2024-08-09 17:56

Canadian dollar notches weekly gain of 1% Canada's economy sheds 2,800 jobs in July Price of U.S. oil increases 0.9% 10-year yield eases 5.6 basis points TORONTO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar steadied against its U.S. counterpart on Friday and notched its biggest weekly advance in eight months, as domestic jobs data did little to alter expectations for Bank of Canada interest rate cuts. The heavily shorted currency was trading nearly unchanged at 1.3730 per U.S. dollar, or 72.83 U.S. cents. For the week, it was up 1%, its first weekly advance in four weeks and its biggest since December. "I think this is mostly a short-covering bounce we're getting in the Canadian dollar than people all of a sudden falling back in love with the loonie," said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex LLC. Speculators have raised their bearish bets on the Canadian dollar to an all-time high, recent data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed. The currency touched a near two-year low of 1.3946 on Monday when financial markets turned volatile. Canada's economy shed 2,800 jobs in July, while the unemployment rate remained at a 30-month high of 6.4%. Analysts had forecast a gain of 22,500 jobs and the unemployment rate to rise to 6.5%. "I think that today's employment data really hasn't changed anybody's mind for Canada," Chandler said. "The market is 100% confident of another 25 basis point cut (in September)." The BoC has cut its benchmark interest rate twice since June, moving in 25 basis point increments and lowering the rate to 4.50%. Investors expect another quarter-point cut at the next policy decision on Sept. 4 and two further moves by the end of the year. The price of oil , one of Canada's major exports, rose 0.9% to $76.85 a barrel as positive economic data eased demand concerns. The Canadian 10-year yield eased 5.6 basis points to 3.120%, roughly matching the move in the equivalent U.S. rate. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/canadian-dollar-notches-biggest-weekly-gain-year-2024-08-09/

2024-08-09 13:38

SAO PAULO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Consumer prices came in slightly above expectations in July, pushed up by higher gasoline and air ticket costs, adding to monetary policy uncertainties after the central bank said it would raise interest rates if needed to control inflation. Prices in Latin America's largest economy were up 0.38% last month, statistics agency IBGE said on Friday, accelerating from the 0.21% increase reported in June and exceeding economists' forecasts of a 0.35% monthly rise in a Reuters poll. They rose 4.50% in the 12 months through July, IBGE said, up from 4.23% in June and slightly above the 4.47% projected in the Reuters poll. Annual inflation is now at the upper limit of the tolerance band for the central bank's target, which currently stands at 3%, plus or minus 1.5 percentage points. "Overall, this was a poor start to the quarter due to temporary shocks," said Andres Abadia, chief Latin America economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. "But we expect these pressures to ease soon, keeping underlying inflation pressures under control over the next few months." The latest inflation data comes after Brazil's central bank said in its policy meeting minutes on Tuesday that it won't hesitate to raise interest rates if necessary to bring inflation down to its target. Capital Economics' deputy chief emerging markets economist Jason Tuvey said the fresh consumer prices figures, driven by a pickup in underlying core services inflation, will do little to quell the hawkishness of policymakers. "But, with the real having recovered some lost ground in recent days, we still think an interest rate hike is unlikely." Brazil's currency traded around 5.50 per dollar on Friday, paring some recent losses after it weakened past 5.80 per greenback earlier this month. Nevertheless, the Brazilian real is still down 12% so far in 2024. Central bank director Gabriel Galipolo said on Thursday that the bank is monitoring how the foreign exchange moves impact inflation, but argued it would be a mistake to establish a "mechanical" relationship between them and monetary policy. According to IBGE, the upward surprise in July inflation was mainly related to a 3.15% increase in gasoline costs, which jumped after state-run oil giant Petrobras (PETR4.SA) , opens new tab hiked prices for the first time in almost a year. Airfares also helped push inflation up with a 19.39% jump in July, IBGE said. "We have school holidays in July in Brazil, which contributed to the increase in air ticket prices," IBGE research manager Andre Almeida noted. On the other hand, food prices fell 1% after rising 0.44% in June, the biggest downward impact on the overall index. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazil-inflation-speeds-up-july-central-bank-vows-caution-2024-08-09/

