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EIA reports that US crude oil production fell in May while exports reached record levels.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration published data on Friday showing that U.S. crude output dropped about 2% from its record-breaking April level, but exports reached a new record for the second consecutive month. The data revealed that crude oil production averaged 13,71?million barrels a day in May, while exports increased to 5,73 million bpd compared to the previous record of 5.59 million. U.S. Oil companies have increased exports dramatically?since beginning of Iran war. They are taking advantage of global supply shortages caused by disruptions in vessel movements through the Strait of Hormuz. The higher price of oil has affected consumption. The EIA reported that the total U.S. consumption of crude oil and petroleum products dropped by more than 3.5% to 20.07 millions bpd in May, the lowest level since March 2025. The data revealed that the U.S. distillate fuel demand, which includes primarily diesel, dropped to 3.57 millions bpd, the lowest level since June 2020. Diesel is one of the most expensive products due to the Iran War, since the Middle East 'is a major source of fuel and the best type of crude oil for its production. The U.S. natural gas production fell to 134.0 billion cubic feet per day in May from 135.3 in April. This is a drop from the record 136.0 bcfd set in December 2025. EIA reported that in the top producing states of gas, production in Texas fell 0.8% in May to 38.5 bcfd, but rose 0.9% in Pennsylvania to 21.2 bcfd. This?compares to monthly all-time highests of 38.8 Bcfd on April in Texas, and 21.9 Bcfd by December 2021 in Pennsylvania. (Reporting and editing by Kiri Donovan in New York, Scott DiSavino reporting from New York)
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Gold prices are down but on track to finish the best month since February
Gold fell 2% on the Friday, as the U.S. Dollar rebounded after a session in which it had fallen to a low of more than ONE MONTH. However, the metal is still on course for its first gain monthly in five months as the inflation data was weaker and expectations of future rate hikes by the U.S. were reduced. At 12:18 pm EDT (1618 GMT), spot gold fell 1.4% to $4,044.87 an ounce after dropping 2% earlier. U.S. Gold futures for August delivery fell 1.5% to $4043.80. Gold is up 1% this month, the biggest gain since February. Oil prices have fallen to levels seen before the Iran war and traders are now reducing their expectations for Federal Reserve rate hikes this year. Han Tan, Bybit's chief market analyst, said that "although gold is on the verge of ending a 4-month losing streak," it has struggled to create a larger gap than the psychological $4,000 mark. Tan said that the metal's price remains above $4,000 due to expectations that Fed chair Kevin Warsh will broaden his central bank's focus from its preferred inflation and rate increases. The data released on Thursday shows that U.S. inflation fell in June. However, the drop was only temporary because the oil price rose due to renewed hostilities in the Middle East. Warsh pledged this week to be unwavering in his commitment to reduce inflation without indicating a willingness to raise interest rates. The dollar gained 0.2% on Friday after losing 2.4% in one day, its largest drop since January '2023. The dollar's strength makes gold more expensive for those who hold other currencies. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, traders see a 65% probability of a rate increase in September, compared to a higher than 80% likelihood a week earlier. A statement revealed that China's market regulator also urged solar companies in another meeting to resist "vicious price competition" at a price compliance guidelines meeting held on Friday. Silver is an important industrial metal that's used in solar photovoltaic panels. Silver spot fell 2.7%, to $57.40 an ounce. Palladium fell 2% and platinum 1%, but both metals are still on track for a gain in the month. Noel John in Bengaluru and Swati verma reported. Mark Potter edited the article.
