2024-11-07 22:57

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Canada's exports of canola oil and forest products from West Coast ports have halted due to a labor dispute, producers said on Thursday. The stoppage, which started on Monday, involves limited strike action by the longshore foremen and a full lockout of Local 514 of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union by the B.C. Maritime Employers Association. While bulk grain shipments are exempt from the British Columbia action, canola oil and forestry products are not covered by that federal labor code provision and are not being loaded onto ships at Pacific ports. Based on the market price of canola oil, each day without shipments represents C$4 million in lost revenue, said Chris Vervaet, the executive director of the Canadian Oilseed Processors Association, which says it represents about 95% of Canada's canola and soybean crush capacity. "We really implore the government to get involved and really help both sides to a resolution." Federal Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon has said both sides have a responsibility to reach an agreement. On Thursday he criticized the lack of apparent progress between the union and employers as well as a smaller shutdown affecting some container traffic at the Port of Montreal. "Both sets of talks are progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved," said MacKinnon in a post on social media platform X. Vervaet said Canada exports about one million metric tons of canola oil through the Port of Vancouver yearly. Canada is the world's top exporter of the oilseed, and canola oil is the most valuable part of the crop. The Forest Products Association of Canada also called for federal government intervention. Wood, pulp, paper and byproduct shipments by the organization's members make up about 17% of Vancouver's container exports and 14% of Montreal's. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/labor-dispute-stops-canadian-canola-oil-forestry-exports-west-coast-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 22:35

WASHINGTON, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Trump transition team officials are considering retail brokerage Robinhood's top lawyer, as well as bank regulators and corporate attorneys, for a short list of key financial agency heads they expect to present to the president-elect soon, according to multiple people with knowledge of the matter. Among those being considered for chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission is Dan Gallagher, a Republican SEC commissioner from 2011 to 2015 who is currently chief legal and compliance officer at Robinhood, the people said. Gallagher, who is a popular pick among cryptocurrency executives who donated millions of dollars to Donald Trump's Republican campaign, is the front-runner at this point, although the discussions are fluid, two of the people said. Also in the mix for SEC chair is Paul Atkins, another former Republican SEC commissioner and CEO of consultancy Patomak Global Partners. Atkins served on Trump's transition team in 2016, when he was also a contender for the SEC chair role, Reuters reported at the time. Robert Stebbins, a partner at law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher who served as SEC general counsel during Trump's first administration, is also being discussed for the SEC short list. Trump transition team officials are compiling a short list of a handful of individuals for each financial agency which they will present to Trump, said two of the people. The process could take a few weeks, and it was still too early to say who would ultimately win the top jobs, the people said. Gallagher and Atkins did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday. Stebbins declined to comment. In a statement, Karoline Leavitt, Trump's national press secretary, said: "President-Elect Trump will begin making decisions on who will serve in his second Administration soon. Those decisions will be announced when they are made." Trump's campaign courted crypto industry cash with promises to promote bitcoin and overhaul the SEC, whose Democratic chair, Gary Gensler, has cracked down hard on the industry, saying it has flouted SEC rules. Crypto companies have been pushing for an SEC chair who will quickly end his crackdown and tear up other unfriendly policies, Reuters previously reported. Many in the industry saw Republican SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, a crypto enthusiast, as a strong candidate for SEC chair, but she has told several people she does not want the job, several sources said. A spokesperson for Peirce said she declined to comment on Thursday. Gensler's term ends in 2026, but he has indicated he will step down when the new Republican administration comes in. BANKING REGULATORS While Trump has said little on financial policy this time around, he has again pledged to slash "burdensome" regulations. Bankers and lobbyists expect his administration will rip up or dramatically weaken draft "Basel" rules requiring that big banks raise the amount of capital