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Stocks rise after positive economic and earnings data; Treasury yields increase
The major stock indexes rose on Wednesday, as U.S. payrolls and corporate earnings were better than expected. Treasury yields also increased following the economic data of the day. According to a survey of economists, the private payrolls in the United States increased by 42,000 positions in October. This was more than double what most economists expected, which was a gain of 28,000 jobs. Some industries, such as professional services, have lost jobs for the third consecutive month. In addition to the payroll numbers for private employers, data revealed that U.S. service sector activity increased in October due to a strong increase in new orders. The longest government shutdown in U.S. history is the result of a congressional impasse. Investors and the Federal Reserve, who rely heavily on data, are now forced to rely solely on indicators from the private sector. After a sharp drop on Tuesday, an index of semiconductors rose 3%. Advanced Micro Devices shares ended the day 2.5% higher following a positive revenue forecast given by the company on Tuesday. Amgen, a drugmaker, reported earnings that exceeded estimates. Its shares rose 7.8%. Peter Cardillo is the chief market economist of Spartan Capital Securities, based in New York. The ADP National Employment Report suggested that the fears about the job market might have been overstated if the numbers were to match the official figures. Investors also paid close attention to the Supreme Court of the United States raising doubts about the legality and sweeping tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump in a case that has implications for the global economic system. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 225.76, or 0.48% to 47,311.00. The S&P 500 gained 24.74, or 0.37% to 6,796.29. And the Nasdaq Composite grew 151.16, or 0.65% to 23,499.80. According to LSEG, analysts now expect S&P 500 earnings to grow 16.2% on an annual basis for the period July-September, which is more than twice the growth expected at the beginning. The MSCI index of global stocks rose by 1.07 points or 0.11% to 997.89. The STOXX 600 Index rose by 0.23%. This year, the stock market has been swept by a wave of enthusiasm for generative artificial Intelligence. It is compared to the dotcom boom. The yields on U.S. Treasury bonds rose following the unexpected data that showed economic resilience. Treasury Department said Wednesday that it expects to maintain its nominal coupon and floating rate note auction size for the next few quarters but is beginning to look at future increases. Benchmark 10-year yields increased by almost seven basis points, to 4.159%. The dollar's value against the major currencies was not much different. Since last week, when the Fed reduced interest rates by 25 basis point and Fed Chair Jerome Powell stated that a December rate cut was not predetermined, the dollar has strengthened against euro. The dollar index fell by 0.01%, to 100.16, measuring the greenback in relation to a basket of currencies, including the yen, the euro and others. The pound was essentially flat against the dollar on the day. Market pricing indicates that the Bank of England will meet on Thursday. With a one-in-3 chance of a rate cut of 25 basis points, any decision the BoE makes could trigger a reaction in the pound. After recovering from its earlier losses, the leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin rose 3% to approximately $103,144. It fell 6.1% Tuesday, to fall below $99,000 for first time since June 22, for the first. The oil prices dropped as concerns about global oversupply trumped data that showed a strong demand for fuel in the United States. U.S. crude oil fell 96 cents, settling at $59.60 per barrel. Brent crude dropped 92 cents, settling at $63.52.
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Rubio and Hegseth inform lawmakers about boat strikes following congressional frustration
Members of the Senate, and the House of Representatives were briefed by top Trump administration officials on Wednesday regarding strikes on suspected drug-trafficking boats near Venezuela. This came after Congress expressed frustration over a lack of transparency in the operation. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth spoke for an hour with Republican and Democratic leaders of the House and Senate and members of senior national security committees. They discussed U.S. attacks on vessels in Caribbean and Pacific waters that have resulted in the deaths of dozens of people. The Trump administration has insisted that the boats targeted for attack were carrying drugs without providing any evidence or explaining publicly the legal justification of the decision. The administration officials told several senators and members of the House who attended the briefing that the boats carried cocaine and not fentanyl and provided their legal justification. Legal experts claim that the strikes could violate international law, as well as U.S. laws prohibiting murder and assassination. Trump's Republican colleagues said that they were satisfied with the briefing. House Speaker Mike Johnson called the intelligence on the vessels "exquisite" but said that the U.S. was aware of who was aboard the boats "almost down to the person". Johnson, when asked to clarify, said: "What I have learned from what I have read so far, I am confident that we are highly reliable. Here are the cartels. Here are the cartels. This is deliberate. They are not just randomly on a boat. "They are trying to bring in illegal immigrants, which is a great danger to the American people." Tensions with CARACAS The strikes between Washington and Caracas have heightened tensions, especially since Trump has ordered a major build-up of military forces in the area and stated that his administration would carry out attacks against drug-related targets within Venezuela. The president of Colombia, a longtime U.S. ally, is in a dispute with Trump about the attacks, which have claimed Colombian lives. Trump has imposed