2024-08-09 12:47

Russia boosts firepower, imposes anti-terror measures First Ukrainian video of troops controlling gas facility Second video shows column of charred Russian vehicles Ukraine exposes Russian intelligence failings Rouble falls against U.S. dollar Aug 10 (Reuters) - Russia moved extra tanks, artillery and rocket systems to its southern Kursk region and imposed anti-terrorism measures in border areas as it battled a shock incursion by Ukraine's military. Ukrainian forces, meanwhile, posted a video purporting to show them in control of a town near the border, the first pictorial evidence of their cross-border advances. In new evidence of the damage inflicted in the Ukrainian counter-offensive, another video posted on social media and verified by Reuters showed a convoy of about 15 burnt-out Russian military trucks spaced out along a highway in the Kursk region. Some contained dead bodies. The acting governor of Kursk region, Alexei Smirnov, said drone debris had fallen on a power substation near Kurchatov, site of one of Russia's largest nuclear power stations with four reactors. Power to the area was cut for a time. The head of the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency urged both sides to show restraint in view of the proximity of the conflict to the station, 60 km (35 miles) from the border. Russian diplomats in Vienna told the IAEA that fragments, possibly from downed missiles, had been found, though there was no evidence of an attack on the station. Ukrainian forces broke across the border on Tuesday in a thrust that caught the Russian military by surprise after months of gradual advances in eastern Ukraine by Moscow's forces. Politicians and the military are referring to a Ukrainian "invasion", nearly two and a half years after Russia launched its own full-scale invasion of its neighbour. Early on Saturday, Russian news agencies said the National Anti-Terrorism Committee had imposed anti-terror measures in Kursk region and in nearby Bryansk and Belgorod regions. The statement said the decision, taken by Alexander Bortnikov, head of the FSB intelligence service, was in response to Ukraine's "unprecedented attempt to destablise the situation in a series of regions". RIA news agency said the measures included possible displacement of residents, limits on transport, beefed-up security around sensitive sites and wire taps. Two days after Military Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov reported to President Vladimir Putin that the advance had been halted, Russia's defence ministry said its forces "continue to repel an attempted invasion by the Armed Forces of Ukraine". Interfax news agency quoted the ministry as saying that Russia was sending in columns of reinforcements with Grad multiple-launch rocket systems, artillery and tanks. VIDEO SAID TO BE IN RUSSIAN GAS FACILITY The Ukrainian video purported to show Ukrainian forces in control of a gas measuring facility run by Russian concern Gazprom in the town of Sudzha. "The town is controlled by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the town is calm, all buildings are intact," a soldier in the video said, adding that the "strategic Gazprom facility" was under the control of a Ukrainian battalion. Reuters could not verify this video and the Ukrainian military's General Staff made no comment. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has maintained a strict silence on the operation, though he dropped some clear hints on Thursday, without referring to Kursk. He praised his army's ability "to surprise". And in his nightly video address, he thanked army units who had taken Russian servicemen prisoner, to be used in later negotiations. "This is extremely important and has been particularly effective over the past three days," he said. Ben Barry, land warfare analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said that while its wider strategic goals remained unclear, Ukraine had exposed Russian shortcomings and overturned the conventional wisdom on the war that neither side could advance without heavy losses. "They clearly have achieved a degree of surprise which suggests that Russia's ability to do intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance is inadequate," he said in a phone interview. A Ukrainian Telegram channel that posted the video of the destroyed Russian trucks said they had been hit by a U.S.-supplied HIMARS rocket system. Russian bloggers also blamed a HIMARS strike. Reuters was not able to establish how the vehicles were destroyed. The United States announced a new $125 million package of aid for Ukraine, including Stinger missiles, artillery ammunition, and anti-armour systems. Zelenskiy said the package was "vital for our forces to counter Russian assaults". Russia's defence ministry released its own video which it said showed a drone destroying a Ukrainian tank and howitzer near Sudzha. Reuters was able to verify the location. ADVANCING INTO RUSSIAN TERRITORY The ministry said that in the previous 24 hours, Russian troops, air strikes and artillery had "suppressed raid attempts by enemy units deep into Russian territory in the Kursk direction". It said that Ukraine had lost up to 945 soldiers and 102 armoured vehicles in total, while mentioning no Russian losses. Reuters could not verify the battlefield accounts. On Wednesday, Gerasimov had said the Ukrainian attack was mounted by up to 1,000 troops. The Institute for the Study of War said in an overnight report that geolocated footage and Russian accounts indicated that Ukrainian forces had "continued rapid advances". There were unconfirmed reports from Russian sources of Ukrainians pushing as deep as 35 km (22 miles) from the border. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-says-fighting-continues-kursk-video-shows-burnt-out-russian-trucks-2024-08-09/