they must put aside to absorb losses, restrictions on mergers and acquisition, and other rules being pursued by the Biden administration agency heads. Trump can remove Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu on day one, but overhauling the Federal Reserve's top regulatory spot and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation board could take some months. Among those being considered for the short list of top bank regulators are Michelle Bowman, a Fed governor and former community banker who has criticized capital hikes led by Michael Barr, Fed vice chair for supervision, and made the case for easing bank rules and supervision. Barr has conveyed to allies that he intends to serve out his vice chair term into 2026, according to a different source familiar with the matter. It was unclear whether Trump could or would try to remove Barr from his role sooner. A Fed spokesperson declined to comment. Travis Hill, the Republican vice chairman of the FDIC Board and a former Senate Banking Committee lawyer who has also opposed the Basel rules, is also being considered for the short list of top banking regulator roles, the people said. Jonathan Gould, a partner at law firm Jones Day who served as the senior deputy comptroller and chief counsel of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency from 2018 to 2021, is also in mix, the people said. Gould and a spokesperson for Hill declined to comment. The FDIC did not respond to a request for comment. An Office of the Comptroller of the Currency spokesperson said Hsu is committed to an orderly transition. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/robinhood-attorney-republican-regulators-being-considered-trump-financial-agency-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 22:08

Weekly jobless claims increase 3,000 to 221,000 Continuing claims rise 39,000 to 1.892 million Productivity increases at 2.2% rate in third quarter Unit labor costs advance at a strong 1.9% pace WASHINGTON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week, suggesting no material change in the labor market and reinforcing views that hurricanes and strikes had resulted in job growth almost stalling in October. Though the labor market is easing, wage pressures are not showing a significant cooling, casting a shadow over the inflation and interest rate outlook. Unit labor costs increased at a solid clip in the third quarter, other data from the Labor Department showed on Thursday. Economists said the strong rise in labor costs, which was accompanied by a sharp upward revision to the second-quarter data, was not compatible with inflation returning and staying at the Federal Reserve's 2% target. The U.S. central bank on Thursday cut interest rates by 25 basis points as expected, lowering its policy rate to the 4.50%-4.75% range. "Unit labor costs growth is the single biggest determinant of labor-intensive core services prices," said Paul Ashworth, chief North America economist at Capital Economics. "Unless unit labor costs growth slows again, it will be a lot harder for Fed officials to claim that inflation can be sustained at 2%." Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted 221,000 for the week ended Nov. 2, the Labor Department said. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 221,000 claims for the latest week. Unadjusted claims rose 10,827 to 212,274 last week, boosted by a 4,278 jump in filings in California. Applications rose by 3,563 in Michigan and shot up 1,927 in Ohio, more than offsetting notable drops in Florida and Georgia. Employment growth slowed sharply last month, with nonfarm payrolls increasing by only 12,000 jobs, the fewest since December 2020. That aligned with a surge in claims in early October as Hurricane Helene disrupted economic activity in the U.S. Southeast region. Applications stayed elevated through the middle of last month after Hurricane Milton lashed Florida. A strike by factory workers at Boeing (BA.N) , opens new tab, which forced the planemaker to implement rolling furloughs, also weighed on payrolls in October. The disruptions from the hurricanes have almost faded and the striking workers have gone back to work after agreeing to a new contract this week, paving the way for an acceleration in job growth in November. "New claims are signaling the weak October payroll print was likely an aberration driven by storms and strikes and that we should see a rebound in November," said Abiel Reinhart, an economist at JPMorgan. INFLATION BACK IN FOCUS The number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, rose 39,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.892 million during the week ending Oct. 26, the claims report showed. "The settlement of the Boeing strike will bring down the number of continuing claims as soon as next week's report," said Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics. "There is no call for radical monetary easing in today's figures, or in any labor market indicator for that matter." The Fed embarked on its policy easing cycle with an unusually large half-percentage-point rate cut in September, the first reduction in borrowing costs since 2020. It hiked rates by 525 basis points in 2022 and 2023 to curb high inflation. Stocks on Wall Street traded higher. The dollar slipped against a basket of currencies. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note retreated from four-month highs as investors continued to digest Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election that has fueled fears his economic policies could stoke inflation. Concerns about inflation were amplified by a separate report from the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics showing unit labor costs - the price of labor per single unit of output - increased at a solid 1.9% annualized rate in the July-September quarter after an upwardly revised 2.4% pace of expansion in the second quarter. Economists had forecast labor costs rising at a 1.0% rate after a previously reported 0.4% pace of increase in the second quarter. The revisions reflected annual upgrades to national accounts data published in September, which showed stronger income and overall economic growth than previously estimated. Labor costs increased at a 3.4% rate from a year ago, up from a 3.2% pace in the second quarter. They were, however, revised down by 0.6 percentage point to 2.2% in 2023. They increased 5.1% in 2022, down from the previously reported 5.7%. But they have picked up this year. "Chairman (Jerome) Powell and others at the Fed have essentially declared that the labor market is no longer an upward influence on inflation," said Stephen Stanley, chief U.S. economist at Santander U.S. Capital Markets. "These data suggest that this sanguine view may be a bit premature." Nonfarm productivity, which measures hourly output per worker, increased at a 2.2% rate last quarter after a downwardly revised 2.1% growth pace in the April-June quarter. Productivity was previously estimated to have increased at a 2.5% rate in the second quarter. It increased at a 2.0% pace from a year ago. Productivity grew at a 1.9% rate from the first quarter of 2018 through the second quarter of 2024, revised up from the previously estimated 1.7% pace, in tandem with the upgrades to GDP data. It was revised higher in each of the past three years, and is helping to underpin the economy. "Businesses are continuing to invest in technologies that will make their existing workers more productive," said Gus Faucher, chief economist at PNC Financial. "Over the longer run artificial intelligence holds tremendous potential for boosting productivity growth." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-weekly-jobless-claims-increase-moderately-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 21:47

Nov 8 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets. Asian markets on Friday round off a monumental week on the front foot after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday expressed confidence in the U.S. economy and that inflation will continue to cool, signaling further interest rate cuts ahead. In his press conference after the Fed cut rates by 25 basis points as expected, Powell said the economy could perform better next year than previously thought, and that inflation remains on a path back to the 2% target. This added fuel to the U.S. equity rally already underway following Donald Trump's thumping victory in the U.S. presidential election on Tuesday, pushing the three main U.S. indices to new all-time highs. The equity rally was also aided by lower Treasury yields and a weaker dollar - the 10-year yield fell 10 basis points for its biggest one-day fall in three months, and the dollar shed 0.7%. Asian stocks ex-Japan go into Friday's session up almost 2% on the week, which would be the biggest rise in five weeks. Over the month of October though, outflows rose sharply. Japan's Nikkei is up 3.5%, on course for its best week in six. Many analysts are increasingly bullish on Japanese stocks, citing attractive valuations and an assumption that the yen stays weak. The outlook for Asian stocks in a Trump world more broadly, however, is mixed. On the one hand stronger demand and a buoyant Wall Street are positive forces for emerging Asia. But on the other, a stronger dollar and higher U.S. bond yields could tighten financial conditions and encourage capital outflows from some countries. Chinese stocks, in particular, are vulnerable. But as SocGen analysts note, the threat of punishing tariffs from Washington could accelerate more forceful policy responses from Beijing, which may end up supporting local stocks. Meanwhile, attention in Asia turns to China as investors await a readout from the National People's Congress Standing Committee meeting which concludes on Friday. Any stimulus surprise from the meeting will likely help lift market sentiment in China stocks. The yuan on Thursday bounced back a bit from the three-month low struck the previous day. The yuan's fall on the spot market of around 1% on Wednesday, an immediate reaction to Trump's election win, was its biggest decline since February 2020. Investors will also cast an eye to Chinese inflation data on Saturday. Strong exports data on Thursday offered encouraging signs that growth may be recovering, but imports fell short of forecasts, suggesting domestic demand remains weak. The annual rate of consumer inflation is expected to have held steady at 0.4% in October, according to a Reuters poll, while producer price deflation is seen easing only a little to -2.5% from -2.8%. Here are key developments that could provide more direction to markets on Friday: - Taiwan trade (October) - Japan household spending (September) - China NPC Standing Committee readout Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/global-markets-view-asia-pix-graphic-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 21:46

