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NYSE parent Intercontinental Exchange will dual list on NYSE Texas
Intercontinental Exchange, parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, announced on Monday that it would list both on NYSE Texas. This will add to a long list of listings at the bourse in an effort to stay ahead of its competition. NYSE Texas opened its doors in March. It offers a new trading and listing venue for businesses attracted by Texas' business-friendly environment. According to ICE, in the first three month, 10 companies have listed both on the Dallas-based exchange. These include oilfield services company Halliburton and Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, as well as recruitment firm Orion Group. NYSE President Lynn Martin stated earlier this month that NYSE Texas has another dual listing with a double-digit number in the works. He added that conversations with companies have been "extremely positive". Texas is quickly becoming a major financial center rivaling New York, as the Lone Star State tries to attract corporate issuers through its pro-business policy and lower taxes. TXSE Group announced last year that it would launch the Texas Stock Exchange with the backing of Wall Street giants BlackRock Securities and Citadel Securities in an attempt to disrupt New York's dominance over the U.S. Capital Markets. The exchange expects to start trading by early 2026 and list securities at the end of that year. Texas also has the most companies listed on NYSE. ICE announced that it would continue to list its primary stock on the NYSE. The dual listing of ICE on NYSE Texas is effective as of June 17. (Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
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Sources say that gold mining companies in Ghana and Ivory Coast are resisting tax increases.
Sources in the industry say that gold miners in Ghana and Ivory Coast refuse to pay higher taxes this year because they feel it violates their licence agreements. West African countries have taken advantage of the soaring gold price to raise mining taxes, and generate additional revenue in order to close budget deficits. The six sources in the industry said that mining companies in the area have mostly complied with the rules, except in Ghana and Ivory Coast. Ghana is Africa's largest gold producer and Ivory Coast is Africa's seventh biggest. Sources say that mining companies have agreed to negotiate with Ivory Coast or Ghana governments in order to cancel the tax increases, and to not pay them while doing so. Gold Fields and Newmont are among the producers in both countries. Barrick, Endeavour, Allied Gold, Perseus, AngloGold Ashanti and Barrick. All of them declined to respond or didn't reply to requests for comments. Ivory Coast implemented a flat tax on royalty of 8%, up from the previous 3%-6%, depending on a miner's agreement. Ghana, which is in default on its debts and is going through a debt restructuring process, increased a tax from 1% to 3% on the annual gross production of gold miners in March after appealing to companies to help plug revenue gaps. If people invest for the long-term and the rules are changed midway through, this can have a negative impact on the project. "New rules can be applied to new projects," stated an executive from a major international miner operating in Ivory Coast who requested anonymity. Requests for comments from the mines and finances ministries of Ghana and Ivory Coast were not answered. Two other sources said that Burkina Faso, a military-run country in the region, introduced a sliding-scale royalty regime in early February. The system linked royalties with gold prices and the miners have mostly complied, they added. The new mining codes have introduced aggressive regulations that are mostly followed by the miners of Mali, Niger, and Guinea. ONGOING NEGATIONS Gold prices are up nearly 30% in this year. This has led to higher profits for gold miner in the first quarter. However, sudden regulatory changes can be a major obstacle when doing business in Africa. Barrick and Mali's military-ruled Government have been locked in a standoff for two years over new mining laws aimed at increasing state revenue. The dispute has led to the closure of Loulo-Gounkoto, detentions of executives, and a plunge in Barrick's share price. Barrick, a company that also operates in Ivory Coast did not reply to a comment request. A mining executive revealed that the Ivory Coast miners are in talks with the finance and mines ministries to resolve the issue of the new taxes. Ghana's companies, under the Ghana Chamber of Mines, have asked for the government to reconsider their measures. In the event that the talks do not succeed, the companies may be penalized for late tax payments. Unnamed Ghanaian mining company said that the tax authority had the right to close a company and impose fines. Companies could sue the tax authority if they prove that their contracts are exempt from tax increases. Denis Gyeyri is Africa Senior Program officer at the nonprofit Natural Resources Governance Institute. He said that governments raise taxes too quickly when prices rise, but do not lower them when they fall. Gyeyri stated that loyalty rates should be progressive, compensating mines with low prices while maximising government revenue through high prices. He said that countries should keep their tax rates as competitive as possible. For example, royalty rates in Western Australia vary from 2.5% to 7.5%, depending on how much processing is done. Maxwell Akalaare Adombila (reporting) Loucoumane Coulibaly and Emmanuel Bruce, in Accra and Abidjan. Editing by Veronica Brown & Susan Fenton
