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Sources: Former Pornhub owner is interested in Lukoil's assets
Two sources with knowledge of the matter claim that Bernd Bergmair (former majority owner of adult entertainment group Pornhub) has approached the U.S. Treasury to buy international assets from sanctioned Russian oil giant Lukoil. As part of its efforts to press Moscow to end the war in Ukraine, the U.S. imposed Sanctions on Lukoil - Russia's largest private oil producer. Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and other oil giants have approached U.S. authorities to get permission to speak to Lukoil. Bergmair, through his lawyer, declined to say which assets he is interested in. He also refused to confirm whether he has already approached Lukoil or if he is part of a consortium. He said: "Clearly, Lukoil International GmbH is a good investment. Anyone would be lucky to own those assets." "I do not comment on potential investment as a matter. Due to the sensitive nature of the issue, the sources refused to identify themselves by name. Since the U.S. Treasury gave companies permission to start talks with Lukoil last month, interest in Lukoil’s foreign assets is growing. Treasury cleared talks until December 13 and any deal would require approval. Lukoil International GmbH is based in Vienna and owns refineries throughout Europe, oilfields across Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan Iraq, Mexico, as well as hundreds of retail fuel station locations around the globe. According to 2024 filings, the assets are estimated at $22 billion. When asked whether Bergmair spoke with the Department, a spokesperson for U.S. Treasury declined to comment. Bergmair was a Goldman Sachs investment banker who moved to private investments in the 1990s. He was the majority shareholder of MindGeek, a Luxembourg-based company with websites such as Pornhub and RedTube. It was sold to a Canadian firm in 2023, for an undisclosed amount. The Sunday Times Rich List, which ranks Britain's richest in 2021, estimated that his wealth was at least PS1.2billion.
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As markets wait for US data, gold and silver prices ease from record highs.
The gold price remained stable on Wednesday, as traders awaited U.S. Economic indicators to gauge Federal Reserve policy direction. Silver prices also declined from their record highs. After losing over 1% the previous session, spot gold dropped 0.1% at 1128 GMT to $4203.58 per ounce. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery were up 0.3% to $4,234.60. Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank. He said, "Pay attention to key U.S. statistics that could cement expectations about a rate cut in December which would be supportive of metals." Investors await the U.S. ADP November employment figures at 13:30 GMT, and Friday's delayed Personal Consumption Expenditures data for September. Brokerages are projecting a policy easing as a result of weaker U.S. data and dovish Fed signals. CME's FedWatch shows that there is now an 87% probability of a rate reduction next week. Gold that does not yield a return tends to do well when interest rates fall. Silver fell 0.5%, to $58.15 per ounce. It had previously reached a record-high of $58.94. Hansen said that silver is supported by tight supply, momentum buying, and short-covering following last Friday's breakout above $54.50. He added that overbought condition posed a risk to bulls in the near term. Silver, a precious metal and an industrial metal, has risen by 101% in the past year. Its inclusion on a U.S. critical mineral list is also a factor. This year, gold has gained 60%. Palladium fell 0.5%, while platinum rose 0.6%, to $1.647.75 per ounce. Reporting by Pablo Sinha, Bengaluru Editing Mark Potter and David Goodman
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Copper reaches record highs on concerns about supply and a weaker dollar
The copper price reached a new record on Wednesday, thanks to the weaker dollar and concerns about supply. Benchmark LME 3-month copper rose 1.7% to $11,333 per metric tonne by 1102 GMT, after reaching a record high at $11,434.50. Copper is looking bullish, after hitting new highs. Algorithmic models are flashing buy signals. Dan Smith, managing Director of Commodity Market Analytics, said that there's a good chance the price could rise to $12,000 per ton. Data showed that business activity in Europe expanded at the fastest rate in over two years in November, adding to the bullish mood. LME data on Tuesday showed that there were net cancellations of 50 725 tons of copper in Asian warehouses. This brought the LME's available or on-warrant copper stock to its lowest level since July, at 105 275 tons. Smith said that despite the Comex premium to the LME benchmark, there is still a strong interest to export copper to the U.S. Comex copper prices are rising due to the premium of Comex over LME. That is already a record. The LME cash premium over the 3-month contract reached $69 per ton on February 2, its highest level since mid-October. This indicates some tightness of supply in the near term. The expectation of a rate cut from the U.S. Federal Reserve in the coming week, as well as the weaker dollar, also helped to support the rise in base metals. Dollar-priced materials are more appealing to buyers who use other currencies due to the weaker dollar. Low interest rates improve the prospects of metals that are dependent on growth. Other LME metals include aluminium, which rose by 0.5% to 2,880 dollars a ton. Zinc was up by 0.2% at $3,066, while lead gained 0.5%, reaching $2,005. Tin climbed 1%, to $39 505, and nickel grew 0.7%, to $14 895. (Reporting and editing by David Goodman.)
