2024-10-23 21:46

Oct 24 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets. Asian markets are likely to open on the defensive on Thursday with sentiment badly dented by the continued rise in U.S. bond yields and mounting speculation the Federal Reserve won't cut U.S. interest rates as much as investors had previously hoped. That shifting outlook sparked a sharp selloff in U.S. Big Tech stocks on Wednesday and the Nasdaq fell 1.6%, its biggest fall in nearly two months. World stocks, meanwhile, fell for a third straight day. That's a bearish backdrop to Asian trading on Thursday, although the 8% surge in Tesla shares after the close on Wednesday following the company's third-quarter results may offer the tech sector some support. There's a raft of top-tier local economic data due from Asia on Thursday, including purchasing managers index reports from Japan, India and Australia, third quarter GDP from South Korea, and inflation figures from Malaysia. In currency markets the spotlight remains fixed on dollar/yen. It rose above 152.00 on Wednesday, breaking technical resistance at the 200-day moving average in the process, which suggests the upward momentum has more room to run. This is fueling market chatter about possible intervention from Japanese authorities to slow the move. But with many top finance officials, including Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda, in Washington for the IMF and World Bank annual meetings and Japan's general election only days away, intervention at this juncture may be a long shot. "I doubt they will do anything unless we were to fly through 160.00 for some reason," reckons Brad Bechtel at Jefferies. Ministry of Finance officials were warning against what they described as speculative moves when the yen fell below 149 per dollar nearly three weeks ago. Japan last conducted yen-buying intervention in late July after the currency tumbled to a 38-year low below 161 per dollar. Ueda said in Washington on Wednesday it was "still taking time" for Japan to achieve its 2% inflation goal in a sustainable manner, adding that it is "very hard" to pin down the appropriate size of interest rate hikes from here on. Inflation figures for the capital Tokyo on Friday will give the latest steer on Japanese price pressures. A Reuters poll suggests consumer inflation in Tokyo in September was 1.7%, undershooting the BOJ's 2% price target for the first time in five months. Elsewhere in Asian currencies, South Korea's finance minister was reported on Wednesday as saying the won's current level near 1,400 per dollar should be regarded as a "new normal". Figures on Thursday are expected to show that the South Korean economy bounced back to growth in the third quarter after shrinking 0.2% in the second. Here are key developments that could provide more direction to markets on Thursday: - Japan, India, Australia PMIs (October) - South Korea GDP (Q3) - Malaysia inflation (September) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/global-markets-view-asia-graphic-2024-10-23/

2024-10-23 21:09

TSX ends down 0.6% at 24,573.62 Technology and energy both fall 1.2% Oil settles 1.4% lower BoC cuts benchmark rate by 50 basis points Oct 23 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell for a third straight day on Wednesday, pressured by declines for resource and technology shares, as investors assessed whether the economy can withstand the recent move higher in long-term borrowing costs. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE) , opens new tab ended down 143.08 points, or 0.6%, at 24,573.62, extending its pullback from an all-time closing high on Friday. Wall Street also fell as U.S. Treasury yields climbed, with the 10-year rate up more than 60 basis points since mid-September. "I would be looking at this pullback as a counter-trend move," said Joseph Abramson, co-chief investment officer at Northland Wealth Management, adding the rise in bond yields is likely to reflect improving growth rather than constraining growth. Canadian bond yields have also climbed in recent weeks but not as much as U.S. rates. "Canada needs lower rates than the U.S. so that puts downward pressure on the Canadian dollar ... in local currency terms it should be good for the TSX," Abramson said. The loonie touched an 11-week low at 1.3862 per U.S. dollar, or 72.14 U.S. cents, after the Bank of Canada cut its benchmark rate by an unusually large 50 basis points to 3.75% and hailed signs Canada has returned to an era of low inflation. The technology and energy sectors both fell 1.2%. The price of oil settled 1.4% lower at $70.77 a barrel. Gold and copper prices also fell, weighing on metal mining shares. The materials group lost 0.9%. First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) , opens new tab was a bright spot. Its shares rose 1.3% after the copper miner beat quarterly profit estimates and said it is in talks with potential partners for its Zambian assets. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/tsx-futures-slip-ahead-boc-rate-decision-2024-10-23/

