2025-12-23 21:46

TOKYO, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Japan plans to provide 210 billion yen ($1.34 billion) to help companies that are using clean power to fund investments, in a push to boost demand for renewable energy and spur growth in regional areas, a government official said late on Monday. The subsidies are designed to help the country, the world's fifth-largest emitter of carbon dioxide, reach its clean energy targets and reduce its reliance on imported fossil fuels after facing setbacks on wind and solar projects. Sign up here. The scheme will provide funds over five years starting in fiscal 2026, said Juntaro Shimizu, director of the Green Transformation (GX) policy group at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Companies that rely entirely on decarbonised electricity and contribute to regions where the power is generated will be eligible for subsidies covering up to half of their capital expenditure, he said. Data centre operators meeting the same criteria will also qualify. The government plans to begin soliciting applications from eligible businesses next fiscal year. Japan wants renewables to account for up to 50% of its electricity mix by fiscal 2040, with nuclear power supplying another 20%, up from 22.9% renewables and 8.5% nuclear in fiscal 2023. Progress toward the renewable energy goal has slowed as offshore wind projects, seen as crucial to achieving the target, have faced surging costs, while large-scale solar farms have stalled due to local opposition. The new support measures form part of Japan's "GX 2040 vision," a national strategy integrating decarbonisation and industrial policy approved by the Cabinet earlier this year, seeking to promote the energy transition and economic growth. As part of the framework, the government will establish a "GX Strategy Region" system to create new industrial clusters in areas with decarbonised power sources. Local governments and companies will jointly draw up plans, with the national government selecting regions and providing support through subsidies and regulatory reforms. Applications from local governments are expected to open later this fiscal year, Shimizu said. ($1 = 156.7200 yen) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/japan-back-clean-energy-users-with-13-billion-investment-subsidies-2025-12-23/

2025-12-23 21:00

US economic growth accelerates in Q3 Growth stocks outperform value ServiceNow dips after deal to buy Armis Indexes up: Dow 0.16%, S&P 500 0.46%, Nasdaq 0.57% NEW YORK, Dec 23 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday and the S&P 500 notched a closing record after a flurry of economic data that included a reading of economic growth pushed bond yields higher and elevated growth names. The Commerce Department said gross domestic product increased at a 4.3% annualized rate in the third quarter, the fastest pace since the third quarter of 2023 and well above the 3.3% estimate of economists polled by Reuters, fueled by robust consumer spending. Sign up here. While the data was delayed due to the 43-day government shutdown and many analysts expected the fourth quarter would show a slower pace of economic growth, markets are now pricing in a smaller chance of a January rate cut from the Federal Reserve, according to CME's FedWatch Tool , opens new tab, and shorter-dated bond yields rose. "The bond market didn't like this news," said Stephen Massocca, senior vice president at Wedbush Securities in San Francisco. "It seems to me that when we lose this battle, growth does well, and growth's doing well today... but if you're a food company, or you're a chemical company, or you're an oil and gas company, or even if you're like a private credit company, that's bad news. Unless interest rates go down, it's bad." The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 79.73 points, or 0.16%, to 48,442.41, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 31.30 points, or 0.46%, to 6,909.79 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab gained 133.02 points, or 0.57%, to 23,561.84. The S&P 500 growth index (.IGX) , opens new tab gained 0.8% while the value index (.IVX) , opens new tab was largely unchanged. AI-related names added to recent gains, rebounding from last week's selloff that was triggered by concerns about inflated valuations and worries that high capital spending by AI companies would pressure their profits. Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab rose 3% as the biggest boost to the benchmark S&P 500 index, while Amazon.com (AMZN.O) , opens new tab, Alphabet (GOOGL.O) , opens new tab and Broadcom (AVGO.O) , opens new tab each saw gains of more than 1% on the day. Other economic data painted a less rosy image of the economy as U.S. consumer confidence weakened in December amid deepening anxiety over jobs and income. Factory production was unchanged in November after declining in October. All three main indexes were poised for a third straight yearly gain. The S&P 500 and the Dow were also on track to rise for an eighth consecutive month. Recent gains in U.S. stocks have spurred hopes of a "Santa Claus rally", a seasonal phenomenon where the S&P 500 posts gains in the last five trading days of the year and the first two in January, according to Stock Trader's Almanac. This year, that period begins on Wednesday and runs through January 5. Trading volumes were light and likely to thin out further as the holiday approaches. U.S. stock markets will close at 1 p.m. ET (1800 GMT) on Wednesday and remain shut on Thursday for Christmas. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 14.01 billion shares, compared with the 16.67 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. ServiceNow (NOW.N) , opens new tab declined 1.5% after the enterprise software maker agreed to buy cybersecurity startup Armis for $7.75 billion in cash. U.S. military shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls (HII.N) , opens new tab edged up 0.3% after President Donald Trump announced plans for a new "Trump class" of battleships, which he said would be larger, faster and "100 times more powerful" than any previously built. Miner Freeport-McMoRan (FCX.N) , opens new tab climbed 2.5% and closed at a 15-month high of $52.29 as copper prices touched a record high and Wells Fargo raised its price target on the stock. Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.02-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.6-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P 500 posted 35 new 52-week highs and five new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 70 new highs and 178 new lows. https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/wall-st-futures-tick-higher-ahead-gdp-data-2025-12-23/

