2024-11-11 04:46

Nov 10 (Reuters) - The Montreal Longshoremen's Union rejected a final offer made for a new labour contract, leading to a lockout being declared, the Maritime Employers Association (MEA) and the union said on Sunday. The MEA said in a statement the lockout, which will impact nearly 1,200 port workers at the Canadian port that handled 8.7 million metric tons in the third quarter of 2024, has been declared as of 9 p.m. eastern (02:00 GMT). The lockout will further slow Canadian imports and exports at a time the Port of Montreal was already operating at partial capacity and as West Coast ports are stopped due to a separate dispute. The union representing longshoremen at the Port of Montreal said the offer was rejected by 99.7% of members because the employer refused to negotiate. "If the MEA had respected the collective bargaining processes, solutions would have been found and a conflict at the Port of Montreal would have been avoided," said union adviser Michel Murray in a statement. Two terminals operated by Termont, the container terminal operator based out of the Port of Montreal, representing about 40% of Montreal's container traffic and 15% of total port volume, have been shut down by the union's strike, which began on Oct. 31. However, after Sunday's announcement all longshoring at the port will be locked out. And only essential services not related to longshoring will continue at the Port of Montreal. The MEA said that its final offer provided for a 3% salary increase per year for four years and a 3.5% increase for the two subsequent years. West Coast ports including Canada's largest port of Vancouver have also been mostly shut down since Monday due to a labor dispute, impacting exports of canola oil and forest products. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/montreal-dockworkers-union-reject-offer-lockout-begin-2024-11-11/

2024-11-11 04:30

MUMBAI, Nov 11 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee weakened to its lowest level on record on Monday, as worries about Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. election kept Asian currencies under pressure while sustained outflows from Indian stocks weighed on the local currency. Likely intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), though, helped the currency stave off a sharper decline, traders said. The rupee dipped to a low of 84.3875 in early trading, eclipsing its previous all-time low of 84.38 hit on Friday. The currency quoted at 84.37 as of 09:40 a.m. IST. Asian currencies were mostly weaker between 0.1% to 0.4% while the dollar index was little changed at 105, hovering close to a four-month high hit last week in the wake of the Trump win. While the rupee remained under pressure for much of last week, repeated interventions by the RBI have ensured that the currency doesn't suffer sharp declines, traders said. State-run banks were spotted offering dollars on Monday as well, most likely on behalf of the RBI, four traders said. Interventions by the RBI have contributed to a decline in India's foreign exchange reserves, which fell for the fifth consecutive week to an over 2-month low of $682.13 billion as of Nov. 1. Overseas investors have pulled out a net of about $2.5 billion from Indian stocks over November so far, adding to the $11 billion of outflows in October. Benchmark Indian equity indices, the BSE Sensex (.BSESN) , opens new tab and the Nifty 50 (.NSEI) , opens new tab, were slightly down on Monday after logging their fifth weekly fall in the last six weeks. "The rupee is likely to remain under pressure unless there is a softening in the dollar index or a slowdown in FII (foreign institutional investor) outflows," Amit Pabari, managing director at FX advisory firm CR Forex, said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-slips-record-low-asia-fx-declines-worries-over-trump-win-2024-11-11/

2024-11-11 02:47

MUMBAI, Nov 11 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee may slip to an all-time low at open on Monday, as lingering worries over the impact of Donald Trump's win pressure Asian currencies. The local currency will rely on intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for support, traders said. The 1-month non-deliverable forward indicated that the rupee will open at 84.38-84.40, compared to 84.3750 on Friday and the 84.38 lifetime low. Asian currencies were mostly lower on Monday with the Thai baht down 0.5% and leading losses. Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election has raised concerns about potential trade tariffs hurting regional currencies with the Chinese yuan seen at the frontline of the risk. The offshore Chinese yuan was a tad higher in Asia trading after declining 0.7% on Friday after China's latest fiscal stimulus plan did little to enthuse investors. The dollar index was little changed at 105, hovering close to its highest in four months hit last week after Trump's victory led to a surge in the greenback and U.S. bond yields. Persistent outflows from local stocks have also been a pain point for the rupee. "The pace of foreign equity outflows remains the primary factor determining the trajectory of the USD/INR. However, it is still premature to expect foreign equity outflows from India to end," Societe Generale said in a note. Overseas investors have net pulled out about $2.5 billion from Indian stocks over November so far, adding to the $11 billion of outflows seen in October. It's "quite likely that it (rupee) will remain in a tight range with the RBI guarding against sharp declines," a trader at a state-run bank said. Still, given the directional bias, a decline to 84.50 this week cannot be ruled out, the trader said. KEY INDICATORS: ** One-month non-deliverable rupee forward at 84.49; onshore one-month forward premium at 9.75 paisa ** Dollar index at 104.98 ** Brent crude futures down 0.4% at $73.6 per barrel ** Ten-year U.S. note yield at 4.31% ** As per NSDL data, foreign investors sold a net $668 mln worth of Indian shares on Nov. 7 ** NSDL data shows foreign investors sold a net $6.8 mln worth of Indian bonds on Nov. 7 Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-may-slip-record-low-worries-over-trump-win-weigh-asia-fx-2024-11-11/

