2025-09-30 11:34
MUMBAI, Sept 30 (Reuters) - India is expected to receive above-average rainfall in October, following above-normal precipitation in September, a senior weather department official said on Tuesday. The country is likely to receive above-average rainfall equating to more than 115% of the 50-year average in October, Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, director-general of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), told a virtual news conference. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/india-faces-another-rain-heavy-month-october-says-weather-office-2025-09-30/
2025-09-30 11:32
JOHANNESBURG, Sept 30 (Reuters) - South African state-owned power utility Eskom on Tuesday reported its first full-year profit in eight years thanks to government debt relief, higher tariffs and a sharp reduction in power cuts. Eskom made profit after tax of 16.0 billion rand ($927.24 million) in the year to the end of March 2025, compared to a 55.0 billion rand loss a year earlier, its annual report showed. Sign up here. "Government debt relief support, new tariff structures, higher sales linked to the operational turnaround and cost optimisation initiatives have contributed to Eskom recording its first profit in eight years," the report said. Eskom's power cuts have held back South Africa's economic growth for more than a decade, and its repeated bailouts have drained state coffers. But the frequency of its power outages has reduced dramatically since early last year. There were just 13 days of power cuts in its latest financial year, compared to a record 329 days a year earlier. ($1 = 17.2555 rand) https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/south-africas-eskom-records-first-full-year-profit-eight-years-2025-09-30/
2025-09-30 11:24
Sept 30 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) , opens new tab will lay off 2,000 workers globally as part of a long-term restructuring plan, the U.S. energy major told Reuters in an emailed statement, adding to a wave of job cuts in the oil and gas industry this year. The layoffs represent about 3% to 4% of the company's global workforce and are part of an ongoing efficiency drive, according to Bloomberg News, which first reported the news earlier on Tuesday. Sign up here. Exxon Mobil has been streamlining its operations after closing its $60 billion purchase of Pioneer Natural Resources in 2024. In November last year, the company revealed in a filing that it would cut nearly 400 jobs in Texas. "We've seen the value of bringing people together in the same location... we are aligning our global footprint with our operating model and bringing our teams together," the company said in an emailed statement on Tuesday. On Monday, Canadian shale producer Imperial Oil (IMO.TO) , opens new tab, in which Exxon is a major shareholder, announced plans to cut 20% of its workforce and shutter business in Calgary. Global energy companies have announced thousands of job cuts this year, as the sector navigates weaker crude oil prices and a rapid consolidation. Chevron plans to lay off 15% to 20% of its global workforce, while BP has said it would cut more than 5% of its jobs and ConocoPhillips has announced it would cut 20% to 25% of its jobs. U.S. oil and gas production jobs fell by 4,700 in the first six months of this year, Texas labor market statistics showed. Activity levels in the key U.S. producing states of Texas, Louisiana and New Mexico declined slightly in the third quarter, with several industry executives reporting significant delays in investment decisions in response to price volatility, according to a survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. Benchmark Brent crude futures are down about 10.5% year-to-date, impacted by increased OPEC+ output and persistent demand uncertainty tied to the U.S. trade policy. Exxon employed 61,000 people globally at the end of 2024, according to a regulatory filing. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/exxon-mobil-cut-2000-jobs-bloomberg-news-reports-2025-09-30/
2025-09-30 10:38
MUMBAI, Sept 30 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee posted its fifth consecutive monthly fall against the U.S. dollar, and hit a record low on Tuesday, as trade tensions between India and the United States escalated, pushing up dollar demand. The rupee settled at 88.7875 against the U.S. dollar, its weakest ever closing level, and down slightly from its close of 88.7600 on Monday. Sign up here. Earlier in the day, the currency declined to an all-time low of 88.8000. The currency fell 0.7% in September, posting its fifth consecutive monthly decline, and is down a cumulative 5% in last five months. "The rise in the trade deficit, coupled with limited intervention from the central bank, has weighed on the rupee in recent months, despite its trade-weighted valuation suggesting it is undervalued," said Dilip Parmar, a foreign exchange research analyst at HDFC Securities. The future trajectory of the rupee will be highly dependent on foreign fund flows, developments in the U.S.