2024-08-14 07:45
ATHENS, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Firefighters battled on Wednesday to extinguish the remnants of a wildfire near Athens that killed a woman, torched buildings, devoured woodland and forced thousands of people to flee their homes. Most of the fronts had eased three days after the inferno had first taken hold, but officials warned against complacency. "The fire is still in progress. It has not been brought under control yet," a fire brigade official said. State inspectors started assessing damaged buildings as fire-stricken residents returned to their scorched properties, hoping to find some belongings amidst the debris. Hundreds of firefighters assisted by 12 aircraft have been tackling the blaze since Sunday as it barrelled from a forest off the town of Varnavas, 35 km (22 miles) from the capital, into Athens' northern suburbs. Greece's National Observatory said the fire had damaged around 10,000 hectares (24,710 acres) of land. The cause of the blaze has not yet been determined. Greece is on high fire alert until Thursday, with temperatures forecast to hit 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) raising concern about possible flare ups. Wildfires have been a common feature of Greek summers for years, but climate change has brought hotter weather and less rain, heightening the risk. The country, which has recently tightened penalties for arson, has dealt with over 3,500 fires since May, a nearly 50% increase from the same period in 2023 when it recorded 2,300 blazes, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis chaired a meeting about the latest blaze on Tuesday evening. "We are trying to improve every year. But conditions are only becoming tougher," he told ministers according to a government official. Sunday's fire broke rapidly across several fronts reaching within hours the seaside area of Nea Makri, the historic town of Marathon and suburbs on the slopes of Mount of Penteli, which is considered one of Athens' last green lungs. A woman was found dead inside a burned local business in the suburb of Vrilissia, about 10 km from central Athens, on Monday. The government has announced compensation and relief measures for those impacted by the disaster. Some experts said the fire had managed to spread so fast because of a phenomenon called spotting, where wind whirls transfer burning matter across long distances. That led to the constant creation of new fronts which later merged. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/greece-tackles-last-wildfire-near-athens-assesses-damage-2024-08-14/
2024-08-14 07:13
Aug 14 (Reuters) - Leading Australian banks are stepping up efforts to reduce their carbon footprint and align with global climate goals by slowing lending to carbon-intensive projects. The country's biggest lender, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA.AX) , opens new tab, plans to reduce emissions associated with its loans or investments to zero by 2030 for thermal coal mining customers, it said on Wednesday. National Australia Bank (NAB.AX) , opens new tab, the country's top business lender, said on Wednesday it will not finance new-to-bank thermal coal mining customers or new thermal coal mining projects. Australia's ruling Labor Party aims to have 82% of the country's power coming from renewables by 2030, up from around 40% now and also seeks to reduce carbon emissions by 43% from 2005 levels. For the long term, the party envisions a mostly-renewable energy system anchored by batteries and flexible gas generation. National Australia Bank, which as of September 2023 had no corporate lending to thermal coal mining customers or project finance for thermal coal mining assets, intends to hold this stance into the future. The lender has also announced a dozen decarbonisation targets, including for the power generation, thermal coal and oil and gas sectors, and said it is increasing financing to renewable-powered generation. Commonwealth Bank of Australia flagged the challenges Australia is facing in replacing aging coal-fired power stations with renewables as large-scale renewable energy and transmission projects take longer to become operational. "Despite coal-fired power generation becoming less commercially attractive, some planned coal-fired retirements are being delayed to maintain reliable power to Australia's electricity grid," CBA said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/top-aussie-banks-slow-lending-carbon-intensive-projects-2024-08-14/
2024-08-14 06:49
