2025-10-08 18:21

SAO PAULO, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Brazil's beef exports to China rose 38.3% in September from a year earlier, reaching 187,340 tonnes, industry group Abrafrigo said on Wednesday, helping push total monthly exports to a record high. China is the largest market for Brazilian beef, and has increased purchases as part of its broader strategy to avoid agricultural goods from the United States amid an ongoing trade dispute. Sign up here. Global demand for beef has helped Brazil offset the impact of U.S. tariffs on its exports, Abrafrigo said. In August, the U.S. imposed a 50% tariff on shipments of several Brazilian goods, including beef, which already had a 26.4% tax levy. Latin America's largest economy has been expanding exports to both new and traditional markets amid a global trade reshuffle triggered by U.S. tariffs, with similar trends also seen in soybean exports, which also reached record volumes. Total beef exports, including fresh and processed meat, edible offal, and tallow, generated $1.92 billion in revenue in September, with volumes reaching 373,867 tonnes, up 49% in value and 17% in volume year-on-year. "This strong performance came in the second month of additional tariffs imposed by the U.S. on Brazilian products, showing the sector's resilience and ability to seize new commercial opportunities," Abrafrigo said. Exports to the U.S., Brazil's second-largest beef market year-to-date, fell 41% in September to $102.9 million. The European Union became the second-largest destination last month, led by Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain. EU purchases totaled $131.7 million, up 106% from a year earlier. Abrafrigo said 130 countries increased purchases of Brazilian beef this year, while 48 reduced them. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/brazils-beef-exports-china-jump-38-september-amid-us-tariffs-2025-10-08/

2025-10-08 16:34

Oct 8 (Reuters) - Silver soared to a record high on Wednesday, riding the coattails of gold's unprecedented rally above the $4,000/oz level earlier in the session. Spot silver was up 3.5% at $49.54 per ounce by 1611 GMT. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/silver-rises-all-time-high-tracking-golds-record-breaking-rally-2025-10-08/

2025-10-08 16:03

NEW YORK, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Foreigners added just over $26 billion to their emerging markets debt and equity portfolios in September, the lowest since May, with the largest outflow from Chinese stocks since November, signaling investor apprehension toward EMs, according to a report from a banking trade group. The net $26.2 billion inflow for last month compares with a $47.1 billion net inflow in August and $63.5 billion in September 2024, according to data from the Institute of International Finance. Sign up here. The data showed a break away from China, as debt from EMs excluding China took in $35.1 billion, the most since February, while Chinese debt posted its first net monthly outflow since January. Chinese equities had their largest outflow since November. Investors have grown more selective amid tight valuations and China’s renewed weakness, the IIF said. It said sovereign issuance surged to $50 billion in September, led by Mexico, putting the year on track to surpass the 2020 issuance record. Yet most issuance comes from higher-grade issuers and the lower tiers struggle for market access. The U.S. Federal Reserve cut rates in mid-September for the first time this year, and Wall Street is split on whether it will cut again in both of its two remaining meetings this year, or only in one. Meanwhile, the tariffs and trade war, alongside the war in Ukraine and developments in Gaza, continue to weigh on sentiment. Bonds continue to attract cash on strong fundamentals and high real interest rates, but the boost from U.S. rate cuts is fading and investors are growing more cautious. There are renewed outflows in stocks, especially in China, and performance now varies more across regions: Latin America is holding up, while Asia and Eastern Europe are slowing. “With global macro conditions still fragile and geopolitical risks unresolved, EM portfolio flows are likely to remain positive, but increasingly concentrated and conditional,” Jonathan Fortun, a senior economist at the IIF, said in a statement. Regionally, emerging Asia took in almost $14 billion net last month and Latam followed with $8.2 billion. Africa and the Middle East funneled a net $2.6 billion and emerging Europe lagged with a $1.4 billion inflow. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/emerging-market-portfolio-inflows-drop-26-billion-lowest-level-since-may-iif-2025-10-08/

