2024-12-03 10:08
MUMBAI, Dec 3 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee hit an all-time low on Tuesday weighed down by a broadly stronger dollar and a slump in the offshore Chinese yuan to a one-year low, while persistently strong dollar bids in the non-deliverable forwards market also exerted pressure. The rupee touched a low of 84.7575 before closing slightly nearly flat on the day at 84.6850. The rupee recovered slightly from its record low as dollar demand ebbed towards the close of the session and the yuan also trimmed losses, a trader at a state-run bank said. Earlier in the session the rupee managed to avoid deeper losses largely on the back of the Reserve Bank of India's intervention in the spot and onshore forwards market. The RBI sold dollars in spot, via state-run banks, and conducted buy/sell swaps in mid-tenor forwards to support the rupee on Tuesday, traders said. Dollar-rupee forward premiums slumped on the back of the central bank's swaps with the 1-year implied yield dropping below 2% for the first time since August. Concerns about India's slowing economic growth rate, foreign portfolio outflows and weakness in regional peers like the Chinese yuan have maintained pressure on the rupee, with the currency hitting record low levels for two consecutive sessions. India's September quarter GDP growth fell to a multi-quarter low, which likely means that the RBI could lower policy rates sooner than expected while foreign equity outflows are likely to persist, undermining the rupee. "After many years of stability (and enjoying carry trade inflows) it looks like the Reserve Bank of India has set the rupee free," analysts at ING Bank said in a note. The rupee's near-tenor volatility expectations have risen with the 1-month implied volatility touching a near six-month peak of 3% on Tuesday. The dollar index was last quoted slightly lower at 106.2 after rising 0.5% on Monday, while Asian currencies were trading mixed. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-drops-record-low-pressured-by-yuan-slide-ndf-dollar-bids-2024-12-03/
2024-12-03 07:47
Floods kill dozens, damage homes and crops in Malaysia and Thailand Authorities warn of more heavy rain and potential second wave of floods TUMPAT, Malaysia, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Residents in the Malaysian town of Tumpat were returning to submerged homes and shops as deadly floodwaters eased in some areas following the worst floods in decades over the weekend, and more heavy rain was forecast as soon as Tuesday. Peninsular Malaysia, particularly its northeastern coast, and southern Thailand have been battered by torrential rains which fuelled floods that killed dozens of people, and damaged homes, transport links, and thousands of acres of rice crops. In Tumpat, a coastal town in Kelantan state near the Thai border, people were able to return to their homes on Monday only to find many had collapsed, with parts of walls, roofs and broken furniture lying scattered in pools of water. Muhamad Alim, a 56-year-old shopkeeper whose food store was inundated, recalled fast-rising waters in his home and his grandchildren crying as the flood surged on Saturday night. "Electricity was cut off, and there was no water supply. So, we were stuck, sitting there as if we were in the middle of the sea, surrounded by water," he said. "You could hear the sound of water rushing cutting through the silence of the night." Muhamad Alim said he was fortunate that his family was well stocked up on food and was able to remain at home until the waters receded. Six people have died in Malaysia and more than 150,000 were evacuated during the height of the floods last week, government data showed. In Thailand, the death toll is 25, and more than 300,000 households were still affected, the interior ministry said. The number of people in temporary shelters in Malaysia fell to just under 95,000 on Tuesday morning, though the authorities remain on guard for a second wave of floods this week. Malaysia's Meteorological Department expects a wind convergence to begin on Tuesday, potentially bringing heavy showers, with a monsoon surge to follow on Dec. 8. In Thailand, the Meteorological Department warned people in the south of the country to beware of heavy to very heavy rains and possible flash flooding and overflows from Dec. 3-5. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/malaysians-return-devastated-homes-floodwaters-recede-more-rain-expected-2024-12-03/
2024-12-03 07:32
JAKARTA, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Indonesia's Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry on Tuesday launched auctions for six oil and gas blocks, taking the total number of blocks offered this year to 11, it said in a statement. Indonesia is keen to boost oil and gas exploration to find new hydrocarbon reserves amid declining oil production from older blocks. The country's President Prabowo Subianto has pledged to reach energy self-sufficiency through oil and gas reforms, as well as renewable energy development. The blocks offered on Tuesday are Air Komering, Serpang, Kojo, Binaiya, Gaea and Gaea II blocks. The six areas have a combined potential of 48 billion barrels of oil equivalent, Dadan Kusdiana, a senior energy ministry official said in the statement. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/indonesia-offers-six-oil-gas-blocks-second-2024-auction-2024-12-03/
2024-12-03 07:21
MUMBAI, Dec 3 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee declined to a lifetime low on Tuesday, pressured by the U.S. dollar's rally against its major peers and on concerns over the Asian country's slowing growth rate. The rupee dipped to a record low of 84.7425 against the dollar, inching past its previous all-time low of 84.7050 hit on Monday. Its Asian peers were mostly weaker, with the offshore Chinese yuan dropping to its lowest in a year, while the dollar index rose to 106.50 on back of weakness in the euro. The decline in the rupee from 84.50 to the current level "has been without much resistance, relatively speaking", a currency trader at a bank said. "The price action suggests that either the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) intervention has been comparatively mild or that the underlying dollar demand is too much. Either way, it is a worrying sign (for the rupee)," the trader said. The rupee declined by 0.25% on Monday in the wake of India's disappointing GDP data. This is the currency's biggest percentage fall in six months. The extent of the rupee's decline, while broadly in line with Asian peers, was a surprise for bankers and corporates considering that the RBI over the last several months has been persistently intervening to hold up the currency at key levels. India's weak GDP growth will likely further dent portfolio investor sentiment, Dhiraj Nim, an FX strategist and economist at ANZ, said in a note. The country's "inferior macro configuration" alongside the recent decline in the RBI’s FX reserves sharply suggest that a "weakening path for the rupee looks inevitable", he said. India's foreign exchange reserves have dropped for eight straight weeks to fall to their lowest in five months. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-drops-all-time-low-india-growth-worries-dollar-strength-2024-12-03/
