2025-11-25 04:51

MUMBAI, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund is likely to reclassify India's foreign exchange rate management regime in the near future, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday citing people familiar with the matter. The reported shift comes two years after the international body had characterised India's FX management regime to "stabilized arrangement" from "floating" in December 2023. Sign up here. The Reserve Bank of India strongly believes that such a view is "incorrect" and "unjustified", the report had said at the time. The IMF had retained the tag for the period of December 2022 to November 2024 following its latest review last year. News of the potential reclassification by the IMF comes as the rupee's volatility has picked up under new chief Sanjay Malhotra who took charge of the central bank late last year. (This story has been refiled to say 'took charge,' not 'take charge,' in paragraph 4) https://www.reuters.com/world/india/imf-reclassify-indias-fx-management-framework-bloomberg-news-reports-2025-11-25/

2025-11-25 04:31

MUMBAI, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee closed nearly flat on Tuesday, surrendering early gains as month-end dollar demand from importers offset broader strength in regional currencies. The rupee ended at 89.22 against the U.S. dollar, barely changed from its close of 89.23 in the previous session. Sign up here. The currency found its footing this week after slumping to an all-time low of 89.49 on November 21. While the central bank likely stepped in to shore up the currency on Monday, traders pointed to only intermittent signs of its presence in the market on Tuesday. It "seems like they (RBI) are active but largely in the non-deliverable forwards market," a senior trader at a state-run bank said. Persistent worries over a limbo in U.S.-India trade negotiations have weighed on the rupee this year and traders reckon that a recovery is unlikely in the absence of a breakthrough in talks between New Delhi and Washington. "We think the current elevated US tariffs on India exports are likely to be lowered, which will likely be positive for growth and equities, but we expect the RBI to replenish FX reserves on dips in USD/INR, therefore limiting INR appreciation," analysts at Goldman Sachs said in a note. India's foreign exchange reserves stood at $692.6 billion as of the week ended November 14, per central bank data. The Reserve Bank of India's net short position in FX forwards and futures, meanwhile, stood at $59.4 billion at the end of September. Traders and analysts expect the position size to have risen further in October, the data for which is expected to be released on Friday. Elsewhere, the dollar index was a tad lower at 100.1, while Asian currencies firmed between 0.1% and 0.7% as investors deliberated over the chances of a U.S. rate reduction next month. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/rupee-eyes-higher-open-with-fed-rate-cut-odds-rising-rbi-lurking-2025-11-25/

2025-11-25 03:33

DUBAI, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Nigeria's Dangote has tapped Honeywell (HON.O) , opens new tab to provide services and help double its refining capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day by 2028, in what is the clearest indication yet that its plans to become the world's largest petroleum refinery are bearing fruit. The agreement will allow Dangote to process a broader range of crude grades to help support the planned expansion in output with the help of Honeywell's catalysts and equipment, the companies said on Tuesday. Sign up here. Dangote will also look to increase its total production of polypropylene - an industrial material widely used to produce plastic containers and car parts - to 2.4 million metric tons per year by licensing Honeywell's Oleflex technology. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. While contracts of such nature tend to vary based on the project's complexity, a source familiar with the situation said it could be valued at over $250 million. Nigeria is Africa's largest crude oil producer, yet for decades it imported nearly all its refined fuel due to non-functional state-owned refineries, leading to chronic fuel shortages, subsidy scandals, and heavy pressure on foreign exchange reserves. The Dangote refinery, which is Africa's largest and the world's biggest single-train facility at 650,000 barrels per day, is designed to reverse this paradox by meeting all of Nigeria's domestic fuel needs and creating surplus for export. With $20 billion spent to build the refinery in Lekki, Lagos, Dangote last month laid out plans to double the plant capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day by adding a second single-train unit over the next three years. At that capacity, Dangote would be able to process nearly all of Nigeria's current crude production of around 1.5 million bpd. The agreement comes as Honeywell, once a conglomerate that is now in the process of splitting itself up, is shoring up revenues ahead of a planned carve-out of its aerospace business, which is currently its biggest cash cow. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/nigerias-dangote-picks-honeywell-help-fulfill-ambitious-capacity-expansion-2025-11-25/

