2024-02-29 20:44

Feb 29 (Reuters) - U.S. product supplied of distillate fuel oil declined in December to 3.61 million barrels per day (bpd), down about 10% from November and the lowest since June 2020, data from the Energy Information Administration showed on Thursday. Mild weather and weak industrial output likely weighed on demand for distillate fuels including diesel and heating oil, UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said. The manufacturing PMI, a closely watched measure of activity, contracted for the 15th straight month in January. Product supplied of distillates, the EIA's measure of demand, fell in December by 397,000 bpd from November, the biggest monthly decline since April 2020, the data showed. Gasoline demand also fell in December, but by a much smaller margin. Product supplied of finished motor gasoline stood at 8.84 million bpd in December, compared with 8.85 million bpd in November, according to EIA's Petroleum Supply Monthly report. Total demand for crude and petroleum products was 2% lower in December at 20.3 million bpd, the report showed. U.S. crude oil production fell slightly in December to 13.315 million bpd from November's record 13.319 million bpd, according to EIA's monthly 914 production report, also released on Thursday. Crude output in Texas fell by 20,000 bpd in December to 5.637 million bpd after hitting a record high in the previous month, the data showed. Output in Texas, the top U.S. oil producing state, fell for the first time since September, according to the EIA's latest estimates. Output from neighboring New Mexico rose for the fifth consecutive month to a record high, up 1.2% to 1.928 million bpd, EIA said. Staunovo said total U.S. production is likely to decline again in January due to a cold snap. Gross natural gas production in the U.S. Lower 48 states jumped about 0.2% to a record 118.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in December, up from the previous record of 118 bcfd in November, EIA said. In top gas-producing states, monthly output in December rose 0.4% in Texas to a new record of 34.9 bcfd, and 0.6% in Pennsylvania to 21.6 bcfd. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/us-distillate-demand-fell-december-lowest-since-june-2020-eia-says-2024-02-29/

2024-02-29 20:36

WASHINGTON, Feb 29 (Reuters) - Boeing (BA.N) , opens new tab said on Thursday it had reached a $51 million settlement with the U.S. State Department for numerous export violations including Chinese employees in China improperly downloading documents related to U.S. Defense Department programs. The State Department said from 2013 through 2017 three Chinese employees at Boeing facilities in China downloaded technical data involving programs including the F-18, F-15 and F-22 fighter jets, the E-3 airborne warning and control system, the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter and the AGM84E cruise missile. Boeing said there were additional unauthorized downloads of technical data at Boeing and partner facilities in 18 countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Morocco, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, Taiwan, Ukraine and the United Kingdom from 2013 to 2018. The administrative settlement covers unauthorized exports of technical data and resolves 199 violations of the Arms Export Control Act and International Traffic in Arms Regulations, the State Department said. The State Department said the settlement "highlights the importance of exporting defense articles only pursuant to appropriate authorization" and followed "an extensive compliance review" by the government. Boeing said it was "committed to our trade controls obligations, and we look forward to working with the State Department under the agreement." The company added it was committed to continuous improvement of its trade controls compliance program. Boeing also engaged in some unauthorized exports of defense material and technical data related to defense programs to a number of countries including Israel, Turkey and Lebanon, the State Department said. Boeing voluntarily disclosed the violations, which mostly occurred before 2020, and the government documents did not allege disclosure of classified material. The department said Boeing cooperated and "has incorporated numerous improvements to its compliance program since the conduct at issue." The settlement includes a three-year consent agreement and $51 million civil penalty, of which $24 million will be suspended by the State Department so Boeing can use the funds for remedial compliance measures to strengthen its compliance program. For at least two years, Boeing will engage an external special compliance officer to oversee the agreement, which will also require two external audits, the State Department added. https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/boeing-pay-51-million-settlement-us-export-violations-2024-02-29/

2024-02-29 20:19

Feb 29 (Reuters) - Trinidad and Tobago on Thursday extended by almost two months a deadline to submit bids for an auction of shallow-water oil and gas blocks, the government said. Trinidad is Latin America's largest producer of liquefied natural gas (LNG) with installed capacity of 15 million metric tons per year, and one of the world's biggest exporters of methanol and ammonia, but its plants have been operating below capacity in recent years due to a lack of gas supply. The new deadline was set for May 27, giving companies more time to submit bids for the blocks. Bids had been due April 2. Trinidad's shallow water areas are considered mature as they have already been explored and have produced over 2 billion barrels of oil and 20 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of natural gas. The twin-island country in October launched the auction, offering 13 shallow-water oil and gas exploration blocks, more than double the number of areas in included in its 2019 shallow-water auction. In that 2019 bidding round, a consortium by Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab and BP (BP.L) , opens new tab submitted bid for three of the six blocks offered. The bids were rejected by the government for failing to meet the minimum threshold. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/trinidad-tobago-extends-deadline-shallow-water-oil-gas-auction-2024-02-29/