sanctions against him. Mark Warner, top Senate Intelligence Democrat, stated that the failure of the administration to explain publicly its actions including the legal justification had damaged the trust of the U.S. Public and Latin American partners. Warner stated that "Kinetic Strikes without Interdicting and Demonstrating to the American Public that these are full of drugs and bad guys is I think a huge error that undermines the confidence in the Administration's actions." Warner last week attacked the administration for holding an informational briefing about the strikes without including Democrats. In a rare show of bipartisan frustration, lawmakers from both parties criticized the Pentagon on Tuesday for failing to brief them on national security matters and claiming that top defense officials sometimes appeared to undermine Trump's policies. Elbridge Colby, the Pentagon's top policy official whom Trump renamed as the Department of War on Wednesday, denied that he was not fully advising Congress on national security matters. This suggests a growing rift between the Pentagon and senators of both parties. (Reporting and editing by Patricia Zengerle, Bo Erickson)
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Talen Energy announces a rise in its third-quarter profits on the strength of power demand
The utility firm Talen Energy announced a higher third-quarter profit Wednesday, as strong U.S. demand for power helped offset increased energy purchase costs. However, adjusted core profit fell short of Wall Street expectations. U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that the U.S. will see a record increase in electricity demand in this year and 2026. This is due to data centers' large energy requirements and rising domestic consumption. The U.S. Energy secretary Chris Wright announced last month that he would allow a part of Talen’s oil-fired Wagner plant in Maryland to operate above its limits until the end of 2025. He said this would improve the grid's reliability. The company has announced a $3.5 billion deal to purchase two gas-fired power plants in order to meet its growing energy needs. This follows its expansion of its nuclear energy partnership, which includes Amazon, to supply electricity from the Susquehanna Plant. Utility firm's operating revenues were $812 million for the third quarter. This is up 25% compared to a year ago. LSEG data shows that the Houston-based company's adjusted core profit for the third quarter was $363 million. This is below the Wall Street estimate of $386 millions, and lower than the $386 million Wall Street expected. Higher energy costs were the main reason. Fuel and energy costs for the utility company were $259 millions in the third quarter. This was up 17% compared to a year ago. The company reported a net profit attributable stockholders of $207 million, or $4.25 a share. This compares to $168 million or $3.16 a share compared to 365 million or $3.16. (Reporting from Tanay Dhumal, Bengaluru. Editing by Tasim Zaid)
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Trump meets with executives from Rolex, Mercuria and other Swiss firms
According to a press release seen by, executives of MSC and Rolex as well as Partners Group, Mercuria Richemont, MKS, and Mercuria took part in an Oval Office meeting with Donald Trump, the U.S. president, on Tuesday. The Swiss government and the private sector are working together to convince Trump to lower the 39% tariff on its imports. The executives described the meeting as "highly productive," but said they had not engaged in any negotiations with Trump. Trump revealed on Tuesday he met senior Swiss representatives to discuss, among other things, trade. The statement stated that "we expressed our belief" that a bilateral agreement on trade would enhance economic cooperation in a way beneficial to Switzerland as well as the United States. The letter was also signed by Diego Aponte - president of the shipping group MSC - Marwan Shakarchi - CEO of the gold refiner MKS PAMP Group - Jean-Frederic Dufour - CEO of Rolex - Alfred Gantner - founder of Partners Group - Daniel Jaeggi - president of energy trader Mercuria - and Johann Rupert - chairman of Richemont. As part of the efforts to lower tariffs, Swiss companies Mercuria and Partners Group pledged over $6 billion in U.S. Energy investments last month. A source at the time said that Mercuria’s planned U.S. investments in energy could include measures to boost power generation, carbon storage and capture, as well as U.S. recovery of oil. A spokesperson for MKS confirmed that Shakarchi attended the meeting. The other companies' representatives did not respond to comments immediately. Reporting by Timothy Gardner in Washington and Andrea Shalal Editing by Matthew Lewis
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Freshworks anticipates strong revenue in the fourth quarter on AI-driven software demand
Freshworks, a software company that uses artificial intelligence to power its tools, forecast revenue for the fourth quarter of 2018 above Wall Street expectations on Wednesday. According to LSEG, the company anticipates revenue in the fourth quarter of between $217 and $220 million. This midpoint is higher than analysts' average estimates of $216.5 millions. AI-driven solutions are being adopted by businesses to automate and manage IT services, and to reduce costs. Freshworks provides cloud-based software including Freshdesk and Freshservice, which include AI capabilities for functions such as customer relationship management (CRM) and IT support. It competes against other cloud-based providers such as Salesforce and ServiceNow who are also improving their AI capabilities. Freshworks purchased Device42 last year, an IT asset management software that documents and maps IT assets throughout an organization's workflow. Dennis Woodside, CEO of Device42, said that "about half of our big deals this quarter included a Device42 element." "We closed our largest Device42 contract ever with an extremely large sporting goods manufacturer from the U.S." Freshworks expects adjusted profits of 10-12 cents per common share, as opposed to estimates of only 10 cents. The third quarter revenue of 215.1 million dollars exceeded the estimates of 200.8 million. The adjusted profit per share of 16 cents also exceeded the estimates of 13 cents. The company increased its revenue forecast for the full year and adjusted profit per shares. Reporting by Anhata Raopri and Jaspreet Sing in Bengaluru, editing by Tasim Zaid
