2025-09-25 21:00
WASHINGTON, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab urged the Trump administration not to repeal vehicle emissions standards or the long-standing U.S. finding that greenhouse gas emissions endanger human health. Tesla said in comments posted on Thursday that the Environmental Protection Agency's proposal to repeal the standards "would give a pass to engine and vehicle manufacturers for all measurement, control, and reporting of GHG emissions for any highway engine and vehicle." Sign up here. Earlier this week, a group representing General Motors , opens new tab(GM.N) , opens new tab Toyota (7203.T) , opens new tab, Volkswagen (VOWG.DE) , opens new tab and nearly all other major automakers, asked the EPA to roll back its aggressive vehicle emissions limits that seek to force the industry to build a rising number of electric vehicles. Tesla stands to lose billions of dollars in regulatory credits sold over the coming years as a result of the Trump administration's dismantling of green vehicle rules. Last year, Tesla said it received $2.8 billion in global revenue from earning regulatory credits for selling zero-emission EVs, and from selling those credits to other automakers seeking to meet vehicle emissions targets. Republican Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio said at a hearing in July that the costs automakers paid Tesla to be in compliance were "outrageous." The EPA’s proposed action "undermines the stability of this program, diminishes the value of performance-based incentives that electric vehicle manufacturers accrue under the standards, and creates an uneven playing field - reducing the inducement for investment in vehicle innovation," Tesla said. In 2019, Tesla began spending $25 per vehicle to generate credits by using environmentally friendly air conditioning. "This investment ultimately amounted to tens of millions of dollars when scaled over millions of vehicles produced for North America since this time," Tesla said. Tesla CEO Elon Musk was a close adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump, before they had a public feud earlier this year. Trump suggested Musk's objection to a major budget bill was because it eliminated consumer tax credits for electric vehicles, which will end on September 30. In July, the administration told automakers they face no fines for failing to meet fuel efficiency rules dating back to the 2022 model year. Trump in June signed a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act to bar California's landmark plan to end the sale of gasoline-only vehicles by 2035. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/tesla-urges-trump-not-repeal-vehicle-emissions-rules-climate-finding-2025-09-25/
2025-09-25 20:45
Chinese shipyards capture 53% of Jan-Aug global ship orders by tonnage US port fees on China-linked vessels aim to counter China's maritime dominance MSC orders 12 containerships from China despite US port fees LOS ANGELES, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Global shipping companies are moving full steam ahead with commercial vessel orders from Chinese shipyards, despite the U.S. targeting those ships with port fees aimed at countering China's maritime dominance, a new report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies showed. Chinese shipyards captured 53% of all global ship orders by tonnage during the first eight months of 2025, according to the CSIS analysis of S&P Global data released on Wednesday. Sign up here. That was on par with full-year 2023 levels before the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) launched the China maritime probe that paved the way for the port fees, CSIS said. "Shipping companies are largely moving forward with business as usual," said Brian Hart, a fellow with the China Power Project at CSIS and an author of the report. "So far, it doesn't look like these policies will achieve a significant shift away from China." China's share of global ship orders by tonnage had jumped to 73% in 2024, suggesting shipowners were seeking to lock in contracts before potential USTR restrictions took effect. Starting October 14, ships built in China - or operated or owned by Chinese entities - will need to pay a fee at their first port of call in the United States. That fee could top $1 million for a ship carrying more than 10,000 containers and is slated to rise annually through 2028, according to analyst estimates. The port fees on China-linked vessels are part of a broader U.S. effort to revive domestic shipbuilding and to blunt China's growing naval and commercial shipping power. But catching up with China's state-supported shipyards is a heavy lift. Last year, the U.S. shipyards built fewer than 10 commercial ships, while China's turned out well over 1,000, military and industry analysts said. China over the last two decades has propelled itself to the No. 1 position globally and its biggest shipyards