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Strikes to strike Volkswagen in December as clash with labour escalates
Employees at Volkswagen might head out on strike across Germany as soon as next week, the IG Metall union stated in a notice on Friday, as a. clash between labour and management over layoffs and plant. closures intensifies. Strikes are possible and also required from the beginning. of December, IG Metall stated in a handout to workers seen by. Reuters, adding an existing arrangement not to stage walkouts will. end on Nov. 30. Caution strikes at the carmaker's plants throughout Germany are. anticipated to occur as quickly as Monday, according to people. knowledgeable about the matter, which would mark the first massive. walkouts at the business's domestic operations considering that 2018. Warning strikes generally last from a few hours up to a day. Volkswagen has actually required a 10% wage cut, arguing it requires to. slash costs and boost profit to safeguard market share in the face. of inexpensive competition from China and a drop in European car. need. It is also threatening to close plants in Germany for. the first time in its 87-year history. Labour representatives and management will meet again on. Dec. 9 to carry on settlements over a brand-new labour agreement for. workers at the German business - VW AG - with unions pledging to. resist any propositions that do not provide a long-term plan for. every VW plant. The strikes, which might intensify into 24-hour or endless. strikes if a deal is not struck in the next round of wage. settlements, will put a damage in Volkswagen's output at a time. when the carmaker is already dealing with decreasing deliveries and. plunging earnings. Volkswagen will identify at the negotiating table the length of time. and how difficult the conflict will be - the VW workforce throughout. the nation is ready to strike, IG Metall said. A proposition by unions to avoid redundancies and plant. closures through measures including reduced working hours and. forgoing benefits will form the basis of the discussions. Still,. management has said it is not prepared to take plant closures off. the negotiating table.
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German defence minister seeks 4.7 bln euro deal to purchase four submarines, sources say
German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius wishes to purchase 4 submarines in a deal worth over 4.7 billion euros ($ 5 billion) that need to be put to a. parliamentary spending committee for approval, 2 sources informed. Reuters on Friday, validating a report. In a request sent to the committee, the ministry says. the acquisition is required for Germany to satisfy brand-new NATO. requirements for better protection of the alliance's northern. flank, according to Spiegel news publication, which has seen the. documents. Spiegel reported that the ministry is looking for to procure. 4 more submarines of the type U212CD, produced by. Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems. Members of the budget committee informed Reuters that they. are analysing the proposition. We are paying particular attention to the proposition to. purchase extra submarines due to its importance in regards to. security policy, however likewise due to the fact that of the high amount of funds. needed, Karsten Klein, member of the budget committee from. the Free Democrats (FDP), said.
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STOXX 600 muted ahead of inflation data, eyes very first monthly gain in 3
Europe's STOXX 600 opened on a soft note on the final day of an unstable week, with financiers assessing France's political uncertainty and awaiting euro zone inflation data to see if a larger European Reserve bank rate cut is on the cards for December. The pan-European main stock index was flat at 0815 GMT, bracing for its 5th weekly decline in six. The index was still on track for a modest month-to-month gain in three, even though the possibility of Europe being a U.S. tariff target and France's political problems have actually dampened investor belief towards the bloc, to name a few factors. France's CAC 40 was largely flat on the day and down 1% for the week. Prime Minister Michel Barnier dropped strategies to raise electrical energy taxes in his 2025 budget, bowing to reactionary pressure. French lending institutions weighed on the total banks index, while standard resources led sectoral gainers, increased by a. 3% rise in miner Anglo American after a Jefferies score. upgrade. Meanwhile, French inflation for November edged up from. October, in line with expectations, while German retail sales. fell more than expected in October. Lower-than-expected euro zone inflation information throughout the day. could trigger bets of a 50-basis-point European Reserve bank rate. cut in December.
