2023-11-30 22:38

HAMBURG, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Five people have been charged with offences related to the theft of precious metal worth about 11 million euros ($11.97 million)from a Hamburg-based copper producer, the state prosecutor’s office in Hamburg said on Thursday. Prosecutors did not name the company, but an Aurubis (NAFG.DE) spokesperson confirmed separately to Reuters that it is the producer involved. Aurubis, Europe’s largest copper producer, has cut its earnings forecast for its current financial year and suffered a fall in its share price following major suspected metals theft. A statement from the Hamburg state prosecutors office said five people had been charged in connection with the theft of about 5,000 kilogrammes of materials containing precious metals from the company between February 2020 and January 2021. A further person has been charged with assisting them. Precious metals including silver are contained in copper ores and scrap which are refined for sale as by-products by Aurubis. The stolen material was allegedly sold to as-yet unidentified parties but part of it was sent for analysis and further used by an unidentified company in Turkey, prosecutors said. The five people, aged between 33 and 50 years, used encrypted mobile phones to communicate with each other. Their trial is scheduled to start in December, prosecutors said. ($1 = 0.9189 euros) https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/five-charged-with-11-million-euro-metal-theft-germanys-aurubis-2023-11-30/

2023-11-30 22:25

Nov 30 (Reuters) - New York released a new offshore wind solicitation on Thursday to keep the state on track to meet its renewable energy goals and support a nascent industry that has faced financial trouble in recent months. Offshore wind is expected to play a major role in New York's plan to reduce carbon emissions by getting 70% of the state's electricity from renewable sources by 2030. It is also a pillar of President Joe Biden's plan to decarbonize the U.S. power grid and combat climate change. The state said it is supporting the development of 9,000 megawatts (MW) of offshore wind by 2035, enough to power up to six million homes. There are, however, no offshore wind farms operating in New York. The first - Danish energy firm Orsted's (ORSTED.CO) 132-MW South Fork project - is expected to produce its first power before the end of the year. The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), which runs the renewable solicitations, welcomed "all project developers, including those that previously petitioned the New York State Public Service Commission for financial relief and new market entrants, to compete in the solicitation process." Offshore wind developers have threatened in recent months to cancel contracts to sell power in New York after earlier dropping agreements in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Jersey as soaring inflation, interest rates and supply chain problems led to much higher costs to build projects than anticipated. European energy companies Orsted, Equinor (EQNR.OL) and BP (BP.L) have taken a combined $5 billion of writedowns on U.S. offshore wind projects that are mostly in development, in part because their existing power sales contracts would not cover the cost of building and financing the projects. OPEN TO ALL BIDDERS The new solicitation will be open to all bidders, including those with existing contracts. This would allow the companies to re-offer their planned projects at higher prices and exit their old contracts. The companies had threatened to cancel their existing power sales contracts after failing to convince the New York Public Service Commission (NYPSC), the state's utility regulator, to renegotiate the old contracts at higher prices. Those offshore wind contracts, which were awarded in 2019 and 2021 before interest rates and inflation soared, were for Orsted's 924-MW Sunrise, and the Equinor/BP joint venture's 816-MW Empire Wind 1, 1,260-MW Empire Wind 2 and 1,230-MW Beacon Wind. "While we review the RFP and determine our next steps, we know that ready-to-build projects like Sunrise Wind are the only offshore wind farms that can be delivered within the next several years," said a spokesperson for Orsted and Eversource, partners in developing South Fork, the first U.S. offshore wind farm. In a positive sign for offshore developers hoping to get more money for the power they will produce, NYSERDA awarded three offshore wind contracts on Oct. 24 at higher prices than the earlier projects bid by Orsted, BP and Equinor. NYSERDA said final proposals in Thursday's solicitation are due by Jan. 25 with award announcements expected in February. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/ny-launches-offshore-wind-solicitation-it-strives-meet-green-goals-2023-11-30/

