2025-01-07 05:41
Brent and WTI climb China's Shandong Port blacklists US-sanctioned oil vessels, traders say Middle East market strength provides support Economic data undermines demand hopes HOUSTON, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Oil prices settled higher on Tuesday, driven by concerns over limited supply from Russia and Iran because of Western sanctions and expected higher Chinese demand. Brent crude futures settled at $77.05 a barrel, up 75 cents, or 0.98%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished at $74.25 a barrel, up 69 cents, 0.94%. Traders were looking to the Chinese stimulus plans to drive growth as supplies are tight following the Christmas and New Year's holidays, said Forex market analyst Razan Hilal. "While the market is currently range-bound, it is recording gains on the back of improved demand expectations fueled by holiday traffic and China’s economic pledges," Hilal said in a morning note. "However, the primary trend remains bearish." Some market participants have apparently started to price in small supply disruption risks on Iranian crude exports to China, said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo. Concern over sanctions tightening supply has translated into increased demand for Middle Eastern oil, reflected in a rise in Saudi Arabia's February oil prices to Asia, the first such increase in three months. On Monday in China, Shandong Port Group issued a notice banning U.S.-sanctioned oil vessels from its network of ports, three traders said, potentially restricting blacklisted vessels from major energy terminals on China's east coast. Shandong Port Group oversees large ports on China's east coast, including Qingdao, Rizhao and Yantai, which are major terminals for importing sanctioned oil. Meanwhile, cold weather in the U.S. and Europe boosted heating oil demand, though oil price gains were capped by global economic data. Euro zone inflation accelerated in December, an expected blip that is unlikely to derail further interest rate cuts from the European Central Bank. "Higher inflation in Germany raised suggestions the ECB may not be able to cut rates as fast as hoped across the euro zone," said Panmure Liberum analyst Ashley Kelty. Technical indicators for oil futures are now in overbought territory and sellers are keen to step in again to take advantage of the strength, tempering additional price advances, said Harry Tchilinguirian, head of research at Onyx Capital Group. Market participants await more economic data, including the U.S. December non-farm payrolls report on Friday. "We have a very tight physical market and see demand exceeding supply," said Phil Flynn, senior analyst with the Price Futures Group. "That should lead to more drop downs of inventories around the globe." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-prices-extend-losses-firmer-dollar-supply-outlook-weigh-2025-01-07/
2025-01-07 05:34
A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Vidya Ranganathan If the latest inflation data from Germany and Spain is anything to go by, investors betting the European Central Bank will cut rates by almost a percentage point in the first half of 2025 could be in for disappointment. The euro zone's harmonised index of consumer prices (HICP) is due later today and expected to have risen 2.4% in December, speeding up from 2.2% in November. Indicators already out show prices heating up with faster-than-expected pickups in inflation reported in Spain and Germany. This week's prices data will be the last before the ECB's next meeting on Jan. 30. Any signs that inflation is easing further would give the ECB scope to loosen policy and support a struggling economy. Energy could be a thorn in the ECB's side with natural gas prices at 14-month highs. Germany's faster-than-forecast inflation in December was due to a smaller drop in energy prices. It's not going to be a repeat of 2022's surge, but prices look set to remain elevated with less gas in storage compared with recent years and the end of a decades-long deal for Russia to supply gas to Europe via Ukraine. Britain also faces a similar dilemma as wage growth adds to inflation pressures. British 30-year government bond yields came within a whisker of their highest level since 1998 on Monday. Meanwhile, markets still believe U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's tariff agenda won't be as aggressive as feared. That's despite Trump denying a Washington Post story saying he will go soft. Asian stocks extended the rally in European and world equities to Tuesday after U.S. stocks rose for a second day and the dollar fell against developed and emerging currencies alike. Major bourses across Europe jumped on Monday, with France's CAC 40 (.FCHI) , opens new tab up 2.2% and Germany's DAX (.GDAXI) , opens new tab 1.5% higher. The auto sector (.SXAP) , opens new tab surged nearly 3%, marking its best performance in over a year. If U.S. tariffs are broadly lower than Trump promised on the campaign trail and aimed only at "critical" sectors, then the outlook for global growth should improve and the dollar should weaken. Trump's denial kept Treasury yields elevated ahead of this week's debt auctions. The 30-year yield is the highest in over a year and closing in on 5.00%. In other news, investors are watching the political drama in Canada following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's announcement that he will step down. Key developments that could influence markets on Tuesday: Economic data: UK Halifax house prices, Italy CPI, France CPI, Euro zone HICP and unemployment rate, US ISM non-manufacturing PMI Fed speakers: Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Thomas Barkin speaks in Raleigh Debt auctions: Germany reopening of 2-year auction, United Kingdom reopening of 30-year auction Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/global-markets-view-europe-2025-01-07/
