2024-10-29 05:41

FRANKFURT/DUESSELDORF, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Thyssenkrupp (TKAG.DE) , opens new tab is working on a spin-off of its warship division after private equity firm Carlyle (CG.O) , opens new tab dropped out as a bidder last week, the group's CFO said, flagging 2026 as a realistic time frame for when such a move could happen. "A spin-off in the coming calendar year would be ambitious in my view. My guess would be 2026, but we'll have to see," Jens Schulte told Reuters, adding the idea was for the government to take a stake in ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) as part of a deal. Carlyle and state-lender KfW (KFW.UL) were poised to take a majority in TKMS but the U.S. investor last week pulled the plug, leaving Thyssenkrupp to pursue alternatives for TKMS, which makes submarines and frigates. "We are currently being approached by all kinds of parties, both nationally and internationally, with the question of possible partnerships or tie-ups," Schulte said, adding the image of defence companies had improved of late. He said that while a spin-off of TKMS remained the preferred option, Thyssenkrupp could also change plans if a more value-creating opportunity arose. Schulte, who took over as finance chief at Thyssenkrupp in June, also raised the prospect of shareholder payouts, saying the company was in a position to offer a dividend but that it was up to the supervisory board to decide. According to LSEG estimates, Thyssenkrupp is expected to pay a dividend of 0.16 euros per share for the 2023/24 fiscal year, up from 0.15 euros in the previous year. Schulte, speaking ahead of full-year results scheduled for Nov. 19, said the group's fourth-quarter had been solid, adding the group was targeting a return on sales of 4%, up from around 1.5% now. "Thyssenkrupp is a company with a very strong substance. We have good strategic positions in many areas." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/thyssenkrupp-cfo-spin-off-marine-division-possible-2026-2024-10-29/

2024-10-29 05:30

MUMBAI, Oct 29 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee is likely to open little changed on Tuesday, remaining unresponsive to U.S. Treasury yields, outflows and other external cues amid possible intervention from the Reserve Bank of India. The 1-month non-deliverable forward indicated that the rupee will open nearly unchanged from 84.0775 in the previous session. The local currency for two-and-a-half weeks has been stuck in a narrow 10-paisa range with the RBI not wanting the rupee to fall more. The central bank has been on offer on the dollar/rupee pair via the public sector all through the trading session in recent days. The RBI's intervention has negated the effect on the rupee of several factors such as foreigners pulling out a large chunk of money from local equities, U.S. Treasury yields making their way to a three-month high, and the dollar's rally. "I think people have just given up. You just come in the morning and just know that it will be flat opening and then a 1-2 paisa (intraday) range," a currency trader at a bank said. "Big risk events are lined up. Whether they are big enough to move the rupee, who knows?" TRUMP WIN BETS LIFT US YIELDS The yields on the U.S. two-year to 30-year bonds climbed to roughly three-month peaks on Monday. The prospect of Republican candidate Donald Trump winning the U.S. elections has prompted investors to dump U.S. Treasuries and lap up the dollar. The dollar index is not too far away from its year-to-date high, having rallied 3.5% in October. Anticipation of this week’s (U.S.) payrolls data and next week’s U.S. election is driving markets, ANZ Bank said in a note. The U.S. October non-farm payrolls data due this Friday will be observed more keenly than usual considering the Federal Reserve's focus on the labour market. KEY INDICATORS: ** One-month non-deliverable rupee forward at 84.17; onshore one-month forward premium at 9.5 paise ** Dollar index at 104.26 ** Brent crude futures up 0.4% at $71.7 per barrel ** Ten-year U.S. note yield at 4.27% ** As per NSDL data, foreign investors sold a net $360 mln worth of Indian shares on Oct. 27 ** NSDL data shows foreign investors bought a net $30.7 mln worth of Indian bonds on Oct. 27 Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-remain-defiant-face-higher-us-yields-outflows-2024-10-29/

2024-10-29 05:30

MUMBAI, Oct 29 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee remained under pressure on Tuesday in the wake of a drop in the Chinese yuan and a fall in local equities amid foreign outflows. The rupee was at 84.0775 to the U.S. dollar at 10:56 a.m. IST, unchanged from the previous session. The offshore yuan dropped to 7.1582 to the dollar, its lowest in nearly three months, on uncertainties over the outcome of the U.S. election. Meanwhile, Indian shares were down on Tuesday after a respite in the previous session. The benchmark NSE Nifty 50 (.NSEI) , opens new tab shed 0.4% and is down just less than 6% this month. India's relatively expensive valuations amid a largely disappointing earnings season has prompted foreign investors to take out more than $10 billion from local equities this month so far. Foreign outflows from Indian markets remain a "significant headwind" for the rupee, Amit Pabari, managing director at CR Forex, said, adding that the rise in U.S. Treasury yields is one more challenge for the domestic currency. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has likely been selling dollars through public sector banks to help the rupee. The central bank intervened on Tuesday as well. "They (RBI) are there again today, which is a surprise to absolutely no one," a trader at a bank said. "Nowadays, its just assumed that the RBI will be there and no one bothers at all." The yields on the U.S. two-year to 30-year bonds climbed to roughly three-month peaks on Monday. The prospect of Republican candidate Donald Trump winning the U.S. elections has prompted investors to exit U.S. Treasuries. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/rupee-battles-yuan-weakness-losses-local-equities-2024-10-29/

