2024-03-02 11:03

ADEN, Yemen, March 2 (Reuters) - A UK-owned ship attacked by Houthi militants last month sank in the Red Sea, the U.S. military confirmed on Saturday, as it echoed a warning from Yemen's internationally recognised government that the vessel's cargo of hazardous fertiliser posed a risk to marine life. The Belize-registered Rubymar is the first vessel lost since the Houthis began targeting commercial ships in November. Those drone and missile assaults have forced shipping firms to divert ships to the longer route around southern Africa, disrupting global trade by delaying deliveries and sending costs higher. The sinking bulk carrier also "presents a subsurface impact risk to other ships transiting the busy shipping lanes of the waterway," U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in its statement on social media platform X. The Iran-aligned Houthis, who control the north of Yemen and other large centres, say their campaign is a show of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. The Houthi attacks have prompted a series of strikes against their positions by the United States and Britain, and have led other navies to send vessels to the region to try to protect the vital Suez Canal trade route. The Rubymar went down in the southern Red Sea late on Friday or early on Saturday, according to statements from the Yemen government and CENTCOM. The U.S. military previously said the Feb. 18 missile attack had significantly damaged the bulk vessel and caused an 18-mile (29-km) oil slick. The ship was carrying about 21,000 metric tons of fertiliser, CENTCOM said on Saturday. Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak, the foreign minister in Yemen's internationally recognised government in Aden, said in a post on X: "The sinking of the Rubymar is an environmental catastrophe that Yemen and the region have never experienced before. "It is a new tragedy for our country and our people. Every day we pay the price for the adventures of the Houthi militia ..." The internationally recognised government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia, has been at war with the Houthis since 2014. MARINE LIFE THREATENED The release of such large amounts of fertiliser into the Red Sea poses a serious threat to marine life, said Ali Al-Sawalmih, director of the Marine Science Station at the University of Jordan. The overload of nutrients can stimulate excessive growth of algae, using up so much oxygen that regular marine life cannot survive, said Al-Sawalmih, describing a process called eutrophication. "An urgent plan should be adopted by countries of the Red Sea to establish monitoring agenda of the polluted areas in the Red Sea as well as adopt a cleanup strategy," he said. The overall impact depends on how ocean currents deplete the fertiliser and how it is released from the stricken vessel, said Xingchen Tony Wang, assistant professor at the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Boston College. The ecosystem of the southern Red Sea features pristine coral reefs, coastal mangroves and diverse marine life. Last year, the area avoided a potential environmental disaster when the United Nations removed more than 1 million barrels of oil from a decaying supertanker moored off the Yemen coast. That type of operation may be more difficult in the current circumstances. The Houthi attacks have stoked fears that the Israel-Hamas war could spread, destabilising the wider Middle East. In a separate report, the UKMTO agency said it had received a report of a ship being attacked 15 nautical miles west of Yemen's port of Mokha. "The crew took the vessel to anchor and were evacuated by military authorities," the UKMTO said in an advisory note. Italy's defence ministry also said that one of its naval ships had shot down a drone flying towards it in the Red Sea. The Houthi Transport Ministry, meanwhile, said there had been a "glitch" in undersea communication cables in the Red Sea as a result of actions by U.S. and British naval vessels. It did not give further details. https://www.reuters.com/world/freighter-rubymar-has-sunk-red-sea-yemen-internationally-recognised-government-2024-03-02/

