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Hungary's Paks Nuclear Plant could close on Thursday or Friday: PM
MTI reported that Hungary's paks nuclear power plant may be shut down on Thursday or Friday due to low water levels in the Danube River. The plant uses the river for cooling. Due to low water levels, the?plant that operates four Russian-built nuclear reactors with a total capacity of 2 gigawatts has started reducing output since Monday. It is now running at less than half of its capacity. The Danube's water level has fallen to "record lows" this week. This has disrupted river cruises and cargo along Europe's most busy waterway. Magyar stated that Hungary's import capacity is between 3,600 and 3,800 megawatts. This could cover the?electricity requirements in the event of Paks shutting down. Magyar stated that a complete shutdown of Paks'?power plant could happen as soon as today. But it is more likely to be?tomorrow. Magyar stated on Wednesday that the government would create a contingency and compile a list containing a number of large electricity and water consumers, mostly industrial players, whose consumption might be temporarily limited in an emergency. (Reporting and editing by Anita Komuves)
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Indian miner Vedanta names Arun Misra as CEO, Q1 profit jumps
Vedanta, an Indian conglomerate that converts metals into oil, announced on Thursday the appointment of Arun Misra to its chief executive position for a term lasting one year starting August 1. The company also reported a 72% increase in their first-quarter profit. Misra, who currently leads Vedanta subsidiary Hindustan Zinc, will take on the new position. Vedanta’s net profit for the quarter ending June 30 rose to 54.73 milliards rupees ($572.4 millions), boosted by higher base metals prices. Prices of base metals grew in April-June due to supply disruptions, and a steady demand. Geopolitical tensions around the Middle East also heightened concerns over availability and logistics. Analysts at Emkay Global predicted that an increase in average zinc prices during the first quarter would drive Vedanta’s India zinc business and contribute to its bottom line. According to a report by Jefferies, spot zinc prices have risen?31% year-on-year. Copper prices are up 40% and silver prices have more than doubled. Mining companies benefit from higher commodity prices by increasing their margins and selling prices. Vedanta’s revenue grew 51%, to 234,56 billion rupees during the quarter ending June. The combined India lead and zinc segment revenue grew by nearly 50%. Copper segment revenue grew by 34%. The revenue of its India silver segment more than doubled. Vedanta’s net profit margins increased to 22% from 12% one year ago. Total expenses rose by 33%, or 175.58 billion rupees. This was due to a 37% increase in the cost of raw materials. Hindustan Zinc reported a profit that more than doubled last week due to strong metal prices. Vedanta Aluminum Metal, the pure play?aluminum company that was formed following Vedanta’s?demerger on Thursday, reported a profit increase of more than a?threefold, thanks to higher aluminium costs. Vedanta shares closed up 1.1% after the results. ($1 = 95.6175 Indian Rupees) (Reporting and editing by Ronojojo Mazumdar, Sonia Cheema).
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Sources: Drone strike on Lukoil refinery damages distillation unit and causes fire.
Two industry sources said on Thursday that a Ukrainian drone attack was responsible for a fire in Lukoil’s Perm refinery, which damaged and forced to shut down one of its crude distillation unit (CDU). Perm Governor?Dmitry Makhonin said on Wednesday that drones had targeted an industrial facility but that the location of the target was not identified. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, said that Kyiv forces have struck several targets in Russia. He claimed that an oil refinery, an export terminal, and a military enterprise were all hit in the Rostov area. Lukoil didn't immediately respond to our request for comment. Perm is one of the 10 largest oil refineries in Russia. Its project refining capability is 37,514 tonnes per day. This is equivalent to 13.1 million metric tons of crude oil per year. According to the sources, a drone attack caused an explosion and forced the closure of the CDU-5 primary crude unit of the refinery. This unit has a capacity of 12,930 tons per day, and represents 34% of its total refining capability. The Perm?refinery also operates CDU-4, a crude unit that has a processing capacity of 14,110?tons a day. This represents 38% of the refinery's capacity. Specialists in the industry said that refineries could utilize spare capacity on their remaining units, allowing them to process crude at 75% of its nominal capacity. Sources were unable estimate the time it would take to repair CDU-5 units. The refinery produced 200,000 tons fuel oil, 700,000 tonnes petroleum coke, and 2.0 million tons gasoline in 2024.