handle both commercial and military projects. Meanwhile, the U.S. Navy's fiscal year 2025 plan said U.S. commercial shipbuilding has experienced a near-total collapse and called for the long-term revitalization of that industry to bolster Navy shipbuilding. MSC - the largest containership operator - placed orders for 12 of those vessels to be built in China since USTR announced the port fees in April this year, the CSIS report said. Switzerland-based MSC, like peers Hapag-Lloyd (HLAG.DE) , opens new tab, Maersk (MAERSKb.CO) , opens new tab and CMA CGM, has taken China-linked ships off U.S. trade routes, limiting or negating the new fees. HSBC analysts said China's COSCO Shipping (601919.SS) , opens new tab is most exposed with estimated 2026 port fees of $1.5 billion. President Donald Trump has been a cheerleader for U.S. shipbuilders, seeking alliances and investments from powerhouses like South Korea. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-shipyard-orders-strong-despite-us-port-fees-china-vessels-report-says-2025-09-25/
2025-09-25 20:43
Sept 25 (Reuters) - Russia and Ethiopia signed a document on Thursday calling for the planning and construction of a nuclear power plant in the east African country, RIA news agency quoted Rosatom, the state-owned Russian nuclear corporation, as saying. An action plan on development and construction of the facility was signed during a nuclear power forum by the general director of Rosatom, Aleksei Likhachev, and Ashebir Balcha, CEO of the Ethiopian Electric Company, RIA said. Sign up here. The document said the two sides agreed to create a detailed construction plan and a "road map" for the technical and economic foundation of the project and an intergovernmental agreement to proceed. The agreement also calls for training for staff in operating the plant and developing the nuclear sector. Earlier, Niger's mining minister, Ousmane Abarchi, said his country wanted to build two 2,000-megawatt nuclear reactors in partnership with Rosatom. South Africa is the only country in Africa with an operational nuclear power plant, but reactors are under construction in Egypt https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/russia-ethiopia-sign-document-calling-construction-nuclear-plant-2025-09-25/
2025-09-25 20:39
US blames Mexico for inadequate screwworm control near border Screwworm poses multibillion-dollar risk to US beef industry Mexico says controlling livestock movement is complicated WASHINGTON, Sept 25 (Reuters) - U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on Thursday said Mexico has not adequately enacted protocols to curb the spread of New World screwworm, a sign of tension between the two countries as they navigate the northward march of the pest. Rollins blamed a recent screwworm detection less than 70 miles (113 km) from the U.S. border on Mexico's failure to curb cattle movements and inadequate monitoring of fly traps meant to reduce the wild population of screwworm flies, which infest and can kill livestock if untreated. Sign up here. Screwworm has not yet crossed the U.S. border, according to officials, but poses a multibillion-dollar risk to the U.S. beef industry. The U.S. has kept its border mostly closed to Mexican cattle imports since May. The outbreak has heightened tensions between the countries ahead of a planned review of the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement and rattled their livestock and beef sectors. The U.S. Department of Agriculture on September 21 said it had learned of the case in Nuevo Leon , opens new tab, which borders Texas. Within hours, USDA had sent staff to the region, Rollins said on Thursday at the Ag Outlook Forum in Kansas City, Missouri. "Unfortunately, what we found is Mexico has failed to enforce proper cattle movement controls in infected regions and is not tending to fly traps daily as promised, which hinder our real-time detection capabilities. This is unacceptable," Rollins said. She said that reopening the border to livestock trade is contingent on total compliance with agreed-upon surveillance protocols. Mexico's sanitation agency Senasica said its fly trap system is checked every three or four days, a frequency that was jointly determined with APHIS, the animal health arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "Regarding the detection of a case of New World screwworm in northern Mexico, it should be noted that this finding was possible thanks to the application of a protocol established in the bilateral action plan," Senasica told Reuters, adding that it has implemented a double inspection system at the livestock's point of origin. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Wednesday said that Mexico had not been notified , opens new tab by the USDA of any change to the expectation that the U.S. will reopen its border before November and that controlling the movement of livestock within Mexico is complicated. The U.S. has invested $21 million in a facility in southern Mexico to produce sterile flies that are released to reduce the mating population of wild flies. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-criticizes-mexicos-handling-screwworm-near-border-2025-09-25/
