2025-01-29 16:00
Jan 29 (Reuters) - Cigna Group (CI.N) , opens new tab plans to make changes to help lower out-of-pocket cost of prescription drugs, the company said on Wednesday, as it responds to criticism over the role of its pharmacy benefit manager in driving up drug costs. The changes will allow patients access to lower prices negotiated by Cigna's pharmacy benefit manager, Express Scripts. The U.S. pays more for prescription medicines than any other country, and the nation's three largest pharmacy benefit managers have allegedly significantly marked up the prices of certain medicines, a recent report by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission showed. CVS Health's (CVS.N) , opens new tab Caremark, Cigna's Express Scripts and UnitedHealth Group's (UNH.N) , opens new tab Optum together control the majority of the U.S. pharmacy benefit market, while their parent companies operate health insurance and pharmacy businesses. President Donald Trump in December called PBMs middlemen who drive up costs and said he plans to eliminate their role. PBMs act as middlemen between drug companies and consumers. They negotiate volume discounts and fees with drug manufacturers on behalf of employers and health plans, create lists of medications that are covered by insurance, and reimburse pharmacies for prescriptions. Most recently, UnitedHealth said its PBM unit plans to pass 100% of rebates to customers by 2028 at the latest. Cigna's Evernorth Health Services said on Wednesday its actions will enhance transparency about the company's negotiations and help those under employer-sponsored plans to receive the benefit of the savings on medication costs that Express Scripts negotiates. The PBM will also provide patients a personalized summary that details each patient's annual total prescription drug costs, including medication prices, negotiated savings inclusive of discounts and rebates, plan paid amounts, and total savings. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/cigna-take-steps-lower-out-of-pocket-costs-prescription-drugs-2025-01-29/
2025-01-29 14:33
Jan 29 (Reuters) - Truth Social parent Trump Media and Technology Group (DJT.O) , opens new tab said on Wednesday its board of directors has approved the launch of a financial services and FinTech brand Truth.Fi, sending shares of the firm up over 11% in early trading. The company board has also authorized an investment of up to $250 million through Charles Schwab as it seeks to diversify its cash holdings, which exceeded $700 million at the close of the previous year. The Sarasota, Florida-based company said it plans to allocate these funds into various investment options, including exchange-traded funds, separately managed accounts (SMAs), Bitcoin, and other cryptocurrencies. Trump Media's move into finance follows Donald Trump's election to the White House in November and the election of several pro-crypto lawmakers to Congress, which led to a surge in the prices of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. During his campaign, Trump expressed strong support for digital assets and vowed to establish the United States as the "crypto capital of the planet." The SMAs will be developed in collaboration with Charles Schwab, which will provide strategic advice on TMTG's Truth.Fi investments and strategy. Truth.Fi products and services will roll out in 2025 after funding levels are determined and necessary approvals by financial regulators are secured, the company said. Trump Media has also ventured into streaming platforms with the launch of Truth+ Streaming last year. In November, the company reported a $19 million loss in its third-quarter due to legal fees and costs tied to its TV streaming deal. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/trump-media-launches-fintech-services-brand-2025-01-29/
2025-01-29 14:27
JOHANNESBURG, Jan 29 (Reuters) - South Africa's rand was unchanged on Wednesday ahead of an interest rate decision by the U.S. Federal Reserve. At 1406 GMT, the rand traded at its Tuesday closing level of 18.68 against the U.S. dollar . The dollar last traded about 0.3% firmer against a basket of currencies. The Fed will conclude its two-day meeting on Wednesday, where it is widely expected to keep rates steady. U.S. President Donald Trump has demanded lower interest rates, arguing that he understands monetary policy better than those charged with setting it. On Thursday, domestic investors will turn their attention towards the South African Reserve Bank's first interest rate decision for 2025. Economists polled by Reuters forecast a 25 basis point cut to 7.50%. The SARB's monetary policy outlook was influenced by shifting U.S. monetary policy expectations, with markets now pricing in fewer Fed rate cuts this year, said Shaun Murison, senior market analyst at IG. On the stock market, the Top-40 (.JTOPI) , opens new tab was last up about 1%. South Africa's benchmark 2030 government bond was stronger, with the yield down 6 basis points to 8.975%. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/south-african-rand-flat-ahead-us-rate-decision-2025-01-29/
2025-01-29 13:53
LONDON, Jan 29 (Reuters) - British finance minister Rachel Reeves spelled out her plans to revive the country's slow-moving economy on Wednesday, adding to recent pledges to reform investment and planning rules with a commitment to back airport expansion at Heathrow. Below are the key actions the government has announced to remove hurdles to growth since taking power last July: PLANNING The government plans to limit the number of legal challenges that opponents can bring to slow major infrastructure projects. At present, even legal challenges deemed to have little chance of success can be brought back to the courts three separate times. New rules are designed to ensure that in the weakest cases only one such challenge can be made. The current first attempt - known as the paper permission stage - will also be scrapped. HEATHROW RUNWAY EXPANSION On Wednesday Reeves gave her backing for the construction of a third runway at London's Heathrow Airport. Successive governments have dithered about expansion of the site in west London, with politicians caught between the need to build more capacity and concerns about pollution and carbon emissions. Reeves said she wanted permission granted by the end of this parliament, which is due to end in 2029. The head of Heathrow, Thomas Woldbye, said it could be operational by 2035. OXFORD-CAMBRIDGE CORRIDOR The government will further support the "growth corridor" that exists between the university cities of Oxford and Cambridge by working with industry and local government to speed up the building of homes, laboratories and transport networks, including a direct train line. The area, which is home to fast-growing companies spun out of the universities and to industry leaders such as AstraZeneca, could add up to 78 billion pounds ($96.8 billion) to the overall economy by 2035 if plans are implemented, industry experts say. PENSION REFORMS New pension reforms are set