2025-11-25 00:38

32 of 36 economists expect the BOK to hold rates at 2.50% on November 27 BENGALURU, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The Bank of Korea will keep its key interest rate unchanged at 2.50% on Thursday as policymakers grapple with a volatile currency and an overheated housing market, according to a majority of economists in a Reuters poll who have pushed the next predicted rate cut to early next year. Economists had previously expected a cut at the November 27 meeting, but elevated home prices due to a chronic housing shortage and the Korean won , which has weakened against the U.S. dollar for four consecutive months, have prompted most of them to push the reduction into the first quarter of 2026. Sign up here. South Korea’s economic growth and price pressures have also accelerated. Third-quarter gross domestic product grew 1.2%, the fastest in more than a year, while October inflation rose 2.4%, above the BOK’s 2% target. That combination has reinforced expectations among economists that the central bank will stay cautious for longer as it waits to see the impact on the economy of 100 basis points of easing since October 2024. REAL ESTATE AND CURRENCY CONCERNS Nearly 90% of economists, 32 of 36 polled from November 18-24, said the BOK would hold its base rate (KROCRT=ECI) , opens new tab at 2.50% on Thursday, where it has been since May. Four expected a 25-basis-point cut to 2.25%. "There has been a lack of material improvement in the two key constraints – real estate and currency concerns – that drove the October pause," said Krystal Tan, an economist at ANZ, who now predicts the next rate cut in the first three months of 2026. "At present, we think it is premature to declare an end to the BOK’s easing cycle. Growth remains below potential, and the prospect of Fed-led easing in 2026 could help ease currency constraints." The U.S. Federal Reserve has cut rates by a cumulative 150 basis points since September 2024 and is expected to reduce borrowing costs further. ONE MORE CUT SEEN BEFORE END OF Q1 Among economists with a longer-term view on rates, a majority of 60%, or 17 of 28, forecast at least one more rate cut by end-March 2026. Fourteen expected rates at 2.25% and three at 2.00%, while the remaining 11 saw no change from 2.50%. Some economists said such easing would support an economy growing below potential and aligned with the BOK’s signal at its last meeting that it intended to “maintain its rate cut stance to mitigate downside risks to economic growth”. Median forecasts showed rates at 2.25% through 2026, 25 basis points higher than the 2.00% expected in the October poll. "We do believe the direction of interest rates is still going to be down and the most likely question is more of when and the major reason for this is the output gap remains negative and the authorities are still keen on supporting growth," said Adam Samdin, economist at Oxford Economics. The BOK expects the economy to expand 0.9% this year, the weakest pace since a 0.7% contraction in 2020 during the pandemic. (Other stories from the Reuters global economic poll) https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/bank-korea-hold-rates-250-november-27-cut-pushed-next-quarter-2025-11-25/

