2024-10-25 11:44

LONDON, Oct 25 - Energean (ENOG.L) , opens new tab has added a second oil production unit to a floating production vessel off Israel which is set to boost its crude output by up to two-thirds in the coming months, an industry source said. The M10 oil train module was lifted in recent days onto the Energean Power floating production and storage offloading (FPSO) vessel, which produces predominantly natural gas from the Karish field for the domestic Israeli market. Installation and commissioning activities of the module are expected to take up to six months, the source said. It will increase oil production to 20,000 to 25,000 barrels per day, from around 15,000 bpd today. Energean produced 146,000 barrels of oil equivalent (boed) in the first six months of the year. It aims to double its production in the coming years, primarily through development of new prospects in Israel, including the Katlan field. Production at Karish, which is close to Israel's maritime border with Lebanon, has been largely uninterrupted since the start of the Middle East conflict on Oct. 7. In July, the Israeli military said it had shot down a drone launched from Lebanon which it said was heading to the Energean FPSO. The company had agreed in June to sell its assets in Egypt, Italy and Croatia to private equity fund Carlyle (CG.O) , opens new tab for up to $945 million. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/energean-loads-new-oil-unit-onto-vessel-offshore-israel-source-says-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 11:30

NAPERVILLE, Illinois, Oct 24 (Reuters) - U.S. exporters last week sold unusually large volumes of corn that previously were possible only when China was active in the market. But China was absent this time around, and its import intentions remain unclear for now. However, the recent flurry of export sales reflect plentiful, cheap U.S. corn supplies that should help the United States easily retain its title as top exporter in 2024-25. In the week ended Oct. 17, U.S. corn export sales totaled a whopping 4.18 million metric tons (164.7 million bushels), slightly edging all trade estimates. In the last couple of decades, only four other weeks featured larger totals, all in early 2021. Those four weeks all boasted sales to China well above 3 million tons, though last week’s volume included just 10,000 tons to China, representing a fraction of a cargo. Essentially, China has yet to explicitly participate in the 2024-25 U.S. corn market. This follows a disappointing trend for U.S. corn exporters, who in 2023-24 shipped just under 3 million tons to China, a four-year low and well off the 2020-21 peak of more than 21 million. China imported almost 30 million tons of corn that season, though 2024-25 estimates range from 13 million to 19 million tons. Additionally, Brazil started corn trade with China two years ago, substantially cutting U.S. opportunity. THE UNKNOWN U.S. corn export sales to unknown destinations have surged in the latest two weeks, causing speculation that China could be buying under the radar. Unknown corn sales reached all-time highs in 2020-21 when China was very active in the U.S. market. The Chinese buying theory cannot be ruled out, but unknown bookings have been ample in other years where China was not a factor. That includes 2016-17 and 2017-18, both strong years for U.S. corn exports. Therefore, it is safer to assume for now that the heavy unknown sales are simply signaling a bountiful season ahead, potentially including more-than-normal interest from non-traditional players. The unknown figures should be closely watched, though, as they have grown unusually large relative to total commitments. Unknown destinations accounted for 21% of all 2024-25 U.S. corn bookings as of Oct. 17, the highest share in eight years. NOT JUST MEXICO Last week’s corn sales relied heavily on a single 1.6 million-ton allocation to Mexico, split between 2024-25 and 2025-26. However, a comparably large sale to Mexico is typically observed every year around this time, so the Mexican sale does not fully explain the weekly anomaly. Mexico has about 10 million tons of U.S. corn booked for 2024-25, easily a record for the date. But it is important for the health of the U.S. export program that not everything hinges on its top corn customer. Nothing looks out of place yet. Mexico accounts for 42% of total 2024-25 corn sales so far, below the year-ago 52% and below the same points in 2017 and 2019. Key buyer Japan’s U.S. corn bookings are at four-year highs, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Thursday announced the first daily sale of U.S. corn to Japan since February, totaling 227,600 tons. ON PACE As of Oct. 17, U.S. corn export sales covered 40% of USDA’s full-year forecast for 2024-25, a three-year high for the date and above the year-ago 33%. That compares with an Oct. 17 average of 31% between 2015 and 2019, years in which both corn prices were relatively low and China was not in the picture. U.S. corn export demand looks promising as prices are globally competitive and No. 2 supplier Brazil’s offerings are smaller than last year. Additionally, Ukraine’s 2024-25 exports are pegged at seven-year lows. However, the central United States desperately needs a break in the recent dry pattern, which has ravaged water levels in the Mississippi River and slowed barge movements to the Gulf. Exports could be threatened if the problem persists. Forecasts suggest partial relief is in store next week, but longer-term outlooks indicate November may feature below-average precipitation. Karen Braun is a market analyst for Reuters. Views expressed above are her own. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/us-corn-export-sales-post-multiyear-highs-even-without-china-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 11:06