2025-01-07 04:54
MUMBAI, Jan 7 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee strengthened in early trading on Tuesday, after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump denied a media report that suggested his trade tariffs might not be as stringent as feared. The rupee was at 85.6750 against the U.S. dollar as of 10:10 a.m. IST, up from its close at 85.8275 in the previous session. The rupee fell to its all-time low of 85.84 on Monday. The dollar dropped about 1% against major peers following a Washington Post report that said Trump's aides are considering tariffs on every country, but only on sectors seen as critical to national or economic security. Trump denied the report, which supported the dollar and helped it halve its initial losses. The dollar index was last quoted at 108.2 while Asian currencies logged slight gains. The dollar index has risen about 3% since Trump's election in November. "If we've learned anything over the years, it's that Trump is unpredictable. He loves shaking up markets, but the final outcomes are often less dramatic than his initial announcements," ING Bank said in a note. "As our traders say: welcome to the age of Trump 2.0." On the day, the rupee also benefited from strong dollar sales from at least two large foreign banks, likely on behalf of custodial clients, a trader at a state-run bank said. Benchmark Indian equity indexes were in the green after slumping over 1.5% in the previous session. Concerns about India's slowing economic growth have contributed to keeping inflows into Indian equities tepid. Foreign investors have net sold stocks worth about $800 million in January so far. Investors will keep an eye on India's first advance estimates of gross domestic product for the ongoing financial year due later in the day. An initial government projection had pegged GDP growth at 6.5%-7%. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-gains-dollar-rally-takes-breather-amid-tariff-back-forth-2025-01-07/
2025-01-07 02:52
TOKYO, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Japan Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato issued a fresh warning against speculative yen selling on Tuesday, as the Japanese currency approached the key 160 per dollar level that prompted yen-buying interventions half a year ago. "As I have said previously, ... we've been seeing one-sided, sharp moves in foreign exchange development," Kato said, repeating the government's view on the recent currency market situation at a regular press conference. "The Japanese government has been alarmed by foreign exchange developments, including those driven by speculators, and will take appropriate action against excessive moves," Kato said. The dollar reached 158.33 yen on Tuesday, the firmest since July 17, drawing support from higher U.S. Treasury yields. Japan last intervened in July to support its currency when it tumbled to a 38-year low below 161 per dollar. The yen has been on the defensive amid growing expectations that U.S.-Japan interest rate differentials may not narrow soon, with uncertainty about U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's plans to impose tariffs likely to maintain pressure on the Federal Reserve to keep rates higher for longer. The greenback bounced back overnight after Trump denied a Washington Post report that his incoming administration would likely pursue a less-aggressive tariff policy than he previously threatened. "If further Federal Reserve rate cuts are limited in scale and the U.S.-Japan interest rate differential does not contract substantially, we see limited scope for the yen to strengthen against the greenback," Yasunari Ueno, Mizuho Securities' chief market economist, said in a report on Tuesday. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/japan-finance-minister-issues-fresh-warning-against-weak-yen-2025-01-07/
2025-01-07 01:01