Aug 14 (Reuters) - Sterling dipped on Wednesday after a softer-than-expected reading on British consumer price inflation supported expectations of further interest rate cuts from the Bank of England (BoE) this year. The pound fell 0.3% to $1.2827, heading for its first session of decline in five against the dollar. It also softened against the euro, with euro/sterling trading up 0.3% at 85.69 pence. Both had been roughly flat before the data. Consumer price inflation rose to 2.2% in July after two months at the BoE's 2% target, official figures showed, but fell short of economists' forecast for an annual rise to 2.3%. Services price inflation fell to 5.2% in July from June's 5.7%, lower than the Reuters poll forecast of 5.5% and the lowest since June 2022. "The Bank of England will take a huge sigh of relief this morning, having seen services inflation finally coming lower," Kyle Chapman, FX markets analyst at Ballinger Group, said. Money markets show traders are currently pricing in rate cuts of about 46 basis points from the BoE this year, little changed from Tuesday's level. The odds of a September rate cut stand at about 48%. "Given that we got mixed signals from the jobs report yesterday and there is one more inflation report to go before the September meeting, the next decision is wide open. That said, I expect the Bank to pause at the next meeting and wait for more data before proceeding in November and likely December," Chapman said. The BoE cut rates from a 16-year high earlier this month after a tight vote by its policymakers who were split over whether inflation pressures had eased sufficiently. The pound touched a two-week high on Tuesday after figures showed the UK jobless rate dropped to 4.2% in June - defying expectations for a small rise. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/sterling-dips-after-tame-inflation-data-2024-08-14/
2024-08-14 06:47
BERLIN, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Germany has issued a European arrest warrant against a Ukrainian diving instructor who allegedly was part of a team that blew up the Nord Stream gas pipelines, according to a report by three German media outlets published on Wednesday. German investigators believe the man, last known to have lived in Poland, was one of the divers who planted explosive devices on pipelines running from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea in September 2022, the SZ and Die Zeit newspapers reported alongside the ARD broadcaster, citing unnamed sources. The German prosecutor general's office declined comment on the report. Germany had asked Poland in June to arrest the man, the report said. The Polish National Public Prosecutor's Office had no immediate comment on the matter. On Wednesday, the Spiegel news magazine reported that the suspect is since thought to have left Poland, citing security sources. Another man and a woman - also Ukrainian diving instructors - have been identified in Germany's investigation into the suspected sabotage but so far no arrest warrants have been issued for them, according to SZ, Zeit and ARD. It remains a mystery who was behind the explosions that destroyed three out of four pipelines, which became a controversial symbol of German reliance on Russian gas in the wake of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russia and the West have accused each other of being behind the blasts. Each has denied involvement and no one has taken responsibility. A Swedish probe found traces of explosives on several objects recovered from the explosion site, confirming the explosions were deliberate acts. In January 2023, Germany raided a ship that it said may have been used to transport explosives and told the United Nations that it believed trained divers could have attached devices to the pipelines at about 70 to 80 metres deep. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/germany-issues-arrest-warrant-ukrainian-diver-nord-stream-probe-media-report-2024-08-14/
2024-08-14 06:39
Aug 14 (Reuters) - Europe's largest tour operator TUI (TUI1n.DE) , opens new tab beat third-quarter operating profit expectations on Wednesday thanks to strong summer travel demand, a resurgence in packaged holidays and a boost from the bankruptcy of German rival FTI. Travel firms and airlines had hoped this summer season would surpass pre-pandemic levels, despite economic uncertainty, delays in plane deliveries and rising jet fuel prices. "Holidays are still highly prioritized by consumers," with summer bookings 6% ahead of last year, Chief Financial Officer Mathias Kiep said on a media call. TUI posted 232 million euros ($254.92 million) in underlying earnings before interest and tax for the April-June quarter, up 37% from 169 million euros a year earlier. Analysts polled by LSEG had expected 217 million euros. Shares were up 4.3% in early Frankfurt trading. TUI confirmed guidance for a 25% increase in operating profit this year and 10% revenue growth, despite delivery delays from Boeing (BA.N) , opens new tab and costs associated with an outage at cybersecurity tech firm CrowdStrike last month. The German group recently switched its listing from London to Frankfurt but maintains a large customer base in Britain and saw a boost from the insolvency of competitor FTI. While demand has remained strong, some airlines' results in the quarter were impacted by rising costs associated with labour disruptions, maintenance, or weaker business bookings. While budget carrier Ryanair had warned that ticket prices could drop as customers become more price-sensitive, TUI said bookings did not slow despite higher prices for its flights and packages, up 3% year-on-year. TUI's resilience lies in its travel business. Travel agents have said that packaged holidays have made a comeback as inflation drives up hotel, sightseeing and restaurant prices. Rival easyJet's holiday business has also been successful, bolstering the broader airline business. TUI Chief Executive Sebastian Ebel said it was positioning itself further outside of Europe to bolster business, including in Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia, with a recent hotel opening in Vietnam. ($1 = 0.9101 euros) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/europes-largest-tour-operator-tui-posts-strong-q3-due-summer-bookings-2024-08-14/