2024-10-23 20:58

Oct 23 (Reuters) - Newmont (NEM.N) , opens new tab, the world's top gold producer, missed Wall Street expectations for third-quarter profit on Wednesday, as higher costs and lower production in Nevada took the shine away from a rise in total output. Shares of the company fell 6.8% after the bell. Newmont said that its costs rose due to planned maintenance at the Lihir project in Papua New Guinea — which it acquired following a $17 billion buyout of Newcrest — and higher expenditure for contract services across its portfolio. All-in-sustaining-costs for gold, an industry metric reflecting total expenses, rose to $1,611 per ounce in the July-September quarter, from $1,426 per ounce a year ago. The Denver, Colorado-based company's attributable production at the Nevada Gold Mines declined by 19.3% to 242,000 ounces during the third quarter, compared to the year-ago quarter. Newmont owns a non-operating minority stake in Nevada Gold Mines, along with rival Barrick Gold (ABX.TO) , opens new tab, whose third-quarter production fell short of Wall Street expectations earlier this month due to lower output at the Nevada mines. However, the company's total gold production rose 29.2% to 1.67 million ounces, primarily due to higher production at the Cerro Negro mine in Argentina, where production had suffered earlier due to the death of two workers. The market had estimated the miner to produce about 1.64 million ounces of gold during the reported period. Newmont also said it expects to produce 1.8 million gold ounces in the fourth quarter, its highest output of the year, and remained on track to reach its target of receiving $2 billion from divestment proceedings. The company posted adjusted profit of 81 cents per share, compared to analysts' expectations of 86 cents per share, according to data compiled by LSEG. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/top-gold-miner-newmont-misses-third-quarter-profit-estimates-higher-costs-2024-10-23/

2024-10-23 20:38

MEXICO CITY, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Mexican state oil company Pemex aims to increase its hydrocarbon reserves and ensure their restitution during the government of newly elected President Claudia Sheinbaum, according to an internal Pemex document seen by Reuters on Wednesday. Pemex will also intensify deepwater exploration and develop new business models to attract investment, the document shows. During the six-year administration of Sheinbaum's predecessor, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Pemex had put aside deepwater exploration to focus on projects that would deliver production quickly, although many have started to decline early. Pemex did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Sheinbaum’s office did not directly answer the Reuters request for comment. Pemex would also look to develop new business models to attract external investment, the document showed, after Lopez Obrador did not seek partnerships with private companies to develop exploration and extraction projects. Lopez Obrador had ended the bidding for contracts introduced during the energy reform a decade ago, arguing that resource wealth was being handed over to private and foreign companies at the expense of Pemex. Pemex already has a partnership with Australia's Woodside Energy (WDS.AX) , opens new tab, signed in 2017, for the Trion field in ultra-deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. As a result of the energy reform, Woodside has a 60% stake in the project and is the operator. Pemex owns 40% and serves as a financial partner. Trion, which has proven reserves of 287 million barrels of crude oil and 323 billion cubic feet of gas, is expected to begin production in 2028. Sources recently told Reuters that the government of Sheinbaum would seek to reactivate Pemex partnerships with private companies to increase hydrocarbon reserves. Pemex's internal document indicates that the state company would maintain onshore exploratory activity, shallow waters and in areas surrounding production fields. It would also concentrate efforts on selecting exploration and production projects that offer the "greatest potential for success and profitability" in addition to mitigating the decline of fields and strengthening the development of new ones. Pemex, one of the most indebted oil companies in the world, produces on average 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil, excluding condensate. Adding condensate, its production rises to 1.8 million bpd. Sheinbaum, who took office on Oct. 1, has said that she would seek to maintain current levels of crude oil production during her six years in office. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/mexicos-pemex-looks-boost-gas-oil-reserves-during-sheinbaum-presidency-document-2024-10-23/

