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EV maker VinFast to build 2nd production plant in Vietnam
Vietnamese electric lorry ( EV) manufacturer VinFast on Sunday revealed a plan to develop its second domestic production plant that will double its output capability, saying it is needed to meet increased need for its little and midsized designs. VinFast stated the brand-new facility is anticipated to produce 300,000 systems yearly in its preliminary phase, the very same capability as its existing plant in Haiphong. The business provided less than 45,000 automobiles worldwide in the first nine months of 2024. The new factory in the main Ha Tinh province will mostly produce VF 3 and VF 5 designs for both domestic sales and export, with operations set to start in July next year, the business stated in a declaration. Need in global markets is growing rapidly, so the building of an additional electric automobile factory ... will develop a strong foundation for an important and explosive advancement phase ahead for VinFast, said Nguyen Viet Quang, Vice Chairman and CEO of VinFast's parent business Vingroup. VinFast, a subsidiary of significant Vietnamese corporation Vingroup, said last month its third-quarter bottom line had narrowed to $550 million, which it stated reflected lower product expenses and increased production. The automaker provided 44,773 cars throughout the first 9 months of this year, simply over 55% of its target of 80,000 units for the year. Company officials have actually stated they stay confident of reaching the objective. The new plant will be located in the same complex as VinFast's battery plant and will utilize parts from the business's. existing factory in Haiphong. VinFast has likewise announced plans for assembly plants in both. Indonesia and India, and has postponed the launch of a planned. North Carolina center till 2028.
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UniCredit states ready to take a seat with Credit Agricole over Banco BPM
UniCredit is all set to take a seat with Credit Agricole, a representative for the Italian bank stated in a LinkedIn post after the French loan provider increased its possible stake in Unicredit's takeover target Banco BPM. UniCredit's quote for its smaller peer prompted Credit Agricole to state on Friday it had entered derivatives that would raise its stake in BPM to 15% from 9.9% once the European Reserve bank offers its thumbs-up. The other day's news about Credit Agricole's increased stake in BPM changes nothing for UniCredit, the representative for UniCredit stated on social media network LinkedIn. We were always prepared to negotiate with CA, as this would have been needed whatever the scale of their shareholding. Sources with understanding of the French bank's method have told Reuters Credit Agricole's focus is to safeguard the business collaborations that enable it to sell its products in Italy. Credit Agricole has actually ruled out a complete buyout of BPM, in which it is the single most significant shareholder. UniCredit's early move made Credit Agricole's financial investment more expensive and more complicated. BPM shareholders need to not welcome this development, the UniCredit spokesperson stated. UniCredit last month declared a seat at Italy's bank debt consolidation table by introducing a 10 billion euro ($ 11 billion). all-share unsolicited bid for Banco BPM. The relocation ambushed plans by the Rome government to broker a. merger in between BPM and state-backed Monte dei Paschi di Siena . Both banks partner with fund supervisor Anima Holding. , which Banco BPM remains in the process of taking over. On Saturday, sources informed Reuters th at Credit Agricole had got informal support from the Rome. federal government prior to announcing its increased stake in Banco BPM. The UniCredit spokesperson warned BPM shareholders they. need to watch out for a possible combination of BPM with the. Italian company of Credit Agricole, or of any effort to merge. BPM with Monte dei Paschi. A quote for Monte dei Paschi is a possible defence technique. for BPM, which has spurned UniCredit's deal as too low-cost. Credit Agricole's most likely options would be to merge BPM. with Credit Agricole Italia
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Israeli strikes on southern Lebanese towns kill 6, Lebanese health ministry states
Israeli strikes on 2 southern Lebanese towns eliminated 6 people and wounded 5, the Lebanese health ministry said on Saturday, in the most recent potential challenge to a fragile ceasefire that has remained in place for less than 2 weeks. 5 people were eliminated in an attack on Beit Lif town while one person was killed in a drone strike on Deir Seryan, the health ministry said in a statement. The Israeli armed force has yet to discuss the incidents. Tensions have actually continued despite the ceasefire, with Israel and the Lebanese armed faction Hezbollah trading accusations of offenses. Earlier today, Israel threatened to return to war if its truce with Hezbollah collapsed. The U.S. said last Monday that the ceasefire was holding, although it anticipated that there may be violations.
