2025-01-10 06:34

Brent crude and WTI futures rise over 3% to 3-month high US announces harshest package of sanctions against Russian oil Sanctions will hit Russian oil exports - UBS, traders Extreme cold in US, Europe also boosting oil prices - StoneX New York, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Oil prices rallied nearly 3% to their highest in three months on Friday as traders braced for supply disruptions from the broadest U.S. sanctions package targeting Russian oil and gas revenue. President Joe Biden's administration imposed fresh sanctions targeting Russian oil producers, tankers, intermediaries, traders and ports, aiming to hit every stage of Moscow's oil production and distribution chains. Brent crude futures settled at $79.76 a barrel, up $2.84, or 3.7%, after crossing $80 a barrel for the first time since Oct.7. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose $2.65, or 3.6%, to settle at $76.57 per barrel, also a three-month high. At their session high, both contracts were up more than 4% after traders in Europe and Asia circulated an unverified document detailing the sanctions. Sources in Russian oil trade and Indian refining told Reuters the sanctions will severely disrupt Russian oil exports to its major buyers India and China. "India and China (are) scrambling right now to find alternatives," Anas Alhajji, managing partner at Energy Outlook Advisors, said in a video posted to social network X. The sanctions will cut Russian oil export volumes and make them more expensive, UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said. Their timing, just a few days before President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration, makes it likely that Trump will keep the sanctions in place and use them as a negotiating tool for a Ukraine peace treaty, Staunovo added. Oil prices were also buoyed as extreme cold in the U.S. and Europe has lifted demand for heating oil, Alex Hodes, analyst at brokerage firm StoneX, said. "We have several customers in the New York Harbor that have been seeing an uptick in heating oil demand," Hodes said. "We have seen a bid in other heating fuels as well," he added. U.S. ultra-low sulfur diesel futures , previously called the heating oil contract, rose 5.1% to settle at $105.07 per barrel, the highest since July. "We anticipate a significant year-over-year increase in global oil demand of 1.6 million barrels a day in the first quarter of 2025, primarily boosted by ... demand for heating oil, kerosene and LPG," JPMorgan analysts said in a note on Friday. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-set-third-straight-weekly-gain-winter-fuel-demand-2025-01-10/

2025-01-10 06:17

Jan 10 (Reuters) - Philippines-based Citicore Renewable Energy (CREC.PS) , opens new tab on Friday said Indonesian state-owned oil firm Pertamina will buy a 20% stake in the pure-play renewable energy company for 6.70 billion pesos ($114.8 million). PT Pertamina Power Indonesia, a subsidiary of Pertamina, will subscribe for 2.23 billion shares in Citicore for 3 pesos per share under the agreement. Citicore, one of the Philippines' biggest solar power producers, said the deal will help it develop renewable energy projects in Indonesia and expand its presence in the Southeast Asia region, as it aims to contribute about 1 gigawatt (GW) green energy capacity per year. The funds from the subscription agreement will help the company develop its pipeline of domestic green energy projects, it added. ($1 = 58.3400 Philippine pesos) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/indonesias-pertamina-buy-20-stake-philippines-citicore-renewables-115-million-2025-01-10/

2025-01-10 06:15

Surprising US payrolls jump supports longer Fed rates pause Uncertainty leading into Trump's inauguration supporting gold All precious metals on track for weekly gains Jan 10 (Reuters) - Gold prices rebounded on Friday as uncertainty surrounding the incoming Trump administration's policies lifted safe-haven appeal, even as a stronger-than-expected U.S. employment data reinforced expectations the Federal Reserve might not cut interest rates as aggressively this year. Spot gold was up 0.6% at $2,686.24 per ounce as of 01:57 p.m. EST (1857 GMT), while U.S. gold futures settled 0.9% higher at $2,715.00. Gold prices briefly slipped to $2,663.09 an ounce after data showed the U.S. added 256,000 jobs last month, compared with economists' estimate of a rise of 160,000. The unemployment rate stood at 4.1%, compared with a forecast of 4.2%. Bullion prices, however, quickly rebounded and hit their highest levels since Dec. 12, poised for a weekly gain of more than 1.7%. "Gold's price action points to a lack of committed sellers of the metal; a diffidence well-learned from last year's remarkable rise," said Tai Wong, an independent metals trader. "The momentum from the knee-jerk reaction faded quickly and the short-term traders and programs that sold reversed quickly." The dollar rallied while U.S. stock futures fell sharply after the jobs data. Markets show traders now expect the Fed to cut interest rates by just 30 basis points over the course of this year, compared with cuts worth about 45 basis points before the data. "Gold is still acting resilient in the face of a much stronger-than-expected jobs report ... One of the factors that's been supporting gold is this uncertainty that we've seen going into the (U.S. presidential) inauguration," said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures. As President-elect Donald Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration approaches, investors are anxious about his vow to impose tariffs on a wide range of imports, fearing they could fuel inflation and further limit the Fed's ability to lower rates. While bullion is prized as a safeguard against inflation, high interest rates dull its allure as a non-yielding asset. Spot silver gained 0.9% to $30.38 per ounce, platinum fell 0.2% to $959.10 and palladium added 2.2% to $943.93. All three metals were headed for weekly gains. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/gold-prices-track-weekly-gain-us-data-tap-2025-01-10/

