2024-11-07 06:48

PARIS, Nov 7 (Reuters) - French utility Engie (ENGIE.PA) , opens new tab said on Thursday its nine-month earnings fell 11% from a year earlier, as higher hydropower and renewable energy output failed to fully offset lower income from its gas trading business. The company reported nine-month earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), excluding nuclear, of 7.1 billion euros ($7.63 billion), down from 8 billion euros a year ago. The company confirmed its guidance and said full-year net recurring income would be at the higher end of between 5 billion and 5.6 billion euros. The company, which sells and trades electricity and gas, had a 15% rise in third-quarter earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), excluding nuclear, to 1.5 billion euros, based on Reuters calculations. Engie has benefited from high rainfall this year, which has boosted its hydropower output in France and Portugal, and provided low prices for its flexible generation in Chile. The Flex Gen business encompasses energy production from thermal power plants, battery storage and hydrogen production. CFO Pierre-Francois Riolacci also told reporters on a call that it had seen growth in its gas trading unit Global Energy Management and Sales (GEMS) during the third quarter compared with last year. ($1 = 0.9308 euros) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/engie-reports-11-fall-nine-month-earnings-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 06:44

TOKYO, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Nippon Steel (5401.T) , opens new tab, Japan's biggest steel maker, revised on Thursday its full-year net profit forecast for the fiscal year ending in March to 310 billion yen ($2 billion) from a previously expected 340 billion yen. Nippon Steel, also the world's fourth-biggest steel maker, also said its net profit for the six months was at 243.4 billion yen, down 19% from the same period a year earlier. ($1 = 154.0800 yen) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/japans-nippon-steel-revises-down-full-year-net-profit-forecast-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 06:39

LONDON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Zurich Insurance Group (ZURN.S) , opens new tab posted on Thursday a rise in its 9-month premium revenue and said that its exposure to Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which recently wreaked havoc in the United States, would be under $360 million. Zurich, Europe's fifth-largest insurer, said its third-quarter results included an estimated pre-tax loss for Hurricane Helene of $160 million. It expects preliminary fourth-quarter pre-tax losses due to Hurricane Milton to touch below $200 million. Analysts expect up to $55 billion in insured losses from the two major calamities. Gross written premiums at Zurich's property and casualty business rose 4% in the first nine months of 2024 to $36.13 billion, up from $34.59 billion a year earlier, due to increasing rates in its commercial insurance and retail segments. Rates rose 5%. Insurance premiums have been rising in the past few years in response to inflation and to losses from the COVID-19 pandemic, wars and natural catastrophes. However, global commercial insurance rates fell 1% in the third quarter, the first quarterly decline in seven years, according to broker Marsh. Zurich's life insurance new business premium rose 6% on a like-for-like basis that adjusts for currency movements, acquisitions and disposals. Zurich will present fresh three-year financial targets , opens new tab on Nov. 21, one year ahead of schedule, after the insurer reiterated on Thursday that it was on track to exceed all its current targets. "Our nine-month results confirm the continued strong momentum across all of Zurich's businesses," Chief Financial Officer Claudia Cordioli said in a trading statement. Zurich's Swiss Solvency Test ratio, a key measure of its capital strength, came in at 224%, against a forecast of 220%, according to a company-compiled consensus poll. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/zurich-insurance-sees-impact-hurricanes-helene-milton-touch-below-360-mln-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 06:35