to allow the release of what the government calls "trapped" corporate pension surpluses - estimated to be worth more than 100 billion pounds - to be invested in the wider economy. The government has said legislative changes could enable all defined benefit pension schemes to change their rules to permit the use of such funds where there is trustee-employer agreement. Reeves also wants to build a slew of "megafunds," with plans to consolidate about 60 defined contribution pension schemes and 86 Local Government Pension Schemes to make them more cost-efficient and large enough to bankroll ambitious projects. INVESTMENT Reeves has said the National Wealth Fund and the Office for Investment will work with local leaders to drive regional economic growth by focusing on sectors such as technology, manufacturing and green energy. HOUSING The government said there would be new mandatory housing targets, including building more homes where housing is least affordable. Local authorities have been tasked with coming up with timetables for new housebuilding plans or else risk intervention from ministers. The measures are part of the government's efforts to meet a pledge to build 1.5 million new homes in the next five years, including ordering local authorities to build more houses. REGULATORY RESET The government has urged the country's regulators, including competition, energy and water, to remove barriers to economic growth, asking them to create a regulatory environment that boosts investment and innovation. Reeves forced out the chairman of the country's competition watchdog last week, saying he did not agree with her views on how to speed up Britain's economy. FINANCIAL REFORMS Earlier this month, the Bank of England (BoE) delayed the implementation of tougher bank capital rules by a year to January 2027 in order to gain clarity on what the United States will do under Donald Trump as president. In October, the BoE proposed moving to a five-year bonus deferral period for all senior managers, down from the eight years some face, relaxing rules that were put in place after the global financial crisis. Britain's Financial Conduct Authority in December outlined proposals for a new platform to enable trading in shares of privately-owned firms to help the country's lacklustre capital markets and encourage new IPOs. The BoE is also planning to lower its proposed capital requirements for lending to small and medium-sized businesses. In 2023, the previous Conservative government scrapped a decade-old cap on banker bonuses. ($1 = 0.8055 pounds) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/how-uk-finance-minister-reeves-plans-clear-way-economic-growth-2025-01-29/
2025-01-29 12:53
ASTANA, Jan 29 (Reuters) - The OPEC+ group of leading oil producers is set to discuss President Donald Trump's efforts to raise U.S. oil production and take a joint stance on the matter, Kazakhstan said on Wednesday. Trump last week laid out a sweeping plan to help maximise oil and gas production, including by declaring a national energy emergency to speed permitting and rolling back environmental protections. Trump has also publicly called on the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its leading member, Saudi Arabia, to lower oil prices, saying doing so would end the conflict in Ukraine. OPEC+, which groups the de facto Saudi-led OPEC and allies including Russia and Kazakhstan, has yet to react to Trump's call. The group already has a plan in place to start raising oil output from April, gradually unwinding previous cuts. That plan had been delayed several times because of weak demand. OPEC+ is due to hold a meeting of its Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee on Feb. 3. "In the nearest future, a meeting is planned at the level of OPEC+ representatives, at which the organization's policy regarding the current situation will be discussed, including U.S. plans to increase production volumes, and a coordinated position will be adopted," Kazakh Energy Minister Almasadam Satkaliyev told a briefing. OPEC+ members are currently holding back 5.86 million barrels per day of output, or about 5.7% of global demand, in a series of steps agreed since 2022 to support the market. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/opec-take-joint-stance-trump-oil-policy-kazakhstan-says-2025-01-29/
2025-01-29 12:51
KYIV, Jan 29 (Reuters) - The volume of gas in Ukraine's storage facilities has fallen to near the critical 10% mark and the country urgently needs to start importing significant amounts to meet its needs, the former head of the transit operator Serhiy Makogon said on Facebook. Daily gas production cannot cover all of Ukraine's requirements in the cold season and the country pumps gas into storage during the summer months for use in winter. "Our storage facilities are gradually but surely approaching the level of 10% fullness," said Makogon, who led the Ukrainian state transit operator for more than three years before stepping down in 2022. He added that this would reduce possible withdrawals to 60 million cubic meters (mcm) per day. Ukraine has stopped reporting the volume of gas in storage facilities, which have been the target of regular Russian missile attacks since Russia's full-scale invasion in February, 2022. However, the state-owned Naftogaz oil and gas firm, parent company of the firm that operates gas storages, said Naftogaz Group has sufficient gas reserves for a stable heating season. Makogon noted that as gas in storage is pressurised, lower levels mean less can be extracted on a daily basis. "This will mean that we will not be able to meet gas demand through production and underground gas facilities, and we will need to import gas on an emergency basis," he said. Storage facilities were approximately 20% full a year ago and 22-23% full at the same point in 2023, he said. Makogon said current daily gas consumption is about 110 mcm, covered by 52 mcm of production and 58 mcm from storage. He noted that with frosts, consumption could rise as far as 150 mcm, a jump that could not be covered from reserves, meaning imports would be required "in significant volumes and at any price". Roman Chumak, CEO of Naftogaz Group, said in a statement: "We are monitoring the situation with gas reserves. They will be enough for the heating season to go smoothly." "Naftogaz Group also imports fuel, so we must be prepared for all challenges in the war," he said, giving no additional details. Data from the gas transmission operator shows Ukraine is importing small amounts of gas from Hungary. Russian gas flows to Europe via Ukraine ended at the start of the year after Kyiv refused to extend a transit agreement with Moscow to reduce revenue streams supporting its war effort. Industry sources have previously said that Ukraine needs to import about 100 mcm of gas per month during winter to maintain its system after the shutdown of the Russian transit. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/ukraine-has-start-urgent-gas-imports-says-ex-head-transit-operator-2025-01-29/