2025-01-10 06:13

LONDON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Wind power provided 20% of the electricity consumed in Europe last year, but the capacity built during the year was less than half of what is needed to meet the European Union's 2030 energy and climate targets, industry group WindEurope said on Friday. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT Wind has been a growing part of Europe's electricity production for more than 20 years, and the European Union wants it to grow much more to meet targets to combat climate change and also as it reduces reliance on fossil fuels. BY THE NUMBERS Europe built 15 gigawatts (GW) of new wind energy last year, including 13 GW of offshore wind and around 2 GW of onshore wind, according to preliminary 2024 data from WindEurope. European Union countries accounted for 13 GW of this, but to reach its 2030 climate targets the 27-nation bloc should be building 30 GW a year of new wind farms. The EU wants wind power to account for 34% of electricity consumed by 2030 and more than 50% by 2050. CONTEXT The global offshore wind industry in particular has faced a challenging few years due to infrastructure, grid connection and logistics issues, permitting delays and higher component costs. Offshore wind investments in Europe have fallen and it remains challenging for companies to take final investment decisions, WindEurope said. KEY QUOTES "Europe is not building enough new wind farms. For 3 main reasons: a) most governments are not applying the good EU permitting rules; b) new grid connections are delayed; c) Europe is not electrifying its economy quickly enough," said WindEurope chief executive Giles Dickson. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/eus-2024-new-wind-capacity-less-than-half-amount-needed-climate-goal-industry-2025-01-10/

2025-01-10 05:34

A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Stella Qiu Most stocks in Asia are down on Friday, following the lead of Wall Street futures, ahead of the all-important payrolls report, which could push Treasury yields and the U.S. dollar even higher. Both Nasdaq futures and S&P 500 futures were down 0.3%, after U.S. trading was closed overnight to mark the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter. European stock markets look set for a flat open. That likely reflects the angst in global bond markets. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield is just off an eight-month peak of 4.73% and threatening a major chart level at 4.739%. The 30-year yield climbed 11 basis points this week to the highest in over a year. British government bond yields shot to the highest since 2008 as investors weighed the country's fiscal outlook, though they have calmed somewhat for the moment. Even China's bond yields rose on Friday, after the country's central bank said it will suspend treasury bond purchases temporarily. The reason offered was a shortage of paper, but analysts suspected it was aimed at propping up the yuan. Much is now riding on the payrolls report, where median forecasts favour a rise of 160,000 in jobs in December with the unemployment rate holding at 4.2%. Forecasts lie in a relatively tight range of 120,000 to 200,000, suggesting more scope for an outside surprise. There's an added wrinkle from the annual reanalysis of the household survey, which could see the unemployment rate revised down for recent months. A surprisingly strong report will most likely drive 10-year yields past 4.739%, with bears hungering for the psychologically important level of 5%, highs not seen since 2007. That would boost the already mighty U.S. dollar, which is poised near two-year highs and wreaking havoc in emerging markets. The reaction in the stock market could be negative too, with high valuations now being challenged by a rising term premium and higher discount rates. So investors may be better off praying for a soft report, but not so soft that it endangers the goldilocks scenario for the U.S. economy. Then again, it would likely need to be an extremely weak report to shift the dial on Fed rate cuts, given investors and the Fed are now more focused on how Trump's policies might unfold over the next few months. Markets are already back to just 43 basis points of easing this year, equivalent to fewer than two rate cuts, with the first of those not fully priced in until June when the potential impact of Trump's proposals becomes clearer. In the foreign exchange market, the dollar is enjoying the sixth straight week of gains. The British pound is an underperformer, down 1% to $1.2303, the lowest in over a year. Overnight, a slew of Fed officials came out and agreed there is no rush to cut interest rates. Key developments that could influence markets on Friday: -- France industrial output for November -- U.S. nonfarm payrolls report for December Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/global-markets-view-europe-2025-01-10/

