2024-01-15 21:04

Jan 15 (Reuters) - Much of the United States remained gripped by an Arctic blast on Monday, cutting power to tens of thousands of customers in northern states and Texas and potentially dampening turnout in Iowa, where voters will cast the first ballots for a Republican candidate in November's presidential race. The dangerously frigid weather is expected to linger throughout the day, hitting the Midwest hardest but also sending snow and freezing rain across the Southern and Mid-Atlantic states, the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS) said in a Monday bulletin. Temperatures in Iowa are expected to plummet to a life-threatening -35 degrees Fahrenheit (-37 Celsius) on Monday night, when voters assemble at public gatherings called caucuses to select a Republican presidential nominee. The hazardous conditions prompted Republican candidates to cancel campaign events on Sunday as a blizzard blanketed the state, even while they urged supporters to brave the icy temperatures and turn out to vote. Monday's extreme weather could keep some voters home, but it is unlikely to change the commanding lead that polls give former President Donald Trump over his chief rivals, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. Wind chills are forecast to dip as low as -58 degrees Fahrenheit (-50 Celsius) in states including Montana, South Dakota and North Dakota. FLIGHTS AND POWER DISRUPTED Thousands of flights within, into, and out of the United States were delayed or canceled on Monday, with Denver International Airport and Chicago O'Hare International Airport experiencing the worst disruptions, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.com. Power was restored in many places where the winter storm had knocked it out over the weekend, but as of midday Monday, lights remained out for more than 100,000 customers in Oregon as well as tens of thousands in Texas, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, according to data from PowerOutage.US. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) asked customers to conserve electricity from 6-10 a.m. on Monday due to ongoing freezing temperatures, record-breaking demand and unseasonably low wind, and said similar conditions were expected on Tuesday. The icy weather froze wells across the United States on Sunday, sending U.S. natural gas output to a preliminary 11-month low while gas demand for heating and power generation skyrocketed. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/dangerously-cold-temps-continue-across-us-2024-presidential-race-begins-iowa-2024-01-15/

2024-01-15 21:00

REYKJAVIK, Jan 15 (Reuters) - A volcano that erupted in southwest Iceland for the second time in less than a month appeared to be significantly less active on Monday despite indications of magma still flowing underground. "A black day" read the front page headline of Icelandic daily Morgunbladid across an image of bright-orange lava fountains and houses burning in the town of Grindavik, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) southwest of the capital Reykjavik. Although volcanic activity has eased since Sunday, the eruption centres is a high-risk area and new fissures could open without warning, the Icelandic Metrological Office said. "It is difficult to estimate how long this eruption will last," it said in a statement. Molten lava flows reached the outskirts of Grindavik around noon on Sunday, setting three houses alight, although the town had been evacuated earlier and there was no immediate danger to people. The crack in the earth's surface that opened close to Grindavik on Sunday was no longer active on Monday, and lava production from the larger fissure north of the town was decreasing, vulcanologist Rikke Pedersen told Reuters. "Activity has dropped significantly overnight," she said. GPS measurements showed that magma continued to move in a southern area of the corridor beneath the town, the Metrological Office said, adding that new cracks might appear within Grindavik in the next few days. It was the second eruption on the peninsula of Reykjanes in four weeks and the fifth since 2021. Live video footage on Monday showed glimpses of orange lava still flowing to the surface but in smaller volumes, and further away from the town. "Unfortunately (the lava) went a little bit more south than we had hoped for," Vidir Reynisson, head of Iceland's Civil Protection and Emergency Management, told a press conference late on Sunday. Nevertheless, defensive barriers built to the north of Grindavik had helped divert the flows of lava to the west, away from the town, Reynisson said. Residents of Grindavik, a town of some 4,000 people before it was evacuated in November, said it was difficult to watch televised images of the fires. "This is serious, it's basically as bad as it can possibly get. Although it might get even worse, who knows?" evacuated resident Jon Gauti Dagbjartsson said late on Sunday. "I actually live in the house that I was born in and it's a tough thought to think that this town might be over, and I would have to start all over somewhere else. But if that's the case, then that's exactly what we'll do." The Icelandic government was to meet on Monday to decide on support for the people of Grindavik. "We need to put a lot of extra efforts into finding more housing, suitable housing," Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/iceland-volcano-recedes-after-black-day-town-fires-2024-01-15/

2024-01-15 20:47

Canadian dollar weakens 0.2% against the greenback Touches its weakest since Dec. 14 at 1.3448 Price of U.S. oil dips 0.3% Bond yields trade mixed TORONTO, Jan 15 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar fell to a one-month low against its U.S. counterpart on Monday as oil prices dipped and a Bank of Canada survey highlighted continued weakness in the domestic economy. The loonie was trading 0.2% lower at 1.3435 to the greenback, or 74.43 U.S. cents after touching its weakest intraday level since Dec. 14 at 1.3448. Canadian firms say their order books declined as interest rates crimped consumer spending, and they see inflation easing despite increased concerns over wages for the next year, the central bank said in a quarterly survey. "The overriding message from the BOS (Business Outlook Survey) was that the economy remains soft, and price pressure will likely continue to ease, but there's still work to be done on inflation expectations," Benjamin Reitzes, Canadian rates and macro strategist at BMO Capital Markets, said in a note. The Canadian consumer price index report for December, due on Tuesday, is expected to show inflation accelerating to 3.4% from 3.1% in November. The price of oil, one of Canada's major exports, fell as the Middle East conflict's limited impact on crude output prompted profit taking after oil benchmarks gained 2% last week. U.S. crude oil futures were down 0.3% at $72.50 a barrel, while the U.S. dollar (.DXY) strengthened against a basket of major currencies in cautious trading, with U.S. financial markets closed for a public holiday. Canadian government bond yields were mixed across the curve, with the 10-year up less than one basis point at 3.227%. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/c-hits-1-month-low-boc-survey-shows-economy-remaining-soft-2024-01-15/