2024-02-29 20:15

SAO PAULO, Feb 29 (Reuters) - A consortium with Brazilian firm Comporte and a subsidiary of Beijing-based company CRRC (601766.SS) , opens new tab was the only bidder and won an auction on Thursday for a 30-year concession to build a railway that would link the cities of Sao Paulo and Campinas. The bid stood at the minimum possible by the auction rules, as the consortium, which is led by Comporte, offered a 0.01% discount over the nearly 8 billion reais ($1.61 billion) Sao Paulo's government will invest in the project. The project is expected to be ready in 2031 and the trains will run at an average speed of 95 kilometers per hour (59 mph) once complete. The auction also includes the building of another railroad connecting the cities of Jundiai and Campinas, both in Sao Paulo state, and the operation of a train line now under state control. Total investments to build the project are estimated at about 14 billion reais. ($1 = 4.9711 reais) https://www.reuters.com/business/consortium-with-chinas-crrc-build-railroad-brazils-sao-paulo-state-2024-02-29/

2024-02-29 20:10

Feb 29 (Reuters) - Bank of America's (BAC.N) , opens new tab Merrill Lynch and Wells Fargo have been offering spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds to eligible wealth management clients, highlighting the growing popularity of the asset class. The ETFs have been available to clients for weeks, a source familiar with Bank of America's plans told Reuters on Thursday. This comes on the heels of the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) landmark approval of such investment vehicles in January. "Spot bitcoin ETFs are available for unsolicited purchases through an advisor with Wells Fargo Advisors or through our online WellsTrade platform." Wells Fargo said in an emailed statement on Thursday. Spot bitcoin ETFs offer investors exposure to the world's largest cryptocurrency without directly holding it. After a decade-long tussle with the SEC, 11 such ETFs started trading in the United States last month. The ETFs have opened up the asset class to new investors and reignited the excitement that had evaporated when prices collapsed in the "crypto winter" of 2022. The growing popularity of such investments has even prompted some investors to swap out holdings in gold-backed ETFs. Bitcoin is often touted as the "digital gold". "We remain convinced that bitcoin is on an 18-month path to $150,000 led by unprecedented institutional adoption," Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani said earlier this week. Bitcoin on Wednesday hit $60,000 for the first time in more than two years. Bloomberg Law first reported BofA and Wells Fargo's moves earlier in the day. In contrast, Vanguard — the largest provider of mutual funds — said it has no plans to make spot bitcoin ETFs available on its platform to its brokerage clients. https://www.reuters.com/technology/bofas-merrill-offering-spot-bitcoin-etfs-clients-source-says-2024-02-29/

2024-02-29 19:57

Feb 29 (Reuters) - Spanish steelmaker Acerinox (ACX.MC) , opens new tab said on Thursday it expects demand for steel to start recovering in coming months after its net profit more than halved last year. Net profit fell 58% to 228 million euros ($246.31 million) in 2023 after rising to record levels in 2021 and 2022 as strong demand pushed prices higher. A market adjustment that started in the second half of 2022 led to lower stainless steel demand and lower prices, Chief Executive Bernardo Velazquez told Reuters. He said he expects an improvement as early as the second quarter of this year in the United States but not before the third quarter in Europe. "The European economy is still lagging behind the U.S. but lower interest rates are likely to make more money available and could revive demand for household appliances and cars," Velazquez said. The European Steel Association Eurofer said , opens new tab earlier this month that the anticipated steel market recovery in 2024 will be slower than expected as industrial output is still subdued on a bleak economic outlook. Velazquez estimates that steel consumption in both Europe and the U.S. dropped by around a fifth, while the alloys business, which accounted for 22% of Acerinox's revenue in 2023, remained positive. To take advantage of the strong market for alloys and faster recovery in the U.S., Acerinox this month announced the acquisition of alloys maker Haynes International (HAYN.O) , opens new tab for $798 million. The North American market already accounted for around half of Acerinox's sales. Velazquez declined to give a profitability target for the year but estimated the company is losing 180,000 euros per day due to a strike that started three weeks ago at its Cadiz steel mill, which represents about a quarter of the company's production. The company also said it will propose a dividend of 0.62 euros per share to be paid out of 2023 profit, up 3% from that paid on the previous year's profit. ($1 = 0.9257 euros) https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/embargo-acerinox-sees-steel-market-improving-after-2023-profit-more-than-halves-2024-02-29/