2025-01-06 11:20

BAKU, Jan 6 (Reuters) - SOCAR Turkey plans to spend around $7 billion on establishing several new polyolefin production facilities to expand capacity at its Petkim unit, Kanan Mirzayev, head of SOCAR Turkey's refining and petrochemicals division, said on Monday. "A detailed front-end engineering design (FEED) for the facilities will be prepared in 2025-2026, requiring around $50 million in initial investments," Mirzayev said. The decision was approved at a December board meeting, and the project is expected to be implemented over the next five to 10 years, he added. "Turkey imports up to 90% of its polyolefins. This initiative will reduce dependency on imports and boost SOCAR Turkey's revenues," Mirzayev said. A final investment decision is expected by the end of 2026. Petkim, founded nearly 60 years ago, became wholly owned by SOCAR in 2008 after the Azerbaijani energy firm acquired a controlling stake for $2.04 billion. The unit operates 16 production plants and, in 2024, produced 2 million metric tons of petrochemicals, meeting 11% of Turkey's domestic demand. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/socar-turkey-invest-7-billion-new-polyolefin-facilities-2025-01-06/

2025-01-06 11:13

Jan 6 (Reuters) - Over 250,000 homes and businesses in central and the southern U.S. were without power on Monday, data from PowerOutage.us showed, after a winter storm brought snow, ice and freezing temperatures. The U.S. is bracing for disruptions as blizzard conditions persist in several states. The storm is expected to move offshore late on Monday, but it will be replaced by Arctic air, lowering daytime temperatures significantly, the National Weather Service said. Governors in several states, including Kansas, Kentucky, Arkansas, West Virginia and Virginia, have declared states of emergency. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) on Sunday announced a weather watch from Jan. 6-10, citing anticipated cold weather across its region, which is expected to increase electrical demand and could reduce reserves. However, grid operations are forecast to remain normal during the ERCOT weather watch. CenterPoint Energy Indiana (CNP.N) , opens new tab reported the highest number of affected customers, with 61,417 clients without power, followed by Appalachian Power Company (AEPCO.UL) in West Virginia, with 31,242 clients without power. Here are the major outages by State: Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/over-250000-us-customers-without-power-after-winter-storm-2025-01-06/