2023-11-30 21:47

Dec 1 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets. Asian markets round out the week on Friday in reasonably good spirits, with a deluge of purchasing managers index data from across the continent and a sprinkling of key indicators from Japan, South Korea and Indonesia the most likely market-moving catalysts. Friday is also the first trading day of December, so perhaps an opportunity to get the last month of the year off to a positive start. The Dow Jones on Thursday posted its highest close in nearly two years, and if broader market momentum from November spills over, that is a likely scenario - for some Asian stock markets, November was the best month in a long time. On the other hand, Thursday's month-end reversal in the dollar and bonds - the dollar and Treasury yields rose sharply - will sound a loud note of caution. Unemployment data from Japan, trade data from South Korea, and the latest readout on inflation from Indonesia are among the highlights on the Asian economic calendar, along with a raft of purchasing managers index reports from across the region. They include Australia, South Korea and India, as well as China's 'unofficial' PMI. The 'official' PMI report from the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday showed that manufacturing activity in China shrank for a second month in November, and at a faster rate than had been expected. A similar reading on Friday will only enhance the already growing calls for more stimulus. China's leading index of blue chip stocks fell 2% in November, its fourth monthly decline in a row. It is down almost 10% year-to-date, underperforming most of its regional and global peers. The MSCI Asia ex-Japan and emerging market indexes both snapped three-month losing streaks in November, rising 7% or more for their best month since January, while Japan's Nikkei gained 8.5% for its best month in three years. The general gloom surrounding China's economy and financial markets shows little sign of lifting, despite some sporadic positive surprises recently like the strong third quarter GDP growth figures. A survey by central banking think tank OMFIF of 22 public pension and sovereign wealth funds managing $4.3 trillion in assets, showed that none reported a positive outlook for China's economy. They cited the regulatory environment and geopolitics among primary factors dissuading them from investing. Foreigners already appear to be voting with their feet - China just recorded its first-ever quarterly deficit in foreign direct investment. As more aggressive Fed rate cut expectations chip away at the U.S. dollar, investors are turning more bullish on Asian currencies, a Reuters poll found. Perhaps unsurprisingly, one of the few exceptions is the Chinese yuan. Still, the yuan is trading around its strongest level against the dollar since June and just clocked its biggest monthly gain in a year, rising around 2.5% in November. Here are key developments that could provide more direction to markets on Friday: - PMIs for Australia, South Korea, India, China - Japan unemployment (October) - Indonesia inflation (October) https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/global-markets-view-asia-pix-2023-11-30/

2023-11-30 20:45

BESSEMER CITY, North Carolina, Nov 30 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday she believes the U.S. economy does not need further drastic monetary policy tightening to stamp out inflationary expectations and was on track to achieve a "soft landing" with strong employment. Yellen told reporters after a speech at a lithium processing plant in North Carolina that in the past, the Federal Reserve sometimes had to tighten monetary policy so much to prevent inflation from becoming ingrained in the economy that it caused recessions. "We don't need that now," Yellen said. "I believe the signs are very good that we will achieve this soft landing with unemployment stabilizing more or less we're where it is in this general vicinity, and growth slowing to a sustainable level. I think that's what we're in the middle of." She said that "inflation has now come way down," with high prices for some goods, such as eggs, returning to pre-pandemic levels "And now wage gains are really translating into more real income. So my hope is that Americans gradually will see that things are getting better," Yellen said. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/yellen-says-us-economy-does-not-need-drastic-tightening-soft-landing-track-2023-11-30/