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SNB to maintain negative rates despite inflation decline
Economists on Wednesday said that the Swiss National Bank would not opt for negative interest rates next week or until 2026, despite the fact that inflation was below expectations and at the lower end of its target range. Official data revealed that the annual inflation rate in Switzerland unexpectedly fell by a tenth of a percent point to zero in November, slightly below expectations. A poll of analysts found that the consensus was that last month's inflation rate would be unchanged, at 0.1%. The SNB has set a price stability target of 0% to 2% for inflation. This 0% figure is the lowest since May. DATA IS THE LAST READING OF INFLATION BEFORE RATES ARE DETERMINED The central bank refused to comment on these figures, the last inflation data before it announces the next interest rate decision at its December 11th meeting. Even with the economic downturn, economists believe the SNB will maintain its benchmark rate at 0% until 2026. Karsten Junius is an economist with J.Safra Sarasin and he also believes that there will be no policy change in 2026. Rudolf Minsch is the chief economist of economiesuisse and he also predicts that central bank will keep interest rates zero for the next week, as well as throughout 2026. Swiss inflation should increase to 0.4% in next year. He said that negative interest rates have unwanted effects and are used only when an urgent need is present, which we do not see. SNB HAS A HIGH THRESHOLD FOR CUTTING RATES Alessandro Bee, an economist at UBS, said that he expects the SNB to maintain rates at 0% until 2026. He also predicted a slight increase in Swiss inflation next year due to increased wages. The market expects that the bank's benchmark rate will remain unchanged next week. Officials of the SNB have previously stated that they expect inflation will rise in the future. They also said that they would tolerate an inflation rate below 0% for a temporary period. (Writing and editing by John Revill, Dave Graham, Aidan Lewis, Miranda Murray)
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Fortescue collaborates with Chinese steelmaker to develop green iron technology
Fortescue, an Australian company, announced on Wednesday it would work with China Baowu's subsidiary, the largest steelmaker in the world, to investigate new green technologies for accelerating the decarbonisation of the steel industry. Fortescue, which is the fourth largest iron ore supplier in the world, signed a contract with China's Taiyuan Iron and Steel Group in November for a pilot project on plasma-enhanced hydrogen-based iron and steel metallurgical technologies, according to a company statement posted on WeChat. The project will develop a technology to eliminate the pre-treatment of raw materials, such as iron ore pelletizing, coking and sintering. These processes are typically major contributors to carbon dioxide emissions during steelmaking. The collaboration involves the design, construction and operation of an industrial test line that can produce 5,000 tons of hot iron, a product from a blast-furnace. Agustin Pichot, Fortescue’s Chief Executive Officer for Growth and Energy, said: "We are exploring technology for green-smelting using Fortescue’s Pilbara Iron Ore." The decarbonisation of steel will increase the demand for high-grade iron ore. This is a challenge for Australian miner, who mainly supply low to medium grade iron ore. Fortescue said it would provide the capital for this project. Fortescue and another subsidiary of China Baowu partnered earlier this year to develop green iron technology. (Reporting and editing by Amy Lv, Lewis Jackson)
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India's JSW Steel will move Bhushan Power Steel's business to a JV with JFE Steel
India's JSW Steel is selling the steel business from its Bhushan Power and Steel unit to a joint venture of equal stakes with Japan's JFE Steel, for 244.83 Billion Rupees ($2.72 Billion), in order to fund its growth. After the announcement made on Wednesday, shares of JSW Steel, India's largest steelmaker in terms of market capitalization, fell. The shares closed 1.6% down, making them among the biggest percentage losers in the Nifty Metal Index. In September, India's top court approved JSW's acquisition of Bhushan Power and Steel. This decision capped months of legal battles that saw the court reverse its earlier decision to reject this deal. JSW Steel announced that JFE Steel would invest 157.50 billion rupies in the JV. JFE Steel stated in a separate press release that the JV aims to increase crude steel production to 10 million tonnes at integrated steelworks by 2030. The two steelmakers have pledged to invest in a separate joint venture to increase production of grain-oriented electric steel. Analysts claim that the increase in steel demand has been attributed to increased manufacturing and infrastructure spending in India. Reporting by Anuran Sahu, Manvi Pan and Hritam Mukerjee from Bengaluru. Editing by Mrigank Dahniwala
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Fuel and funds to aid flood-hit Indonesian areas are running low
