.N) , opens new tab up 2% - helped the benchmark S&P500 (.SPX) , opens new tab recover early losses on Monday and end higher. Currency markets appeared to brush the steel tariffs aside, with the dollar (.DXY) , opens new tab only marginally higher. Gold climbed to a another record high, however, with spot gold briefly hitting $2,942.70 per ounce before retreating. Stock futures gave back some of those index gains ahead of Tuesday's bell, in part due to rising long-term Treasury yields as Powell prepared his semi-annual congressional testimony and ahead of the week's big debt sales. AI EXCITEMENT But stocks were buoyed by a new leg higher in tech on Monday, too. AI chipmakers Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab and Broadcom (AVGO.O) , opens new tab rose almost 3%. Some of the latest AI excitement came from news that a consortium led by Elon Musk offered $97.4 billion to buy the nonprofit that controls OpenAI - a twist in the billionaire' s fight to block the AI startup's transition to a for-profit firm. Musk's auto giant Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab lost 3% on the report. Broader optimism in U.S. stocks comes from the latest tallies on the corporate earnings season - now more than half way through. With more than 60% of S&P500 firms having reported fourth quarter updates, the annual aggregate profit growth for the index is tracking close to 15% - significantly higher than the 10% expected on January 1. At almost 5%, annual revenue growth is also higher than pencilled in at the start of the year. Those sorts of profit gains, still brisk economic growth, tight labor markets and rising import tariffs all give the Fed ample cause to pause its credit easing campaign. Powell is likely to indicate that in his testimony later in the day - with markets now only fully priced for one rate cut this year and not before September. While Friday's news of an unexpectedly large pickup in U.S. wage growth last month was one reason for those tempered rate expectations, there were also offsets on Monday. The New York Fed's latest household survey saw one-year inflation expectations holding steady about 3%. The International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday it was too early to assess the impact of the Trump tariff plans. But with crude oil prices rising again and another heavy week of Treasury auctions and inflation data ahead, 10-year yields pushed back above 4.5%. Part of that backup was related to the slightly bizarre Trump reference at the weekend to possible fraudulent Treasury debt accounting - another aside that went largely unexplained but was related to Musk's 'Department of Government Efficiency' examination of Treasury accounts. Elsewhere, Chinese mainland and Hong Kong stocks (.CSI300) , opens new tab, (.HSI) , opens new tab slipped back on the mounting tariff war news - cooling a recent rally on the China DeepSeek AI development. But also worrying was news that China's car sales fell 12% in January from a year earlier. That was the first decline since September and the biggest drop in almost a year as automakers braced for both tariffs and price wars amid intense worldwide competition. Shares in Chinese automakers Xpeng (9868.HK) , opens new tab and Geely (0175.HK) , opens new tab tumbled up to 10%. In Europe, stock indexes (.STOXX) , opens new tab were firmer. In company news, BP BP.L reported a sub-forecast quarterly profit that was the lowest in four years as the oil giant promised to reset its strategy following news investor Elliott Management had built up a stake in the firm. On Monday, BP's shares jumped 7% on expectations Elliott's acquisition of the undisclosed stake would enforce change. Key developments that should provide more direction to U.S. markets later on Tuesday: * US January NFIB small business survey * Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's semiannual monetary policy testimony before Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee. Fed Board Governor Michelle Bowman, New York Fed President John Williams and Cleveland Fed chief Beth Hammack all speak. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey speaks * EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meets U.S. Vice President JD Vance in Paris * US corporate earnings: Dupont De Nemours, Super Micro Computer, Coca-Cola, Marriott, AIG, Assurant, S&P Global, Ecolab, Eversource Energy, Gilead, Edwards Lifesciences, Humana, Eversource, Masco, Welltower etc * U.S. Treasury sells $58 billion of 3-year notes Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/global-markets-view-usa-2025-02-11/

2025-02-11 11:08

Chevron's reserve replacement ratio declines to 45%, raising investor concerns Hess acquisition would boost Chevron's prospects with Guyana oilfield stake Exxon and CNOOC challenged Chevron's bid for Hess in court HOUSTON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Chevron's (CVX.N) , opens new tab oil and gas reserves have fallen to the lowest point in at least a decade, highlighting the importance of the U.S. major's planned acquisition of oil producer Hess that has stalled due to a court battle with Exxon Mobil. Reserve replacement is one of the key metrics for investors in energy companies, as it gives a sense of how much oil and gas the companies could produce and for how long. If Chevron closes the Hess acquisition, it would gain a stake in the lucrative Guyana oilfields that are operated by Chevron's rival, Exxon (XOM.N) , opens new tab. Exxon and CNOOC (600938.SS) , opens new tab, the other minority partner in the Guyana field, have challenged Chevron's bid for Hess in court, saying that they have first right of refusal on Hess's equity in the project. Chevron's reserves, or the amount of oil and gas that it can potentially extract, declined from 11.1 billion barrels of oil equivalent in 2023 to 9.8 billion by the end of 2024. The reserves also declined in part due to sales of acreage. The low rate of reserve replacement raises "red flags," said Paul Cheng, an analyst with Scotiabank, highlighting concerns about the company's longer-term prospects. Chevron said its reserve replacement ratio over the past 10-year period was 88%. The company's organic reserve replacement ratio, a metric that measures how much new oil and gas was added to the reserves compared to the amount it produced and excludes acquisitions and sales, was 45%. A ratio of 100% or more means the company is replacing its reserves at the same rate that it depletes them. Cheng said the company's replacement ratio has been below the breakeven requirement over the past three years. Scotiabank maintains a sector outperform rating for Chevron. Chevron declined to comment. During the fourth quarter earnings call, CEO Mike Wirth said the company was focused on developing high-quality oil and gas assets, including in the Gulf of Mexico. The acquisition of Hess, a $53 billion deal struck in October 2023, could improve Chevron's prospects. It would grant the company a 30% stake in more than 11 billion barrels of oil equivalent of discovered recoverable resource in Guyana, the company said when it announced the deal. "The combined company is expected to have resource inventory depth into the next decade – much further than we can usually see with confidence in our business," Wirth said in October. Exxon has not yet reported its replacement ratio for 2024, but the No. 1 U.S. oil producer also struggled to replace its reserves in 2023 and 2022, which may have contributed to its decision to buy oil and gas producer Pioneer Natural Resources , Cheng said. Exxon declined to comment. The Pioneer acquisition last year made Exxon the largest oil producer in the Permian Basin, the biggest U.S. oil field. UK-based oil company Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab and French oil major TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) , opens new tab both have an average reserve replacement ratio over the past three years of more than 100%. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chevron-struggles-replace-oil-gas-reserves-amid-hess-deal-limbo-2025-02-11/