2025-01-06 11:07

Stronger peso and high inflation drive up domestic prices Argentines vacation and shop in Brazil and Chile Milei says short-term pain will lead to long-term gain SANTIAGO/RIO DE JANEIRO/BUENOS AIRES, Jan 6 (Reuters) - In the shopping malls of Santiago de Chile and the beaches of Brazil, Argentines are snapping up clothes, electronics and caipirinhas, taking advantage of cheaper prices overseas as domestic costs in dollar terms spike on a stronger local peso. The South American country's currency strengthened over the back half of last year in parallel markets most Argentines use to skirt strict currency controls. The controlled official rate weakened, but far more slowly than triple-digit inflation, pushing up the relative cost of goods. "Argentina became expensive," said Buenos Aires-based economist Marina Dal Poggetto from consultancy EcoGo, estimating pesos were in real terms three times stronger now than mid-2023 when the country was the cheap destination in the region. At the same time, Brazil's real currency has fallen to a record low. "This year Argentines are going to be holidaying in Brazil," said Dal Poggetto. Outside the Maracanã soccer stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Fernanda Montaño, vacationing from Argentina's San Juan province, said it had been cost-effective to holiday abroad due to the favorable exchange rate. "It was much cheaper for us to vacation here than in Argentina," she said, adding that her biggest regret was not having a larger suitcase to buy more goods to take home. "We went shopping yesterday and were very surprised by the difference in prices for household appliances. We can't take much with us as we came by plane, but it's so much cheaper!" The dramatic shift has come since libertarian President Javier Milei took office in late 2023, ushering in tough austerity measures and a "deficit zero" cost-cutting drive that has helped bolster the peso currency - over the last decade usually a laggard that made Argentina cheap. His changes have stabilized the grain-producing country's public finances and strained economy, which is emerging from a painful recession. Inflation is starting to cool. NIKE SHOES, BIG MACS AND LANCOME Argentine prices for some goods have long been distorted by currency controls and high taxes, but now almost everything is more expensive. A McDonald's Big Mac - often used as a playful index of local prices - sells for up to 7,600 pesos in Argentina ($7.37 at the official exchange rate), versus some $4.49 in Brazil, $5.56 in Mexico or $6.89 in Brooklyn, New York. Prices do vary between outlets even within the same city. In Chile around Christmas time, Argentines were flocking to stores to buy Levi's jeans and Nike shoes, saying they could save hundreds of dollars. "I just bought one of my kids a pair of ankle boots here at Nike and I paid around $25. Back home you're talking the same shoes costing $100 to $150," said Argentine Melanie Galarza at a mall in Santiago. Reuters saw a popular Stanley brand thermos for sale in Santiago for 55,000 Chilean pesos ($56) versus 140,000 Argentine pesos in Buenos Aires ($135). A luxury box of Lancome make-up and face creams cost about $160 in Chile versus an eye-watering $726 in Argentina. McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) , opens new tab, Nike Inc (NKE.N) , opens new tab, Lancome owner L'Oreal SA (OREP.PA) , opens new tab, and U.S.-based Stanley did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Argentina's official peso weakened around 22% last year, while inflation was estimated at around 118%. That's made restaurants, shops and fuel all feel much more expensive in dollar terms than they were just a couple of years ago. The trend is a potential headache for the government, which is trying to keep depleted reserves in the country. Argentina's service sector deficit spiked in October, driven by travelers spending on tickets and purchases overseas. The strong peso also ramps up pressure to devalue. But Milei's government argues that domestic prices will eventually come down with more open competition. Milei strongly favors free markets, even if that comes with a short-term cost. His policies have remained broadly popular with a populace tired of years of economic dysfunction. The central bank, meanwhile, was calm about the trend, said a bank official who asked not to be named. Overseas spending by Argentines was "within estimates" and much of it made with private funds exchanged via parallel currency markets, meaning it has not hit reserves, the official said. Paula Cristi, general manager for Argentina and Uruguay at travel firm Despegar, said she was seeing more Argentines lured to overseas hotspots like Brazil as the southern hemisphere summer season was getting underway, driven by the favorable exchange rate. "It's so expensive here," said Cecilia Cugnaso, getting ready to depart for Brazil from an airport in Buenos Aires. "In Argentina, everything you buy is expensive. Brazil is practically half the price." ($1 = 1,031.5000 Argentine pesos) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/stung-by-high-prices-argentines-seek-cheaper-nikes-big-macs-abroad-2025-01-06/

2025-01-06 11:02

Biden says ban aligns with climate change, conservation agenda Ban affects 625 million acres of ocean Industry group urges Congress to reverse decision Jan 6 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden will ban new offshore oil and gas development along most U.S. coastlines, a decision President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to boost domestic energy production, may find difficult to reverse. The move is considered mostly symbolic, as it will not impact areas where oil and gas development is currently underway, and mainly covers zones where drillers have no important prospects, including in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The White House said on Monday that Biden will use his authority under the 70-year-old Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to protect all federal waters off the East and West coasts, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and portions of the northern Bering Sea in Alaska. The ban will affect 625 million acres (253 million hectares) of ocean. Biden said the move was aligned with both his efforts to combat climate change and his goal to conserve 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030. He also invoked the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, saying the low drilling potential of the areas included in the ban did not justify the public health and economic risks of future leasing. "My decision reflects what coastal communities, businesses, and beachgoers have known for a long time: that drilling off these coasts could cause irreversible damage to places we hold dear and is unnecessary to meet our nation's energy needs," Biden said in a statement. "It is not worth the risks." Around 15% of U.S. oil production comes from federal offshore acreage, mainly in the Gulf of Mexico, a share that has been falling sharply in the last decade as drilling onshore booms, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The United States is now the world's top oil and gas producer thanks to big increases in production from places like Texas and New Mexico, fueled by improved drilling technology and strong demand since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The announcement comes as Trump has pledged to reverse Biden's conservation and climate change policies when he takes office later this month. "It's ridiculous. I'll unban it immediately. I will unban it. I have the right to unban it immediately," Trump said in an interview on the Hugh Hewitt radio program. During his term, Biden also limited new oil and gas leasing on federal lands and waters, drawing criticism from drilling states and companies. But the Lands Act, which allows presidents to withdraw areas from mineral leasing and drilling, does not grant them the legal authority to overturn prior bans, according to a 2019 court ruling - meaning a reversal would likely require an act of Congress. That order came in response to Trump's effort to reverse Arctic and Atlantic Ocean withdrawals made by former President Barack Obama at the end of his presidency. Trump also used the Lands Act to ban sales of offshore drilling rights in the eastern Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida through 2032. Biden's decision will protect the same area with no expiration. It is unclear whether lawmakers would support reversing Biden's decision to protect these waters. A Trump-era proposal in 2018 to open up the Atlantic, Pacific and new parts of the Arctic oceans to offshore drilling drew vehement opposition from most coastal states, including those led by Republicans. The states argued at the time that offshore drilling would pose significant risks to lucrative coastal tourism. Two years later, Trump banned drilling off the coasts of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia as he campaigned for re-election. An oil and gas industry trade group said the decision would harm American energy security and should be reversed. "We urge policymakers to use every tool at their disposal to reverse this politically motivated decision and restore a pro-American energy approach to federal leasing," American Petroleum Institute President Mike Sommers said in a statement. Environmental group Oceana called it a victory for Americans who depend on clean coastlines and fisheries. "Our treasured coastal communities are now safeguarded for future generations,” Oceana Campaign Director Joseph Gordon said in a statement. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/biden-ban-offshore-oil-gas-drilling-vast-areas-ahead-trump-term-2025-01-06/