ACCRA, Jan 7 (Reuters) - John Dramani Mahama will be sworn in for his second term as Ghana's president on Tuesday with a fresh mandate to tackle familiar challenges, including corruption, high unemployment, inflation and public discontent. The opposition leader, 66, won the Dec. 7 presidential election by a wide margin to stage a political comeback in the West African nation, the world's number-two cocoa producer. He replaces Nana Akufo-Addo, who steps down after serving two terms, continuing Ghana's democratic tradition in a region gripped elsewhere by military coups and jihadist insurgencies. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, a cost-of-living crisis, an ongoing bailout from the International Monetary Fund and a sovereign debt default, Ghana's economy is again growing. But Mahama will be under pressure to deliver quickly on campaign promises to curb high youth unemployment and root out entrenched corruption - issues that have fueled distrust in Ghana's political system. "The average Ghanaian is growing impatient with our democracy," Godfred Bokpin, a finance professor at the University of Ghana, told Reuters. "People have done their part by voting but they're asking: what have they gotten from this democracy?" "BANDAGING OPEN WOUNDS" Analysts and supporters of Mahama’s National Democratic Congress (NDC) party see his political experience and a two-thirds majority in parliament as a strong mandate to take tough decisions and implement credible policies to improve livelihoods and regain investor confidence. But a looming power crisis will pose an early and familiar challenge. Mahama became president in 2012 when John Evans Atta-Mills died in office. He won a presidential election a few months later and his first and only term was plagued by power shortages, macroeconomic instability and allegations of political corruption. He said last month the energy sector was in crisis with preliminary estimates showing arrears to service providers in excess of $2.5 billion. The worsening outlook threatens to curtail output and hamper the nascent economic recovery. "The outgoing government kept the system running by bandaging open sores," said Bright Simons of Accra-based IMANI think tank. "They left the festering wounds for him." Simons said Mahama must quickly secure a financing deal with private power producers, who supply about 40% of Ghana’s power while exploring lasting solutions. GHANAIANS ARE HUNGRY In addition to promises to invest massively in agriculture and infrastructure, Mahama has pledged to prioritise fighting corruption. Bokpin and Simons said curbing graft would help restore public trust, but inflation and exchange rate challenges required immediate attention also. Inflation rose for the third month in a row in November to 23.0%, boosted by surges in food prices. "We can talk about the skyscrapers and complex things but the reality is that the average Ghanaian is hungry. You must prioritise food production," Bokpin said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/ghanas-mahama-returns-president-facing-old-problems-2025-01-07/
2025-01-07 00:55
Exxon accuses California AG of defamation over recycling tech Exxon claims AG Bonta linked to its rivals, seeks undisclosed damages Jan 6 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) , opens new tab filed a lawsuit on Monday against California Attorney General Rob Bonta and several environmental groups, court records show, accusing them of defaming and disparaging the oil giant's advanced plastics recycling initiatives. The lawsuit is a sign of how Exxon is increasingly fighting back against environmentalists and other critics who have brought lawsuits against the company alleging its involvement in climate change and rising greenhouse gas emissions. Filed in federal court in Beaumont, Texas, the lawsuit accused Bonta of acting in concert with a law firm called Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, LLP with ties to Australian business rivals of Exxon. Cotchett had recruited U.S. environmental groups as plaintiffs in a lawsuit against Exxon, and also contributed to Bonta's political campaign, Exxon said. The company is asking for undisclosed damages and a retraction of what it called defamatory statements. The attorney general's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Last year Bonta sued Exxon saying the company had engaged in decades-long deception about the limitations of recycling and asked a court to "hold ExxonMobil fully accountable for its role in actively creating and exacerbating the plastics pollution crisis." Exxon's advanced recycling technology uses heat to break down plastics that are difficult to recycle to a molecular level so they can be reused. Exxon separately sued activist investors last year after they filed a shareholder proposal on climate change. The company continued to pursue the lawsuit even after the activist investors withdrew the proposal, which raised alarm from climate advocates that the legal action would muzzle debate between shareholders and public companies. A U.S. judge threw out Exxon's lawsuit in June. "Instead of coming alongside efforts to support a developing technology ... Defendants are repeatedly and publicly attacking ExxonMobil with false accusations of being a 'liar' and declarations that advanced recycling is a 'myth' and a 'sham,'" Exxon said in the complaint. In November, Exxon said it was moving forward with a plan to spend $200 million in Texas to expand its advanced recycling capabilities. Exxon has been selling off its California oil and gas properties and criticizing the state's energy regulations. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/legal/exxon-mobil-sues-california-attorney-general-environmental-groups-2025-01-06/