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Tether purchased 14 t gold as USDT reserves during the second quarter
Tether, the issuer of the largest stablecoin in the world, increased the amount of gold it holds to support Tether -USDT by 14 tons during the second quarter. Last year, the crypto company bought a lot of gold to use as reserves for the Tether USDT, a stablecoin that is backed by a digital currency with tokens worth $183.7 billion and the Tether gold tokens with a circulation of $2.9 billion. Each dollar token issued by?Tether is meant to represent a U.S. Dollar held in reserve. Tether receives a dollar from a user and issues USDT. The company also holds assets with an equivalent value, such as U.S. Treasury Bills. These reserves ensure that USDT is redeemable for dollars if needed. The Tether XAUT is backed 100% by gold. The report shows that the gold reserves to back the Tether USDT had a total value of $18.8 Billion at the end of June. In a statement, Tether's CEO Paolo Ardoino said that "we remained one the world's biggest buyers of U.S. Treasury bonds, we reduced secured lending to $2.38 billion and added 14 tonnes of physical gold." Tether's net profit for the quarter was 1,50 billion dollars, driven by U.S. Treasury Portfolio and Repo Performance, he said. Data suggests that Tether increased its 'gold purchases' in the second quarter when the bullion market posted the sharpest quarterly drop?since 2013 - falling 14% compared to the 6 tons purchased in the first quarter. Gold and Bitcoin represent only 10% and 3%, respectively, of the reserves that back Tether USDT. Separate data revealed that Tether holds 22 tons (or?gold) to back up the Tether gold coin, XAUT. El Salvador-headquartered ?Tether does not disclose its ?total bullion holdings but they are probably larger: Ardoino told in January that the company aimed to allocate 10%-15% of its own $20-billion investment portfolio to physical gold. (Reporting and editing by Louise Heavens; Polina Devitt)
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Nornickel, a Russian company, doubles its H1 net profits and says it will consider an interim dividend
Norilsk Nickel, the world's biggest palladium producer reported on Friday that it's revenue and net profit in the first six months of this year had'sharply' increased thanks to higher metal prices, which allowed them to pay interim dividends. It said that the net profit for the first half of 2026 was $2 billion, up from $842 millions in the first half of 2025. Revenues had also grown by 28%, to $8.3billion. EBITDA (earnings before tax, depreciation, and amortization) grew by 50%, to $3.9 billion. The company said that rising prices for non-ferrous metals and precious?metals was the main reason behind its improved financial performance. Sergei Malyshev said that the company's "profit margins" had also increased. He said that the strong financial performance of the first half of the fiscal year provided grounds for shareholders of reconsidering the issue of a interim dividend. A?decision will be made following consultations with the shareholders. Nornickel has not paid out an annual dividend for 2025 due to "elevated macroeconomic instabilities" for the 'fourth 'year in a row. Malyshev stated that macroeconomic conditions remain challenging. He cited a rising mineral extract tax, which is?linked to metal market prices - as well as inflationary pressure and logistics difficulties caused by geopolitical situations. Nornickel continues to implement its three-year program of efficiency improvements, which?should add 100 billion roubles in EBITDA by 2026. (Reporting and writing by Gleb Stolarova; Editing by Andrew Osborn).
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US announces plan to share Colorado River water in drought-stricken areas
The U.S. Government announced on Friday proposed guidelines for the sharing of the drought-stricken Colorado River. This river?provides?water to a tenth of Americans, irrigates land that produces 15% U.S. agricultural output, and generates electricity for six million people across seven states. After over three years of talks to replace an existing plan, the seven states -- Colorado New Mexico Utah Wyoming Arizona California and Nevada -- could not 'agree' on the best way to share water. According to the final environmental impact report released by the Bureau, the US Bureau of Reclamation has proposed a 10-year plan through 2036 to allow flexibility in operating the?two largest reservoirs on the river -- Lake Powell and Lake Mead. In a press release, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum stated that "this framework allows the Basin States the flexibility to adapt to changing hydrologic conditions and preserves the opportunity to continue working towards durable, consensus-based solution." The plan limits the operation of the river and calls for annual releases between?5 and 12 million acre feet from Lake Powell, compared to previous average annual releases around 7.5 millions acre feet. The framework also envisages water shortages up to 3,000,000 acre-feet each year in the Lower Basin States of Arizona, California, and Nevada. The Lower Basin states presented on May 1 a short-term plan for water cuts of up to 1.6 million acres-feet annually through 2028. Andrew Hay reported from New Mexico, and Donna Bryson edited the story.