2024-03-02 01:10

Nvidia crosses $2 trillion in market cap Dell forecasts upbeat fiscal 2025 on AI server demand NYCB plunges after loan review disclosure Indexes up: Dow 0.23%, S&P 500 0.80%, Nasdaq 1.14% NEW YORK, March 1 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Friday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closing at record highs, as technology stocks rallied on continued enthusiasm for artificial intelligence, with further support from declining Treasury yields. The gains marked the second straight closing record for the Nasdaq (.IXIC) , opens new tab, which also set an intraday record as AI-related names such as Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab and Meta Platforms (META.O) , opens new tab led it past its prior peak of 16,212.23 set in November 2021. Through the end of February, the three major indexes notched their fourth straight month of gains in a rally largely fueled by growth prospects related to AI, which has also lifted semiconductor names. On Friday, shares of Nvidia climbed 4% and closed above $2 trillion in market value for the first time. Rival Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.O) , opens new tab shares gained 5.25% to a record high close of $202.64, while the broader Philadelphia semiconductor index (.SOX) , opens new tab also closed at a record after a jump of 4.29% on the session. Markets have drawn support from a resilient economy, as investors have tried to gauge the timing of the first interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve, with investors currently targeting , opens new tab June and growing expectations the central bank can engineer a soft landing for the economy. "Because the economy is doing well and because inflation remains a bit sticky, the Fed will be slower to lower interest rates," said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research in New York. "But that's good because then we're gradually coming off of the higher interest rate cycle and we're not in need of cutting rates aggressively." The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 90.99 points, or 0.23% , to 39,087.38, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 40.81 points, or 0.80%, to 5,137.08 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab gained 183.02 points, or 1.14%, to 16,274.94. For the week, the S&P 500 gained 0.95%, the Nasdaq rose 1.74%, and the Dow fell 0.11%. Despite a strong services sector and tight labor market, the economy still shows pockets of weakness, notably in manufacturing, although data on Friday included some signs of a possible rebound. That helped push U.S. Treasury yields lower, with the two-year note yield falling to as low as 4.519%. Fed Governor Chris Waller said upcoming decisions about the ultimate size of its balance sheet have no bearing on its inflation fight. Fellow Fed Governor Adriana Kugler said she is cautiously optimistic progress will continue on disinflation without a significant weakening of the labor market, and that the central bank has avoided a wage-price spiral. Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin said it is too soon to predict when the Fed will be able to begin cutting rates. The S&P 500 tech index <.SPLRCT> was the top performer of the 11 major sectors, gaining 1.78%, while utilities (.SPLRCU) , opens new tab were weakest, showing a decline of 0.72%. Among major movers, New York Community Bancorp (NYCB.N) , opens new tab tumbled 25.89% after the regional lender said it had found "material weaknesses" in internal controls related to its loan review and revised its fourth-quarter loss to 10 times above the previously stated numbers, which helped send the KBW regional banking index (.KRX) , opens new tab 1.27% lower. Dell Technologies (DELL.N) , opens new tab surged 31.62%, its biggest daily percentage gain ever, after the personal computer maker forecast annual revenue and profit above Wall Street estimates. Gains on the Dow were curbed in part by a 1.83% fall in Boeing (BA.N) , opens new tab after a report said the planemaker was in talks to buy supplier Spirit AeroSystems (SPR.N) , opens new tab. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.29-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.55-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P 500 posted 87 new 52-week highs and 2 new lows while the Nasdaq recorded 363 new highs and 88 new lows. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/futures-muted-after-rally-ai-boost-inflation-relief-2024-03-01/

2024-03-02 00:46

ABU DHABI, March 1 (Reuters) - World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiators failed to break a deadlock on major reforms in the early hours of Saturday despite talks extending deep into overtime in Abu Dhabi, in what some delegates said was a triumph of national interest over collective responsibility. Here is a summary of what was achieved and what was not: E-COMMERCE - Countries agreed to extend a moratorium , opens new tab on placing tariffs on digital goods until the next ministerial conference in two years' time. Then the deal is set to expire at the start of that meeting, requiring more extensive negotiations. - Several countries, including India and South Africa, were opposed to the extension of a moratorium on e-commerce backed by the vast majority of countries and seen as vital to businesses to avoid tariffs on digital goods like film downloads. - On the plus side, a draft programme has been agreed for future work beyond Abu Dhabi. DISPUTE SETTLEMENT - Countries agreed to commit to continue negotiations in 2024 to try to resolve a crisis in its dispute settlement system whose top court has been hobbled for four years due to U.S. opposition. - This means many trade disputes are unresolved since countries can appeal them into a legal void and the WTO's rules cannot be enforced. - India's minister Piyush Goyal has said it is "sad" countries are obstructing outcomes. He did not mention Washington directly but said he had raised a lack of progress on fixing the WTO's dispute system with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai in a meeting earlier this week. - Tai has said negotiations on this issue are positive and have shown progress. However, delegates say obstacles abound and are privately sceptical of them making much further headway in a U.S. presidential election year. - A group of countries sought to reach a friendly agreement, supported by the European Union, to refrain from appealing WTO disputes into the void but this did not win consensus among members in Abu Dhabi, trade sources said. AGRICULTURE - No agreement was reached in Abu Dhabi. - India, which is facing farmer protests at home and has elections due by May, had sought a permanent solution on public stockholding (PSH) - a term that refers to state policies on food procurement aimed at ensuring food security. - Two alternative solutions were envisaged in a draft agreement. One aimed to find a permanent solution to the issue at this meeting and the other one commits to intensify negotiations and extend to other developing countries the privileges only India currently enjoys under WTO rules. - India rejected the second proposal, intended to appease them, in talks between a few key countries including the United States, Brazil and China, a source in the room said. FISHERIES - No deal was reached in Abu Dhabi. - Countries had tried to agree to the second part of an international WTO agreement to curb government subsidies that critics say encourage industrial fishing fleets to empty the world's oceans. A first part was agreed in 2022 and will take effect if and when enough countries ratify it. - Many participants, including USTR's Tai, saw this as the most likely topic where a deal could be reached. Environmentalists say it is vital for the world's oceans. - The chair of the talks issued a new draft agreement on Friday morning with a few sections still in yellow, indicating areas of non-agreement including rules for phase-in periods for developing countries. https://www.reuters.com/world/what-was-agreed-wto-negotiations-abu-dhabi-2024-03-02/

