2024-06-17 21:04

CARACAS, June 17 (Reuters) - Venezuela's National Assembly on Monday began discussing a proposal to extend through 2047 a contract between state oil company PDVSA and U.S. company Chevron (CVX.N) New Tab, opens new tab to operate a joint venture in the country's largest producing area. PDVSA and Chevron have four joint ventures in Venezuela that are producing some 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude. The companies are requesting an extension for Petropiar in the Orinoco Belt, the partnership that produces the most oil, Venezuela's deputy oil minister, Elianny Palencia, said during a presentation at the National Assembly in Caracas. The extension for Petropiar will apply for the period 2033-2047, once the current association expires, under a plan to drill up to 386 wells in the area, according to the document presented to the National Assembly, seen by Reuters. During the 15-year extension, crude production is set to increase to 150,000 bpd from current output of about 110,000 bpd. About $2.39 billion in investment and another $8 billion in operational expenses were planned as part of the request, according to the deputy minister's presentation. The National Assembly is expected to continue discussing and approve the partnership extension in the coming days. PDVSA and Chevron last year won approvals for similar 15-year extensions for two other joint ventures. An extension of the fourth joint venture is not yet planned. All the joint ventures produce and export crude under a license granted by the U.S. Treasury Department to Chevron in late 2022 as an exemption to the U.S. sanctions on the South American country. But more investment is still needed to reach production levels before oil sanctions were first imposed in 2019. Venezuela's crude output is approaching 1 million bpd, said oil minister Pedro Tellechea last week. In 2023, the country's production averaged 783,000 bpd, and rose to 864,000 bpd in the first quarter, according to figures reported to OPEC. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/venezuela-mulls-proposal-extend-pdvsa-chevron-oil-joint-venture-through-2047-2024-06-17/

2024-06-17 20:58

TSX down 0.2% at 21,587.880 Posts lowest closing level since March 5 Materials sector declines 0.5% Primo Water shares gain after merger deal June 17 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell to a three-month low on Monday as its heavy weighting in resource shares and low exposure to technology proved unattractive to investors even as Wall Street extended its record-setting run. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE) New Tab, opens new tab ended down 51.22 points, or 0.2%, at 21,587.88, its lowest closing level since March 5. In contrast, U.S. benchmark the S&P 500 notched an all-time closing high, helped by its heavy weighting in high-flying technology shares. "The TSX, it's just missing the ingredients," said Barry Schwartz, a portfolio manager at Baskin Financial Services. "We just don't have the right businesses for this type of economy." Tech shares account for just 11% of the TSX's market capitalization, while financial and resource shares combined have a roughly 60% weighting. The materials group (.GSPTTMT) New Tab, opens new tab, which includes metal miners and fertilizer companies, fell 0.5%, as gold and copper prices fell, while energy (.SPTTEN) New Tab, opens new tab ended 0.1% lower. The high-dividend paying utilities group (.GSPTTUT) New Tab, opens new tab lost 0.9% as bond yields clawed back some recent declines. One bright spot was the industrials sector (.GSPTTIN) New Tab, opens new tab, It added 0.6%, while consumer staples (.GSPTTCS) New Tab, opens new tab ended 0.4% higher. The consumer-related sector was helped by a gain of 2% for the shares of Primo Water Corp after the packaged water company entered into a merger agreement with BlueTrition Brands. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/tsx-futures-slip-receding-commodity-prices-2024-06-17/

2024-06-17 20:49

June 17 (Reuters) - Liquefied natural gas (LNG) firm Cheniere Energy (LNG.N) New Tab, opens new tab said on Monday it has approved an additional $4 billion in share repurchase through 2027 and increased quarterly dividend by 15% to $2.00 per share. In May, the company beat adjusted core profit estimates, as higher-than-expected export volumes countered lower natural gas prices. The U.S. emerged as the top LNG exporter in 2023 as buyers scrambled to find alternate sources after Western sanctions squeezed supplies from Russia. The LNG firm said on Monday the new dividend will be commencing in the third quarter. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/cheniere-energy-raises-share-repurchase-by-4-bln-2024-06-17/