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Fed hawks push yields higher, stocks give back gains
The stock market was mixed on Friday as it gave back much of its earlier gains. Meanwhile, longer-dated Treasury Yields reached new multi-year heights after Federal Reserve officials claimed that more interest rate increases are necessary to combat inflation. A?market source? said that currency markets were also on high alert for any further intervention a day after Japanese authorities intervened to support the yen. Three Fed policymakers, who dissented for a rate increase at the meeting this week, made their case public on Friday in support of higher rates. The Fed left rates unchanged, a result that was widely expected and in line with the market's pricing. It had been priced to reflect a roughly one-in-3 chance of a rate hike. Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Log said that the U.S. Central Bank will not be in a position to bring inflation back to its target of 2% without "modest actions in the near-term," given the solid and strengthening labor market, as well as the upside risks for price pressures. The comments were similar to those made by Beth Hammack, the president of the Cleveland Fed and?Neel Kahkari, the president of Minneapolis Fed. The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10 year notes increased by 6.35 basis points, to 4.727%. This is the highest level since January 2025. The 30-year bond rate rose by 5.14 basis points, to 5.2584%. This is the highest level since mid-2007. The odds of an increase in the Fed rate at its September meeting are currently priced by traders at 69%. The price of oil rose sharply on the Friday after traders reassessed shipping flows in the Strait of Hormuz following reports that some tankers had to turn back. Brent crude oil prices rose sharply in July. This is the first monthly gain since March. Teddy Bunzel is the head of Lazard Geopolitical?Advisory, a division of Lazard Asset Management. The crucial Strait of Hormuz remains blocked. Houthis backed by Iran have also attacked the alternative route through Bab el-Mandeb Strait, worsening the outlook. STOCKS RETURN EARLIER STRENGTH The stock market had risen earlier in the session, after Amazon and Microsoft's strong earnings eased investor concerns and attracted traders back to the AI trade. However, hawkish Fed comments and rising yields have eroded these gains. Microsoft forecasted strong cash generation for the fiscal year 2027. Amazon's cloud revenue grew at its fastest rate in over four years a day after that, assuring investors who were eager to see proof that AI investments are paying off. Art Hogan is the chief market strategist of B Riley Wealth. "Now that the hyperscalers and in particular Amazon are talking about how much revenue and demand they have for their cloud service, which is in general a lot of small and medium business, it's brought a?significant interest to the neocloud companies and their offering as it pertains the rollout of AI strategy." The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.06% to 52,179.23. The S&P 500 dropped 0.02% to 7435.72, and the Nasdaq Composite grew 0.19% at 25,170.38. The pan-European STOXX 600 fell by 0.03%. Europe's FTSEurofirst 300 Index also dropped by 0.03%. South Korea's KOSPI, which had suffered heavy losses this week, has risen 17.91%. This is a record return. The tech-heavy KOSPI, which is still around 30% below its all-time peak, has become a symbol of the dramatic swings in investor confidence towards AI-related stocks. The MSCI index of global stocks was up by 0.73% to 1,115.07. BOJ HOLDS RATE DAYS AFTER INTERVENTION According to a source in the market, the yen gained 0.03% to reach 159.49 against the dollar. This follows sharp gains made on Thursday when Japan engaged in yen buying and dollar selling intervention. A source familiar with this matter said that the U.S. treasury told banks to "stand by" for any future intervention in the yen markets on Friday. The BOJ held interest rates at the same level on Friday but indicated its intention to increase borrowing costs. At a recent press conference, BOJ governor Kazuo Ueda stated that inflation risks are skewed upwards, and that the central bank is prepared to accelerate the rate-hike pace if monetary conditions are accommodative. Analysts say that the BOJ's rate hikes are unlikely to change the currency's outlook, as the BOJ has not been able to provide a durable support for yen. "The fundamentals and technicals of the yen are very poor." Lauren van Biljon is senior portfolio manager for rates and FX at Allspring Global Investments. She said that intervention was not a long-term, credible solution. The dollar index (which measures the greenback versus a basket including the yen, the euro and other currencies) rose by 0.21%, reaching 100.28. Meanwhile, the euro fell 0.36% to $1.1485. Spot gold dropped 1.52% to $4.040.70 per ounce.
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Gold prices are down but on track to finish the best month since February
The?U.S. dollar rebounded from a more than?one-month low hit in the previous session. Dollar recovered from the more than a month low it hit the previous session. However, gold was still on course for its first gain of the month in five months as weaker inflation figures reduced expectations of future rate hikes in the U.S. Gold spot was down 1.8% to $4,027.75 an ounce as of 09:59 am EDT (1359 GMT) after having fallen 2% earlier. ?U.S. Gold futures for August deliveries dropped by 1.9% to $4 025.10. Gold is up 0.5% this month, the biggest monthly gain since February. Oil prices have fallen to levels seen before the Iran war, and traders are now reducing their expectations of Federal Reserve rate hikes this year. Han Tan, Bybit's chief market analyst, said that "although gold is about to end a four-month losing streak," it has been unable to create a larger gap above the psychological level of $4,000 Tan said that the metal's price remains above $4,000 due to expectations that Fed chair Kevin Warsh will broaden his central bank's focus from its preferred inflation and rate increases. The data released on Thursday shows that U.S. inflation rates slowed down in June. However, the slowdown was only temporary as renewed hostilities across the Middle East pushed up oil prices. Warsh pledged this week to be unwavering in his commitment to bring down inflation without indicating a willingness to raise interest rates. The dollar rose 0.5% on Friday after falling 2.4% in one day, its largest 'one-day drop' since January 2023. The dollar's strength makes gold more expensive for holders other currencies. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, traders see a 65% probability of a rate?hike this September, as opposed to a higher than 80% likelihood a week earlier. A statement revealed that China's market regulator also urged solar companies in another meeting on Friday to resist "vicious price competition" at a price compliance guidelines meeting. Silver is an important industrial metal that's used in solar photovoltaic panel manufacturing. Spot silver dropped 2.9% to $57.29 an ounce. Palladium fell 3.4% and platinum 2.5%, but both metals are headed to a monthly increase. Reporting by Noel John in Bengaluru and Swati verma. Mark Potter edited the article.