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UK regulator investigates KPMG and two accountants for Wood Group audits
The British accounting 'watchdog' said Thursday that it has opened an investigation into KPMG’s financial audit of British oilfield services and engineering company Wood Group's fiscal year ending December 2023. The Financial Reporting Council said that it will also probe two individuals, who it did not identify, for financial statements and communication in relation to Projects Business Unit of the firm from?2022-2024. The FRC stated that the decision to launch the 'investigations' was taken at a meeting last month of its Conduct Committee. It said that the 'investigations will be conducted by the executive counsel. However, it did not give any details as to the reasons behind the investigation. In an email, a KPMG UK representative said: "We are committed to working with the FRC in order to resolve this matter as soon as possible." Wood Group has declined to comment. The investigation comes months after the Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates UK financial services firms, fined Wood Group $17.39 million for releasing inaccurate information in its financial results for 2022-2023 and the first six months of 2024. Wood Group, owned by Dubai's Sidara, was bought out in March for $292m, after its financial statements were found to be inaccurate. This led to a massive drop in the share price and the suspension of its trading. Prerna Bhatt and Krisha Bedi in Bengaluru, and Nivedita Bhattacharjee & David Holmes edited the article.
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Copper prices rise on a softer dollar and a drop in stocks
After the Federal Reserve said that it would maintain interest rates at the same level, and after tight inventories outside of the U.S., copper prices rose on Thursday. The benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 1.2% at $13,747.50 a metric ton by 0932 GMT after falling in the previous sessions. Dollar falls to one-week lows as markets assess possible Fed interest rates paths following Wednesday's policymakers' vote to maintain the same rate. A cheaper dollar can boost greenback-denominated commodities by making them more ?affordable for buyers using other currencies. According to CME Group’s FedWatch?tool, the markets now price in a 58% probability of a rate hike by the Fed in September. This is down from an 81% chance before the statement. Copper, which is widely used in construction, manufacturing, and power generation, has also been boosted by dwindling inventories and supply concerns. LME Copper Stocks The cash LME contract is now more than $30 per ton higher than the forward three-month contract. The tight supply in the near future is indicated by. Shanghai Futures Exchange?copper stocks Less than 70,000 tonnes is the lowest level since February 2024. COMEX Copper Stocks The U.S. inventories reached a record 644,465 metric tonnes, which is almost twice the combined LME and ShFE inventories, as metal continues to flow into the U.S. in anticipation of possible import tariffs. In the aluminium industry, there was also a backwardation market structure, whereby prices for immediate delivery were higher than those for future supplies. Zinc Spreads are thin, and inventories of these metals are also low. LME -three-month Aluminium increased by 0.1% to $3,183 per tonne, while zinc rose by?0.4%, to $3,582, and tin grew 0.7%, to $54,145. Nickel and lead were both flat at $1,900 each. (Reporting and additional reporting by Solomon Cefai, editing by Harikrishnan Nair; Ronojoy Mazumdar, Tasimzahid and Tasim Zahid).