2024-12-03 07:21
Dec 3 (Reuters) - Global trading house Cargill said on Tuesday it plans to cut around 5% of its staff, or about 8,000 jobs after revenue slumped in its most recent fiscal year as crop prices hit multi-year lows. Agricultural merchants including privately held Cargill are under pressure as prices of the commodity crops they trade, such as wheat, corn and soybeans, have dropped to near four-year lows and crop processing margins have shrunk. Most of Cargill's job reductions would take place this year, the company's president and CEO, Brian Sikes, said in a memo reviewed by Reuters on Tuesday. "They will focus on streamlining our organisational structure by removing layers, expanding the scope and responsibilities of our managers, and reducing duplication of work," Sikes said in the memo. The move is part of a shift in strategy at the nearly 160-year-old company, Cargill said, when asked about the memo. "Unfortunately, that means reducing our global workforce by approximately 5%," it said. Minnesota-based Cargill has more than 160,000 employees, which implies that a 5% cut in staff would hit about 8,000 jobs. Unlisted Cargill reported revenue of $160 billion for its 2024 fiscal year that ended in May, down from a record $177 billion in the previous year. Cargill does not release quarterly earnings statements, but in a memo seen by Reuters in August, it said less than one-third of its businesses met their earnings goals in the last fiscal year. "Impacts to our operations and frontline teams will be kept to a minimum as we empower them to continue delivering for our customers," Sikes said in the memo. The move comes after Cargill said in August it would undergo structural changes after missing internal earnings goals, with plans to streamline operations into three units from five as part of its 2030 strategy, Reuters reported in August. Sikes said the company will hold a meeting on Dec. 9 to share more information about the restructuring. "This week, for those in countries where we can immediately communicate to employees whose roles are impacted, we'll set up meetings to explain next steps," he said. Bloomberg News reported Cargill's job cut plan earlier. Cargill's restructuring comes as its competitor Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM.N) , opens new tab faces its own challenges after discovering accounting irregularities and at the same time battling weaker earnings. Meanwhile, after months of tackling competition regulators including in Canada and China, U.S. grains trader Bunge Global (BG.N) , opens new tab said in October it expects to complete its takeover of Glencore-backed (GLEN.L) , opens new tab Viterra by early 2025. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/cargill-plans-cut-around-5-global-employees-internal-memo-says-2024-12-03/
2024-12-03 07:16
Brent crude futures settle 2.5% higher, WTI gains 2.7% Israel threatens return to war in Lebanon if Hezbollah truce collapses OPEC+ likely to extend output cuts, sources say US oil, fuel stockpiles rose last week, sources say citing API NEW YORK, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose more than 2% on Tuesday as Israel threatened to attack the Lebanese state if its truce with Hezbollah collapses, and as investors positioned for OPEC+ to announce an extension of supply cuts this week. Brent crude futures posted their biggest gains in two weeks, rising by $1.79, or 2.5%, to settle at $73.62 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures also rose the most since Nov. 18, gaining $1.84, or 2.7%, to close at $69.94 per barrel. Israeli forces have continued strikes against what they say are Hezbollah fighters ignoring last week's truce agreement in Lebanon. Top Lebanese officials have urged Washington and Paris to press Israel to uphold the ceasefire. The risk to the ceasefire has some oil traders worrying more about tensions in the Middle East, UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said. While the Lebanon conflict has not resulted in oil supply disruptions, traders will closely track tensions between Iran and Israel over the coming months, Staunovo added. Also supporting oil prices, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies will likely extend output cuts when OPEC+ meets on Thursday. The group is likely to extend supply cuts until the end of the first quarter next year, four OPEC+ sources told Reuters. OPEC+, which accounts for about half of the world's oil production, has been looking to gradually unwind supply cuts through next year. However, the prospect of a market surplus has pressured oil prices, with Brent trading nearly 6% below its average for December 2023. An extension of OPEC+ supply cuts will limit the market surplus and provide the oil market a softer landing than most forecasts expected, Scott Shelton, energy analyst at TP ICAP told clients in a note. "Given a rise in compliance with production cuts from Russia, Kazakhstan and Iraq, the lower Brent price level and indications in press reports, we assume an extension of OPEC+ production cuts til April," Goldman Sachs analysts said in a note. The global oil demand outlook remains weak and China's crude imports are likely to peak as early as next year as demand for transport fuel begins to decrease, researchers and analysts said. U.S. crude oil inventories rose 1.2 million barrels in the week ended Nov. 29, market sources said citing data from the American Petroleum Institute. Fuel stocks also rose, they said. Rising inventories typically indicate weak demand. Official data on oil stocks from the U.S. Energy Information Administration is due Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. ET (1530 GMT). Analysts polled by Reuters expect a 700,000 barrel decline in crude stocks. "Oil is not going to be in short supply next year," Francisco Blanch, head of global commodities at BofA Securities told reporters. "Demand growth rates will slow in 2025, and we cannot count on China to account for half the global oil demand," he said. "(Oil) prices will roll down a bit," he said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/oil-prices-little-changed-ahead-opec-meeting-2024-12-03/