BEIJING, Oct 25 (Reuters) - China on Friday launched a five-year action plan to accelerate the digital transformation of the entire agriculture industry chain as part of measures to raise domestic food production. The 2024-2028 smart agriculture action plan will aim to establish a digital planting technology scheme as well as a national agricultural and rural big data platform by 2028, the agriculture ministry said in a statement. The urgency to adopt big data, GPS navigation systems and artificial intelligence in farming comes as the world's largest grains producer stepped up investments in farm machinery and seed technology in its quest for food security. China's grain output is set to exceed a record 700 million metric tons this year, Zhang Xingwang, the vice minister for agriculture and rural affairs told reporters in a news conference on Friday. But he said efforts to ensure stable supply "cannot be relaxed" as the country remains highly reliant on imports to feed a population of 1.4 billion. China imports over 100 million metric tons of soybeans and grains a year, particularly from United States and Brazil. The digital transformation, which covers farms, animal husbandry and fisheries, is expected to help reduce costs, increase production and increase efficiency. To accelerate yield increase, the ministry will accelerate the digital upgrade of agricultural machinery and equipment at farms. The ministry added that it will continue to explore the future of smart agriculture by supporting research institutions and strengthening the research and development of agricultural technologies. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/china-seeks-boost-food-output-with-five-year-smart-farming-plan-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 10:59

TSX ends down 0.36% at 24,463.67 For the week, the index loses 1.45% Real estate sector falls 0.9% Energy adds 1.39%; oil settles up 2.27% Oct 25 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index ended lower for a fifth straight day on Friday, led by declines for the real estate and consumer discretionary sectors, as investors turned cautious ahead of a potentially volatile period for the market. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE) , opens new tab ended down 87.88 points, or 0.36%, at 24,463.67, extending its pullback from last Friday's record high. For the week, the TSX was down 1.45%. It was the first time since April the index has fallen for five straight days. Still, it was up 1.93% since the beginning of October. "We had a really good start to the month," said Greg Taylor, portfolio manager at Purpose Investments. "We pulled forward a lot of good news and now people are bracing for some volatility in the next few weeks." Wall Street has been unsettled this week by a rapid rise in U.S. bond yields, while uncertainty around the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election has also made investors cautious after markets started pricing in a second Donald Trump administration in recent weeks. Canada's immigration reduction targets announced this week will likely have an impact on the Bank of Canada's growth forecast, Governor Tiff Macklem said, but cautioned the bank was yet to analyze the numbers. On Wednesday, the BoC cut interest rates by an unusually large half a percentage point to support the economy. The real estate and consumer discretionary sectors both fell 0.9% on Friday, while the materials group, which includes gold mining shares, was down 0.72%. Mali has accused Barrick Gold Corp (ABX.TO) , opens new tab of failing to abide by commitments made in a recent agreement, charges the Canadian miner denied after the market's close on Thursday. Shares of Barrick ended 3.16% lower on Friday. Energy was a bright spot, rising 1.39%, as oil futures settled 2.27% higher at $71.78 a barrel. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/tsx-futures-flat-ahead-retail-sales-data-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 10:57

MADRID, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The mismatch between increasing supply of renewable power and electricity demand that is struggling to grow, coupled with depressed wholesale power prices, threatens future investments in the sector, renewables lobby APPA warned on Friday. KEY QUOTES "We continue to add renewables capacity without a proportional increase in power demand," APPA President Santiago Gomez told reporters. As for pricing, he said, "By the end of 2024, we expect about 10% of hours at zero or even negative power prices," adding that April saw the lowest price in the whole historical series. "These figures are clearly insufficient to make renewable investments profitable, which could jeopardise the financing of future projects," he said. WHY IT IS IMPORTANT The warning comes at a time when Spain needs to speed up the rollout of renewables projects to meet ambitious targets in its climate and energy plan. Failing to boost storage and increase the weight of electricity in its energy mix, increases the risk that it will fall short of its targets, APPA warned. CONTEXT Europe in general has seen a record number of hours at zero or even negative power prices this year, on the back of the massive expansion of solar power and strong hydro power production. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/spanish-renewables-industry-warns-threats-investment-2024-10-25/

2024-10-25 10:47

BEIJING, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The world's largest iron ore miner Rio Tinto (RIO.AX) , opens new tab said on Friday it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with China's Nanjing Iron and Steel Co (NISCO)(600282.SS) , opens new tab on decarbonisation technology in ironmaking. Technical teams from both companies will work closely on exploring pelletizing using the Pilbara fines and the application of biomass. Rio's flagship product Pilbara blended fines are typically used to make sintered ore, used in blast furnaces to produce hot metal. And pelletization usually requires higher grade iron ore, which is helpful for reducing carbon emissions along the steel value chain. "We are pleased to have reached a new milestone in steel carbon reduction ... the low carbon transition in the steel industry needs high-quality raw material and massive technological innovation," said Simon Farry, head of steel decarbonisation at Rio. Upstream mining giants have accelerated cooperation with their big consumers on decarbonising the steel value chain to cope with climate change. Rio Tinto last year signed a MoU with China Baowu, the world's biggest steelmaker by volume, to develop projects aimed at enabling lower grade ore to be used in low-carbon steelmaking. It's rival BHP Group (BHP.AX) , opens new tab and Chinese steel company HBIS Group Co Ltd (000709.SZ) , opens new tab, agreed last March to trial carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) technologies at the Chinese firm's steel mills. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/rio-tinto-signs-mou-with-chinas-nanjing-steel-decarbonisation-2024-10-25/