-India trade agreements, and the dollar's reaction to the U.S. government shutdown, he added. "From a technical perspective, the outlook for the pair remains bullish, with 89.10 acting as immediate resistance and 88.20 as a key support level." Trade frictions between India and the U.S. has persistently strained the rupee in recent weeks. Washington's 50% punitive tariffs on Indian goods and the hike in H-1B visa fees, which is expected to hit India harder than any other country, have driven foreign investors to pull money out of equities. Analysts warn this U.S. decision could weigh on revenues in India's technology sector and trigger renewed equity outflows and further hurt the local currency. Foreign investors have accelerated their selling of Indian stocks following the visa fee increase, pulling more than $2 billion from the market over the past six sessions. The Reserve Bank of India has been stepping in to slow the rupee's slide without which the currency would have fallen much more, bankers said. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/india-rupee-slides-fifth-month-rising-trade-tension-with-us-hurts-2025-09-30/
2025-09-30 10:37
LONDON, Sept 30 (Reuters) - What matters in U.S. and global markets today By Mike Dolan , opens new tab, Editor-At-Large, Finance and Markets Sign up here. A looming U.S. government shutdown , opens new tab is casting a shadow over the final day of a stellar third quarter for most world markets. However, there appears to be little trepidation apart from fretting over a data vacuum that could be left by the likely postponement of the monthly jobs report , opens new tab. U.S. President Donald Trump and his Democratic opponents appeared to make little progress at a White House meeting aimed at heading off a government shutdown that could disrupt a wide range of services as soon as Wednesday - with Trump also sidetracked by the announcement of a peace plan for Gaza. "I think we're headed to a shutdown," Vice President JD Vance said. Budget standoffs have become relatively routine in Washington over the past 15 years and are often resolved at the last minute. But Trump's willingness to override or ignore spending laws passed by Congress has injected more uncertainty. After another record high on Monday, Wall Street stock futures pulled back a little ahead of Tuesday's bell and Treasury yields drifted lower as a funding hiatus undercuts government spending at the margin and Fed easing hopes rest on other labor market data this week. The dollar edged down, but gold fell back too. Quarter-end book squaring may have as much to do with the day's moves, with Japan's yen a big gainer ahead of October's possible interest rate rise and the Aussie dollar up as the Reserve Bank of Australia left rates unchanged. In today’s column, I discuss how the U.S. economy is estimated to be growing at nearly 4% even though job creation appears to be waning - and whether AI is the missing link. Today's Market Minute * Trump and his Democratic opponents appeared to make little progress at a White House meeting aimed at heading off a government shutdown that could disrupt a wide range of services as soon as Wednesday. * Trump said on Monday he would impose a 100% tariff on all films produced overseas that are then sent into the U.S., repeating a threat made in May that would upend Hollywood's global business model. * China's manufacturing activity shrank for a sixth month in September, an official survey showed on Tuesday, suggesting producers are waiting for further stimulus to boost domestic demand, as well as clarity on a U.S. trade deal. * While energy companies are retrenching in the face of a bleak near-term outlook for oil and gas, their investment plans suggest they believe the environment will shift dramatically by the end of the decade, writes ROI energy columnist Ron Bousso. * How often should companies report their financial performance? This debate is back in the headlines, but Income Securities Advisor , opens new tab publisher Marty Fridson argues that the current discussion fails to highlight one key problem that reducing the frequency of reporting could magnify. Chart of the day The combination of Federal worker cuts and this week's possible government shutdown make for a rough year for public sector employees, but their share of the overall workforce has been waning for decades. Today's events to watch * U.S. July house prices (9:00 AM EDT) Chicago September business surveys (09:45 AM EDT) US Sept consumer confidence (10:00 AM EDT) August job openings (10:00 AM EDT) Dallas Federal Reserve September service sector survey (10:30 AM EDT) * Federal Reserve Vice Chair Philip Jefferson, Dallas President Lorie Logan, Chicago Fed boss Austan Goolsbee and Boston Fed chief Susan Collins all speak; European Central Bank board members Piero Cipollone and Frank Elderson speak; Bank of England Deputy Governors Clare Lombardelli and Sarah Breeden and BoE policymaker Catherine Mann all speak * U.S. corporate earnings: Nike, Paychex, Lamb Weston Want to receive the Morning Bid in your inbox every weekday morning? Sign up for the newsletter here. You can find ROI on the Reuters website , opens new tab, and you can follow us on LinkedIn , opens new tab and X. , opens new tab 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/finance/global-markets-view-usa-2025-09-30/
2025-09-30 10:33
