2024-03-06 12:05
Infrastructure under scrutiny as Germany seeks investment Grid operator assesses damage to power pylon Police say claim of responsibility by left-wing group authentic BERLIN/FRANKFURT, March 6 (Reuters) - Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab on Wednesday said its plant in Germany was expected to have no electricity until March 17, after a suspected arson attack left the company's gigafactory outside Berlin without power, forcing it to halt production. Security officials cleared the Tesla site on Tuesday after what Chief Executive Elon Musk called an "extremely dumb" suspected arson attack nearby. "The plant is expected to be without electricity until the end of next week," a spokesperson for the company told Reuters, confirming a report by Bild newspaper. The U.S. electric vehicle manufacturer estimates the incident will cause losses in the high hundred of millions of euros, with 1,000 vehicles left unfinished on Tuesday alone. E.DIS, a unit of grid operator E.ON, said it was working on a provisional fix at the damaged pylon that caused the outage, hoping to restore supplies to the site as soon as possible, without providing a timeline. "The E.DIS grid experts are closely coordinating with the industrial and commercial units that have not yet been resupplied, in particular Tesla, as well as the authorities," it said. Tesla shares traded down 2.6% at 1650 GMT. Brokerage Baird Equity Research said it expected sequentially and meaningfully lower deliveries from Tesla in the first quarter, in part because of the suspected arson attack. It lowered estimates to 421,100 deliveries for the first quarter, compared with Wall Street estimates of 489,000. INFRASTRUCTURE SECURITY The Tesla plant has been a focus for climate protesters who oppose a planned expansion of the site. German industry called for better protection of critical infrastructure on Wednesday after the attack, saying that was crucial to maintaining the investment Germany is seeking to spur growth in Europe's largest economy, which faces recession. "Infrastructure is the lifeline of the German economy," said Martin Wansleben, managing director of the DIHK Chambers of Industry and Commerce. "Unfortunately, the protection of this infrastructure urgently needs to be adapted to the changed security situation. It is essential that investors continue to see Germany as a safe country," he said, adding cybersecurity was also a concern. RWE (RWEG.DE) , opens new tab and E.ON (EONGn.DE) , opens new tab, which operate crucial German energy infrastructure, both said safety and security were priorities. The government, which has in the last year trumpeted investments from Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC (2330.TW) , opens new tab and Intel (INTC.O) , opens new tab among others, cautioned against "alarmism" and said this was just one instance. DHL (DHLn.DE) , opens new tab CEO Tobias Meyer said it was not the first such incident in Germany, but that the group had confidence in the authorities. German police said they believed a letter purportedly from a far-left organisation called the Volcano Group that claimed responsibility for starting a fire that knocked out electricity around Tesla's factory was authentic. In a 2019 report, Berlin authorities listed Vulkangruppen, or volcano groups, as left-wing extremist organisations that have targeted cable ducts on railway lines and in some cases radio masts, data lines or company vehicles. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/german-police-authenticate-letter-group-claiming-responsibility-tesla-arson-2024-03-06/
2024-03-06 12:05
FRANKFURT, March 6 (Reuters) - Britain, Ireland and Italy are the most attractive markets for investors in battery power storage, energy consultancy Aurora said on Wednesday, citing the lucrative revenue models offered by their governments. Spain, Germany and Greece are also showing promising signs, according to abstracts from Aurora Energy Research's Market Attractiveness Report, which covered 24 European countries. Aurora says it has enabled 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion) in battery investment and presented the report in a webinar. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT Forecasting a seven-fold increase in European battery power storage capacity by 2030, Aurora said this translates into an investment opportunity of over 30 billion euros, rising to almost 80 billion euros by 2050. CONTEXT * As renewable energy expands across Europe to meet decarbonisation goals, battery usage needs to grow to smooth out the intermittent supply of wind and solar energy. * A constant voltage level is needed to avoid system crashes. * Demand will increase with the closure of thermal and nuclear power stations, as well as the switch to electric vehicles and heat pumps. KEY QUOTES "This market is literally exploding," said Ryan Alexander, research lead, European power markets, at Aurora, adding Europe was catching up with early movers such as Australia and the United States. "It is moving from being a niche part in the energy system to actually one of the fundamental elements of it." THE NUMBERS Rising from 7.1 gigawatts (GW) of installed grid-scale battery capacity in 2023, Aurora sees capacity increasing to 51 GW by 2030 and 98 GW by 2050. Italy alone is aiming for 9 GW by 2030. Leading countries are offering secure revenue streams for the new capacity and wide wholesale price spreads, allowing battery operators to buy low and sell high. Britain, unlike mainland Europe, lacks strong inter-connectors with neighbours that could help cap prices. ($1 = 0.9195 euros) https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/uk-italy-among-europes-hottest-battery-power-storage-markets-aurora-says-2024-03-06/
2024-03-06 12:01
DUBAI, March 6 (Reuters) - An explosion in the vicinity of a Barbados-flagged, U.S.-owned cargo ship off the port of Aden in southern Yemen was reported by a nearby vessel, British security firm Ambrey said on Wednesday. The ship, located approximately 57 nautical miles southwest of Aden, was hailed by an entity declaring itself to be the "Yemeni Navy" and ordered to alter course, Ambrey said. Vessels in the vicinity reported a loud bang and a large plume of smoke, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said. Houthi militants in Yemen have launched drone and missile attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait and Gulf of Aden since November, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians to oppose Israel's military offensive in Gaza. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/explosion-reported-near-us-owned-cargo-ship-off-yemen-ambrey-says-2024-03-06/
2024-03-06 11:34
March 6 (Reuters) - CrowdStrike (CRWD.O) , opens new tab surged 23% before the bell on Wednesday, sparking a rally in cybersecurity stocks, after the company's upbeat annual forecasts signaled healthy demand for platforms that act as one-stop shops for security. Businesses have preferred consolidated platforms as a means to optimize spending and make operations more efficient at a time when cybersecurity threats became more sophisticated with the rise of generative AI. The results also offered some respite to investors after sector heavyweight Palo Alto Networks (PANW.O) , opens new tab cut its forecast last month due to softer client spending and steep promotions. "CrowdStrike needed to deliver at or close to perfection. The company did just that," BTIG analyst Gray Powell said. Based on premarket gains, CrowdStrike's market value was set to jump by more than $16 billion to about $88 billion. If gains hold, that would bring it closer to Palo Alto, which is the largest U.S. cybersecurity firm with a market value of about $94 billion. "This (CrowdStrike) does feel like the next mega-cap company and the first to truly separate itself from the rest of the younger enterprise software companies," said investor Ophir Gottlieb, CEO of Capital Market Laboratories. Shares of Palo Alto and other cybersecurity firms such as ZScaler (ZS.O) , opens new tab, Fortinet (FTNT.O) , opens new tab and SentinelOne (S.N) , opens new tab rose between 4% and 8.5% in premarket trading. CrowdStrike forecast its annual adjusted profit to be between $3.77 and $3.97 per share and revenue in the range of $3.92 billion to $3.99 billion, both of which were above Wall Street estimates. Finance chief Burt Podbere said on an earnings call the forecast assumes a tough economic backdrop, a sign that high interest rates were continuing to weigh on some client spending. The stock trades at 74.47 times its forward earnings estimates, higher than the 49.09 for Palo Alto and 39.01 for Fortinet. https://www.reuters.com/technology/crowdstrike-stock-jumps-forecast-signals-strong-cybersecurity-demand-2024-03-06/
2024-03-06 11:31
OTTAWA, March 6 (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada (BoC) is expected to hold its key overnight rate steady at 5% on Wednesday, economists said, even though data have shown inflation easing and economic growth sputtering. Inflation has stayed stubbornly above the BoC's target of 2% for three years, and despite rates being at a 22-year high, Canada's economy has so far avoided recession and may be picking up steam. "The bank (BoC) has been quite prudent and our sense is that we won't see a rate reduction until mid-year, until about June or July," said Pedro Antunes, chief economist at Conference Board of Canada, an independent think tank. January's inflation numbers dipped to 2.9%, falling into the 1%-3% range targeted by the BoC, but Antunes said that was