2025-09-09 21:30
BUENOS AIRES, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Chevron (CVX.N) , opens new tab plans to increase oil production in Argentina's Vaca Muerta shale formation to 30,000 barrels per day by the end of the year, the company's Argentina country manager Ana Moneto said on Tuesday. Speaking at the Argentina Oil and Gas conference in Buenos Aires, Moneto highlighted the quality of Vaca Muerta, one of the world’s largest unconventional oil reserves. Sign up here. However, she said Argentina must attract new investment to fully develop its potential. "The regulatory environment must be more stable and predictable, allowing for capital movements, which will be critical in the long term, respecting existing investments, keeping costs competitive and maintaining free market policies," she said. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chevron-boost-vaca-muerta-output-30000-bpd-by-year-end-2025-09-09/
2025-09-09 21:25
WASHINGTON, Sept 9 (Reuters) - The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday proposed new measures aimed at speeding construction of infrastructure needed for the rapid buildup of data centers for artificial intelligence that would enable companies to start building before obtaining air permits. The proposal comes six months after the EPA announced an initiative called Powering the Great American Comeback that prioritized the agency's focus on rapidly building power generation to meet soaring demand from data centers. Sign up here. “For years, Clean Air Act permitting has been an obstacle to innovation and growth,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said. “We are continuing to fix this broken system." The EPA proposal will redefine the pre-construction requirements for power plants, manufacturing facilities and other infrastructure to enable companies to start some construction that is not related to air emissions prior to obtaining Clean Air Act construction permits. The Trump administration has been focused on winning the race to rapidly develop and scale-up the use of AI across the country and has already launched a package of executive actions aimed at boosting energy supply to power its expansion. Top economic rivals the United States and China are locked in a technological arms race to secure an economic and military edge. The huge amount of data processing behind AI requires a rapid increase in power supplies that are straining utilities and grids in many states. The Clean Air Act's New Source Review program will not allow construction of major facilities before they obtain air permits. Under the Trump administration, the EPA has launched what it calls the largest deregulatory actions in the agency's decades-long history, including a move to repeal the scientific and legal underpinning for regulating greenhouse gas emissions that most scientists and environmentalists agree is driving climate change. https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/trump-epa-seeks-speed-up-permitting-ai-infrastructure-2025-09-09/
2025-09-09 21:25
Sept 9 (Reuters) - GameStop's (GME.N) , opens new tab second-quarter revenue jumped on Tuesday, driven by strong sales in its hardware and collectibles segment as the videogame retailer embraces digital storefronts to battle competition from larger retailers and e-commerce platforms. Shares of the company, which was at the center of the 2021 meme stock rally, were up about 4% in extended trading. Sign up here. Once a dominant force in physical retail, GameStop has seen its market share steadily erode as e-commerce giants such as Amazon became the preferred destination for gaming and general merchandise. In response, the company has pivoted toward digital sales to adapt to the evolving videogame landscape. GameStop has struck partnerships with videogame publishers to sell exclusive versions of games, collectibles and merchandise to lure consumers to its digital and physical stores. A collectors edition of Take-Two Interactive's (TTWO.O) , opens new tab upcoming "Borderlands 4" is exclusively available at GameStop, alongside accessories such as hats, t-shirts and headphones. Sales of the company's collectibles business surged 63% during the second quarter. The company has also benefited from surging popularity for Nintendo's Switch 2 and a strong gaming release slate for this year and the next, which have prompted gamers to lap up aging consoles such as the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S. GameStop posted a 31% rise in hardware and accessories sales to $592.1 million during the quarter. Total revenue increased to $972.2 million, compared with $798.3 million a year ago. The company has also shut down hundreds of stores to boost profitability, while pivoting to owning and making money on bitcoin positions held on its balance sheets. It reported net income of $168.6 million during the three months ended August 2, compared with $14.8 million a year ago. https://www.reuters.com/business/gamestop-revenue-climbs-strong-hardware-collectible-sales-2025-09-09/
2025-09-09 21:22
