2024-10-25 19:40

Canadian dollar falls 0.2% against the greenback For the week, the currency loses 0.6% Retail sales increase 0.4% in August 10-year yield rises nearly 2 basis points TORONTO, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar weakened to near 12-week low against its U.S. counterpart on Friday, pressured by the Bank of Canada's most recent interest rate cut and an uncertain outlook for the economy ahead of the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election. The loonie was trading 0.2% lower at 1.3880 to the U.S. dollar, or 72.05 U.S. cents, after touching its weakest intraday level since Aug. 5 at 1.3893. For the week, the currency was down 0.6%, its fourth straight weekly decline, marking the longest such streak since January. On Wednesday, the BoC reduced its benchmark rate by half a percentage point to 3.75% to support the economy, the first cut of that size in 15 years outside of the pandemic era. "We're weaker on the week not surprisingly given the Bank of Canada's 50-basis-point rate cut," said Benjamin Reitzes, Canadian rates & macro strategist at BMO Capital Markets. Canada's new immigration reduction targets announced this week will likely have a bigger impact on the BoC's growth forecast than on the inflation trajectory, Governor Tiff Macklem said. "Part of what's gone on is you have a U.S. election coming up and there are risks to Canada and the Canadian dollar as part of the U.S. election. Until those risks are cleared there is a meaningful headwind for Canada," said Reitzes. Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump has proposed sweeping tariffs on imported goods. Canada sends about 75% of its exports to the United States. Domestic data showed that retail sales rose by 0.4% in August from July, slightly less than expected, while a preliminary estimate showed sales up 0.4% in September. Canadian government bond yields moved higher across the curve, tracking moves in U.S. Treasuries. The 10-year was up nearly 2 basis points at 3.260%. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/canadian-dollar-extends-weekly-losing-streak-boc-rate-cut-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 19:11

Study examines proposed drilling restrictions to protect public from oil and gas pollution Restrictions could result in 12.5 million barrels lost in first year, study says Environmental advocate argues health costs outweigh revenue loss NEW YORK, Oct 25 (Reuters) - A top economist for the state of New Mexico, the second-largest oil-producer in the U.S., this week released a study on potential drilling restrictions that could hit up to 5.4% of its future crude output and result in billions of dollars in lost revenue. The study evaluated setback proposals from the 2024 legislative session, which would restrict how close operators can drill to certain structures and environmental areas. They are intended to protect the public from oil and gas pollution. "The topic is complicated and required more time to evaluate and analyze than what was provided during the session. This presentation was to provide the committee with further analysis," said Ismael Torres, chief economist at New Mexico's Legislative Finance Committee. "It is too early to know what, if any, setbacks will be proposed in the upcoming session," he added. The setbacks evaluated in the report would take effect in 2026 and would affect 15% of new wells in the state, of which about a third would be lost, according to Torres. That would amount to roughly 12.5 million barrels of oil output lost in the first year, and around 35 million barrels by the early 2030s. Production value lost would peak at around $4.5 billion annually by 2034. New Mexico houses portions of the prolific Permian shale field, which also crosses into Texas. The state was producing some 2.04 million barrels per day in July, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The report estimates more than half of the affected wells are on private land, a quarter of which are in Lea County, one of the fastest-growing oil-producing counties in the United States. "A statewide setback would not accomplish increased mitigation of human health effects from oil and gas production, but it would be a detriment to the continued development of oil and gas resources and, ultimately, the State of New Mexico," said Missi Currier, chief executive officer of the New Mexico Oil & Gas Association industry group. The report was presented to the state's Legislative Finance Committee on Tuesday. The setbacks evaluated in the report would prevent operators from drilling within 2,250 feet (686 m) of most residential, education, health or correctional institutions, and halt drilling 650 feet from streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, or irrigation infrastructure. It would limit activity within 300 feet of all other surface water. "The cost to human health and our natural resources far outweigh whatever revenue would be lost to the state," said Charlie Barrett, a New Mexico environmental advocate and thermographer at the environmental group Earthworks. "Setbacks are critical to protecting communities, schools and businesses," he added. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/new-mexico-studies-oil-drilling-restrictions-that-would-hit-output-revenue-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 19:00

ABIDJAN, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Ivory Coast's former trade minister Jean-Louis Billon said on Friday he would seek the nomination of the opposition PDCI party for the country's 2025 presidential election, challenging party leader and former Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam. Billon's decision to run could further divide the PDCI party that ruled Ivory Coast from independence until the late 1990s, but has struggled to regain power due to infighting. Thiam recently returned to the world's top cocoa-producing nation and won the PDCI's leadership race. His victory fuelled speculation he would run to replace or challenge President Alassane Ouattara. Neither man has formally declared his intentions. The PDCI leader has traditionally served as its presidential candidate. Billon, 59, was previously chief executive of Ivory Coast's top agro-industrial group SIFCA, and served as trade minister under Ouattara. He called for a PDCI convention to fairly select the party's presidential candidate. "I really hope that this convention will be democratic, honest, and transparent, with no tricks or favouritism, no violence, and free from any tribal bias," Billon said in a statement. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/ivory-coast-former-minister-seeks-presidential-nomination-challenges-ex-banker-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 18:48