2025-12-23 20:16

PDVSA uses tankers for storage as onshore tanks fill up US actions deter ship owners, causing cargo backlog Chevron continues exports despite US-Venezuela tensions Dec 23 (Reuters) - Venezuela's state-run oil company PDVSA has started filling tankers with crude and fuel oil and keeping them in Venezuelan waters, as inventories have mounted due to the U.S. seizing Venezuela-linked ships at sea, according to company documents and shipping data. This month, the U.S. Coast Guard intercepted the Skipper and Centuries tankers in the Caribbean Sea, both fully loaded with Venezuelan crude. The Coast Guard this week was pursuing a third empty vessel that was approaching the OPEC country's shore. Sign up here. The actions targeted vessels of a so-called "shadow fleet" of ships carrying sanctioned oil. U.S. President Donald Trump has announced a blockade of all vessels subject to U.S. sanctions. These factors have scared many ship owners and left more than a dozen cargoes stuck in Venezuelan waters waiting to depart. The emerging backlog, as PDVSA produces about 1.1 million barrels of crude per day, is quickly filling the company's onshore tanks, especially at the Jose terminal, which receives extra heavy oil from the country's main output region, the Orinoco Belt, according to the documents. PDVSA began draining part of those inventories to oil tankers over the past weekend, shipping and company data showed, a strategy it has resorted to in past years to avoid cutting oil production. Since PDVSA's main joint-venture partner Chevron (CVX.N) , opens new tab has not suspended exports of the crude grades they jointly produce, most inventories at Venezuela's western region, where storage capacity is very limited, are close to normal levels, the documents showed. Chevron, however, is responsible for only about a quarter of the crude grades produced at blending stations and upgraders in the Orinoco Belt, or about 130,000 bpd. PDVSA typically exports the three other quarters to China, which has been the destination of about 80% of Venezuela's crude exports this year. As oil exports had stabilized and risen this year, PDVSA's onshore oil stocks at Jose had reduced to between 9 million and 11 million barrels since September from a monthly peak of 14 million barrels earlier this year, according to figures provided by trade intelligence firm Kpler. So far in December, they have already reached 12.6 million barrels, pushing up the country's total oil inventory level to 22 million barrels, the highest since August, Kpler added. PUSHING BACK AND FORWARD PDVSA had been pushing customers to continue receiving oil cargoes bound for China at the Jose port through last week, but convincing them is growing difficult after the U.S. targeted two more vessels over the weekend, company sources said. Building floating storage has become necessary as the company negotiates price discounts and contract changes with some customers, while others begin to push to return their cargoes to the terminals, the sources added. Last week, top officials at PDVSA discussed but then declined to declare force majeure over some crude exports, sources said, in an attempt to negotiate individually with its customers. Under force majeure, a seller frees itself from its delivery commitments for reasons out of its control set in contracts. On Monday evening, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said oil cargo deliveries for Chevron to export would continue despite the dispute with Washington, which is ratcheting up pressure on him to leave power. "(Under) rain, thunder, or lightning, and regardless of any conflicts, the contract with Chevron will be fulfilled. We are serious, decent people," he said in a televised speech. Chevron has repeatedly said that its operations in Venezuela "continue without disruption and in full compliance with laws and regulations applicable to its business." On Tuesday, Venezuela's ruling-party-controlled National Assembly approved a law that introduces prison sentences of up to 20 years for anyone who promotes or finances what it describes as piracy or blockades of oil cargoes. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/venezuela-resorts-floating-storage-onshore-tanks-fill-up-amid-ship-seizures-2025-12-23/

