2024-04-19 17:33

WASHINGTON, April 19 (Reuters) - South Korea's central bank chief on Friday said odds for any further policy action to stabilize the slumping Korean won now depend on how events in the Middle East unfold as the bank is ready to take steps to stabilize forex markets if needed. In an interview with Reuters, Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong said tensions in the Middle East appeared to plateau after Iran downplayed Israel's retaliatory drone strikes against it but geopolitical uncertainty still poses risks for the dollar-won market, as well as the country's inflation. Any Korean action on currency markets "probably depends on how the geopolitical tension in the Middle East evolves. At this moment I think the expectations change about the U.S. monetary policy is already priced in," Rhee said on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and Group of 20 (G20) finance leaders' meetings this week in Washington. "Everyone is trying to deescalate the tension. I hope that it can be successful. We have to watch." Rhee's comments are the latest indication of the increasing frustration felt by policymakers in emerging economies as the strengthening dollar pummels currencies across Asia. A flurry of verbal warnings from South Korean authorities that they were ready for "stabilizing" measures against speculative moves in the dollar-won market in the past week had done little to stop the won's slide to around a 17-month low, until a joint warning was issued for the first time following a trilateral finance dialogue by the United States, Japan and South Korea on Wednesday. Rhee said although exports from Asia's fourth-largest economy are "doing a lot better" than expected thanks to robust global demand for South Korean chips, the renewed Middle East tensions could both weigh on exports and push up inflation forecasts as oil prices are rising. The BOK is expected to scrutinize how a weakening won and rising oil prices affect the economy and domestic demand, which will be taken into account as the bank updates its economic forecasts due in May, Rhee said. Rhee also said the bank has large foreign exchange reserves and other tools ready to be deployed to respond to any market volatilities, adding to a series of verbal warnings officials made this week. Coming soon: Get the latest news and expert analysis about the state of the global economy with Reuters Econ World. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/bank-korea-chief-watching-middle-east-tensions-fx-growth-outlook-reviews-2024-04-19/

2024-04-19 17:18

ACAPULCO, April 19 (Reuters) - Mexican opposition presidential candidate Xochitl Galvez on Friday said state oil firm Pemex should focus on its exploration arm and could look at new business opportunities, such as geothermal energy. "Pemex should start entering into the (broader) energy sector," Galvez said, speaking at a banking convention in Acapulco on the country's Pacific coast. "The future of energy is electricity. The future of electricity is renewable power." Separately, Galvez said a scrapped Texcoco airport project could be used to store and process water for the capital, which is facing water shortages, and that a joint customs agency could be set up with the U.S. to tackle gun and drug trafficking. Galvez is polling significantly behind ruling party candidate and former Mexico City mayor Claudia Sheinbaum ahead of elections this June. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/mexicos-galvez-says-pemex-should-focus-exploration-consider-geothermal-business-2024-04-19/

2024-04-19 17:01

NEW YORK, April 18 (Reuters) - Two senior JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) New Tab, opens new tab dealmakers, Andy Lipsky and Haidee Lee, are leaving the bank, two sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Lipsky, JPMorgan's vice chair of investment banking, helped advise industrial companies including General Electric on big deals. He reported to Jay Horine, co-head of global investment-banking coverage, and moved from Credit Suisse in 2020. Lipsky is headed to Morgan Stanley, two other sources said, declining to be identified discussing personnel matters. He will join in a similar capacity as his role at JPMorgan, one of the sources said. Morgan Stanley declined to comment on the matter. Lee, co-head of strategic investor group mergers & acquisitions, is returning to Goldman Sachs, said the two sources who declined to be identified discussing personnel matters. She reported to Anu Aiyengar, JPMorgan's global head of advisory, after being hired from Goldman in 2021. Goldman Sachs did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Carsten Woehrn, who jointly led the group with Lee, is continuing in his position, two of the sources said. The exits follow the departure of Phil Ross, a 25-year JPMorgan veteran who served as its global chairman for health care investment banking. Ross is leaving for Jefferies. Bloomberg reported earlier on his departure. JPMorgan stepped up its hiring during the pandemic by bringing bankers like Lipsky and Lee aboard to compete with rivals. But the bank has faced a string of prominent departures in recent months. Christian Oberle joined Barclays to oversee its relationship with private equity firms, while Marco Caggiano left to join Morgan Stanley as vice chairman of M&A. The latest departures come weeks after the bank reorganized leadership in its global banking division, elevating new leaders in capital markets and investment banking. The new structure aims to cover JPMorgan's clients as they grow in size and complexity. The changes follow a reshuffle of top executives in January. Jennifer Piepszak was appointed co-CEO of JPMorgan's merged commercial and investment bank alongside Troy Rohrbaugh, who previously led trading and securities services. Both executives are potential candidates to succeed Jamie Dimon as CEO of the largest U.S. lender. JPMorgan's investment banking revenue gained 27% to $2 billion in the first quarter, driven by higher fees for debt and stock underwriting. The lender said that it was beginning to see some momentum in M&A, but regulatory challenges remained. Get a look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets with the Morning Bid U.S. newsletter. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/jpmorgan-dealmakers-lipsky-lee-are-leaving-bank-sources-say-2024-04-18/