Tailings dam collapse killed 19, polluted river in 2015 100 billion reais to be paid to authorities within 20 years President Lula attends signing of agreement BHP says outflows align with its previous provisions BRASILIA, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Brazil on Friday signed a 170 billion reais ($29.85 billion) compensation agreement with miners BHP (BHP.AX) , opens new tab, Vale (VALE3.SA) , opens new tab and Samarco for the Mariana dam collapse in 2015, one of the country's worst environmental disasters. The collapse of the dam at the iron ore mine owned by Samarco, a joint venture between Vale and BHP, near the city of Mariana in southeastern Brazil, unleashed a wave of tailings in a disaster that killed 19 people, left hundreds homeless, flooded forests and polluted the length of the Doce River. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva attended a ceremony in Brasilia to mark the signing of the agreement, with the government saying the first instalment of 5 billion reais must be paid within 30 days. The agreement provides for the payment of 132 billion reais, of which 100 billion reais represent "new resources" that must be paid to the public authorities within 20 years by the companies involved in the tragedy. They will allocate the other 32 billion reais to pay for compensation for affected people and reparation actions that will remain under their responsibility, in addition to the 38 billion reais that the miners say they have disbursed. The government's solicitor general, Jorge Messias, said the resources provided in the agreement will allow local authorities to repair the financial losses of families hit by the tragedy and pay for environmental recovery actions in affected areas in the states of Minas Gerais, where the dam is located, and Espirito Santo through which the Doce River flows to the sea. The annual payments will be scheduled until 2043, with values varying between 7 billion reais in 2026 and 4.41 billion reais in the last instalment. "These resources will allow us to provide justice in reparation to the families directly affected and their impact will be felt over several areas, not only in the recovery of the environment, but in the resumption of economic activities, health and infrastructure," Messias said. BHP in a statement said it expected outflows under the agreement to align with its full-year 2024 Samarco provision of $6.5 billion and no update was required to the existing provision at this time. On Thursday, Vale earmarked nearly $1 billion more for its Samarco provisions, bringing the total planned expense to $4.7 billion. Friday's agreement could end more than a hundred lawsuits against the mining companies in the South American country and possibly limit legal action abroad, three sources close to the matter said this week. BHP is contesting liability in a lawsuit worth up to 36 billion pounds ($47 billion) in London's High Court over its responsibility for the Mariana disaster. The world's biggest miner by market value says the London lawsuit duplicates legal proceedings and reparation and repair programs in Brazil and should be thrown out. That lawsuit had argued that the issue was not being solved in Brazil, Vale's vice-president for corporate and external affairs, Alexandre D'Ambrosio, said on a call on Friday. That argument no longer holds up, he added, as the compensation deal has been inked. ($1 = 5.6793 reais) ($1 = 0.7709 pounds) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/bhp-reaches-30-bln-settlement-reparation-brazil-dam-failure-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 18:15

WASHINGTON, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Governments around the world need to rebuild fiscal capacity and central banks should think carefully about the timing of interest rate cuts, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said on Friday. "In the short term, a focus on the fiscal side as an immediate priority. Fiscal buffers have been exhausted, yet fiscal pressures are high," Georgieva said in a press conference during the IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Washington. Central banks need to "remain attentive, be evidence-based (and) carefully monitor data to make sure that they don't cut either too early or too late," she added. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/imf-chief-georgieva-sees-fiscal-risks-need-central-banks-be-careful-rate-cuts-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 15:45

Oct 25 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer sentiment climbed to a six-month high in October as declining interest rates helped improve buying conditions for big-ticket items like cars, but the uptick was most pronounced among Republicans who grew more confident in their party regaining the White House in the Nov. 5 presidential election. The University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment Index rose to 70.5 this month, the highest since April, from a final reading of 70.1 in September. The result topped the median estimate among economists polled by Reuters for a reading of 69.0 and also legged up from a preliminary figure of 68.9 two weeks ago. As has been the case for several years now, though, details of the report showed a wide partisan skew. In October it was consumers who identified as Republican and to a smaller degree independents who led the overall increase in sentiment, while sentiment among self-identified Democrats declined. "The upcoming election looms large over consumer expectations," survey Director Joanne Hsu said in a statement on Friday. Sentiment among Republicans rose by 7.8%, the most since February, and among independents it rose by 4.1%, the most since January. Democrat sentiment meanwhile fell for the first time since July, declining 1.3%. Hsu said Republicans have grown more confident that their nominee, former President Donald Trump, will prevail over Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, in an election now less than two weeks away. Polls show the race has narrowed to a toss-up, and Hsu said their results show the share of consumers who expect a Harris victory has fallen to 57% from 63% in September. Households' views on the trajectory of inflation have flattened out, a development that will be welcome at the Federal Reserve as it carries out its pivot from the high interest rates it used to combat high inflation in the years immediately after the pandemic. Year-ahead inflation expectations of 2.7% in October were unchanged from September's reading and have settled into the range of 2.3%-3.0% that prevailed in the two years prior to the pandemic. Longer-range inflation expectations eased back to 3.0% from 3.1%. The Fed, which cut rates for the first time in four years in September by half a percentage point, next meets in the two days immediately after the election. Officials are expected to deliver a second cut, but by a smaller quarter-point margin. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-consumer-moods-brighten-among-republicans-particular-2024-10-25/