Brazil's energy surplus due to wind and solar investments outpacing infrastructure Renova plans $200 mln crypto mining project in Bahia Penguin, Enegix and Bitmain explore crypto opportunities in Brazil Concerns over water use and lack of regulations for crypto mining in Brazil SAO PAULO, Sept 30 (Reuters) - (This Sept. 30 story has been corrected to clarify that Auren Energia is controlled by two different companies, not a joint venture, in paragraph 14) Crypto mining companies are actively negotiating contracts with Brazilian electricity providers, such as Renova Energia (RNEW3.SA) , opens new tab, that would benefit from the South American country's surplus renewable power without burdening the grid during peak times. Sign up here. Following crypto heavyweight Tether, which announced in July an investment in the South American country, there are at least six negotiations for small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as one for a larger project of up to 400 megawatts (MW), people from six different companies told Reuters. Mining machines that solve complex mathematical problems to back crypto transactions have overloaded grids in multiple countries. However, in Brazil, where crypto mining hardly exists today, they could help address a chronic clean electricity oversupply problem, which has cost energy companies almost $1 billion in the last two years, according to wind and solar industry groups ABEEolica and Absolar. Tether, the world's largest digital assets company, said it is leveraging its recent acquisition of Adecoagro (AGRO.N) , opens new tab to tap its renewable energy, such as the electricity coming from sugarcane mills, to power a bitcoin mining operation in Brazil. Renewable energy supplier Renova told Reuters it is making one of the first major investments in the crypto sector, a $200 million mining project for an undisclosed client in the state of Bahia in the northeast of Brazil. The 100-MW venture consists of six data centers that will draw power from a wind farm. "We aim to expand the company and enter new markets," Renova CEO Sergio Brasil said. "We realized that by providing all the infrastructure (for crypto mining), we were one step ahead of our competitors." Crypto miners can rapidly scale operations up or down based on energy availability, providing a flexible consumer base for excess energy without straining the grid during peak demand periods. Brazil’s energy oversupply stems from years of government incentives that spurred a boom in wind and solar investments. But the pace of development has outstripped the expansion of transmission infrastructure, and some plants now waste as much as 70% of the power they generate. “There's tons of potential,” John Blount, one of the founders of Enegix, a crypto miner based in Kazakhstan, told Reuters. “We will try somehow to elaborate mobile data centers,” he added, that would be plugged directly into power plants. Enegix is looking into deals in Brazil's northeast, the region suffering from the biggest energy surplus, including tapping into solar and wind power in the state of Piaui. Penguin, which is based in Paraguay, one of the world's biggest crypto hubs, said it is negotiating projects too, but declined to share any details. And China's Bitmain, one of the largest manufacturers of mining equipment, is also exploring opportunities, according to an executive who asked not to be named. MINERS SEEN AS 'DIAMONDS' Energy providers have also expressed an interest in crypto projects. Casa dos Ventos, which partners with France's TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) , opens new tab on wind power, and U.S.-based investment firm Global Infrastructure Partners' (GIP) Atlas Renewable Energy confirmed their intentions to Reuters. French utility Engie's subsidiary in Brazil (EGIE3.SA) , opens new tab and Auren Energia, a company that is controlled by Votorantim Energia and CPP Investments, Canada Pension Plan's global investment arm, are also looking into projects to monetize their unused energy, three sources told Reuters. The companies declined to comment. Providers look “at consumers like this as if they were diamonds,” said Raphael Gomes, a lawyer who has been working on several crypto projects. Companies are assessing different models, including buying equipment to mine on their own. In Bahia, electricity provider Eletrobras , the biggest in the country, is installing ASIC mining machines, along with a microgrid fed by a wind turbine, solar panels and batteries, for a pilot project. "We want to understand how this industry works," said Juliano Dantas, Eletrobras' vice president for innovation. The work could help energy providers prepare to enter the data center industry, which the Brazilian government , opens new tab is trying to attract as a strategy to grow the clean energy economy. There are concerns about the industry's water use, as some of the regions with the biggest amount of unused energy also suffer from droughts. Brazil also has infrastructure problems and lacks regulations for cryptocurrency mining. "We went after 400 MW — it was like a Sisyphean journey, a bit difficult," said Bruno Vaccotti, an executive at Penguin. "We're still exploring Brazil, but it's not that easy." https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/clean-energy-glut-draws-cryptocurrency-miners-brazil-2025-09-30/