2024-04-19 15:31

WASHINGTON, April 19 (Reuters) - Bank of England Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden said on Friday that the risk of British inflation getting stuck too high had receded and it might prove weaker than the BoE's most recent forecasts. Ramsden, who has voted recently to keep interest rates at their highest since 2008, said inflation could remain around the BoE's 2% target for the next three years - rather than rise higher later this year as the central bank forecast in February. "Over the last few months I have become more confident in the evidence that risks to persistence in domestic inflation pressures are receding, helped by improved inflation dynamics," Ramsden said. Earlier this week, BoE Governor Andrew Bailey said inflation in Britain was slowing largely as expected by the central bank. Figures on Wednesday showed Britain's annual consumer price inflation fell to 3.2% in March from 3.4% in February, dropping further from a peak of 11.1% in October 2022 but a slightly smaller decrease than expected by investors. The BoE has said it expects inflation to undershoot its 2% target in the current quarter, thanks in large part to weaker energy prices, before rising closer to 3% by the end of this year. But Ramsden - in comments prepared for a conference organised by the Peterson Institute for International Economics - said he thought that forecast might prove too strong. "For me the balance of domestic risks to the outlook for UK inflation, relative to the February... forecasts, is now tilted to the downside, with a scenario where inflation stays close to the 2% target over the whole forecast period at least as likely," Ramsden said. Britain's still strong pace of inflation in the services sector, which at 6.0% in March remained an outlier, was likely to converge with services inflation in the United States and the euro zone, Ramsden said. But unlike in the United States, the backdrop to inflation in Britain was of continuing weak economic growth, he said. Comments this week by U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell that the U.S. needed more time for higher interest rates to bring down inflation prompted investors to scale back bets on rate cuts by other central banks. That included the BoE, which is now expected to cut borrowing costs twice at most before the end of the year. "I will continue to take a watchful and responsive approach to my policy decisions as I have tried to do throughout this period of unprecedented structural shocks," Ramsden said. Coming soon: Get the latest news and expert analysis about the state of the global economy with Reuters Econ World. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/boes-ramsden-says-inflation-could-hold-around-2-target-over-next-three-years-2024-04-19/

2024-04-19 12:15

April 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) will announce on May 13 its plan to speed up the development of long-distance transmission lines to meet rising power demand and bring a backlog of planned clean energy projects to the grid. The long-awaited plan is part of reforms to upgrade the country's aging electric transmission system to keep up with power demand and a shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy. Last July, FERC set out proposals to speed up the connection of new power projects to the grid, seeking to address a growing backlog of requests from wind and solar energy developers. Interconnection bottlenecks have blocked the development of thousands of gigawatts of new renewable energy, which is central to the Biden administration's plans to decarbonize the power sector by 2035 and ease U.S. reliance on coal and natural gas for generating electricity. FERC on Thursday issued a notice for a special meeting on May 13 to discuss transmission matters, which have moved up the political agenda amid surging demand for electricity from data centers and AI development. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/ferc-unveil-us-power-grid-reform-may-13-2024-04-19/

2024-04-19 12:01

April 19 (Reuters) - OTEKO, a Russian port infrastructure provider, will reject a proposed offer from logistics group Delo for its Taman transshipment terminal in the Black Sea, the company told Reuters on Friday. Many assets in Russia have changed hands in the last two years and scores of foreign companies left Russia following its invasion of Ukraine that began in February 2022. An asset transfer is also taking place domestically as state-owned and private companies take advantage of the changing business landscape. Transport and logistics group Delo plans to make an offer to buy OTEKO's coal transshipment terminal to lower high coal prices and resume the terminal's operations, Delo Group founder Sergei Shishkarev told Kommersant in an interview published on Thursday. "OTEKO terminals are not for sale," OTEKO told Reuters. "We have not received any offers, but even if we do, we do not plan to hold such negotiations." Coal shipments from the terminal have stalled. OTEKO has blamed the delays on insufficient railroad capacity, while Shishkarev says OTEKO sets prices too high. OTEKO's Taman terminal in the Black Sea has annual capacity of 70 million metric tons, mostly for coal. OTEKO is owned by Michel Litvak, a Belgian citizen, who was born in the Soviet Union and worked for many years in Russia. Shishkarev owns 51% of Delo, with state nuclear corporation Rosatom holding a 49% stake. Shishkarev presented a plan to the government to negotiate the terminal's purchase or its transfer to other management, according to the minutes of a March 28 meeting seen by Reuters. Citing Russian Railways, the document showed that suspended coal deliveries to OTEKO's terminal meant that 5.1 million metric tons of coal products were not exported through the Taman port in the first quarter. OTEKO said it was negotiating with coal exporters and that progress had been made, with shipments now underway. Get a look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets with the Morning Bid U.S. newsletter. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/russias-oteko-reject-offer-black-sea-coal-transshipment-terminal-2024-04-19/