2025-01-06 11:00

LONDON, Jan 6 (Reuters) - The pound rose as much as 1% on Monday after a report said U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's advisers were considering only applying tariffs to critical imports, a move that could limit the economic impact on other countries. Sterling rose as high as $1.255 and was last up 0.87% at $1.2532. The pound fell to $1.2353 last week, its lowest since April, as the dollar rallied on the back of expectations for strong U.S. growth and an increase in tariffs in 2025. Many analysts think widespread tariffs would hurt other countries economically and could boost U.S. inflation, limiting the scope for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts and so supporting the dollar. The Washington Post on Monday reported , opens new tab that Trump's aides were exploring plans that would apply tariffs to every country - but only on sectors seen as critical to national or economic security. That could limit some of the economic impact of tariffs and suggests Trump is wary of being too disruptive early in his second term. "I think the market’s just going to continue to digest these moves and wait for further insights about whether this is going to be the direction the Trump administration is going to go down," said Lee Hardman, senior currency strategist at Japanese bank MUFG. Sterling was flat against the euro , with one euro trading at 82.96 pence. The dollar rallied in late December and early January against a range of currencies, pushing the pound down to its lowest level in months. The United States is expected to grow considerably faster than other economies including the UK this year, while many investors also expect tariffs to boost the dollar. Traders on Monday were pricing in around 57 basis points (bps) of interest rate cuts from the Bank of England this year, down slightly from late last week . The BoE lowered rates by 50 bps to 4.75% in 2024. Survey data on Monday showed growth in British business activity slowed to a crawl in December and employers cut staffing at the fastest rate in almost four years amid a continuing slump in corporate morale after the government's budget. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/sterling-perks-up-eight-month-low-dollar-slips-2025-01-06/

2025-01-06 10:17

MUMBAI, Jan 6 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee declined to its lifetime low on Monday, hurt by a persistent bearish outlook on the South Asian currency that has been troubled by a broadly stronger dollar and tepid capital flows following a slowdown in economic growth. The rupee weakened to 85.84 against the U.S. dollar, inching past its previous record low of 85.8075 hit in the last week of December. The currency ended the session at 85.8275, down nearly 0.1% on the day. While the rupee remained under pressure throughout the day's trading session, dollar-selling intervention by the Reserve Bank of India helped limit losses, traders said. "It seems like the RBI will hold it (USD/INR) below 86 before Trump's inauguration later in January," a trader at a foreign bank said, referring to the start of U.S. President-elect's term on Jan. 20. The dollar index was down 0.3% at 108.5 on Monday, retreating from an over two-year high, but that did little to help the local currency in the face of strong dollar bids in the local spot and in the non-deliverable forwards (NDF) market. "The proximity to Trump’s inauguration and the strong underlying narrative of a hawkish Fed may well keep any USD correction short-lived," ING Bank said in a note. The 110 target for the dollar index remains "very much at reach," in the coming weeks, the note said. Dollar demand from foreign banks, likely on behalf of custodial clients, also weighed on the rupee during the session, traders said. Benchmark Indian equity indices, the BSE Sensex (.BSESN) , opens new tab and Nifty 50 (.NSEI) , opens new tab ended the day lower by 1.6% each. Foreign investors have sold $1.1 billion of local stocks and bonds over January on a net basis so far, according to stock depository data. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-hits-record-low-indian-equities-slide-bearish-tilt-persists-2025-01-06/