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Ukraine announces that the repatriation process of war dead is over after receiving 1,245 additional bodies from Russia
Officials from Ukraine said that Ukraine received 1,245 more bodies of soldiers who died in the war against Russia, as part of the final phase of repatriation agreed upon at the talks in Istanbul. Rustem Umerov, Minister of Defence, said: "Today marks a final step in the repatriation process of fallen soldiers." Since last week, the start of the implementation of the Istanbul Agreements, we've been able to bring over 6,000 corpses back. It is the largest return of war dead in more than three-years since Russia invaded Ukraine on a full scale. The agreement reached by Russia and Ukraine at their second round of negotiations in Istanbul, which took place at the beginning of this month, included the handover of remains of soldiers. Vladimir Medinsky, Kremlin's aide and head of the Russian delegation at the talks for peace, stated that Moscow has returned the bodies of 6,060 Ukrainian soldiers. He added that Russia had received 78 remains of its own soldiers as a return. Officials in Ukraine said they received 6,057 corpses. There was no explanation for the discrepancy. The Russian Defence ministry announced that Moscow is ready to deliver another 2,239 corpses to Ukraine. Both Ukraine and Russia stated that the exchange of prisoners of war is still in progress. "We will not stop." The next step is to continue our fight for the return of our prisoners. The only tangible result of the talks between Kyiv, Russia and Istanbul was the agreement on the exchange of POWs. Both sides are still far apart on their visions of how to end the conflict, and have failed to reach an agreement on a ceasefire. Reporting by Yuliia Dyesa, Olena Harmasch and in Moscow. Editing by Toby Chopra
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China approves Bunge Viterra merger, but with conditions regarding crop supply stability
China's market regulator granted conditional approval to Bunge Global's merger with Glencore's grain handler Viterra on Monday. This cleared the final hurdle in the $34 billion mega deal announced two years ago. Bunge had announced that it had received approval from China for regulatory approval last Friday. The regulator approved the deal on condition that the increased market share of the combined company could reduce competition on China's imported barley, soybeans, and rapeseed. Bunge and Viterra agreed to five obligations under these conditions. This included reporting quarterly sales volume to Chinese customers in 30 days following the end of each quarter. The government must maintain "a timely, stable, reliable and sufficient" supply, including soybeans, rapeseed and other agricultural products. They should "make every effort" to do so during times of global crop shortages. Bunge's China approval was the final regulatory green light it needed, after receiving conditional approvals in recent months from Canada, the European Union and other markets. The deal will create a global crop trading and processing giant rivaling Archer-Daniels-Midland and Cargill, though competition concerns and regulatory scrutiny delayed the closing by nearly a year. Reporting by Ella Cao, Lewis Jackson and Bernadette baum and Louise Heavens. Editing by Bernadette baum and Louise Heavens.
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OPEC reports that Kazakhstan's oil production fell in May but was still above quota.
OPEC data released on Monday showed that the oil output in Kazakhstan has declined by 21,000 barrels a day to 1.803 millions bpd in May, but is still above the quota of the OPEC+. Kazakhstan's quota in May increased to 1.486 millions bpd, up from 1.473million bpd under the latest agreement between OPEC+ and its allies. Kazakhstan's Energy Ministry has stated that it is committed to the OPEC+ Agreement, but also puts Kazakhstan's interests first. The report also noted the difficulty in telling Western oil giants such as ExxonMobil and Chevron to reduce their plans. OPEC+ is increasing production as it tries to gain market share by rolling back a number of output restrictions. In the beginning, increased production lowered prices and punished over-producers. In response to the military strikes by Israel, Iran and Syria, international crude markets have risen above $70 per barrel. OPEC data showed that Russia's production remained almost unchanged from April to last month, reaching 8.984 millions bpd. This is below the country’s OPEC+ quota for May of 9.08million bpd. (Reporting and writing by Olesya Astakhova; editing by Barbara Lewis).