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Shell profits more than double to $9.8 Billion, the second highest on record as Iran war raises prices
Shell's second quarter net profit was $9.84 billion, more than doubling from the previous year. This exceeded expectations due to higher energy prices and market volatility caused by the Middle East conflict. The British major was able to offset lower volumes due to disruptions in its Qatar operations by a combination of higher?oil prices, improved liquefied gas (LNG) trading, and better chemicals margins. Shell's adjusted earnings (a measure of net income) were expected to be $8.92 billion by analysts, according a consensus provided by the company, up from $4.26 billion one year ago. The U.S./Israeli war against Iran has created market disruptions and volatility, which have provided opportunities for large trading companies such as Shell, BP, and TotalEnergies. Shell's refineries ran at 102% nameplate capacity to take advantage of the high fuel prices. This, according to Shell spokesperson, "helped to increase jet fuel production by a fifth compared to last year." Shell shares were up by 0.8% at 0937 GMT, beating a flat European energy sector. Shell, despite being one of the lowest leveraged oil companies, continues to trade below its European counterparts Eni and TotalEnergies. This is due to investor concerns about the potential growth of Shell's upstream business. Citi analysts stated. HIGHEST PROFIT EVER SINCE 2022 The second highest profits in Shell's history were achieved during the third quarter of 2012. This was when the Russian invasion of Ukraine shook global energy markets. It reported its highest operating-cash flow, including movements of working capital, since 2022. It said that it would continue to buy back shares at a pace of $3 billion per month over the next 3 months. Shell's integrated business in gas, which includes the largest LNG trading desk in the world, easily beat expectations with $2.7 billion. This is 55% higher than last year, despite Shell's gas production dropping 31% quarterly. The unit that houses its oil products trading desk, the chemicals and product division, has also exceeded expectations, with a jump from $118 to $2.9 billion. Shell predicted third-quarter integrated production of 570,000-630,000 barrels equivalent per day, after 631,000 boed during the second quarter. It also forecast LNG liquefaction volume of 7.1 to?7.7 millions tons after 7.7million tons in the previous quarter. Upstream production is expected to be between 1.68 and 1.88 million boed, compared with 1.82 million boed during the second quarter. The company expects to see higher maintenance activities for its refining and upstream assets in the third-quarter. Shell's Pearl plant, a gas-to liquids facility in Qatar, was forced to stop production in March following an attack that damaged one of its two trains. Shell said that repairs would take about a year and, in the interim, production in Canada, Nigeria, and Australia helped to make up for the capacity loss. Shell produces 550,000 barrels per day of oil-equivalent in the Middle East, and about 10% of that is linked to Qatar. Shell's net debt fell to $41.8 billion from $52.6 at the end the first quarter. Gearing, which is the debt-to equity ratio, including leases, dropped to 18.7%, from 23.2% in the previous quarter. Brent crude prices were around $97 per barrel during the third quarter. Meanwhile, benchmark European gas prices were about EUR46/megawatt-hour. Both are up significantly from a year ago.
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ArcelorMittal's CFO claims that US steel tariffs cost the company $600 million per year.
ArcelorMittal's finance chief stated on Thursday that U.S. tariffs?on imported steel?cost the steelmaker about $150 million each quarter because they affect?its?Canadian exports?. GenuinoChristino stated in an interview that "we continue to incur a target cost of approximately $600 million per year in Canada." Canada's response, in the form of tariffs, has not been sufficient to offset the impact on the Luxembourg-based company's operations there. He added, "What's also good is that we didn't lose market share. We continue to ship products to the U.S. Automotive Industry (as ArcelorMittal) is seen as the market leader with the best technology and best products." ArcelorMittal, in July 2025, estimated that the tariff impact on its core earnings would be $150 million per quarter. However, it also stated at the time that its high-valued material was hard to replace. Earlier, on Thursday, ArcelorMittal reported a'second quarter core earnings of $2.0 billion. This exceeded market expectations according to LSEG analysts. (Reporting from Gdansk by Javi Larranaga, editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak).
