2024-01-08 19:48
Jan 8 (Reuters) - Global gas giant Shell (SHEL.L) has agreed to buy two million metric tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per year from Ksi Lisims LNG, partners in the proposed Canadian project said on Monday. British Columbia's Pacific coast is close to Canada's vast Montney shale field and has a relatively short shipping distance to Asian markets. Natural gas is in high demand from Asia to replace coal, which creates higher emissions. But an expected ramp-up in global LNG production risks creating a supply glut after 2025, the International Energy Agency said in October. Ksi Lisims would be one of Canada's first LNG export facilities if built and its second-largest, but it has not yet passed all regulatory hurdles. Shell is looking to increase its LNG volumes by 20% to 30% by the end of the decade and leads the LNG Canada project under construction in British Columbia (B.C.). That project would produce 14 million metric tons of LNG a year with shipments beginning in 2025. Ksi Lisims, a co-development of the Nisga'a Nation, Rockies LNG Partnership and Western LNG, would produce 12 million metric tons of LNG annually from two floating LNG production and storage facilities. Exports may start in late 2028. Western CEO Davis Thames said the project expects to announce more sales agreements in the coming months but has not decided how much of its total production it will commit to contracts. The facilities would run on hydro-generated electricity to become net-zero emissions by 2030 as required by the B.C. government. That plan depends on utility BC Hydro expanding transmission lines to serve LNG and mining projects in northwest B.C. Ksi Lisims applied to the B.C. government for an environmental certificate in October and may receive a decision by year-end, Thames said. Rockies LNG, another partner, is a group of natural gas producers including Tourmaline (TOU.TO) and Ovintiv (OVV.N). LNG Canada's first phase is expected to open mid-decade and the company is considering sanctioning a second phase. Woodfibre LNG, owned by Pacific Energy and Enbridge (ENB.TO) is the other B.C. export facility entering construction. Woodfibre, which will produce 2.1 million tons annually, has agreements to sell most of its LNG to BP Plc (BP.L). https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/ksi-lisims-lng-signs-its-first-supply-agreement-with-shell-2024-01-08/
2024-01-08 19:30
Jan 12 (Reuters) - A raft of investment managers launched the first U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF) Jan. 11, in a milestone for the cryptocurrency industry that kicked off a fierce competition for market share. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved 11 applications for spot bitcoin ETFs from BlackRock (BLK.N), VanEck, Ark Investments/21Shares and Bitwise, among others, on Jan. 10 after a decade-long tussle with the digital asset industry. Most of the ETFs significantly undercut the average market rate for U.S. ETFs, which is 0.54%, according to Morningstar, and several issuers have already slashed fees multiple times. Many are also offering to completely waive fees for a certain period of time, or until their product breaches a certain value of assets under management. Here's where the fees stand for each of the spot bitcoin ETFs that are currently trading: Source: Regulatory filings with the U.S. SEC https://www.reuters.com/technology/companies-disclose-expected-fees-spot-bitcoin-etfs-ahead-sec-decision-2024-01-08/
2024-01-08 19:15
Jan 8 (Reuters) - Lumen Technologies (LUMN.N) is in talks with its bank lenders to gain support for a debt deal that would push out the company's maturities on billions of dollars in debt and raise fresh capital, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday. The telecommunications company late last year reached a debt restructuring deal with a group of creditors, which hold more than $7 billion of the company's debt, to receive an extension on its debt maturities. The creditors also provided a commitment for an additional $1.2 billion of financing through long-term debt. However, the lenders for its revolving credit line, led by Bank of America, were not part of the talks that led to the restructuring deal, the WSJ report said, citing people familiar with the matter. The signoff from its revolver lenders is likely the last hurdle before the completion of the debt restructuring, it added. Lumen did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Its long-term debt at the end of the third quarter was $19.74 billion, the company said in its earnings report. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/lumen-technologies-pursues-bank-lenders-support-debt-deal-wsj-2024-01-08/
2024-01-08 19:06
ATLANTA, Georgia, Jan 8 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve's dual goals of lowering inflation and maintaining low unemployment are not yet in conflict, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said on Monday. "The risk of that possibility has definitely gone up" with inflation slowing and some signs hiring has also begun to ebb in many parts of the economy, Bostic said in comments to reporters after a community event in Atlanta. But in terms of a direct conflict between the two, "I don't think that's where we are today," a view that undercuts the base for the near-term rate cuts many investors expect. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/feds-bostic-inflation-employment-goals-net-yet-conflict-2024-01-08/
2024-01-08 18:58
Jan 8 (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Novartis (NOVN.S) is in the lead to acquire Cytokinetics (CYTK.O) for a deal that could value the drug developer at well over $10 billion, a source familiar with the matter said on Monday. Novartis is poised to prevail in the auction for Cytokinetics, ahead of other bidders that include AstraZeneca (AZN.L) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N), according to the source. A deal could be announced as early as this week, the source said, helping Novartis gain access to Cytokinetics' experimental treatment, aficamten, for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), an inherited chronic heart disease that can cause cardiac arrest. Spokespersons for Cytokinetics and Novartis said the companies do not comment on M&A speculation. Shares of Cytokinetics rose over 16% on Monday after the Wall Street Journal first reported on Novartis' lead. In late December, Cytokinetics' shares jumped over 82% after aficamten met the main goal of a keenly awaited late-stage study, putting it on track to compete with a rival treatment from Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY.N). Shares of Cytokinetics with a market capitalization of over $9 billion, as of Friday's closing price, have more than tripled in value since Oct 31, when reports of the company attracting takeover interests first surfaced. HCM is the most common inherited cardiovascular disorder, with about 280,000 patients in the U.S. currently, including two-thirds with obstructive HCM and the rest with non-obstructive HCM, the company estimates. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/novartis-advanced-talks-buy-cytokinetics-wsj-2024-01-08/
2024-01-08 18:13
NEW YORK, Jan 8 (Reuters) - U.S. homebuyer confidence improved in December, with more homeowners anticipating that mortgage rates would fall further this year, but it could take sometime for housing supply to recover as many remain hesitant to sell their homes. Mortgage finance agency Fannie Mae said on Monday its Home Purchase Sentiment Index rose 2.9 points to 67.2 in December. It was up 6.2 points year-over-year. "Notably, homeowners and higher-income groups reported greater rate optimism than renters; in fact, for the first time in our National Housing Survey's history, more homeowners, on net, believe mortgage rates will go down than go up," said Mark Palim, deputy chief economist at Fannie Mae. The rate on the popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has plunged from a 23-year high of 7.79% in late October, tracking the decline in U.S. Treasury yields. It averaged 6.62% last week, according to data from mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac. Higher mortgage rates have discouraged homeowners locked into lower rates from selling their homes, shortening inventory and pushing existing home sales down precipitously since 2022. "Homeowners have told us repeatedly of late that high mortgage rates are the top reason why it's both a bad time to buy and sell a home, and so a more positive mortgage rate outlook may incent some to list their homes for sale, helping increase the supply of existing homes in the new year," said Palim. The net share of respondents expecting mortgage rates to fall this year increased 22 points, but homeowners remain reluctant to list their homes. The net share of those saying it is a good time to sell fell 5 points, and the net share of those who believed it is a good time to buy rose 5 points. "Like many others, even if rates fall further, we continue to believe that affordability will be tempered in part by elevated home prices, especially for first-time homebuyers, and we expect the pace of home sales improvement to be modest in 2024," said Palim. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-homebuyer-confidence-up-december-more-see-loan-rates-falling-2024-01-08/