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Nigeria's Dangote refining company to supply fuel directly to local traders
In August, the Dangote Oil Refinery is set to begin directly supplying fuels to retailers, manufacturers, telecoms companies, and other large consumers. This could increase supply, but also put it in direct competition against local fuel traders. Last year, Africa's largest refinery with a 650,000-bpd production capacity began to process gasoline for the local market and allowed local fuel dealers to lift products from their refinery. It now wants to be involved in distribution. In a Sunday statement, the refinery announced that it has purchased 4,000 new Compressed Natural Gas powered trucks and will be building over 100 CNG refueling stations throughout the country. The refinery will also offer credit facilities, which allow purchases of 500,000-liters to have access to an additional 500,000-liters for credit over a period of two weeks with bank guarantees. Dangote plans to deploy 4,000 trucks, which is double the current number. This has local fuel traders worried. Billy Gillis Harry is the head of Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria. The group, which has over 6,700 members, said that the introduction of cheaper CNG trucks will threaten the livelihoods of truckers as well as the businesses of the traders who supply the telecom companies and retail stations. Reporting by Isaac Anyaogu, Editing by ChizuNomiyama
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Q&A: Is Venezuela on the verge of losing its prized foreign asset, Citgo?
The final stages of a U.S.-court-organized auction for shares in Citgo Petroleum, the Venezuelan-owned parent company, have been reached. Bidders are submitting better offers and creditors hope to recover some of the proceeds. The auction is a result of a case Crystallex, a Canadian miner, filed in Delaware eight years ago against Venezuela. Citgo Holding's parent company, PDV Holding was found liable by the court for Venezuela's expropriations and debts. This allowed over a dozen creditors to seek compensation for nearly $19 billion. The auction, despite delays, has moved forward, particularly since last year. This is because there have been two rounds of bidding. In March, Red Tree Investment's $3.7 billion bid was chosen as the starting bid. Rivals are now challenging this offer. Red Tree is not the only company competing for better bids. A consortium that includes Gold Reserve, Rusoro Mining and Koch, as well as a trading house, Vitol are also in competition. According to a source with knowledge of the matter, Elliott Investment Management affiliate Amber Energy also considers whether or not to make a bid following a court ruling that favored a potential offer. The court officer who oversees the auction and said last month that new bidders might emerge just before the June 18 deadline for submitting offers must recommend the winner of the auction by July 2. A final hearing is expected on August 18 with the judge and all parties involved. What could be the possible loss for Venezuela? Venezuela would lose its largest overseas asset if it fails to retain equity in the refinery and its U.S. parent companies. With a foreign debt of $150 billion, the country has already lost assets in Europe, Asia and elsewhere to creditors. Leonard Stark, a Delaware judge, has allowed parties representing Venezuela the opportunity to make an offer. The boards that supervise the seventh largest U.S. refinery would have to get the backing of politicians from both Washington and Caracas, a difficult task given the U.S. sanctions against the OPEC nation. Prior to the sanctions, Citgo's 807,000-barrel-per-day refining network was a primary processor of Venezuela's heavy sour crudes. Citgo's 2019 break with its ultimate parent company, Caracas based PDVSA has left Venezuela struggling to find new markets. The Houston-based refiner, on the other hand, has been sourcing crude from different suppliers. Venezuela's opposition worked tirelessly for years to keep Citgo, funding legal defenses as well as lobbying Washington. Treasury Department must approve the winner of the auction. Treasury Department has protected Citgo in recent years from creditors. Citgo, according to opponents of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, could help the nation's economy recover if democracy was restored. Maduro officials rejected U.S. sanction and called the auction "robbery". Can creditors claim post-auction compensation? Yes. Yes. If they are not satisfied with the results, creditors who rejected the result of the bidding round in the past due to the conditions set by the winner can file objections. They can also pursue parallel cases in U.S. court. Three of the original 18 creditors cleared by the court have withdrawn due to mounting legal fees and uncertain prospects for recovery. Other participants, such as the owner of artifacts belonging to Venezuelan independence hero Simon Bolivar and a collector of Bolivar-related items, failed to meet all requirements set by the court. All creditors will be compensated Unlikely. Citgo's value was between $11 billion to $13 billion in the Delaware case. However, the auction is expected to yield less than $8 billion when you factor in possible side agreements with important creditors like bondholders. Citgo's recent poor performance, which includes a profit that dropped to $305 millions last year, from $2 billion by 2023, will also affect its valuation. This suggests that over half of the registered creditors who collectively claim $18,9 billion may not receive any distributions.