not enough to convince it to cut now. Core price measures, which are closely watched by the central bank, also eased in January. The central bank's governing council will announce its decision on the target for the overnight rate at 1445 GMT (0945 local time). The BoC has left rates on hold at its four previous meetings. After the January inflation figures, money markets edged forward their bets. They now see a 44% chance for a cut as early as April, and they fully price in a rate cut in June. On the other hand, a majority of economists polled by Reuters expect a rate cut in June with a risk that a reduction will be pushed back. Fourth quarter GDP numbers last week showed that the country's growth topped expectations, accelerating at an annualized rate of 1.0%, driven by exports. January GDP likely gained 0.4% from December, according to a flash estimate. Canadian manufacturing activity rose to its highest level in 10 months in February, though it was still contracting, data showed this month. "We are still of the mind that April is on the table. If not April then more likely June," said Philip Petursson, Chief Investment Strategist at IG Wealth Management, said in a email about rate-cut timing. After previous meetings when it left rates on hold, the BoC has pointed toward concerns of underlying inflation in areas like mortgage and rental costs, wages and food prices. While high rates have cooled inflation to below 3% from 8.1% in June 2022, the BoC forecasts that it will be the second half of next year before it comes down to 2%. "Look for an ever-so-slightly more dovish tone, while still highlighting that rate cuts aren't imminent," Benjamin Reitzes, managing director and macro strategist at BMO Capital Markets, wrote in a note. https://www.reuters.com/markets/bank-canada-hold-rates-steady-inflation-eases-economy-skirts-recession-2024-03-06/
2024-03-06 11:23
BUENOS AIRES, March 6 (Reuters) - Mexico's peso will likely depreciate moderately in the near-term as the campaign for June's presidential election heats up, while the central bank continues to mull over the right time to launch a rate easing cycle, a Reuters poll showed. Since the start of the year, the currency has been trading within a close interval around 17.00 per U.S. dollar. Domestic markets have remained calm, hoping economic policies will be kept largely unchanged after the vote. The peso is set to weaken 7% to 18.24 per dollar in 12 months' time, from 16.96 on Monday, according to the median estimate of 20 foreign exchange strategists polled March 1-4. Forecasts ranged from 15.50 to 19.00 per dollar. "Electoral races both in Mexico and the United States will for certain exercise pressure on the currency, but, overall, its performance will be among the best within emerging markets," said Marcos Arias, an economist at Deloitte Mexico. "The country benefits from strong remittance inflows and possible increases in foreign direct investment as nearshoring projects materialize," he added, projecting the peso at 17.80 per dollar in one year. Mexico's presidential candidates started their campaigns on Friday for the election on June 2, with the ruling party candidate leading a race poised to crown a woman to rule Latin America's second-largest nation for the first time. To cement current President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's legacy, his MORENA party has been targeting its efforts on obtaining a majority needed in Congress to pass constitutional reforms. "It is unclear if any of them have a material chance of being approved in their current form, given MORENA and its allies lack the 2/3 majority needed ... but it's possible some could be ratified," Scotiabank analysts wrote in a report. Meanwhile, Mexico's central bank continues to signal the possible start of a rate cut drive similar to those already in place in other countries of the region. The cost of credit currently stands at 11.25%, the highest on record. This gives investors the opportunity to profit on a wide spread over the U.S. 5.25%-5.50% benchmark federal funds rate, which the Federal Reserve is expected to cut in June, according to another Reuters poll conducted last month. Answering a separate question in the March foreign exchange survey, a majority of 7 of 13 economists said risks to their estimates for the Mexican peso were skewed to softer values, while 4 viewed a stronger trend, and 2 saw a neutral one. In Brazil, the real is forecast to lose 0.8% in one year to 4.99 per dollar. The currency has shed around 2.0% of its value from the start of 2024, slightly worse than the flat performance of its Mexican counterpart so far. (For other stories from the March Reuters foreign exchange poll:) https://www.reuters.com/markets/mexico-peso-seen-moderately-weaker-election-campaign-begins-2024-03-06/