2024-10-23 20:35

McDonald's falls after E. coli outbreak Texas Instruments up as profit beats forecasts Boeing falls after results; contract vote awaited Tesla earnings expected after the bell Oct 23 (Reuters) - Wall Street closed lower on Wednesday, as climbing Treasury yields pressured megacap stocks and investors grew less confident about strong rate cuts from the Federal Reserve, while corporate news pressured McDonald's and Coca-Cola. Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yields reached a three-month high with investors reassessing the Fed rate-cut outlook over the next few months against the backdrop of strong economic data and the upcoming presidential election. "The market is struggling to digest this latest backup in yields," said Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL Financial, adding higher rates are pressuring stocks. Among rate-sensitive megacaps, Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab fell 2.81%, Apple (AAPL.O) , opens new tab 2.16%, Meta Platforms (META.O) , opens new tab 3.15% and Amazon (AMZN.O) , opens new tab slid 2.63%, dragging on the tech-laden Nasdaq. Out of the 11 S&P sub sectors, only utilities and real estate posted gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab fell 409.94 points, or 0.96%, to 42,514.95, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab lost 53.78 points, or 0.92%, to 5,797.42 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab lost 296.47 points, or 1.60%, to 18,276.65. McDonald's (MCD.N) , opens new tab tumbled 5.12% after an E. coli infection linked to its Quarter Pounder hamburgers killed one and sickened many. Coca-Cola (KO.N) , opens new tab fell 2.07% after the company reiterated its annual profit growth forecast even though it expected higher revenue. The broader consumer discretionary (.SPLRCD) , opens new tab sector also dropped 1.82%, while the information technology was down 1.68%. "You have a market that had gotten up to new all time highs so portfolio managers are looking around and saying: maybe I should take some profits," said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager, Globalt Investments. Boeing (BA.N) , opens new tab dropped 1.76% after the planemaker reported a quarterly loss of $6 billion owing to a crippling strike. Factory workers at Boeing will vote later in the day on a new contract proposal that could end the standoff after more than five weeks. Semiconductor company Texas Instruments (TXN.O) , opens new tab gained 4% after its third-quarter profit beat forecasts, while AT&T (T.N) , opens new tab rose 4.60% after gaining more wireless subscribers than expected in the third quarter. Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab, the first of the so-called Magnificent Seven companies scheduled to report results after market close, closed down, but gained 8% in after hours trading, as it beats profit margin estimates. The benchmark S&P 500 had its third consecutive daily decline. U.S. markets are near record-high levels, but a combination of earnings, a changing monetary policy outlook and the upcoming presidential election will test the rally and could stoke volatility, analysts said. Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin said the central bank's fight to return inflation to its 2% target may take longer than expected, limiting interest rate cuts. The Fed "Beige Book" survey showed U.S. economic activity was little changed from September through early October while firms saw an uptick in hiring. Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 3.27-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 102 new highs and 59 new lows on the NYSE. The S&P 500 posted 28 new 52-week highs and 4 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 60 new highs and 90 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 11.83 billion shares, compared with the 11.29 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/futures-drop-bond-yields-rise-results-boeing-coca-cola-awaited-2024-10-23/

2024-10-23 20:23

Oct 23 (Reuters) - GE Vernova (GEV.N) , opens new tab will remove some turbine blades installed at the Vineyard Wind offshore wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts following quality checks prompted by the failure of a blade in July, the company said on Wednesday. Progress on the still-unfinished project is being closely watched since it was barred from producing power or completing construction after a turbine blade broke and sent debris into the water that washed up on nearby beaches during the peak summer tourist season. The blade saga has been a blow to the nation's budding offshore wind industry, which is regarded as critical to meeting U.S. President Joe Biden's climate change goals. The turbine maker blamed a manufacturing flaw for the accident at the nation's first major offshore wind farm and has spent months inspecting blades with ultrasound images and drones. "Out of an abundance of caution, GE Vernova intends to remove some blades from the Vineyard Wind farm while strengthening other blades as needed to support the safety and operational readiness of this project," GE Vernova and Vineyard Wind said in a joint statement. The companies also said they were granted approval this week by federal safety authorities to resume installation of new blades at the project once certain safety and operational conditions are met. They did not give a timeline for when they expect those conditions to be met. The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement confirmed that it would allow certain construction activities on a case-by-case basis. The agency is still investigating the incident, and said Vineyard Wind is required to provide a root cause analysis as soon as it is available. "There is no timetable for the completion of the investigation, as BSEE focuses on ensuring that the investigation is thorough and complete," a spokesperson said in an emailed statement. Vineyard Wind is a joint venture between Avangrid (AGR.N) , opens new tab and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners. Avangrid is a unit of Spain's Iberdrola (IBE.MC) , opens new tab. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/ge-vernova-remove-some-vineyard-wind-blades-after-quality-checks-2024-10-23/