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Reaction to Syrian rebels' expanding advance against Assad
Syrian rebels went into residential areas of the city of Homs on Saturday, sources stated, pushing a lightning week-long advance as front lines collapse across the nation and government forces battle to save President Bashar al-Assad's 24-year guideline. Following are responses. U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT DONALD TRUMP Syria is a mess, however is not our pal, & & THE UNITED STATES NEED TO HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH IT THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT. PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!, Trump stated in a post on his social networks platform Truth Social. RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER SERGEI LAVROV It's inadmissible to allow the terrorist group to take control of the lands in violation of arrangements. TURKISH PRESIDENT TAYYIP ERDOGAN There is now a new reality in Syria, politically and diplomatically. And Syria comes from Syrians with all its ethnic, sectarian and religious elements. Individuals of Syria are the ones who will choose the future of their own country. As Turkey, our wish is for our neighbour Syria to rapidly gain back the peace, stability and serenity it has been yearning for 13 years. SYRIAN PRIME MINISTER MOHAMMAD GHAZI AL-JALALI The real battle our nation is fighting is the battle for ... national identity. The geographical fight is a secondary one, which our brave army and armed forces have actually been combating because 2011 and continues to this day. TOBIAS LINDNER, A MINISTER OF STATE AT THE GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTRY We prompt all celebrations to de-escalate and to remind them of their commitment to safeguard civilians. There need to be no foreign escalation. Russian airstrikes on civilian targets are especially fretting. What we require now is a political procedure, a solution in the U.N. structure of resolution 2254. HAMISH FALCONER, BRITAIN'S MINISTER FOR THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA I stay very concerned by the capacity for big full-blown attacks by the regime or by Russia. Any suggestion of making use of chemical weapons would be intolerable. NORWEGIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ESPEN BARTH EIDE I think there is time for really to call for discussion, for a political settlement and to try to stop this before it really goes absolutely down the drain.
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Trump says United States needs to 'NOT GET INVOLVED' in conflict in Syria
Presidentelect Donald Trump said on Saturday the U.S. need to not be involved in the conflict in Syria, where rebel forces are threatening the federal government of President Bashar alAssad. Syria is a mess, however is not our buddy, & & THE UNITED STATES NEED TO HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH IT THIS IS NOT OUR BATTLE. LET IT. PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!, Trump stated in a post on his social media platform Reality Social. Trump stated because Russia, an Assad ally, is bound battling a war with Ukraine it seems incapable of stopping this literal march through Syria, a country they have secured for years. If Russia were forced out of Syria, it might in fact be the best thing that can take place to them due to the fact that there was never much of an advantage in Syria for Russia, Trump stated. Trump's comments appeared to show his opposition to the presence of some 900 U.S. troops in Syria, mostly of them in the northeast, where they have actually backed a Syrian Kurd-led alliance in preventing a revival of Islamic State militants. Trump revealed in 2018 during his very first term that he wished to withdraw the U.S. troops due to the fact that he said Islamic State was near defeat. But he held off as advisers warned that a pullout would leave a space that would be filled by Iran and Russia.
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Iran's nuclear leap \extremely serious\, injures diplomacy, Western source states
Iran's velocity in its enrichment of uranium to near to bomb grade is extremely. serious, has no civilian validation and contradicts Tehran's. assertions on desiring serious nuclear settlements, a Western. diplomatic source stated on Saturday. Iran has long denied looking for nuclear weapons. U.N. nuclear guard dog chief Rafael Grossi told Reuters on. Friday that Iran was drastically accelerating its enrichment of. uranium to as much as 60% purity, near to the about 90% level that. is weapons grade. The International Atomic Energy Company later verified in a. personal report to member states that Iran was accelerating. uranium enrichment, a process that fine-tunes the raw product so. that it can be utilized as fuel in civil nuclear power generation. or, possibly, nuclear weapons. The information reported by the Director General of the. Agency, showing a substantial increase in Iran's capacity to. produce highly enriched uranium at 60%, is very major,. the Western diplomatic source told Reuters. These measures have no reliable civilian validation and. could, on the contrary, directly sustain a military nuclear. programme if Iran were to take the decision ... They remain in. contradiction with Iran's statements on its willingness to. return to trustworthy negotiations..
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Denmark to Engage with Industry to Seek Clarity Over Failed Offshore Wind Tender
Denmark's latest offshore wind farm tender in the North Sea has failed to attract any bids, authorities said on Thursday, in a further setback for the industry.After a year of challenges, the global offshore wind industry no longer has much prospect of hitting the lofty targets set by governments in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere, hindering efforts to fight climate change."This is a very disappointing result," energy and climate minister Lars Aagard said in a written statement."The circumstances for offshore wind in Europe have changed significantly in a relatively short time, including large price and interest rate increases," Aagard added.The Danish Energy Agency said it would start a dialogue with market participants to identify reasons for the lack of bids, adding that a number of companies had expressed interest during the initial market dialogue.Danish offshore wind farm developer Orsted said it had opted not to bid due to an unfavourable risk-reward balance and acknowledged the changing industry factors such as higher inflation, rising interest rates and supply chain bottlenecks."To mitigate the impact of this and support the ongoing expansion of offshore wind energy, industry and policymakers should work together to create the necessary conditions for a sustainable future for offshore wind," Orsted's Chief Commercial Officer Rasmus Errboe said in a written comment.Denmark had in April launched its biggest offshore wind tender to date, offering no subsidies to companies competing for the right to erect turbines on six sites with a combined capacity of up to 10 gigawatts.The deadline for bids for three sites in the North Sea was on Thursday, while the deadline for an additional three sites in the Baltic Sea and Kattegat is on April 1, 2025.No subsidies were offered in the tender.Shell, one of the major energy companies which have touted offshore wind as a key market they can invest in as part of the world's energy transition, on Wednesday said it was stepping back from new offshore wind investments in a move mirrored by others.Denmark, also home to turbine maker Vestas, has been a pioneer in both onshore and offshore wind, thanks also to its favourable wind speeds.(Reuters - Reporting by Stine Jacobsen; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Keith Weir)
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China's central bank resumes gold purchases after six-month hiatus in Nov.