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Association says South Korean refiners are considering Venezuelan crude imports
An official of the Korea Petroleum Association stated that South Korea's refiners were considering importing Venezuelan crude to diversify their supply sources, as the conflict in the Middle East is disrupting shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. GS Caltex is one of the country's largest refiners. In June, it imported 110,000 barrels from Venezuela to?test its quality. The association official confirmed a?local report. Officials said that the refiner would assess whether or not the crude is suitable for their facilities, and evaluate product yields. Officials said that the other 'three refiners - HD Hyundai Oilbank SK Innovation, and 'S-Oil - also 'weigh potential crude imports out of Venezuela. Officials from the association said that refiners were looking to reduce their reliance on Middle East oil by focusing on competitive prices and stable supply. The official said that they are also looking at alternative sources of oil, including Canada and Australia. However, U.S. shale is not an option due to the small size of each individual supplier. South Korea began considering imports of Venezuelan goods after U.S. president Donald Trump called on oil companies to invest $100 billion into the nation and rebuild its energy sector. Some U.S. Some?U.S. (Reporting and editing by Ed Davies. Heejin kim)
MORNING BID AMERICAS - Long bond gives fright
What's important in the U.S. and Global Markets Today By Mike Dolan. Editor-at-Large for Finance and Markets
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve maintained its line, but three policymakers voted "for a hike", the largest dissent since 1970 against a new Fed chairman. It is easy to see why the markets were so uncertain. The Fed's decision to "hold" did not reassure the markets. 30-year borrowing rates have risen to their highest level in 19 years, and the yield curve has steepened, suggesting that traders are worried about the Fed tolerating above-target inflation for the long run.
Below, I'll go into more detail. Check out my column about why the $1.8 quadrillion global balance sheet could be more fragile than it appears. Listen to the Morning Bid podcast where we talk about the Fed's family fight and Big Tech earnings. Subscribe to the Morning Bid daily podcast and hear our journalists discuss all of the latest news in markets and finance.
Long Bonds Takes Fright Fed boss Kevin Warsh did not reveal much about the next move from the central banks, as he adhered to his position on forward guidance. However, he suggested that the bond markets are doing the Fed's work for them by tightening up aggressively.
It may be "careful what one wishes for" as bond yields are rising because of doubts over the Fed's credibility, and concerns that the Fed has been mistakenly trying -for the second time within five years - to pass off high inflation as temporary. Oil prices jumped back up almost 8% yesterday, amid renewed strikes between the U.S.A. and Iran. The fuel squeeze also seems to be far from temporary. After the Fed's decision, Wall Street stocks closed in the red. Investors are now awaiting the earnings of Big Tech after the bell. Meta fell 7% in after-hours trading on concerns about the evaporation of its free cash flow due to its AI expansion. Qualcomm missed its own estimates. Microsoft's stock, which has been lagging this year, rose more than 8% yesterday after the company reported. Microsoft's cloud business exceeded forecasts and its revenue-generating AI offerings were praised. South Korea's KOSPI rose in early trading Thursday in Asia after Samsung Electronics announced a 250-fold increase in chip profits and stated that it expects the memory shortage to worsen into 2028. After a volatile session, the index ended down by 1%.
A busy day is ahead. After Thursday's bell, we will get the results of Amazon and Apple, as well as the Bank of England's latest policy announcement, U.S. second-quarter GDP and June inflation, plus, U.S. June Inflation and Second-quarter GDP. Phew!
Chart of the Day Cash burn is a major theme for this year's earnings season among the U.S. AI hyperscalers. Meta reported on Wednesday a 91% decline in its second-quarter cash flow, highlighting the financial strains of the social media company's expensive AI buildout despite growing doubts over the eventual payoff.
Facebook's parent company, Instagram, reported a free cash flow of 784 million dollars in the second quarter, down from $8.55billion a year ago. This sent its shares down as much as 10 percent in overnight extended trading.
Watch today's events
* U.S. Q2 GDP estimate (8.30 am EDT), U.S. PCE for June (8.30 am EDT), weekly jobless claims (8.30am EDT).
Apple, Amazon and other U.S. corporations:
* Bank of England announcement of interest rates (7 am EDT)
Want to receive the Morning Bid every morning in your email? Subscribe to the newsletter by clicking here. Follow us on LinkedIn, X and ROI. The opinions expressed by the author are their own. These opinions do not represent those of News. News is bound by the Trust Principles to maintain integrity, independence and freedom from bias. (By Mike Dolan).
(source: Reuters)