The authorities battling the floods that hit Sumatra, an island in Indonesia, this week and killed around 800 people have asked for additional central government assistance to address shortages of food, fuel and funds. According to updated government figures, 463 people are missing in West Sumatra (North Sumatra), Aceh and West Sumatra. Local officials say that the lack of power and roads is preventing aid from reaching those who need it. Iskandar Al-Farlaky, the chief of East Aceh, stated that fuel had been limited in East Aceh for days and that aid was delivered by boat. Some people who lived in isolated districts faced the threat of starvation. He said that food stocks were dwindling in three districts and that hunger was imminent. He asked the central government to declare a national state of emergency. "The regional budget has a limited amount." DWINDLING FUEL AND RICE SUPPLIES According to national data, 135,000 people were affected in East Aceh by the disaster. Haili Yogi, the chief of Central Aceh where 21 people were killed by floods and 54,000 were affected, reported that fuel and rice supplies were running low. He is one of four regional leaders who are urging the government to declare an emergency in the face growing public anger. In Indonesia, 3.1 million people have been affected by the flooding, and 592,600 people were evacuated. Prasetyo hadi, the presidential spokesperson, said that Indonesia's disaster relief budget of 500 billion Rupiah (30 million dollars) was adequate. He added that this figure could be raised if needed. These comments follow remarks made by the President Prabowo Subianto to reporters last week, in response to a question about declaring an emergency national, that things were improving and existing arrangements were sufficient. People turn to muddies when they don't have access to fresh water Sibral Malasi, the chief of Aceh's Pidie Jaya Region, also said that fuel supplies in this region were limited. KompasTV reported that residents of Aceh Tamiang, due to a lack of freshwater, were drinking and cleaning muddy floodwater. Jonathan Victor Rembeth is an official with the disaster mitigation agency. He said that a national disaster could be declared if provincial governments declare their inability of responding to a catastrophe, which they haven't done yet. Indonesia, which is frequently hit by natural catastrophes, declared a state of emergency in response to the COVID-19 epidemic. The law allows the president to declare an emergency national, releasing additional funds for aid and rescue. Indonesians have criticised the central Government for not declaring a state of emergency. They also cited budget cuts for the agency that deals with disaster mitigation, which according to official data was down by 50% from last year. Tito Karnavian said that Indonesia's Minister of Home Affairs, Tito Karnavian had asked regional governments to donate funds not used by flood victims to those who were affected. Muhammad Baron, a spokesperson for Pertamina, said that the company faces fuel distribution problems in "nearly" all of the flood-affected regions. The company is looking for alternative routes but it will take some time to deliver. Green groups blame illegal logging and deforestation for the worsening of the disaster. $1 = 16,625,0000 rupiah (Reporting and editing by Clarence Fernandez, Alex Richardson, and Stanley Widianto)
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Silver eases off record highs as gold remains steady, while markets are focused on US data
The gold price remained stable on Wednesday, as traders waited for key U.S. indicators to gauge Federal Reserve policy. Silver prices also declined from their new record high. At 0856 GMT the spot gold price was unchanged at $4,207.60 an ounce, after dropping more than 1% during the previous session. U.S. Gold Futures for December Delivery were up 0.4% to $4,237.90 an ounce. Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank. He said, "(Gold's) price remains unchanged in early European morning hours as attention turns to key U.S. economic data that may cement expectations of a metal-supportive rate cut in December." Investors will be watching for the U.S. ADP November employment figures, which are due at 1315 GMT. The September Personal Consumption Expenditures Index (PCE), delayed due to the U.S. Government Shutdown, is due on Friday. The Fed's dovish tone and weaker economic data in the United States have increased expectations for a rate reduction at its meeting on December 9-10. Brokerages, such as BofA and J.P. Morgan are projecting a policy easing. According to CME's FedWatch, U.S. rate-futures now indicate an 87% probability of a rate reduction next week. Gold that does not yield tends to do well in an environment of low interest rates. Silver fell 0.5%, to $58.15/oz. It had earlier reached a new record of $58.94. Hansen stated that silver is supported by "a limited supply outlook, momentum buying, and short-covering following Friday's breakout over $54.50." He added that overbought condition posed a risk to bulls in the near term. Silver, a precious metal and an industrial metal, gained 101% in value this year. Its inclusion on a U.S. critical mineral list has also helped. This year, gold has risen 60%. Global shares were also more stable on Wednesday thanks to a Wall Street rebound overnight, as the brief sell-offs in bond markets, cryptocurrencies, and cryptocurrency markets subsided. Palladium, on the other hand, lost 0.5% and rose to $1.455.34, while platinum increased by 0.6%. Reporting by Pablo Sinha from Bengaluru. Mark Potter (Editing)
Stocks are aiming for record highs with the US shutdown about to end
The world stock market was looking to return to record levels on Thursday, following the end of the U.S. shutdown which is the longest ever recorded. Meanwhile, the Japanese yen, under pressure from the US dollar and the euro hit record lows.