2024-01-15 20:36

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Bitcoin's price could breach $170,000 next year, driven by demand for newly listed exchange traded-funds and April's halving event, hedge fund SkyBridge's Anthony Scaramucci said in an interview on Monday. "If bitcoin's at $45,000 on the halving, where it roughly is right now, it'll be $170,000 by mid- to late 2025," the SkyBridge founder and managing partner told the Reuters Global Markets Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos. The halving is a technical event that reduces the rate at which new bitcoin are released into circulation. "Wherever the price is on the day of the halving in April, multiply it by four, and it'll reach that price in the next 18 months," Scaramucci said ahead of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting. Bitcoin's price jumped above $49,000 last week as spot bitcoin ETFs received approval to trade on U.S. exchanges, but has since slipped back to around $42,000. Scaramucci ascribed this decline to investors rotating out of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust into the new funds, adding that it will likely take another eight to 10 trading days to see the impact of the newly listed funds on prices. The landmark U.S. regulatory approval for spot bitcoin ETFs came after years of campaigning and applications from numerous firms, including SkyBridge, which saw an application rejected in 2022. Skybridge also plans to launch a new fund that combines investments in crypto tokens and digital asset-focused venture capital, Scaramucci said, adding that he also expects a strong performance in structured credit. (Join GMF, a chat room hosted on LSEG Messenger: https://tinyurl.com/yyr3x6pu) https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/skybridges-scaramucci-sees-bitcoin-over-170000-by-2025-halving-spot-etfs-2024-01-15/

2024-01-15 20:28

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Initial public offering activity should recover in 2024 as borrowing costs come down and equity markets are less volatile, the vice-chair of the New York Stock Exchange said in an interview on Monday. "We have a robust pipeline from across sectors and geographies," John Tuttle told the Reuters Global Markets Forum ahead of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos. "It's just finding that time when investors have the appetite for these companies, and companies are ready to go." After 2016, IPO activity had been at its lowest level in 2023, as rapid interest rate hikes and uncertainty over global economic growth crimped investor interest in new listings. Tuttle attributed the pickup in confidence to more stability in U.S. interest rates, record-high equity indexes and relatively low market volatility. "We certainly see an upward trajectory, (with IPO activity) returning to the mean," he said. Tuttle, however, added that the levels of IPO activity and equity issuance seen in 2020 and 2021 were unlikely to return anytime soon. He cited the IPO of Smith Douglas Homes (SDHC.N), which notched a valuation of $1.21 billion in its market debut on Thursday, as evidence of the market's resurgent interest. The November U.S. elections will also influence the timing of companies coming to market, Tuttle said, adding that he expected a window of activity in the late summer leading up to the election and another one post-election. On newly listed exchange traded funds (ETFs) tracking the spot price of bitcoin, Tuttle said the NYSE saw significant demand from both institutional and retail investors as the funds began trading, and the exchange continues to monitor the market for new demand. (Join GMF, a chat room hosted on LSEG Messenger: https://tinyurl.com/yyr3x6pu) https://www.reuters.com/markets/nyse-vice-chair-sees-robust-pipeline-potential-ipos-2024-2024-01-15/

2024-01-15 19:36

Jan 15 (Reuters) - Canada's First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) said on Monday it will cut production at its Australian nickel mine due to a "significant" downturn in prices of the metal last year, resulting in a 30% reduction in the operation's workforce. The Raventhorpe mine in Australia, jointly owned by First Quantum and South Korea's POSCO (005490.KS), generated $279 million in revenues and an operating loss of $66 million in the nine months ending Sept. 30, 2023. The company processed 5,490 tonnes of nickel ore in the third quarter. Nickel prices have dropped by 43% since January 2023 due to a combination of high supplies and low demand of the metal. It is currently trading at $16,460 per metric ton. The Australian mining operation employed about 650 people, Western Australia's state government said in a press release in 2021. Shares of Toronto-based First Quantum were up 1.5% at C$13.35 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Monday. The stock, however, is still down about 50% since street protests shuttered the company's Cobre Panama copper mine in the Central American nation in December. That project, one of the world's biggest and newest mines, accounted for about 40% of First Quantum's revenues. The company has been in talks with investors to raise funds to bolster its finances. Rating agency Fitch has warned that if the Panama mine was permanently shut, First Quantum's net debt leverage ratio in 2024 would increase to more than five times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, which could result in a covenant breach. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/first-quantum-suspend-mining-operations-australian-nickel-mine-2024-01-15/