China's central bank resumed purchasing gold for its reserves in November after a sixmonth pause, official information by the People's Bank of China (PBOC) revealed on Saturday. The PBOC was the world's largest authorities sector purchaser of gold in 2023. Resumption of its purchases may support Chinese investor demand which was silenced since the PBOC paused its 18-month purchasing streak in May. China's gold holdings rose to 72.96 million fine troy ounces at the end of November, up from 72.80 million troy ounces a. month previously. The value of China's gold reserves fell to $193.43 billion. at the end of last month from $199.06 billion at the end of. October. November was gold's very first month-to-month price drop given that June due. to a post-U.S. election sell-off driven by Donald Trump's win. Spot rates for the precious metal are down 5% since. striking a record high of $2,790.15 an ounce on Oct. 31, but are. still up 28% so far this year. The resumption will send out a signal that the PBOC has actually grown. accustomed to these record high price levels and is prepared to. construct reserves regardless, said Ole Hansen, head of commodity. method at Saxo Bank.
Europe's October LNG imports show rare increase, Asia's dip: Russell
Europe's. imports of liquefied natural gas increased in October for the first. month in 10 while those in Asia dropped for the first time given that. June, however not by enough to stop the combined total from. increasing.
The rise in Europe's imports and the decline in Asia's is a. reversal of the recent pattern, but the shift in October is not. enough to change the year-to-date image of a soft Europe and a. strong Asia.
The October numbers are more likely an indication that European. purchasers made the most of current consistent costs to top up natural. gas inventories ahead of winter, while the minor dip in Asia. was largely due to top purchaser China's imports slipping somewhat.
Arrivals of the super-chilled fuel in Europe were 7.54. million metric heaps in October, up from 6.37 million in. September and the most considering that May, according to data compiled by. commodity experts Kpler.
Nevertheless, the October overall was below the 9.47 million loads. from the very same month in 2023, continuing a pattern of Europe. buying less LNG in the middle of ample inventories of natural gas ahead of. the northern winter.
Asia's LNG imports were 24.36 million tons in October, down. from 24.72 million in September and the lowest considering that July,. according to Kpler information.
Nevertheless, Asia's arrivals in October were up 14.6% from the. exact same month last year, continuing the top-importing region's. pattern of purchasing more LNG this year.
For the very first 10 months of the year Asia's LNG imports were. 239.77 million loads, up 10.3% from the same duration in 2023.
In contrast, Europe's LNG imports were 81.48 million lots. for the very first 10 months of 2024, a drop of 20% from the exact same. period in 2015.
Even if Europe's imports do show the usual seasonal uptick. for winter, it is still likely that they will reveal a significant. drop in 2024 from 2023.
This can partly be described by milder weather, however also by. a structural shift towards renewables for electrical energy generation. and the shuttering of plants that utilized gas as. fuel or feedstock.
But the decline in Europe's LNG imports up until now this year has. been offset by the boost in Asia.
Integrating the 2 areas sees overall imports of 321.23. million heaps for the very first 10 months of this year, up 0.6% from. the exact same duration in 2023.
CHINA TRUCKS
Much of the development in Asia's need has been led by China,. the world's greatest LNG importer, which has actually seen arrivals dive. by 13.4% in the first 10 months of the year to 64.55 million. lots, versus the same duration in 2023.
China has actually been utilizing more LNG as sales of trucks powered by. the fuel surge, with the 108,862 vehicles sold in the very first half. of 2024 being more than double the volume for the very same period. in 2015, according to information service provider CVWorld.
The shift to LNG trucks in China is partly driven by. subsidies and tighter emissions standards, but likewise due to the fact that the. fuel is about 20% more affordable than diesel at present prices.
The increase in demand in China, and Asia more broadly, has. served to keep area LNG costs on a gently increasing pattern for much. of 2024.
After reaching a post-winter low of $8.30 per million. British thermal systems (mmBtu) in late February, Asia's area LNG. rate << LNG-AS > has actually moved higher, peaking at $14.10 in mid-August. and moving sideways since then, ending recently at $13.80.
The mostly constant costs show that LNG supply is. adequate to fulfill Asia's increasing demand, with leading international exporter. the United States conference much of the boost.
Asia's imports from the United States increased from a 2024 low. of 1.51 million lots in February to a high of 3.43 million in. July, and have actually stayed high, being available in at 3.22 million in. October and 3.25 million in September.
Asia's LNG imports generally peak in December and January as. need ramps up for winter season heating, and if the normal seasonal. pattern is duplicated it is most likely that volumes will reveal some. gains over the next few months.
But the threat is that the increase is modest, given forecasts. for a milder than usual start to winter season, which will result in. lower usage at the start of the heating season.
The viewpoints revealed here are those of the author, a columnist. .
(source: Reuters)