2025-09-25 20:39
LAGOS, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Nigeria's oil regulator has approved a $510 million deal by TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) , opens new tab to sell its entire 12.5% interest in oil mining lease (OML) 118, which hosts the offshore Bonga oilfield, to the field's operator Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab, and Agip (ENI.MI) , opens new tab, the agency said on Thursday. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) said TotalEnergies will transfer 10% of its interest to Shell at a cost of $408 million while Agip will pay $102 million for the remaining 2.5%. Sign up here. The deal raises Shell's stake in Bonga to 67.5%, highlighting its continued interest in offshore Nigeria production after selling its spill-plagued onshore assets to Renaissance, a consortium of four local companies and an international energy group. The regulator said it conducted due diligence on Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPco) and Nigerian Agip Exploration Limited (NAE) to confirm their competence to operate the asset. "SNEPco and NAE have demonstrated both technical and managerial competence to optimally contribute to the upstream operations in OML 118," it said. The deal, which remains subject to ministerial consent, requires SNEPco and NAE to assume all decommissioning, abandonment, and community liabilities tied to the divested interest. They will also pay a combined 7% of the transaction value as premium and processing fees. The NUPRC on Tuesday pulled approval for TotalEnergies' $860 million asset sale to Mauritius-based Chappal Energies because the two sides had not met financial commitments required to complete the deal. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/nigeria-agrees-totalenergies-510-million-stake-sale-shell-agip-2025-09-25/
2025-09-25 20:36
MEXICO CITY, Sept 25 (Reuters) - The Bank of Mexico cut its benchmark interest rate to its lowest level since May 2022 on Thursday and indicated it would consider further easing at future meetings, amid ongoing concerns about global trade tensions and sluggish economic growth in Latin America's second largest economy. Banxico, as the central bank is known, reduced its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 7.5% in a divided vote. Deputy Governor Jonathan Heath was the sole member of the five-member board who voted to hold the interest rate at 7.75%. Sign up here. The rate cut was largely expected by the market. Banxico is balancing dual challenges: bringing down inflation while also stimulating the economy amid tepid economic growth. Easing monetary policy could spur the economy but also fuel inflation in Latin America’s second largest economy. In a statement on Thursday, the bank said it took into account "weak economic growth" and fluctuating global trade policies in its decision to lower borrowing costs. Still, the fact that Banxico reduced the interest rate by a quarter point instead of a half point – as it had four times earlier this year – underscores concerns about sticky inflation, particularly the closely-watched core index. Annual core inflation, which is considered a good gauge of price trends because it strips out volatile food and energy prices, has been rising in recent months and hit 4.26% in the first half of September, according to official data published on Wednesday. Banxico targets inflation at 3%, plus or minus a percentage point. Headline inflation also accelerated in the first half of September, reaching 3.74%, up from 3.49% in the first half of August. In updated inflation forecasts released on Thursday, Banxico raised its estimate for year-end annual core inflation to 4.0% in the fourth quarter, up from its previous estimate of 3.7%. The bank said in its quarterly report in August that Mexico's economy - while anemic - is showing resilience in the face of an uncertain business environment and global trade pressures. The bank last month strengthened its economic growth forecast for the year to 0.6%, up from a previous estimate of 0.1%. It estimated the economy will grow 1.1% in 2026. Gabriela Siller, head of analysis at Banco Base in Mexico City, said in a post on X that "it is noteworthy that the forward guidance remains unchanged, implying that the governing board remains open to further interest rate cuts." Goldman Sachs' Alberto Ramos said in a note to clients that he expects two more rate cuts this year of 25 basis points, though he argued the central bank is overlooking persistent core inflation pressures. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/bank-mexico-lowers-benchmark-interest-rate-750-2025-09-25/