2025-02-11 11:06

NUUK, Greenland, Feb 11 (Reuters) - The mining company that owns the licence to Greenland's Kvanefjeld deposit is hopeful that a new government will repeal a ban on uranium mining after next month's election, potentially rejuvenating one of the world's largest rare earth projects. U.S President Donald Trump last month voiced renewed interest in acquiring the strategically important Arctic island. In response to Trump's comments, CEO Daniel Mamadou of Kvanefjeld licence holder Energy Transition Minerals (ETM.AX) , opens new tab, said: "I think it certainly puts everything related to minerals back on the map." Kvanefjeld is among the world's top three rare earth deposits outside China, capable of supplying up to 15% of global production of the critical components used in manufacture of consumer electronics and weapons, according to Mamadou. However, the project's development was halted four years ago following the election of the Inuit Ataqatigiit party, which had pledged to stop the Kvanefjeld project due to its uranium content and proximity to populated areas. The government subsequently enacted a law banning extraction from deposits with uranium concentrations higher than 100 parts per minute (ppm). The company had been on track to gain final approval for the mine under the previous government, but locals fear its development could harm the country's fragile environment. The site is located near a UNESCO World Heritage Site and just a few kilometres from Narsaq. Mamadou was met by local protesters from Narsaq when he visited the site last week. Greenland's government is in a caretaker period because the election has been called and is no longer fully active. The ruling IA party says it is still opposed to the project and wants to keep the uranium ban in place. Its government coalition partner Siumut, which did not vote for the passing of the uranium ban in 2021, has since the election was called not said if it wants to scrap the uranium law. However, Siumut says in its party constitution that it should be possible to develop mines with uranium as a biproduct. The head of Greenland's biggest labour union SIK with 8,000 members supports the development of Kvanefjeld. Before the halt, Energy Transition Minerals had invested over 1 billion Danish crowns ($138 million) in the project. The company has since launched an arbitration case seeking compensation from the Greenlandic and Danish state. "The way this case is going to be solved - whether it's in our favour or not - is going to dictate the view and the attitude of foreign investments into Greenland going forward," Mamadou said. The company's shares saw a significant boost following Trump's comments but remain far below levels seen before the enactment of the uranium law. The timing of Mamadou's visit to Greenland during the election campaign was a coincidence, he said. Energy Transition Minerals, with China's Shenghe Resources holding 7% as its largest shareholder, is prepared to supply a supply chain outside China within the next three to five years, Mamadou said. Despite protests from locals in Narsaq near the Kvanefjeld site, Mamadou remains optimistic about the project's economic impact. He believes that the project could provide a much-needed boost to Greenland's fishing-dependent economy, potentially paving the way for the country's economic independence from Denmark. ($1 = 7.2366 Danish crowns) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/uranium-ban-repeal-greenland-could-revive-massive-rare-earth-project-licence-2025-02-11/

2025-02-11 10:56

Feb 11 (Reuters) - Sterling edged down versus the euro and was unchanged against the dollar as investors awaited economic data on both sides of the Atlantic and a speech from Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey later in the day. BoE policymaker Catherine Mann said that UK price rises in the year ahead would be consistent with the bank's target, the FT reported. Mann, previously the most hawkish member of the Monetary Policy Committee, joined Swati Dhingra last week in seeking a bigger rate reduction to 4.25%. The bank instead cut its rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.5%. Markets are gearing up for U.S. inflation data on Wednesday and British gross domestic product (GDP) figures due on Thursday, which could affect expectations for the BoE's rate path. "We expect disappointing monthly GDP data to continue in December, with services output flatlining and manufacturing and construction activity both declining," said Sanjay Raja, senior economist at Deutsche Bank. Sterling was down 0.15% at 83.40 pence per euro . It hit 82.88 pence a week ago, its lowest level since January 8. The pound recently rose against the single currency as economists expect the euro area to have more to lose than the UK in case of U.S. tariffs. "This uptrend (versus the euro) is supported by heightened European political risks and UK-German short-term yield spreads, though both have stabilised," said George Vessey, lead forex and macro strategist at Convera. Sterling was roughly unchanged at $1.2364 against the dollar. "The combination of sticky carry advantage and tariff resilience implies an improved near-term outlook for the pound versus the euro," said Barclays strategists led by Themistoklis Fiotakis in a research note. "The longer-term directional path is also constructive thanks to supply-side reforms, including a closer relationship with the European Union, but also demand-supportive fiscal stimulus from April," they added. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told European Union leaders at a dinner on Monday that he wanted to work together to expand the continent's defences. At the end of January, Starmer met business leaders, seeking to hammer home the message that ministers had been told to refocus their attention on economic growth with every major decision. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/sterling-edges-down-versus-euro-before-economic-data-boe-bailey-speech-2025-02-11/