Sept 9 (Reuters) - U.S. liquefied natural gas producer NextDecade (NEXT.O) , opens new tab said on Tuesday it has reached a positive final investment decision for the fourth liquefaction plant, known as a train, of its Rio Grande export project in Texas. Shares of the company rose nearly 2% in extended trading as the announcement marks the fourth positive FID for an LNG development project in the U.S., the world's largest exporter of the superchilled fuel. Sign up here. The LNG sector in the U.S. has seen a pick-up in commercial activity after President Donald Trump lifted a moratorium on new export permits soon after coming into office in January. LNG developers typically reach an FID on projects once they have secured enough supply deals to obtain the necessary financing for construction. Train 4 has an expected LNG production capacity of nearly 6 million tonnes per annum, bringing the total expected production capacity under construction at Rio Grande export facility to about 24 mtpa. The company said Train 4 is commercially supported by 4.6 mtpa of 20-year agreements with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company , opens new tab (ADNOC), TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) , opens new tab, and Saudi's Aramco (2223.SE) , opens new tab. The completion date for Train 4, as well as the first commercial delivery date under the Train 4 LNG deals, is anticipated in the second half of 2030, NextDecade said. Total project costs associated with Train 4 and related infrastructure are expected to be about $6.7 billion, which is being financed using equity and loan commitments. NextDecade has been signing multiple LNG deals from the Brownsville, Texas facility, which is under construction and has a potential capacity of about 48 million tonnes per annum, to strengthen its position in the international market. Venture Global (VG.N) , opens new tab had greenlit its CP2 LNG project in July, while Cheniere (LNG.N) , opens new tab approved its midscale Trains 8 and 9 and Woodside Energy (WDS.AX) , opens new tab gave the go-ahead on its Louisiana project. The LNG producer said on Monday it had fully commercialized Train 5, which is expected to announce a positive FID in the fourth quarter, with the signing of a 20-year supply agreement with ConocoPhillips. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/nextdecade-greenlights-train-4-rio-grande-lng-export-project-texas-2025-09-09/
2025-09-09 21:08
ORLANDO, Florida, Sept 9 (Reuters) - TRADING DAY Making sense of the forces driving global markets Sign up here. By Jamie McGeever, Markets Columnist Stocks, the dollar, commodities and bond yields mostly rose on Tuesday, but the moves lacked momentum and conviction as investors digested record downward revisions to U.S. job growth figures and looked ahead to U.S. inflation data later in the week. In my column today I look at next week's Fed meeting. If the Fed cuts rates, as expected, it will be doing so with inflation around 3%, notably above its 2% target. Lowering rates and indicating there's more to come could be a signal 3% is the new 2%. If you have more time to read, here are a few articles I recommend to help you make sense of what happened in markets today. Today's Key Market Moves Today's Talking Points: * Revisions or revisionism? The number of new U.S. jobs created in the year through March was almost a million lower than originally estimated, Bureau of Labor Statistics annual benchmark revision showed on Tuesday. That was the largest downward revision on record. But what, if anything, does that mean for Fed policy? One might have thought it would strengthen bets for a 50 basis point rate cut next week. But that probability actually shrank a bit, around 5 bps of easing was taken out of the 2026 curve, and the dollar strengthened. Buy the rumor, sell the fact? * I Me Miners Anglo American and Teck Resources are to merge in a $53 billion deal, marking the second-biggest mining M&A deal ever and creating the world's fifth-biggest copper company. Investors in both firms liked it - Anglo shares rose 9% and Teck shares leaped 11%. Dealmaking activity has increased a lot this year. Global M&A hit $2.6 trillion in the first seven months of the year, the highest since 2021, and Morgan Stanley analysts reckon tight spreads, easy financial conditions, and a Fed willing to let the economy "run hot" will keep that going. * Inflation Inflation is always a talking point, but the next few days will give a good snapshot of what the global landscape looks like - consumer price data from Brazil, India and China, and producer prices from Mexico, China and the U.S. are all due out by Friday. Then there's the big one on Thursday, the U.S. CPI inflation report for August. Consensus forecasts of 2.9% headline and 3.1% core annual rates, respectively, aren't expected to stop the Fed from cutting interest rates next week. But upside surprises could make that decision a lot less straightforward. Fed rate cut now signals 3% inflation is the new 2% The Federal Reserve is widely expected to cut interest rates next week even though inflation is still around 3%, a full percentage point above the official goal. This raises an uncomfortable question: is the central bank's 2% inflation target still viable? Data on Thursday is expected to show that annual core CPI inflation held steady in August at 3.1%. Annual core PCE inflation, the Fed's preferred measure, was 2.9% in July. Easing policy with inflation at this level would be a rare step. Of course, the Fed cut rates late last year when core CPI was even higher at around 3.3%, though that move drew fire because unemployment didn't rise as Fed officials had warned and long-dated yields rose. If you want to find the last time before this cycle that the central bank eased policy with core PCE inflation at 3%, you have to go all the way back to the early 1990s, before the Fed unofficially adopted its 