2025-11-24 23:59

Indexes up: Dow 0.44%, S&P 500 1.55%, Nasdaq up 2.69% Deutsche Bank sees S&P 500 rising to 8,000 by 2026 end Bristol Myers gains after rival's positive late-stage data NEW YORK, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Wall Street stocks closed higher on Monday, extending Friday's rally as increased odds that the U.S. Federal Reserve will lower its Fed funds target rate in December helped investors look past concerns about inflated tech valuations. U.S. indexes embarked on the holiday-shortened week with solid gains, with strength in the "Magnificent Seven" group of artificial-intelligence-related momentum stocks putting the tech-heavy Nasdaq out front. Sign up here. A spate of economic reports, belatedly released after the recent six-week government shutdown, hinted at labor market weakness and stubbornly elevated inflation, which has bolstered investor optimism that the Fed will implement its third and final interest rate cut of 2025 at the conclusion of its December monetary meeting. INVESTORS 'BREATHE SIGH OF RELIEF' Dovish commentary from Fed Governor Christopher Waller, New York Fed President John Williams, and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly lent some support to that optimism, although other policymakers voiced dissenting opinions. "The street is falling into the line of thinking that a rate cut is coming in December," said Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth in Fairfield, Connecticut. Financial markets are pricing in an 85% likelihood of that occurring, up from 42.4% a week ago, according to CME's FedWatch tool. The release of economic data is set to continue this week, with retail sales, producer prices, and new orders for durable goods joining independent indicators such as Case-Shiller home prices, the Conference Board's consumer confidence report and the National Association of Realtors' pending home sales data. Third-quarter reporting season is drawing to a close. As of Friday, nearly 95% of the companies in the S&P 500 have reported, 83% of which delivered better-than-expected earnings. Analysts now expect third-quarter aggregate earnings growth of 14.7% for constituents of the bellwether index, a significant improvement over the 8.8% estimate on October 1, according to LSEG data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 202.86 points, or 0.44%, to 46,448.27, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 102.13 points, or 1.55%, to 6,705.12 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab gained 598.92 points, or 2.69%, to 22,872.01. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, communication services (.SPLRCL) , opens new tab enjoyed the largest percentage gain. Consumer staples (.SPLRCS) , opens new tab and energy stocks (.SPNY) , opens new tab were the only two sectors to close in negative territory. The U.S. holiday shopping season kicks off this week, starting with Thursday's Thanksgiving holiday. The health of the consumer, who shoulders about 70% of the U.S. economy, will be assessed for any signs of weakness amid increased layoff announcements and weak survey reports. Even so, the National Retail Federation expects holiday sales to top $1 trillion for the first time. Earnings from consumer-oriented companies such as Best Buy (BBY.N) , opens new tab are expected later this week. TECH VALUATION WORRIES LINGER AI bellwether Nvidia's (NVDA.O) , opens new tab last week failed to assuage looming fears of a potential AI bubble. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq remain on track for monthly losses. Deutsche Bank helped revive investor risk appetite after projecting the S&P 500 would reach 8,000 by the end of next year, the most bullish forecast among major global brokerages. Bristol-Myers (BMY.N) , opens new tab advanced 3.3% after European rival Bayer (BAYGn.DE) , opens new tab unveiled positive late-stage data for its cardiovascular drug, boosting confidence in Bristol-Myers' experimental drug milvexian. Centene (CNC.N) , opens new tab and Oscar Health (OSCR.N) , opens new tab jumped 4.6% and 22.3%, respectively, following a report that Trump is considering extending the Affordable Care Act's subsidies for two years. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.3-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 116 new highs and 76 new lows on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, 3,187 stocks rose and 1,478 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.16-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 22 new 52-week highs and three new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 112 new highs and 122 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 18.32 billion shares, compared with the 19.94 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/wall-street-futures-mixed-investors-mull-fed-rate-cut-focus-data-2025-11-24/

2025-11-24 23:28

BP excavates over 200 feet of pipeline to locate leak source Major airlines add refueling stops to flights amid pipeline shutdown Delta Air Lines and Alaska Airlines use tanker trucks to supplement fuel NEW YORK, Nov 24 (Reuters) - BP's (BP.L) , opens new tab Olympic Pipeline system remained offline on Monday as the oil major along with state and local authorities continued probing what caused the leak near Everett, Washington. Major airlines have turned to contingency plans to minimize impact on flights during the busy Thanksgiving travel week. The fuel leak was first reported on November 11. BP restored one of the two pipelines east of Everett that had been shut to determine the source of some product discharge. The restored line was shut down again shortly after, halting refined product deliveries on the system. Sign up here. "Over 200 feet of pipeline have been excavated to date. Crews are operating around the clock and will continue overnight operations tonight," BP said in an emailed statement on Monday. The timeline for restarting the pipeline is not available, the company said, the total amount of leaked product is still being assessed. The 400-mile Olympic Pipeline system moves refined petroleum products including gasoline, diesel and jet fuel from northern Washington to Oregon. Last week, Washington Governor Bob Ferguson declared an emergency following the pipeline shutdown, which has disrupted jet fuel supplies to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac). Operations at Sea-Tac have not seen major disruptions as airlines turn to contingency plans, a spokesperson said. "We encourage travelers to stay in touch with their airlines about their specific flight." CONTINGENCY PLANS Major airlines including Alaska Airlines (ALK.N) , opens new tab and Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) , opens new tab have implemented plans to minimize impact to flights during busy Thanksgiving travel week. Delta has transported extra fuel via tanker trucks into Sea-Tac to supplement fuel reserves and added refueling stops to a number of outbound domestic long-haul flights, the carrier said in an emailed response. Alaska Airlines has tankered fuel on inbound flights to Seattle and expanded its trucking operations to bring in extra fuel, in addition to adding a fuel stop to roughly a dozen flights per day. "We continue to minimize the impacts of the Olympic Pipeline fuel leak. We do not expect disruption to our operations at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport through the Thanksgiving travel week," Alaska Airlines said in a statement. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/bps-olympic-pipeline-shutdown-hits-airlines-fuel-supply-2025-11-24/