2025-12-23 20:04

US Q3 growth rises more than expected, dollar cuts losses Drop in US consumer confidence in December weighs on dollar Traders still watching for yen intervention NEW YORK, Dec 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar weakened on Tuesday in a holiday-shortened week after data showing strong growth in the world's largest economy failed to shift sentiment on a currency under pressure from expectations of Federal Reserve interest rate cuts next year. The report bolstered views that the Fed will hold off on cutting rates at its meeting in late January, with the odds currently at 87%, according to LSEG estimates. U.S. rate futures now expect the U.S. central bank's next policy easing will occur in June, with two quarter-percentage-point cuts priced in for 2026. Sign up here. "We could see a lower dollar next year at least in the first quarter because the Fed is going to be increasingly forced to admit that the labor market is not in a good place," said Erik Bregar, director of FX and precious metals risk management at Silver Gold Bull in Toronto. "The Fed may be forced to cave a little bit (on rate cuts), even more than they have so far. The market wants cuts. And the odds are that we're going to get a dovish Fed chair that will try to make that happen." U.S. gross domestic product rose at a 4.3% annualized rate in the last quarter, the first estimate from the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis showed. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast GDP would rise at a 3.3% pace in the third quarter. The dollar trimmed its losses against the yen and euro following the release of the GDP report. "A surface-level read on this (GDP) data gives the impression that the economy is roaring into an acceleration following a very short stumble around the anticipation of tariff announcements," Tom Simons, chief U.S. economist at Jefferies, said in a research note. "However, it is difficult to see how there won't be substantial downward revisions in the final cut, or dramatic payback in Q4." Following the GDP report, the dollar cut its losses against the yen and last traded at 156.26 yen , still down 0.5%. The euro also pared gains against the dollar after the data and was last at $1.1779 , still up 0.2% on the day. JAPAN INTERVENTION WATCH The yen gained against the dollar in earlier trading after the strongest indication yet from authorities of Tokyo's readiness to intervene. The Japanese currency hovered near lows against its major peers in recent sessions, with the threat of intervention keeping yen bears at bay. But near-term yen weakness is likely to persist, analysts say, as the cautious tone from the Bank of Japan last week hinted at a slow pace of rate hikes next year. Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said on Tuesday that Japan has a free hand in dealing with excessive moves in the yen. "I would call it an un-hawkish rate hike last week from the Bank of Japan. It feels like every time we go into a BOJ meeting, the market gets too excited that we're going to have the start of a rate-hiking cycle, but the officials always tamp down those expectations," said Silver Gold Bull's Bregar. "So a lot of the price action is really just people getting out of those bets on the yen going up, after they just keep getting disappointed." Elsewhere in currency markets, the dollar index , which measures the U.S. currency against six rivals, slipped 0.2% to 98.02, extending its losses into a second straight day. The index fell to its lowest level since early October and was on course for a 1.4% decrease for the month, which would be its biggest fall since August, and a 9.6% drop for the year, which would be its steepest annual decline since 2017. Strategists at MUFG said the dollar's drop this year is unlikely to be a one-off deal. The dollar also dipped after data showed U.S. consumer confidence worsened in December. The Conference Board said on Tuesday its consumer confidence index fell 3.8 points to 89.1 this month. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index would be at 91.0. In other currencies, sterling rose 0.2% against the dollar to $1.3483, after earlier hitting a 12-week peak of $1.35. Against the Swiss franc, the greenback fell 0.4% to 0.7886 francs . Earlier in the session, the dollar dropped to a three-month low of 0.7867 francs. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/us-dollar-trims-losses-after-stronger-than-expected-growth-data-2025-12-23/