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Chinese data on copper demand gives rise to optimism
Prices of copper rose on Monday, after higher consumer spending raised hopes that metals demand would increase in China. By 0950 GMT, the benchmark three-month price of copper at the London Metal Exchange had risen by 0.2% to $9,660 per metric tonne. Metals investors were focused on retail sales that exceeded expectations, even though China's factory production growth in May was at a six-month minimum. You've still got all of these consumer products, like washing machines, air conditioners and electric vehicles. "As long as people continue to buy all of that stuff, it is good for base metals," Dan Smith from CommodityMarket Analytics said. We're currently in a volatile but resilient economic environment. The Shanghai Futures Exchange's most traded copper contract rose by 0.2%, to 78.550 yuan per ton ($10,938.89). Expectations that U.S. president Donald Trump would impose tariffs against copper, as he did on aluminum and steel, has increased U.S. prices of copper and prompted metal flows to the U.S. to take advantage. U.S. Comex Copper Futures fell 0.2% to $4.80 a lb. The Comex premium to LME copper is now $927 per ton. This was down from $969 last Friday. LME copper inventories Data showed that the number of shipments dropped another 7,300 tonnes to 107 325. This was the lowest level in over a year, and down 60% during the last four months. A slightly weaker dollar also helped base metals, as it made commodities priced in dollars less expensive for buyers who used other currencies. The escalating conflict between Israel & Iran has however dampened some of the optimism. Metals analysts in Beijing said that the geopolitics of the conflict has created new uncertainty, which has led to concern about metals consumption. Other metals were little changed, with LME Aluminium at $2,504 per ton. Zinc gained 1.1%, to $2.653, Lead rose 0.5%, to $1.999.50. Nickel was up by 0.2%, at $15.155, and Tin gained 0.5%, to $32,850. Click here to see the latest news in metals.
EIB supports Spain-France energy link with 1.6 Billion Euros
The European Investment Bank announced on Monday that it would invest 1.6 billion euro ($1.84 billion) in a power interconnector planned between Spain and France. This comes after the governments of Spain and Portugal sought EU assistance to improve their electricity links following an April blackout. The European Investment Bank announced on Monday that it would invest 1.6 billion euros ($1.84 billion) in a planned power interconnector between Spain and France. This comes after the governments of Spain and Portugal sought EU help to improve their power links following a massive blackout in April.
The EIB (the European Union's lending body) said that it would support the Bay of Biscay Interconnector through loans to Spain's and France's energy system operators, Red Electrica y RTE. They aim to launch this 400-kilometre project by 2028.
Subsea links would allow France and Spain to exchange more power, increasing it from 2.8 gigawatts up to 5 gigawatts.
In a press release, EIB Group president Nadia Calvino stated that "EIB's support for the France/Spain interconnection of electricity will be crucial to ensure that the Iberian Peninsula no longer is an energy island." Causes of the Iberian blackout are still under investigation. A letter revealed that, following the blackout, the governments of Spain and Portugal asked the EU to intervene last month in order to move forward with new interconnections projects with France.
This year, the work to improve an existing interconnector will be completed. France's RTE also evaluated two additional interconnections between Spain and France over the Pyrenees. However, the beneficiaries of the projects would be located outside France.
Thomas Veyrenc said that the Bay of Biscay Project would increase solidarity between France and Spain. Beatriz Corredor is the chairwoman of Red Electrica parent company Redeia. She said that the countries should continue with their planned interconnections across the Pyrenees.
Iberia's electricity capacity is only 3% connected to the neighbouring countries. This is far below the EU target of 15% by 2030.
(source: Reuters)