The STOXX 600 index in Europe had a difficult day. A near 1% increase from France's CAC 40 pushed both indexes up to their highest levels before profit-taking and a 5% drop by German engineering giant Siemens brought it down.
The U.S. Stock Futures fluctuated from a slight negative to a 0.2% gain, but the 47-country MSCI All World Index still held on to hope of achieving a fourth daily gain.
On Wednesday, U.S. president Donald Trump signed a bill ending the shutdown of the federal government in the Oval Office.
Next week, we can expect to see the first delayed economic data. The first data to be released could be October's payrolls, with the focus being on whether the figures will confirm recent surveys which have indicated a softening of the job market. Michael Metcalfe, State Street Global Markets, said that they were waiting for data fog to clear. However, the PriceStats data shows that inflation has rolled over, so the jobs data will drive risk sentiment.
SQUEEZED JEN
The currency markets were also active, as the dollar was slipping lower and the yen of Japan under pressure again after Wednesday's appeal by the new Japanese premier to the Bank of Japan for it to slow down rate increases.
The yen reached a record low in Asian trading of 179.49 euros and was close to a nine-month low on the dollar, at 154.66 dollars despite the reminder by the Finance Minister that the government is closely watching the currency.
The Nikkei closed at a record high of 0.4%, while the Topix index reached a new all-time level as investors moved their portfolios away from the most frothy artificial intelligence companies to purchase exposure to other sectors of the economy.
There is still debate over whether the BoJ tightens rates by the end of this year. "Our inclination would be that they will but there's a strong narrative in the market that will prove hard to break, that policy settings will encourage an even weaker yen," State Street’s Metcalfe said.
The pre-market U.S. trade was brightened by a 7% increase in the number of shares traded.
Shares rose after the company increased its profit forecast for the full year, citing signs that the artificial intelligence boom was boosting demand.
Investors have recently shifted away from the most expensive firms and into more defensive sectors such as healthcare, consumer staples and consumer goods.
Next week, the AI chip giant Nvidia will release its latest earnings which could put further pressure on the sector.
Gold held on to its recent gains, trading above $4,200, while government bond benchmarks were slightly weaker, with the U.S. 10 year yields edging higher to 4.10%, and Germany's yields at 2.67%.
OIL SPILLS
Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell slightly from its one-month high, and the Shanghai Composite gained 1% in advance of data on retail sales and credit due later this week.
In London, the mining heavy FTSE 100 fell from its all-time high on Wednesday. However, Europe's technology stocks rose 0.6% after ASML and Infineon displayed signs of recovery following steep losses last week.
The British pound shrugged data that showed its economy barely growing, and Scotland receiving its own credit rating. Meanwhile, the Australian dollar edged up as strong employment numbers bolstered the bets that the rate-cutting cycles there may be ending.
Brent crude futures rose from a three-week-low to $63.33 a barge a day after OPEC’s new forecast that a small excess to demand on the world oil markets for 2026 triggered a drop of 3.8% a day before.
Suvro Sarkar is the DBS Bank energy sector team leader. He said that "recent price weakness" seems to be caused by OPEC revising supply-demand balances for 2026. This confirms that the group has now acknowledged the possibility of an oversupply. (Stephanie Kelly contributed additional reporting from London; Sharon Singleton, Ed Osmond and Ed Osmond edited the article)
(source: Reuters)