2024-06-17 20:40

LONDON, June 17 (Reuters) - Talks between Ukraine and its international bondholders designed to cut its debt to help finance its war effort ground to a halt on Monday after the two sides failed to reach an agreement. It means the clock continues to tick down to a potential $23 billion sovereign default later in the summer. That's a headache that Kyiv and supportive institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will want to avoid, so what happens now? KEEP TALKING? The two sides seem far apart but Ukraine's Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko says his team will continue talking to bondholders. In fact it will expand the list as previously it was only speaking with a select group of larger creditors - money managers like pension and investment funds - whose names have not been disclosed. The issue though is that the government is facing a tight deadline. A two-year debt freeze struck months into Russia's February 2022 invasion runs out at the start of August, meaning Kyiv could soon find itself on the verge of default again. WHAT WOULD BE DIFFERENT? One thing that could make a difference according to one source familiar with the situation is that the IMF is due to provide new estimates on Ukraine's economy in the next few weeks as part of the fourth review of the $15.6 billion support programme it set up for the country last year. On one hand, Russia's advance towards Ukraine's second biggest city Kharkiv and attacks that have destroyed half of Ukraine's electricity-generating capacity in recent months are likely to mean the numbers look worse. The government warned in the statement on Monday that "illustrative structures and associated economics" from the IMF figures would likely be revised downwards in the fourth review. At the same time though, the Group of Seven (G7) rich democracies have just agreed to use proceeds from frozen Russian assets to give Ukraine $50 billion in loans which should help rearm the army and rebuild the economy - if only in the longer term. By talking to a broader set of bondholders, Ukraine might also get a better sense of whether a compromise deal that all parties can accept is possible. Ukraine's proposal that was rejected had asked the creditors to slash the value of their bonds by up to 60 percent. The creditor committee in return had proposed New Tab, opens new tab cuts of just over 22 percent. The government also launched some other scenarios, such as the "amended base structure" with potentially better terms. While those never made it to the formal proposal stage and were illustrative only, it indicates there might be other structures to talk about. WHAT IF THERE'S STILL NO DEAL? The difficulties in the talks have reflected the deep uncertainty about what happens in the war and how much debt Ukraine’s economy will be able to carry afterwards. If no agreement can be struck, Ukraine would likely be heading for default in August, unless it decided it was better to start making the payments again or got an extension to the current debt freeze arrangement. The big problem though is that without Kyiv cutting its debt level, the IMF might come under pressure to put the breaks on its crucial programme, as Ukraine's finances would be viewed as just too unsustainable. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/what-happens-next-ukraines-debt-restructuring-2024-06-17/

2024-06-17 20:34

MEXICO CITY, June 17 (Reuters) - An ongoing "illegal blockade" at ArcelorMittal's western Mexico site since the end of May has now held up an estimated 300,000 metric tons of steel, the company told Reuters on Monday. Workers affiliated with the mining union have been protesting since May 25 against the annual profit distribution to employees decided by the company for 2023, bringing all activities to a halt. ArcelorMittal recorded a $4.9 billion adjusted net profit last year. The company told Reuters that labor authorities have not endorsed the strike, which it said had begun before the period for conciliation talks had ended. "We have been negotiating, there is a dialogue, there have been proposals, an additional bonus was even paid to the workers so they would resume their activities," ArcelorMittal told Reuters. Mexico's steel chamber demanded in a statement that the protesters "rectify their attitude and respect the channels and procedures provided by law to raise their demands and disagreements." It added that the work stoppage had a ripple effect throughout the region, as well as on supply chains in Mexico and the United States. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/mexico-steelworkers-hold-up-300000-tons-steel-arcelormittal-says-2024-06-17/

2024-06-17 20:23

SAN SALVADOR, June 17 (Reuters) - Some 11 people have died in El Salvador due to torrential rains that have lashed Central America's Pacific coast since the weekend, civil protection authorities said on Monday, while nearly 900 people are still in temporary shelters. Civil Protection chief Luis Amaya said the victims, which include children, died as a result of landslides or accidents caused by trees falling onto roads. "If you are asked to evacuate, do it. If you live near a slope, move to a safe area," Amaya told a news conference. "The number one priority is to be safe." The rains have soaked swathes of land across the Pacific coast from southern Mexico down to western Panama. Forecasters have predicted more rain through the week, and warned this could be exacerbated by a storm that is soon forecast to form over the Gulf of Mexico. In neighboring Honduras, authorities also launched evacuations and said over 5,000 have been affected, largely due to flooding in the hard-hit southern department of Valle, which borders El Salvador. As far south as Panama, authorities emitted alerts but reported no serious damages. Videos shared on social media from across the region showed streets flooded with fast-flowing water, fallen trees, families and pets evacuating onto trucks and emergency responders working through the night to clear roadways. Both the Pacific and Atlantic have entered the start of their hurricane seasons. The Atlantic's is forecast to be especially active due to a combination of effects from the La Nina weather pattern and warmer ocean waters. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/el-salvador-reports-11-dead-heavy-rains-lash-central-america-2024-06-17/