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UN talks struggle for advancement on plastics treaty as due date looms
The chairman of talks aiming for a global treaty to control contamination from plastics provided a file on Friday laying out procedures that could furnish the basis of a pact, in an attempt to spur conversations as a Dec. 1 deadline methods. South Korea is hosting delegates from about 175 countries at the fifth and final meeting of the U.N. Intergovernmental Working Out Committee (INC-5) to agree internationally binding guidelines on plastics, but this week's talks had moved at glacial speed. The document, provided by committee chair Luis Vayas Valdivieso and seen , featured concepts such as a. international list of plastic items to be managed and a monetary. system to assist fund developing countries act on the treaty. The high and rapidly increasing levels of plastic contamination. ... represent a serious environmental and human health problem,. the file stated. It mentioned, however did not verify, some of the most dissentious. jobs, such as whether the treaty will set a worldwide target to. cut output of primary plastic polymers or avoid it altogether,. and left uncertain how abundant countries would contribute to a fund. A global target to reduce plastic production is in (the. file), stated Graham Forbes, who led the Greenpeace. delegation to the talks. Keeping this in the final treaty text need to be a redline for. any country serious about ending plastic contamination. The International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA). representing makers of plastic, backs governments' efforts to. settle the deal, said its representative, Stewart Harris, adding. that the body wanted to hasten a circular economy for plastics. Countries which produce petrochemicals, such as Saudi Arabia,. oppose efforts to top plastic production, despite the demonstrations. of low- and middle-income nations that bear the force of plastic. contamination. While supporting a global treaty, the petrochemical. market has actually likewise been vocal in prompting governments to prevent. setting compulsory plastic production caps in favour of efforts. to reduce plastic waste, such as recycling. The chairman's relocation came after numerous participants had. revealed disappointment at the slow rate of the talks, amidst. disputes over procedure, numerous proposals and some. efforts to return to ground covered in the past.
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Dalian iron ore advances on firmer China economic outlook; posts weekly increase
Dalian iron ore futures climbed to their highest in more than a month on Friday to end the week higher, as a more powerful economic outlook for top consumer China raised market sentiment. The most-traded January iron ore agreement on China's Dalian Product Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade 1.14%. higher at 797.5 yuan ($ 110.29) a metric heap. The contract previously increased as high as 806.5 yuan, strongest. since Oct. 14, and added 2.90% today. The benchmark December iron ore on the Singapore. Exchange was 0.94% higher at $104.7 a heap, a rise of 3.12% for. the week, as of 0721 GMT. Previously in the session, it hit $104.55, greatest since Nov. 8. China's factory activity likely expanded modestly for a. second straight month in November, while its home costs are. anticipated to stabilise in 2026 after slower falls this year and. the next, 2 Reuters' polls showed. The polls added to a string of recent information suggesting the. blitz of stimulus is lastly dripping through and providing. Chinese producers the much-needed increase. Likewise supporting a firmer outlook for the world's biggest. steel industry were expectations of China bracing for the. economy's vulnerabilities ahead of a second Donald Trump. presidency. Chinese steelmakers will improve steel exports ahead of. increasing global trade tensions, ANZ experts said. Chinese consultancy Mysteel stated, Steel mills in China have. already begun building up iron ore to guarantee they have. adequate feeds for steel production during the winter. Other steelmaking components on the DCE gave up previously. gains, with coking coal and coke both down. 0.24%. Many steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were. stronger. Rebar advanced nearly 0.5%, hot-rolled coil. rose about 0.6%, wire rod added around 0.5%,. while stainless steel lost 0.46%.
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Global aluminium producers seek Q1 Japan premiums of $230-$ 260, sources say
Global aluminium producers have actually used Japanese purchasers premiums of $230$ 260 per metric ton for JanuaryMarch main metal shipments, up 31% 49% from the present quarter, three sources straight involved in quarterly prices talks said on Friday. Japan is a major Asian importer of the metal and the premiums for main metal shipments it agrees to pay each quarter over the London Metal Exchange (LME) cash rate set the benchmark for the region. For the October-December quarter, Japanese purchasers agreed to pay a premium of $175 per heap , up 1.7% from the previous quarter. One manufacturer provided a premium of $230 per load while another supplier priced quote $260 per lot this week, citing concerns over tighter supply in Asia after China said it would cancel a 13%. export tax refund for aluminium semi-manufactured items. To be executed from Dec. 1, the relocation might increase ingot. demand from Asian rolling mills outside of China to produce. semi-finished items, a source at a global producer said. The higher deals also reflect rising area premiums in. Japan, he said, where current area prices are near $200 per lot. We were amazed by how strong the offers were, especially. the $260 price point, a source at a Japanese trading home. stated. Another source at a Japanese rolling mill described the. offers as too expensive, stating Japanese area costs are in the. $ 180-$ 190 variety amidst slow domestic need. The sources declined to be determined offered the sensitivity. of the conversations. The quarterly pricing negotiations started today between. Japanese buyers and international providers, including Rio Tinto. and South32, and are anticipated to continue. till later next month.