2024-03-02 00:09

March 1 (Reuters) - Shares of Super Micro Computer (SMCI.O) , opens new tab rallied 13.5% in extended trade on Friday after it was announced the seller of AI-optimized servers will join the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab. Super Micro and Deckers Outdoor Corp (DECK.N) , opens new tab will be added to the S&P 500 prior to the start of trading on Monday, March 18, coinciding with a quarterly rebalance of Wall Street's most widely followed stock benchmark, S&P Dow Jones Indices said in a news release. Those two companies will replace Whirlpool Corp (WHR.N) , opens new tab and Zion Bancorporation (ZION.O) , opens new tab, S&P Dow Jones Indices said. Index funds that track the S&P 500 are among the most popular investment tools on Wall Street, and those funds will have to purchase shares of Super Micro and Deckers in order to stay aligned with the benchmark's composition. Such S&P 500 index funds have assets of about $7.8 trillion, according to Howard Silverblatt, Senior Index Analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices. Super Micro sells high-end servers made with Nvidia's (NVDA.O) , opens new tab top-of-the-line AI processors, and its stock has more than tripled this year. With Super Micro's stock market value reaching over $50 billion, investors had speculated the company would be added to the S&P 500. On Friday, investors exchanged almost $10 billion worth of Super Micro's shares, eclipsing trading in Wall Street heavyweights including Microsoft (MSFT.O) , opens new tab and Amazon (AMZN.O) , opens new tab. Its jump in after-hours trading adds to a 4.5% surge during Friday's trading session. Shares of Deckers rose 2.7% in extended trade, while Whirlpool dipped 1.7% and Zion Bancorporation fell 2%. https://www.reuters.com/technology/super-micro-surges-ai-server-maker-set-join-sp-500-2024-03-02/

2024-03-01 23:55

March 1 (Reuters) - Fitch Ratings has downgraded New York Community Bancorp (NYCB.N) , opens new tab and its bank subsidiary Flagstar Bank to 'BB+'/'B' from 'BBB-'/'F3'. Fitch earlier in February had already downgraded long-term issuer default ratings (IDRs) for New York Community Bancorp to 'BBB-' from 'BBB'. Fitch said its decision came from reassessing NYCB's risk profile, following NYCB's announcement of a material weakness in the company's internal controls related to an internal loan review. The agency added its rating outlook on the bank is negative. Several other firms have downgraded the embattled lender, including Morningstar DBRS that downgraded the bank's credit rating due to "outsized" exposure to commercial real estate (CRE). Moody's has already cut their ratings. Fitch said it positively viewed Thursday's appointment of Alessandro Dinello as CEO, given his tenure as CEO of Flagstar Bancorp. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/fitch-downgrades-ny-community-bancorp-bb-outlook-negative-2024-03-01/

2024-03-01 23:46

March 1 (Reuters) - Plug Power (PLUG.O) , opens new tab said on Friday it expects demand for its green hydrogen fuel cell storage systems from data centers to pick up in the second half of 2025. The company said due to restrictions of diesel engines and the need for continuous power supply, fuel cells that use green hydrogen, which is a zero-carbon energy fuel, could be used as backup power options for data centers. "So when you look at the three major data center operators, Plug is engaged and planning some initial deployment and tests with all," Plug's CEO Andrew Marsh said on a conference call, without naming the operators. "I don't think it's a 2024 event, I think it could be a late 2025 event where you start seeing some deployments at some scale." Electricity demand in the United States is expected to boom from power-hungry artificial intelligence-based data centers, with some utilities reporting deals to bring the new load on in the next year or two. With industry leaders such as Amazon (AMZN.O) , opens new tab, Microsoft (MSFT.O) , opens new tab and Google (GOOGL.O) , opens new tab seeking to improve sustainability by reducing their carbon footprint and moving away from diesel usage, there could be increased demand for hydrogen in stationary business applications, said James West, analyst at Evercore ISI. According to Boston Consulting Group, by 2030, the electricity needed to power generative AI platforms would be equivalent to the power required for about 5 million U.S. homes. Plug Power in its fourth-quarter call also said it was close to finalizing on its billion-dollar loan facility with the U.S. Department of Energy. The hydrogen fuel cell company has been facing liquidity issues amid supply challenges in the liquid hydrogen market in North America. But Plug on Friday cleared its going concern doubts, which it had raised in November. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/plug-power-see-demand-hydrogen-based-power-backup-systems-data-centers-2024-03-01/