2023-11-30 20:36

Brent settles down 5.2% in November, WTI down 6.2% OPEC+ producers agree to nearly 2 million bpd of voluntary cuts Cuts include Saudi, Russia extending curbs already in place Producers to unwind cuts from Q2 Nov 30 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell by more than 2% on Thursday after OPEC+ producers agreed to voluntary oil output cuts for the first quarter next year that fell short of market expectations. Brent crude futures for January settled 27 cents, or 0.3%, lower to expire at $82.83 a barrel, and a 5.2% loss for the month. The February contract , which begins trading as the front month on Friday, fell $2.00, or 2.4%, to $80.86. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled down $1.90, or 2.4%, to $75.96, and down 6.2% in November. Saudi Arabia, Russia and other members of OPEC+, who pump more than 40% of the world's oil, agreed to voluntary output cuts approaching 2 million barrels per day (bpd) for the first quarter of 2024. At least 1.3 million bpd of those cuts, however, were an extension of voluntary curbs that Saudi Arabia and Russia already had in place. Earlier, delegates had said new additional cuts under discussion were as much as 2 million bpd. "For now, the outcome does not live up to the expectation... in recent days," said Callum MacPherson, head of commodities at Investec. The voluntary nature of the cuts left investors nonplussed. "From what we’ve seen so far, this looks like a paper cut of around 600-700,000 barrels per day (bpd) vs Q4 2023 planned levels," said James Davis at FGE. "It could at best be an actual cut of around 500,000 bpd compared to Q4. This might be just enough to keep the market balanced in Q1, but it will be close." Saudi Arabia, Russia, Kuwait, Kazakhstan and Algeria were among producers who said cuts would be unwound gradually after the first quarter, market conditions permitting. The meeting, being held on the same day as global leaders gather in Dubai for the U.N. climate conference, was originally scheduled for last week but was deferred because of disagreements over output quotas for African producers. OPEC+ also invited Brazil, a top 10 oil producer, to become a member of the group. The country's energy minister said it hoped to join in January. Meanwhile crude output in the U.S., the world's top producer, continued to grow, rising 1.7% in September to a monthly record of 13.24 million bpd, the Energy Information Administration said. Crude production in Texas fell by 0.1% to 5.57 million bpd, the lowest since July and the first time production in the state has fallen since April, the EIA said. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-prices-fall-weak-demand-indicators-china-data-2023-11-30/

2023-11-30 20:16

NEW YORK, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Pending home sales fell in October to the lowest since at least 2001, indicating the month's high mortgage rates and weakened affordability kept potential buyers on the sidelines, according to a report released on Thursday. Contracts to buy existing homes fell 1.5% in October to 71.4 from a revised 72.5 the month prior, according to the National Association of Realtors' Pending Home Sales Index. That was the lowest since NAR launched the index in 2001. Economists polled by Reuters expected a decline of 2.0%. “During October, mortgage rates were at their highest, and contract signings for existing homes were at their lowest in more than 20 years,” said Lawrence Yun, the NAR's chief economist. “Recent weeks’ successive declines in mortgage rates will help qualify more home buyers, but limited housing inventory is significantly preventing housing demand from fully being satisfied. Multiple offers, of course, yield only one winner, with the rest left to continue their search.” Contracts on existing homes fell by the most in the West and South on a monthly basis. Contracts signed rose by 2.7% in the Northeast, the only region to experience a month-over-month increase. Pending home sales have declined 8.5% on a yearly basis. The fall accompanies declining affordability for homebuyers with the average monthly mortgage cost rising to $2,199 in October from $2,155 in September, according to a survey released by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Recent readings of the job market and inflation show but have cooled, easing pressure on the Federal Reserve in its bid to curb inflation. After the Fed refrained from raising its policy benchmark again in November, the bond yields that influence home loan rates have declined sharply, bringing the 30-year average fixed rate mortgage to 7.37% last week by the MBA's measure, down from a two-decade high near 8% in mid-October. A separate survey from Freddie Mac shows rates have fallen even further. As of Thursday, they had dropped for a fifth consecutive week to 7.22%, the lowest in more than two months. While mortgage rates may be declining, the median sales price on an existing home rose 3.4% in October from a year earlier to $391,800. Completed transactions for existing homes fell to their lowest in more than 13 years in October, NAR said last week. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/contracts-buy-existing-homes-decline-record-low-october-nar-2023-11-30/