2025-01-10 05:07

Jan 10 (Reuters) - What a difference a year makes. Rewind the clock to early January 2024, and the asset-management industry was anxiously watching to see if the much-anticipated debut of U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds could live up to expectations they would pull in as much as $30 billion in their first year. Today, those issuers are cracking open the champagne. That first wave of bitcoin ETFs attracted a whopping $65 billion in 2024, helping to propel the price of bitcoin from $43,000 to more than $100,000. The largest of those new products, BlackRock's (BLK.N) , opens new tab iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT.O) , opens new tab, has become the most successful debut in the ETF industry's 35-year history. But that's just the start of the party, cryptocurrency denizens believe. Shortly after those products celebrate their first anniversary on Jan. 10, President-elect Donald Trump - who has pledged to be a crypto president - will be sworn in for the second time, igniting what cryptocurrency fans believe will be a new golden era for the digital asset class. Applications for new, and often novel, crypto products are already piling up in regulators' inboxes. "Everyone is now aware of how much money there is to be made, and with a new, more friendly administration, there's no reason not to go ahead and file your best ideas with regulators," said Joe McCann, founder and CEO of digital assets hedge fund Asymmetric in Miami. While Gary Gensler, Biden's crypto-skeptic Securities and Exchange Commission chair, was forced to approve the first spot bitcoin ETFs - and similar ethereum products - after losing a court challenge, he continued to warn that cryptos are highly volatile and beset by scams and manipulation. Paul Atkins, Trump's appointee to succeed Gensler, is widely seen as a supporter of digital assets. As of late November, companies including VanEck, 21Shares and Canary Capital had seized upon those expectations of an increasingly crypto-friendly tone in Washington by filing at least 16 applications to launch exchange-traded products tracking crypto indices or tokens such as Solana and Ripple's XRP, according to SEC filings and industry sources. LIGHTER REGULATION EXPECTED The push to launch the next wave of crypto products began in earnest weeks before the election, with many in the industry anticipating a lighter regulatory touch regardless of whether Trump or his rival, Vice President Kamala Harris, won. "Since it takes several months to get regulatory approvals and bring an ETF to market, many issuers began making a calculated bet that this year, the climate would be different, and wanted to have their products in the queue ready to go," said Matthew Sigel, head of digital assets research at VanEck, which hopes to launch a Solana ETF in 2025. In addition to XRP and Solana, which are the fourth- and sixth-largest coins by capitalization, according to CoinGecko , opens new tab, Canary has filed to launch products tied to Litecoin and HBAR, less widely held coins, SEC filings show. "The last piece of the puzzle was seeing who the new SEC chair would be - that's what we were banking on," said Steven McClurg, who led the launch of the Valkyrie Bitcoin Fund (BRRR.O) , opens new tab in January and went on to launch new crypto asset manager Canary Capital in October. "Now, it's off to the races," he added. The looming crypto ETF gold rush is about more than just products tied to single coins, however. New derivative products are poised to make their debut within days of Trump's inauguration, and new kinds of multi-asset or hybrid products are waiting in the wings. Several issuers, including Calamos Investments, Innovator ETFs and First Trust, have filed for new funds that would use recently-launched bitcoin ETF options to shield investors from losses on bitcoin itself. The first ones of those products are expected to debut on Jan. 22, issuers say. The SEC approved options on some of the bitcoin ETFs late last year, including BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust, and gave CBOE Global Markets (CBOE.Z) , opens new tab the green light to launch options tied to the Cboe Bitcoin U.S. ETF Index - clearing the way for this batch of new ETFs. Federico Brokate, head of U.S. business for digital asset manager 21Shares, which has launched U.S. bitcoin and ethereum ETFs, in addition to a wider array of offerings in Europe, predicted other new products could include listed funds tied to baskets of cryptocurrencies or that track a mix of alternative assets, such as bitcoin and gold. "Product innovation in the U.S. is just getting started," he said. To be sure, such novel products are still a gamble. While bitcoin ETFs have outperformed, ETFs launched in July tied to the world's second-largest token, ether , have attracted relatively meager inflows of $12.8 billion, according to Paris-based TrackInsight. While bitcoin's price more than doubled in 2024, ether lagged that pace, gaining 53%. Because less widely-held coins are still in their infancy, factors that drive returns and volatility aren't always clear, said Todd Sohn, ETF analyst at broker-dealer Strategas. While trading in bitcoin and ethereum futures and futures-based ETFs has existed for several years in the U.S., so far those are the only coins for which a futures market exists. Sohn said the existence of futures trading has given regulators confidence in the breadth and depth of both bitcoin and ether. It also remains to be seen how rapidly Atkins will embrace the most novel of the proposed products, given not only the potential risks but the lingering debate over whether or not these tokens are securities that fall within the SEC's purview. Still, that regulatory uncertainty is not dampening the enthusiasm of the crypto asset-management industry. "The only limit on what products emerge will be human creativity," said VanEck's Sigel. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/technology/cryptoverse-next-wave-us-crypto-etfs-already-pipeline-2025-01-10/