2025-12-23 18:34

By David Ljunggren OTTAWA, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Ahead of the Bank of Canada's rates decision on December 10, Governing Council agreed it was hard to predict whether its next move would be a hike or cut, according to minutes of the meeting released on Tuesday. Sign up here. Two important reasons are unpredictable U.S. trade policy and recent volatile economic data, the seven-member rate-setting council concluded. Governors agreed to hold rates at 2.25%, the level they felt was appropriate to keep inflation close to the bank's 2% target as long as its economic outlook remained broadly consistent. The bank says it is ready to act again if need be, either to curb rising prices or help a weak economy. "Governing Council ... discussed whether it was more likely that their next move would be to raise or lower the policy interest rate," said the minutes. "Given the high level of uncertainty, members agreed that while the current policy rate was at about the right level in the current situation, it was difficult to predict when and in which direction the next change in the policy rate would be." Money markets are predicting the Bank's next move will be a 25 basis point hike, most likely in October 2026. The council said a 2026 review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade pact was "a significant risk" and said uncertainty over the outcome would likely weigh on business investment. "If a significant new shock were to materialize, or an accumulation of evidence indicated that the evolution of economic activity and inflation was materially different from what they expected, Governing Council was prepared to respond," the minutes said. In addition, volatility in recent quarterly GDP data "was an indication of how challenging it will be to assess the underlying trends in the economy", it said. Canada's economy grew at a much faster pace than expected in the third quarter as crude oil exports and government spending boosted economic activity and imports plunged. ((Reuters Ottawa editorial; [email protected] , opens new tab))) Keywords: CANADA CENBANK/ https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/bank-canada-cant-tell-if-next-rate-move-will-be-hike-or-cut-say-minutes-2025-12-23/

2025-12-23 18:30

Dec 23 (Reuters) - Venezuela's ruling-party controlled National Assembly unanimously approved a law on Tuesday that allows prison sentences of up to 20 years for anyone who promotes or finances what it describes as piracy or blockades. The law, which includes "other international crimes", comes after recent U.S. actions against Venezuelan oil shipments. Sign up here. The U.S. Coast Guard seized a sanctioned supertanker carrying Venezuelan crude earlier this month and attempted to intercept two other vessels linked to Venezuela over the weekend, U.S. officials said. The interceptions mark Washington's toughest blow to state oil company PDVSA since its Treasury Department sanctioned the oil company's former trading partners, two subsidiaries of Russia's Rosneft, in 2020, forcing it to cut production and exports. PDVSA was already under sanctions since 2019. The draft "Law to Guarantee Freedom of Navigation and Commerce Against Piracy, Blockades, and Other International Illicit Acts" was introduced on Monday by pro-government lawmaker Giuseppe Alessandrello. National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said at the end of the session the bill will be sent to the executive for approval and will take effect once published in the Official Gazette. Washington has increased pressure on the government of President Nicolas Maduro in recent months, including stepping up a military build-up in the Caribbean and killing dozens of people in strikes on boats it says, without providing evidence, are trafficking drugs off its coasts. U.S. authorities say the operations are part of efforts to combat sanctions evasion and drug trafficking. Maduro says the United States is seeking to undermine Venezuela's economy and remove him from power. Rodriguez also blasted Venezuela's political opposition, whose leader has been in hiding for months but traveled to Oslo earlier December to collect her Nobel Peace Prize. He accused the opposition of promoting sanctions and said they "stole, plundered, bowed down to U.S. imperialism," adding that "they are happy with the aggressive actions currently taking place in the Caribbean Sea." https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/venezuela-passes-law-against-piracy-blockades-amid-us-oil-ship-seizures-2025-12-23/