2024-08-09 12:06

Aug 8 (Reuters) - Canadian pot firm Canopy Growth (WEED.TO) , opens new tab reported a smaller-than-expected core loss for the first quarter on Friday, helped by lower operating expenses and stronger demand for medical cannabis. Its U.S.-listed shares were up 3.3% at $7.15 in premarket trading. Faced with increased competition in an overcrowded market, North American pot companies have been cutting costs and taking measures to reduce inventories to preserve cash and improve their finances. Canopy Growth's quarterly operating expenses fell 23.7% to C$52.1 million ($37.92 million) from a year ago. Revenue from its Canadian medical cannabis business rose 20.3% to C$18.8 million in the quarter ended June 30. The company expects to achieve positive adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) on a consolidated basis in the second half of the fiscal year, CEO David Klein said. Canopy Growth also pointed to easing doubts around the company's ability to continue as a going concern. The company had raised doubts about its ability to continue as a going concern last year as it struggled to turn profitable. It later sold its sports nutrition products unit, Biosteel, after seeking bankruptcy protection for it. The company reported a first-quarter adjusted core loss of C$5.3 million, compared with analysts' average estimate of C$7.1 million, according to LSEG data. Peer Aurora Cannabis (ACB.TO) , opens new tab reported strong quarterly results earlier this week, helped by growth in medical cannabis segment. ($1 = 1.3739 Canadian dollars) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/canopy-growth-posts-smaller-than-expected-core-loss-costs-drop-2024-08-09/

2024-08-09 11:59

TOKYO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - A magnitude-5.3 earthquake hit Tokyo and eastern parts of Japan on Friday evening, the government said, a day after it issued the first-ever advisory about the risk of a huge earthquake in the west of the country. Although damage to the areas closest to the epicentre was not immediately clear, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the government had not received any reports of major damage, speaking at his Tokyo office shortly after the quake. The quake's epicentre was in the Kanagawa prefecture south next to the capital, at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles), Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. Kanagawa does not lie within the western zone along the Pacific coast known as the Nankai Trough, which was specified in Thursday's advisory on a megaquake with magnitude 8 or higher. No tsunami alert was issued after the government sent strong tremor warnings for residents in Tokyo and prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama, Yamanashi and Shizuoka. Some train lines, including Central Japan Railway's (9022.T) , opens new tab Shinkansen high-speed rail services, stopped operations in regions near Tokyo and Kanagawa. There were no reports of damage at the Hamaoka nuclear power plant in Shizuoka and thermal plants in Kanagawa, the public broadcaster NHK said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/japan-issues-m53-earthquake-warning-tokyo-areas-2024-08-09/

2024-08-09 11:38

Aug 9 (Reuters) - A Russian missile strike hit a supermarket in the Ukrainian town of Kostiantynivka in the front-line Donetsk region on Friday, killing at least ten people and injuring 35 others, Ukrainian officials said. The strike caused a fire that had been put out, the interior minister said. Heavy black smoke clouds rising from the destroyed building could be seen in the images and videos posted by officials. "Russian terrorists hit an ordinary supermarket and a post office. There are people under the rubble," President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on X. Emergency services continued working out the rubble looking for survivors, he added. Regional Governor Vadym Filashkin initially said Russia used artillery but later said the attack with from an X-38 air-to-surface missile. Nova Poshta, Ukraine's largest private postal company, said its cargo office in the supermarket was damaged in the strike. "All our employees are alive. One colleague received a concussion – he is getting all the necessary help," the company said on X. Residential houses, shops and more than dozen cars were as well damaged in the attack, according to the interior minister's post on Telegram. Kostiantynivka lies just about 13 kilometers from the active combat line in Ukraine's east. Kyiv-held parts of the Donetsk region regularly come under Russian shelling and air strikes. The region is one of the hottest areas of fighting as Russia targets areas in the direction of the strategic eastern logistics hub of Pokrovsk. Elsewhere, Russia has accused Ukraine this week of launching a cross-border assault in Russia's Kursk region. The Kyiv military has not commented on that operation yet. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/two-killed-17-injured-russian-strike-supermarket-ukraines-east-2024-08-09/