2024-08-14 06:28
Recent data raises speculation about Fed rate cuts U.S. CPI rose moderately in July, as expected New Zealand cuts rates NEW YORK/PARIS, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Global stocks held steady and government bond yields retreated a touch on Wednesday after data showed U.S. consumer prices rose moderately in July, as expected, reinforcing investor bets that the Federal Reserve could start cutting interest rates soon. But the size of the Fed's first cut, which many investors are hoping will take place in September, remains in doubt as the market debates the chances of a 25- or 50-basis-point reduction. The consumer price index rose 0.2% last month after falling 0.1% in June, data showed, although inflation in shelter, which includes rents, accelerated in July compared with June. "The one thing that was surprising here was rent accelerating," said Gennadiy Goldberg, head of U.S. rates strategy at TD Securities in New York. "I think that's the reason for the market's somewhat disappointed reaction, even though the print actually came in on the weaker side of consensus. "I do think the market is reassessing the odds of a 50-basis-point rate cut in September. That pricing seems to have dropped from about 39 base points ahead of the reading to 36 basis points now." The S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab finished up 0.38%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab added 0.6%, and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab ended unchanged. The MSCI World Equity index was up 0.51%, at its highest level in 12 days (.MIWD00000PUS) , opens new tab. In line with expectations that U.S. monetary policy will soon be eased, the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield fell to 3.8371%, and the two-year Treasury yield was steady at 3.9621%. Europe's STOXX 600 was up 0.5% on the day (.STOXX) , opens new tab, while London's FTSE 100 was up 0.6% (.FTSE) , opens new tab after data showed British inflation rose less than expected in July. POLICY EASING Central banks around the world successively have begun to cut interest rates in recent months as inflation cooled. New Zealand's central bank cut interest rates for the first time in four years on Wednesday, and signalled more monetary policy easing to come. The move sparked a sell-off in the Kiwi dollar, which was down around 1% on the day . The Japanese yen and the Nikkei wobbled after Japan's prime minister, Fumio Kishida, said he would step down next month, but Asian shares rose overall as markets recovered from the recent rout. UBS shares (UBSG.S) , opens new tab were up around 3.1% after the bank reported $1.1 billion of net profit in the April to June quarter, beating analysts' forecasts. Last week's global market sell-off was widely attributed to fears of a U.S. recession, which left traders betting that the Federal Reserve would need to cut interest rates quickly to spur growth. Stocks and bond markets were also affected by traders quitting the yen carry trade, in response to the yen's getting stronger following a surprise Bank of Japan rate hike. U.S. data since then has eased recession fears. Stocks jumped on Tuesday after U.S. producer price data pointed to inflation cooling. "Markets are less in panic mode," said Justin Onuekwusi, chief investment officer at investment firm St. James's Place. Still, he said, traders may be getting ahead of themselves in their rate cut expectations. "The market is being far too aggressive in those Fed cuts, particularly when you have hawkish-leaning Fed officials saying they are looking for more data to support cuts." Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic said on Tuesday he wanted to see "a little more data" before he's ready to support lowering interest rates. Pressured by bets of imminent U.S. rate cuts, the dollar index was on the backfoot at 102.61 . A sluggish dollar helped the euro climb to the day's high of $1.10475 , its highest level in more than eight months. In commodities, Brent crude futures were down 1% at $79.9 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.5% to $77.18. Traders said concerns that conflict may spread in the Middle East and threaten production in one of the world's major oil producers had eased slightly. Buffeted by speculation about the size of the Fed's first rate cut, gold traded 0.7% lower at $2,447.2 an ounce. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/global-markets-wrapup-1-2024-08-14/