2025-10-08 16:03

BoE says 'risk of a sharp market correction has increased' AI share price valuations echo those in dotcom boom, BoE says Loss of faith in Fed independence would hurt dollar, Treasuries Slide in US equities or bonds could push up UK borrowing costs Global fiscal worries weighing on UK bond prices LONDON, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Global financial markets could tumble if investors' mood sours on the prospects for artificial intelligence or the independence of the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Bank of England warned on Wednesday. The BoE said share price valuations on U.S. stock markets were similar to those seen near the peak of the dotcom bubble on some measures and noted that U.S. government bonds were vulnerable to any weakening in the Fed's credibility. Sign up here. "The risk of a sharp market correction has increased," the BoE's Financial Policy Committee said in a quarterly update, in its sharpest warning to date of the dangers of an AI-triggered market slump, adding that the risk of spillovers to Britain's financial system from such a shock was "material". The FPC is chaired by BoE Governor Andrew Bailey and focuses on financial stability risks. Bailey told Britain's parliament last month that he was "very concerned" about threats to Fed independence. LOSS OF FED INDEPENDENCE WOULD CAUSE GLOBAL SHOCK President Donald Trump has repeatedly urged the U.S. central bank to slash interest rates and has sought to fire one of its policymakers, Lisa Cook. "A sudden or significant change in perceptions of Federal Reserve credibility could result in a sharp repricing of U.S. dollar assets, including in U.S. sovereign debt markets, with the potential for increased volatility, risk premia and global spillovers," the BoE said. British government borrowing costs are closely correlated with U.S. Treasury yields, and a fall in U.S. bond prices would probably push up the cost of servicing new British public debt. Thirty-year gilt yields hit their highest since 1998 last month and yields for shorter maturities - where most British borrowing is concentrated - have risen too. The BoE said this increase reflected concerns about the difficulty of reining in high borrowing across advanced economies, amplified by political uncertainty in France and Japan. AI VALUATIONS ECHO PEAK OF DOTCOM BOOM On AI, the BoE said that 30% of the U.S. S&P 500's valuation (.SPX) , opens new tab was made up by the five largest companies, the greatest concentration in 50 years. Chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab, Microsoft (MSFT.O) , opens new tab, Apple (AAPL.O) , opens new tab, Google-parent Alphabet , Amazon (AMZN.O) , opens new tab and Facebook-parent Meta (META.O) , opens new tab have all bet heavily on AI. Share valuations based on past earnings were the most stretched since the dotcom bubble 25 years ago, though looked less so based on investors' expectations for future profits. "This, when combined with increasing concentration within market indices, leaves markets particularly exposed should expectations around the impact of AI become less optimistic," the BoE said. Last month Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg said he would rather misspend a couple of hundred billion dollars than risk being late to the AI expansion. In August, almost half of fund managers polled by Bank of America judged that owning the seven largest U.S. tech stocks was the most crowded trade in the industry. Despite these concerns, the S&P 500 hit a record high on Tuesday, up 14% on the year to date. UK DOMESTIC RISKS LITTLE CHANGED The central bank saw little change in domestic financial stability risks, as households and businesses continued to cope with rising inflation - which it forecasts hit 4% in September - and with increased borrowing costs compared with past years. Risk managers surveyed by the BoE were more confident in the stability of the British financial system than six months ago, and viewed the main dangers as coming from cyberattacks and geopolitical factors. The BoE left unchanged its main tools for regulating banks. It kept the countercyclical capital buffer (CCyB) steady at 2% and after an annual review left the minimum leverage ratio at 3.25%. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/markets-face-sharp-correction-if-mood-sours-ai-or-fed-freedom-bank-england-says-2025-10-08/

2025-10-08 15:22

Traders estimate Treasury has sold $2 billion in recent sessions 75% of hard currency from export scheme sold off -consultancy Soy sales to China brought in cash but raised ire of US farmers BUENOS AIRES, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Argentina's Treasury is rapidly depleting its dollar reserves to defend the peso, straining financial markets on Wednesday as funds from a special deal with agricultural exporters run low weeks before midterm elections. Traders estimate the Treasury, under the Economy Ministry, has sold around $2 billion in recent sessions to support the weakening peso. The ministry does not publicly report its market operations. Sign up here. The interventions have rapidly depleted the Treasury's hard currency holdings. According to a report from Portfolio Personal Inversiones, dollar deposits held at the central bank plunged from $1.44 billion last Friday to just $680 million, leaving only "a few more days" of intervention capacity at the current pace. The Treasury has now sold off over three-quarters of the hard currency it raised from the export scheme, according to consultancy Wise Capital. Late last month, the government suspended export taxes on grains and their byproducts. Within a few days, traders committed to selling some $7 billion worth of crops, largely soybeans to China. Cash poured in, but the deal has stoked tensions with Washington, as U.S. farmers have been frozen out of the Chinese market due to a tariff standoff. The pressure is mounting ahead of Argentina's legislative elections on October 26, seen as a crucial test for libertarian President Javier Milei's administration. In a bid to calm markets, Economy Minister Luis Caputo is in Washington negotiating a potential $20 billion currency swap , opens new tab deal. An announcement could follow a planned meeting between Milei and U.S. President Donald Trump next week. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told Reuters the fund is working closely with the U.S., the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank to develop an aid package for Argentina. On Wednesday, the wholesale peso held at 1,430 per dollar, but the parallel rate used for moving money abroad climbed to 1,556 per greenback, widening the exchange-rate gap to nearly 9%. The consensus among economists is that the current intervention strategy is a temporary bridge until the election. A new, freer foreign-exchange regime is widely expected afterward, with its implementation dependent on the election results and securing U.S. financial support. In asset markets, sovereign bond prices fell by an average of 1%. In contrast, the S&P Merval stock index (.MERV) , opens new tab reversed early losses to close up 1.42%. Meanwhile, shares in aluminum producer Aluar (ALUAm.BA) , opens new tab jumped 2.93% after the government temporarily suspended export tariffs on the metal. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/argentine-treasury-struggles-contain-peso-slide-awaits-us-support-2025-10-08/

2025-10-08 12:46

LISBON, Oct 8 (Reuters) - The U.S. government shutdown hasn't significantly disrupted domestic commercial flights nor has it stopped the recruitment of new air traffic controllers, Willie Walsh, director general of airline lobby group IATA said on Wednesday. "There were no significant impacts to date. I would say there wasn't any major damage," Walsh said at the World Aviation Festival in Lisbon. Sign up here. On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said that staffing issues were causing delays at several airports, including Newark and Denver. During a 35-day shutdown in 2019 the FAA was forced to slow air traffic in New York, which put pressure on lawmakers to quickly end the standoff. Some 13,000 air traffic controllers are set to miss their first paycheck on October 14 but must still turn up for work during the shutdown despite not being paid, along with about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers. One positive from the shutdown was that it hasn't stopped the recruitment of new air traffic controllers, Walsh said. "That's a significant change from past events and a very positive development. So hopefully we'll see this issue resolved quickly," he said. On a global scale IATA continues to see strong demand from passengers and for cargo, he said. It forecasts passenger traffic growth to decelerate to 5.8% year-on-year in 2025, from 10.6% in 2024. Year-to-date it was 5%. https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/us-shutdown-not-creating-significant-flight-disruptions-iatas-chief-says-2025-10-08/