2% target. That's a long time ago, when the economy was in a very different place. The internet as we know it barely existed, there were no smartphones, and 'apps' was the abbreviation for 'appearances' in soccer players' stats. So the prospect of the Fed easing policy for the second time in a year with core inflation at 3% is a big deal – and may be yet another sign that the economic orthodoxy of recent decades is being tested or trashed. Take your pick. UNORTHODOX Inflation hawks fear it's the latter. The federal government's debt and deficit are at record levels for non-crisis, peacetime, and there are fears that long bond yields could start climbing again. But markets don't seem too worried. To be sure, inflation fears are reflected in some asset prices, not least gold, which is up nearly 40% this year, printing record highs on a near daily basis. But look around, and it's difficult to argue that financial markets are overly worried about the potential loosening of the Fed's 2% target. Indeed, the 2s/30s yield curve may have steepened around 70 basis points this year to a four-year high of 134 bps last week, but the 30-year yield is actually down slightly this year. Meanwhile, U.S. corporate bond spreads are at historic tights, and Wall Street continues to hit record highs. Of course, equity markets have historically tended to sizzle as inflation has heated up, though usually not for long and certainly not once consumer inflation expectations become unanchored. We're not there yet, but we are at an interesting juncture. HIGH EXPECTATIONS Academic research suggests consumers are among the least accurate forecasters when it comes to inflation, but policymakers have long been loath to dismiss them. And right now, 2% is not on consumers' inflation horizon. A New York Fed survey on Monday showed consumers' one-year outlook rose to 3.2% in August from 3.1% in July, while the three- and five-year forecasts were unchanged at 3% and 2.9%, respectively. The University of Michigan's latest one- and five-year forecasts are 4.8% and 3.5%. So perhaps 3% is starting to become the new 2%. U.S. President Donald Trump would certainly seem to support this, given his apparent desire to run the economy hot. And the Fed looks set to shrug off inflation risks – and ease in a 3% environment – for the second time in a year. Is this a misstep by the Fed, or even policy error? Not necessarily. 'HYSTERIA AND DELIRIUM' Retired strategist Jim Paulsen questions the "constant hysteria" around inflation exceeding the Fed's target. To get some perspective on this "2% target delirium," Paulsen notes that annual headline CPI has averaged 2.9% over the last two years and is currently only 2.7%. Price stability, anyone? He also points out that from 1992 to 1999, a period often viewed as "economic nirvana," headline CPI averaged 2.6%. "It's time to retire the 2% inflation target. We have always put smart, street-savvy, driven, and economically war-tested individuals on the FOMC. Let's let them use their venerable judgments to do their job without tying their hands to some random target which has never been well tested," Paulsen wrote on Monday. A 3% inflation print on Thursday followed by a rate cut next week might suggest we are heading in that direction. What could move markets tomorrow? Want to receive Trading Day in your inbox every weekday morning? Sign up for my newsletter here. Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles , opens new tab, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias. https://www.reuters.com/business/global-markets-trading-day-graphic-2025-09-09/
2025-09-09 21:02
TSX ends up 0.1% at 29,063.01 Eclipses Friday's record closing high Teck shares jump 11.5% after merger deal Energy adds 1.6% as oil settles higher Sept 9 (Reuters) - Canada's commodity-heavy main stock index edged up to a record high on Tuesday as energy stocks climbed and Teck Resources Ltd (TECKb.TO) , opens new tab agreed to merge with London-listed miner Anglo American . The S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE) , opens new tab ended up 35.28 points, or 0.1%, at 29,063.01, inching past the record closing high posted on Friday. Sign up here. The S&P 500 U.S. benchmark index also notched a record high close after a downward U.S. payrolls revision supported expectations the Federal Reserve will soon cut interest rates to shore up economic growth. The planned merger between Teck and Anglo American would mark the mining sector's second-biggest M&A deal ever and forge a new global copper-focused heavyweight. "The street seems to be seeing this deal as favorable for both parties," Colin Cieszynski, chief market strategist at SIA Wealth Management, said in a note. Teck's shares jumped 11.5%, while the materials group (.GSPTTMT) , opens new tab added 0.1% to extend its record-setting run. Fed rate cut prospects helped underpin the price of gold . Oil settled 0.6% higher at $62.63 a barrel. The Israeli military said it carried out an attack on Hamas leadership in Qatari capital Doha. Energy (.SPTTEN) , opens new tab rose 1.6%, with shares of Cenovus Energy (CVE.TO) , opens new tab ending 2% higher. U.S. refiner Phillips 66 (PSX.N) , opens new tab said it will acquire the remaining 50% stake in WRB Refining from Cenovus for $1.4 billion. Still, six of 10 major sectors lost ground, including a decline of 0.4% for industrials. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/tsx-hits-another-record-high-after-blockbuster-mining-sector-deal-2025-09-09/