Exports grow at fastest pace since July 2022 Factories rush goods as Trump's election win raises tariff threat Imports undershoot, underline weak domestic demand BEIJING, Nov 7 (Reuters) - China's exports grew at the fastest pace in over two years in October as factories rushed inventory to major markets in anticipation of further tariffs from the U.S. and the European Union, as the threat of a two-front trade war loomed large. Donald Trump's sweeping victory in the U.S. presidential election has brought into sharp focus his campaign pledge to impose tariffs on Chinese imports in excess of 60% and is likely to spur a shift in stocks to warehouses in China's No.1 export market. Trump's tariff threat is rattling Chinese factory owners and officials, with some $500 billion worth of shipments annually on the line, while trade tensions with the EU, which last year took $466 billion worth of Chinese goods, have intensified. Export momentum has been one bright spot for a struggling economy as household and business confidence has been dented by a prolonged property market debt crisis . Outbound shipments from the world's second-biggest economy grew 12.7% year-on-year last month, customs data showed on Thursday, blowing past a forecast 5.2% increase in a Reuters poll of economists and a 2.4% rise in September. Imports fell 2.3%, compared with expectations for a drop of 1.5%, turning negative for the first time in four months. China's trade surplus grew to $95.27 billion last month, up from $81.71 billion in September. "We can anticipate a lot of front-loading going into the fourth quarter, before the pressure kicks in come 2025," said Xu Tianchen, senior economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit. "I think it is mainly down to Trump. The threat is becoming more real." TRUMP EFFECT China's exports to the U.S. increased an annual 8.1% last month, while outbound shipments to Europe jumped 12.7% over the same period. "We expect shipments to stay strong in the coming months," Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics, said in a note. "Any potential drag from Trump tariffs may not materialise until the second half of next year." "Trump's return could create a short-term boost to Chinese exports as U.S. importers increase their purchases to get ahead of the tariffs," she added. Among China's top exports to the U.S. last year were smartphones, tablet computers and video games consoles, Chinese customs data shows, setting up a potential repeat of Trumps's first term in office when he targeted Chinese electronics manufacturers. There are signs demand for such products is dimming. Trade data from South Korea and Taiwan pointed to cooling global demand, while German manufacturers have also reported they are struggling to find buyers overseas, leading analysts to conclude Chinese producers are slashing prices to find buyers or simply moving stocks out of China. An official factory activity survey for October showed Chinese factories were still struggling to find buyers overseas. "If the PMI new export sub-index has been going down, and the export figure goes up, I think it is safe to say it's more of an inventory shift," said Dan Wang, a Chinese economist based in Shanghai. Exporters also had help from an easing in weather-related disruptions in September, enabling them to send out delayed orders. China and Hong Kong stocks edged up on Thursday, supported by investor optimism over potential further stimulus measures, while the yuan recovered from a three-month low against the dollar. The weaker yuan likely contributed to the surge in exports, analysts say, though it also made imports more expensive. IMPORTS HIT BY WEAK DOMESTIC DEMAND China's imports from the European Union and Southeast Asian economies fell an annual 6.1% and 7.3% last month, respectively, while purchases from Japan just eked into growth. The world's biggest oil importer's crude purchases fell 9%, marking a sixth consecutive monthly year-on-year decline. "The further slowdown in import growth is mainly due to the weak recovery of domestic effective demand and impact of low import prices and rising bases," said Zhou Maohua, a macroeconomic researcher at China Everbright Bank. But China's soybean imports surged last month, as grain merchants in the U.S. raced to ship a record-large harvest to the Asian giant ahead of the now-concluded U.S. election. Overall, as China's trade engine faces challenges, economists have cautioned Beijing against becoming too reliant on outbound shipments for growth and urged officials to introduce more stimulus. ANZ analysts expect policymakers to deliver a mix of monetary and other steps to overcome any higher tariffs under Trump. "The authorities will also consider some policy measures to offset the tariff impacts such as subsidies or access to funding," said Raymond Yeung, ANZ's chief economist for greater China. "Commercial policy measures will also include local consumption campaign and developing new export market among the Belt and Road countries." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/chinas-oct-exports-soar-past-forecast-trade-war-with-west-looms-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 06:23

Nov 7 (Reuters) - ArcelorMittal , the world's second-largest steelmaker, on Thursday reported third-quarter core profit above market expectations, as improvement in its Brazil business partly offset weaker results in North America and Europe. The Luxembourg-based company said its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose to $1.58 billion in the quarter, down 15% from a year earlier, but above a consensus estimate of $1.49 billion provided by the company. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/arcelormittals-q3-core-earnings-fall-less-than-expected-2024-11-07/

2024-11-07 06:18

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Polish oil and gas company Orlen said it is (PKN.WA) , opens new tab reassessing the future of its Olefin III petrochemical project due to profitability concerns, adding that it is exploring options including temporary suspension, or termination. The project, which is expected to be wrapped up by early 2030, has an estimated completion cost of between 45 and 51 billion zlotys, Orlen said late on Wednesday. "The choice of scenarios is driven by the protection of the company's interests and is based on analysis of the petrochemical market, macroeconomic situation, and the profitability of the project," the company said. This follows the company's Tuesday announcement that its Olefin petrochemicals project would not generate positive cash flow in the future due to adverse economic conditions, leading to a writedown of 912 million zlotys ($225.37 million) of the value of its petrochemical business. The project has already seen other investment writedowns, and Orlen has pledged to decide on its future before the end of this year. "Although it's late to decide to halt work on the project, this is the construction that has caused the most controversy among minority investors", said Erste Group analyst Jakub Szkopek. "The market should react positively due to the increase in FCF (free cash flow) in the years to come", he added. ($1 = 4.0467 zlotys) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/polands-orlen-reconsider-future-olefin-project-2024-11-07/