2024-10-29 03:00

TOKYO, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Japan's Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato reiterated on Tuesday that the authorities would be vigilant to foreign exchange moves, including those driven by speculators. "We will continue to closely monitor foreign exchange moves, including those driven by speculators, with a higher sense of vigilance," Kato told a regular news conference. The yen is languishing at three-month lows as the loss of Japan's ruling bloc's parliamentary majority has raised expectations that the political turmoil could make it harder for the Bank of Japan to wean the economy off decades of monetary stimulus. Later on Tuesday, Japanese economy minister, Ryosei Akazawa, said in a separate conference that a weak yen could affect the economy in various ways. A weak yen "can push up prices through higher import costs, and if wages are not rising as much, that would push down real household income, depress the mindset of consumers and could result in lower private consumption," he said. The election results also heightened prospects that a new government will need to seek support from smaller opposition parties and ramp up spending to win public support. "We plan to compile a meaningful economic package and supplementary budget by taking in policies from beyond party boundaries," Kato said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/japans-finance-minister-vows-closely-watch-fx-moves-2024-10-29/

2024-10-29 00:54

Oct 28 (Reuters) - Incumbent Premier David Eby's New Democratic Party (NDP) is set to form the next government of British Columbia after edging ahead in a final tally of ballots on Monday, more than a week after the Oct. 19 vote took place. The NDP was leading or elected in 47 seats - just enough to form a majority government - in Canada's westernmost province, while John Rustad's Conservative Party of British Columbia had 44 seats and the BC Green Party won two. Eby met on Monday with British Columbia's lieutenant governor, Janet Austin, who asked him to form the next government, the premier said in a statement. "Based on today's final vote count, and pending judicial recounts, British Columbians have asked our BC NDP team to lead our province for a third time," Eby said. Voters had to wait nine days for the final count by Elections BC after initial results showed no party had won enough seats to form a majority government. Two electoral districts will still likely face a judicial recount because the margins of victory were so slim. The left-leaning NDP's reelection secures it another four years in power, following a campaign in which healthcare, housing and high living costs emerged as top voter concerns. Eby has promised to spend more on B.C.'s schools and mental-health facilities and incentivize housing construction in the province, which has Canada's highest cost of living. The NDP won reelection despite rising voter concerns about crime and public safety and the government's drug policy, including a pilot project to allow open use of some illegal drugs. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal government faces similar concerns about affordability on a national scale and must hold a federal election within a year. The NDP has held power in B.C. for seven years, and the Conservatives gained support rapidly over the last two years, suggesting disillusionment with the incumbent government, analysts said. B.C., a vast mountainous province with resources including natural gas and forestry, has long been seen as a climate policy leader in Canada and is home of the country's nascent liquefied natural gas export industry. The NDP's victory safeguards provincial climate measures such as its clean fuel standard. It means any new LNG terminals must plan to produce zero carbon emissions on a net basis by 2030 to secure provincial approval. Eby promised to scrap the province's increasingly unpopular carbon tax if the federal government dropped it as a legal for British Columbia. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/left-leaning-new-democratic-party-form-british-columbia-government-after-tight-2024-10-29/

2024-10-29 00:14

LONDON, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Prices in British shops fell at the fastest pace in more than three years this month but this week's budget announcement by finance minister Rachel Reeves could help spur a return of inflation, the British Retail Consortium said on Tuesday. Annual shop price deflation dropped to 0.8% in the 12 months to October, the BRC said, its weakest since August 2021 and a bigger fall than September's 0.6% decline. It was the eighth time in nine months that the pace of price growth has weakened. Food prices rose by 1.9% but non-food deflation held at 2.1%. Clothing prices edged up for the first time since January as retailers unwound some of their heavy discounting. "Households will welcome the continued easing of price inflation," BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said. "But this downward trajectory is vulnerable to ongoing geopolitical tensions, the impact of climate change on food supplies, and costs from planned and trailed government regulation." British finance minister Rachel Reeves is expected to include in her first budget on Wednesday an increase in social security contributions that businesses must pay for their staff, causing unease among some employers who are also nervous about labour market reforms to give more protections to workers. "Retail is already paying more than its fair share of taxes compared to other industries," Dickinson said and she called on Reeves to reduce the business rates tax paid by retailers. Official figures showed consumer price inflation fell to 1.9% in September, well below a 41-year high of 11.1% it touched in October 2022. The Bank of England is expected to cut borrowing costs in November for only the second time in four years. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-shop-prices-fall-faster-retailers-warn-risks-budget-2024-10-29/