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International earth observation market to cross $8 bln by 2033, states Novaspace
The international Earth Observation (EO) market is on track to exceed $8 billion in valuation by 2033 from $5 billion currently, according to a new report from Novaspace, the merger of Euroconsult and SpaceTec Partners. The rapid development is mainly credited to the surge in massive defense agreements and increasing accessibility of high-resolution imaging and 3D capabilities, which are improving the scope and quality of Earth monitoring, the report stated. EO technology, which offers crucial information for industries ranging from farming to ecological monitoring and defense, is among the most profitable sectors in the commercialization of space innovation. The United States and Canada remains the dominant gamer in the market, contributing 44% of worldwide revenue in 2023. Europe follows with a 22% share, Novaspace stated. However, the most substantial development is anticipated to come from Asia, according to the report. The region is predicted to represent 23% of the international EO market by 2033, stimulated by emerging procurement policies, increasing financial investments in area facilities and growing need from Southeast Asia and the Middle East. It did not say just how much the area contributed in 2015. Countries across the world are beginning to invest more in EO technologies to better monitor everything from vegetation and environment change to their borders. India, for instance, is leaning into this sector to win the international space commercialisation race, while Canada stated in 2015 it will invest C$ 1.01 billion ($ 741 million) over the next 15 years in satellite technology to increase the information it utilizes to track wildfires and other environmental crises. Market growth isn't almost replacing aerial geolocation systems, said Alexis Conte, lead author of the report. It's about scaling up EO monitoring capabilities to supply actionable insights in time. This focus on tracking and evaluating activities at scale is driving both technological and market developments.
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Asia Gold-India gold premiums steady as rate variations stabilise need
Physical gold premiums were stable in India, as an increase in need from today's cost correction was later on countered by greater rates, while need in other major Asian hubs and top customer China stayed controlled. Bullion prices in India increased to 76,504 rupees per 10 grams on Friday, up from 74,852 rupees previously today. Need was strong at the start of the week due to lower costs, however weakened towards the end as rates increased, said Amit Modak, chief executive of PN Gadgil and Sons, a Pune-based jeweller. Indian dealerships today charged a premium of as much as $3 an ounce over main domestic rates, inclusive of 6%. import and 3% sales levies, the same from last week. The wedding event season has actually begun in India, and need has actually been. gradually enhancing, said a Mumbai-based dealership at a personal. bullion importing bank. Dealers in China provided discount rates between $19 and $21 an. ounce. . No rush to buy at this high level ... and after Donald. Trump becomes the U.S. president we can see a clear picture for. gold, said Peter Fung, head of dealing at Wing Fung Valuable. Metals, Hong Kong. International area gold rates recovered some losses. from earlier in the week, driven by issues over the. Russia-Ukraine conflict and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's. fresh tariff plans. China has actually released import quotas to manage the flow of gold. into the country. Additionally, the possible depreciation of. the RMB due to trade tensions might further stimulate domestic. gold demand, said Bernard Sin, regional director of Greater. China at MKS PAMP. Traders in Singapore sold gold in between a $0.50 discount to a. $ 2.20 premium, while in Hong Kong, gold was sold at $1.40-$ 2.50. premiums. . For the next few days, the marketplace will keep an eye on gold's. direction and we do have some wholesale selling as we approach. year-end, stated Brian Lan, handling director at GoldSilver. Central. In Japan, traders priced estimate a $3 discount rate to a $1. premium.
Germany's green hydrogen ramp-up reliant on public money, E.ON states
The development of a green hydrogen market in Germany still depends to a large degree on public spending, utility E.ON stated on Friday.
The share of projects under building and construction or equipped with final investment choices has increased to 9% from 3% of the 2030 target of 11.3 gigawatts (GW) of electrolysis capability, E.ON stated.
However the only factor speeding the process was support pledged under government plans, it stated in outcomes of research study it performed with the EWI energy research study institute.
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Germany wants to build up electrolysis capability to produce its own green hydrogen from wind and solar power to clean up the carbon footprint of markets such as steelmaking and cement and replace nonrenewable fuel sources.
E.ON stated stiff or missing hydrogen guideline indicates potential financiers lack presence over the brand-new worth chain.
High electrical power rates also make future hydrogen costs look excessively expensive, it included.
If Germany does not manage the move to hydrogen, its market might miss opportunities to compete effectively with the likes of the United States and China in international markets.
BY THE NUMBERS
Domestic electrolysis capacity has risen around 68% from the spring to 111 megawatts (MW), the six-monthly research study revealed.
E.ON likewise said that the Berlin government's targets for sufficient import facilities might be possible.
The government expects hydrogen need of 95-130 terawatt hours (TWh) per year by 2030, of which 50% -70% will be imported.
Prepare for a core hydrogen pipeline grid, matching those for seaborne imports, have actually brought in a 24 billion euro ($ 25.31. billion) loan from state lender KfW.
SECRET QUOTES
The run-up of the hydrogen economy remains weak, E.ON. said.
Only the assistance promises under the Crucial Tasks of. Common European Interest
(source: Reuters)