2024-11-11 00:55

Nov 10 (Reuters) - Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab said on Sunday it would start redeploying personnel to its Gulf of Mexico platforms and all its mobile drilling units are returning to drill sites to re-start operations. As a precautionary measure against Hurricane Rafael, Shell had moved non-essential personnel from its Appomattox, Vito, Ursa, Mars, Auger, Stones, Enchilada and Salsa assets. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/shell-start-redeploying-personnel-gulf-mexico-platforms-2024-11-11/

2024-11-11 00:39

SYDNEY, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has withdrawn his latest children's book from sale after criticism it stereotyped members of Australia's Indigenous community. Oliver's "Billy and the Epic Escape", released in May, contains a passage where an Indigenous Australian girl living in foster care is abducted by the story's villain - a sensitive issue in a country where Indigenous children were for decades forcibly removed from their parents. It also contained errors made by mixing different Indigenous languages. The Guardian newspaper reported on Sunday Oliver apologised for the offence caused by the book. "I am devastated to have caused offence and apologise wholeheartedly," Oliver, who is currently in Australia promoting his latest cookbook, said in a statement. "It was never my intention to misinterpret this deeply painful issue. Together with my publishers we have decided to withdraw the book from sale." Oliver's publisher Penguin Random House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Sue-Anne Hunter, who sits on a government commission into injustices against Indigenous people in the state of Victoria, called the depictions in the book "insensitive". "The publication of Jamie Oliver's children's book represents a deeply concerning example of how Indigenous people continue to face misrepresentation and cultural appropriation in mainstream media," she said in a social media post. Among the world's oldest cultures and together speaking hundreds of distinct languages, Australia's Indigenous communities have suffered centuries of discrimination since the country was colonised by Britain in the late 18th century. Thousands of Indigenous children were forcibly taken from their parents and placed in care or with white families as late as the 1970s, in a policy now known as the "Stolen Generation". Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/tv-chef-jamie-oliver-withdraws-book-after-insensitive-depiction-indigenous-2024-11-11/

2024-11-11 00:27

BOJ braced for volatility post-U.S. election, summary shows Some members highlighted yen moves as key to policy outlook One called for rate hike after pause to assess U.S. developments BOJ kept rates steady at Oct meeting, near-term hike eyed TOKYO, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Bank of Japan policymakers were divided on how soon they could raise interest rates with some warning of the risk of renewed market volatility after the U.S. presidential election, a summary of opinions at their October meeting showed on Monday. Many BOJ board members highlighted the need to focus on the economic fallout from market moves at last month's policy review held days before the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 5, a sign that shifts in the yen will remain key to how soon the central bank will raise rates again. While the risk of a U.S. hard landing subsided, the BOJ must scrutinise market developments "as it was too early to conclude markets will restore calm" with trades driven in part by speculation over the U.S. election outcome, one member said. "The BOJ must be well prepared over the chance market volatility could heighten depending on the outcome of the U.S. presidential election," another opinion showed. At the Oct. 30-31 meeting, the BOJ maintained ultra-low interest rates but said risks around the U.S. economy were somewhat subsiding, signalling that conditions are falling into place to raise interest rates again. Global stock markets rallied and the dollar rose after Donald Trump was elected U.S. president in a decisive victory, easing fears among policymakers of prolonged uncertainty on the outcome. But analysts warn of renewed market volatility in the event Trump follows through on his calls for higher tariffs, potentially keeping inflation elevated and muddling the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate cut path. Given still-high uncertainty, doves in the BOJ's nine-member board recommended proceeding slowly with one saying the central bank must "take time and exercise caution" when raising rates, the summary showed. Another opinion warned of the risk of further BOJ rate hikes triggering market turbulence and disrupting the bank's long-term path toward rolling back its massive monetary stimulus. Others, however, saw the need to communicate clearly the BOJ's resolve to continue raising rates if its economic and price forecasts are met, the summary showed. "The Bank should consider further rate hikes after pausing to assess developments in the U.S. economy," one member was quoted as saying, adding that Japan's economy no longer needed substantial monetary support. Another opined that households and small companies, which were more vulnerable to the impact of rising import costs, seemed to welcome a reversal of a weak yen, the summary showed. A weak yen has become a headache for Japanese policymakers worried of the hit to consumption from the rising cost of importing fuel and raw material. Rising inflationary risks from a weak yen were cited by governor Kazuo Ueda as one of the key factors that led to the BOJ's decision to raise interest rates to 0.25% in July. The dollar stood at 153.17 yen in Asia on Monday, off last week's high of 154.70 yen on investors' caution over the risk of yen-buying intervention by Japanese authorities. A Reuters poll conducted on Oct. 3-11 showed a very slim majority of economists projecting the BOJ to forgo raising rates again this year, although nearly 90% still expect rates to rise by end-March. The summary of opinions does not identify who among the BOJ board made the comments. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/boj-divided-rate-hike-timing-october-summary-shows-2024-11-11/