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ADNOC will switch the oil price benchmark from Murban to Platts-Dubai.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Co announced on Friday that it will switch the benchmark for'monthly official sales prices for all crude grades to Platts Dubai Platts 'pricing derived from Murban -crude -futures starting November 1. ADNOC said that the change will bring ADNOC OSPs closer to the month when cargoes are loaded. The change applies to Abu Dhabi crude grades onshore and off shore, including Murban Das, Umm Lulu, and Upper Zakum. ADNOC will announce differentials from Dubai?quotes in the month prior to cargoes loading. ADNOC stated that the new pricing mechanism "reinforces ADNOC’s commitment to price transparency for its growing client and investor base." The company said it would continue to fulfill all of its obligations in relation to the delivery of crude grades from Abu Dhabi, both onshore and off-shore. The move follows the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran, which disrupted Middle East oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz. This caused significant losses for traders who deal with Abu Dhabi Oil. Since June, the producer has been consulting with customers on proposed changes to its OSPs. ADNOC also sells its crude cargoes via spot tenders since June, at differentials from Dubai quotes. ADNOC stated that the change in pricing mechanisms is not expected to have any material impact on any of the listed instruments by ADNOC, including those issued under ADNOC Murban’s GMTN and Sukuk programs. ICE Futures 'Abu Dhabi announced that it would continue to trade for Murban crude futures contracts months with open interest, while those without an open interest will be suspended starting Friday. (Reporting and editing by Louise Heavens, Florence Tan)
ADNOC will switch the oil price benchmark from Murban to Platts-Dubai.
Abu Dhabi National 'Oil 'Co announced on Friday that it will switch the benchmark for its monthly official selling price for all of its crude grades from Murban crude prices to Platts Dubai pricing for immediate-month from November 1.
ADNOC said that the change will apply to Abu Dhabi crude grades onshore and off-shore, including Murban Das Umm Lulu Upper?Zakum and Murban. The company stated in a?statement?that it would align ADNOC OSPs with the month of cargo loading. ADNOC will announce the differentials between Dubai and ADNOC quotes in the month prior to cargo loading.
ADNOC stated that the new pricing mechanism "reinforces ADNOC’s commitment to transparency in pricing for its growing customer base and investor base."
The company said it would continue to?meet all its obligations in regard to the delivery of crude grades from Abu?Dhabi, both onshore and off-shore.
The move comes after the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran disrupted oil imports from the Middle East via the Strait of Hormuz, causing significant hedging losses for traders who deal in Abu Dhabi oil. Since June, the producer has been consulting with customers on proposed changes to its OSPs.
ADNOC also sells its crude cargoes through?spot bids' since June, at differentials from Dubai quotes. SUDDEN CHANGE SAYS A TRADER
A crude trader told the media on Friday that this announcement was a sudden one.
ADNOC stated that the change in pricing mechanism will not have an impact on any ADNOC listed instruments, such as issuances completed under ADNOC Murban’s GMTN and Sukuk programs.
ICE Futures Abu Dhabi (IFAD) has announced that it will continue trading in Murban crude contract months with open interest, while those without will be stopped from Friday. A spokesperson for ICE did not respond immediately to a query about what would happen next.
IFAD was established to 'turn ADNOC Murban crude into a global benchmark, and give Middle East producers a transparent exchange-based pricing system. ICE is also home to the global Brent contract. (Reporting and editing by Louise Heavensn, Kirby Donovan, Kirby Donovan, and Ahmad Ghaddar)
(source: Reuters)