Energy and LNG executives express relief at Trump's election win Expect regulations will ease under new administration Environmental groups promise fight to block LNG expansion HOUSTON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - U.S. liquefied natural gas developers awaiting permits for new export projects this week expressed confidence President-elect Donald Trump will ease the way for their multi-billion-dollar expansion plans. Their confidence is buoyed by Trump's promise to end an expanded Department of Energy review that has slowed new export permits. President Joe Biden had paused new non-FTA export permits and asked the DOE to more broadly evaluate the cumulative effects of new LNG projects' climate and economic impacts. Environmental groups pledged to keep up the pressure to block new plants. Trump's victory will ensure the nation will have "some rational, reasonable people running this country," said Marshall McCrea, co-CEO of LNG and pipeline operator Energy Transfer (ET.N) , opens new tab. The change of administration assures a financial go-ahead for its $13-billion LNG-export facility in Louisiana, he said on a quarterly call. Commonwealth LNG, which is developing a $10-billion facility near Cameron, Louisiana, and has been waiting for an LNG-export permit for more than 18 months, said it is looking forward to approval of its non-FTA authorization. That term refers to exports to non-Free Trade Agreement countries that account for the vast majority of U.S. LNG purchases. Sempra LNG (SRE.N) , opens new tab, which plans to build a second phase of its Texas-based Port Arthur LNG, now expects the Trump victory will lead to an export permit by June. "We have growing confidence in getting the permits we need for Port Arthur Phase 2 in the first half of next year," Sempra CEO Jeffrey Martin said on Wednesday on a quarterly call. The project would add two liquefaction processing units to the two under construction. Environmental groups that helped convince the Biden administration to reconsider the wider impact of LNG exports, say they will continue to challenge the permits. "We will do everything we can to fight back against attempts to trample on safeguards meant to protect people from polluted water and air," said Mahyar Sorour, director of the Sierra Club's beyond fossil fuels policy. Venture Global LNG, which has not received a non-FTA export permit for its 20-million-metric-ton-per-annum Calcasieu Pass 2 plant in Louisiana, said it looks forward to working with the incoming administration. The expected loosening of some LNG regulations means a clear runway for developers, said Fred Hutchison, CEO of trade group LNG Allies. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-lng-developers-see-trump-win-lifting-pall-over-expansions-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 21:40

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Monster Beverage (MNST.O) , opens new tab missed Wall Street estimates for third-quarter sales and profit on Thursday, as cost-conscious consumers cut back spending on its higher-priced beverages. Shares of the company were down about 3% after the bell. Consumers, especially from low to middle-income groups, have been curbing their cravings for branded non-alcoholic drinks and opting for cheaper alternatives. This has hurt sales of companies like Monster Beverage, Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP.O) , opens new tab and PepsiCo (PEP.O) , opens new tab, while Coca-Cola (KO.N) , opens new tab was able to attract customers with tight budgets in the United States. For the third-quarter, the company posted net sales of $1.88 billion, compared with analysts' average estimate of $1.91 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. On an adjusted basis, it posted profit of 40 cents per share, compared with estimates of 43 cents per share. "Hurricanes Helene and Milton impacted sales at retail in certain states in September and October, however we cannot determine the impact on our business," said CEO Hilton Schlosberg. However, benefits from taking 5% price hikes during the quarter ended Sept. 30, coupled with lower input costs helped the company's margins. Monster's quarterly gross profit as a percentage of sales was 53.2%, compared to 53.0% a year ago. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/monster-beverage-misses-quarterly-results-weaker-demand-2024-11-07/