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Stocks rise as tech shares recover; Treasury yields increase
The stock indexes rose on Wednesday, as the technology sector recovered and U.S. payroll data came in stronger than expected. Treasury yields also increased. According to a survey of economists, U.S. private employment increased by 42,000 in October. This was more than double the 28,000 jobs expected. Some industries, such as professional services, have lost jobs for the third consecutive month. Private payroll data is closely scrutinized in light of the U.S. shutdown and the ongoing concerns about the weakness of the labor market. U.S. president Donald Trump has again asked Republican senators in an effort to end the longest government shut down in history to stop the filibuster. In late afternoon trading, the Nasdaq rose by more than 1%. After a sharp drop on Tuesday, an index of semiconductors rose 3.9%. Advanced Micro Devices shares rose 3.2% following an optimistic revenue forecast given by the company on Tuesday. Peter Cardillo is the chief market economist of Spartan Capital Securities, based in New York. He said that the ADP numbers suggested that perhaps if they align with the official figures - when finally released - the fears over the job market might have been overstated. He said that the possibility of a resolution to the U.S. government shutdown adds optimism. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 291.82 points or 0.62% to 47,377.06, while the S&P 500 gained 52.37 points or 0.77% to 6,823.92, and the Nasdaq Composite increased 267.47 or 1.15% to 23,616.11. The MSCI index of global stocks rose by 4.10 points or 0.41% to 1,000.92. The STOXX 600 Index rose by 0.23%. Asia stocks took a heavy hit overnight. The Nikkei 225 index in Japan fell nearly 7% at one point from its record highs on Tuesday. Shares in South Korea dropped as much as 6,2%, before recovering some of their losses to fall by 2.9%. The global stock market has been flooded with enthusiasm for generative artificial Intelligence this year. It's a phenomenon that is compared to the dotcom boom. The dollar remained unchanged. The dollar has strengthened against the euro after last week's Federal Reserve interest rate cut of 25 basis points. Fed Chair Jerome Powell also said that a December cut is not predetermined. The euro rose 0.02% to $1.1484. The dollar gained 0.27% against the Japanese yen to 154.08. After recovering from its earlier losses, the leading cryptocurrency bitcoin rose 4.01% to reach $104,322.93. It fell 6.1% to $99,000 on Tuesday, the lowest level since June 22. The yields on U.S. Treasury bonds were higher following the unexpected data that showed continued economic resilience. The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10 year notes increased 7 basis points from late Tuesday to 4,161%. Spot gold increased 1.4% to $3.986.99 per ounce. The oil prices dropped as concerns about an oversupply in the world overshadowed signs of a strong demand for fuels in the United States. U.S. crude oil fell 96 cents, settling at $59.60 per barrel. Brent crude dropped 92 cents, settling at $63.52.
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Softs-Raw Sugar Prices fall to Five-Year Low, Cocoa Also Weakens
Raw sugar futures fell to their lowest level in five years on Wednesday. The potential for a large global surplus during the 2025/26 crop season is putting pressure on the prices. Dealers say that the expected increase in sugar production in India, which is the second largest producer in the world, has added to the concerns over excess supplies, as forecasts of the anticipated surplus have increased. After hitting a low of 14,05 cents, raw sugar futures fell 0.11 cent or 0.8% to settle at 14.11 cents. It appears that less cane is being diverted than expected to make ethanol, which has led to a rise in production. In a recent note, broker Czarnikow stated that "we now think India will produce more than sugar in 2025/26 with 32.8 million tonnes due to less sucrose going to ethanol." India produced 26.1 million metric tonnes in 2024/25. Czarnikow increased its forecast of the global sugar surplus in 2025/26 by 1.2 millions tons to 8.7million tons. The price of white sugar fell by $0.70 or 0.2% to $412.70 per ton. Concerns about weak demand following last year's price surge have weighed on cocoa futures. Barry Callebaut announced on Wednesday that they expect sales of their cocoa products will decline by a percentage between the low and mid single digits during its next financial year due to high cocoa prices. Market attention is also focused on the weather conditions in West Africa where crops are being harvested. In a report published on Wednesday, LSEG Research and Insights stated that "Wet weather could delay cocoa harvesting in southern Ghana and the western Ivory Coast and dry weather might favor Nigeria and Cameroon’s key crop areas." New York cocoa fell $204, or by 3.1%, from $6,396 per ton to $4,696 pounds. London cocoa also lost 3.2%, falling to 4,696 pound per ton. The price of arabica coffee increased 2.1%, to $4.136 a pound. Reporting by Nigel Hunt, Marcelo Teixeira, Editing by Shailesh Kumar, David Goodman and Rod Nickel
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Bulgaria drafts a law to allow the seizure and selling of Lukoil refinery
Local media reported that Bulgaria was drafting changes to its laws to allow it to take control of the Russian oil company Lukoil’s Burgas Refinery, which has been sanctioned by the U.S. Burgas, Bulgaria's sole oil refinery, was an important part of Lukoil’s international business empire. This began to crumble in recent days, after the U.S. and Britain imposed sanctions last month on Russia’s two largest oil firms over Moscow’s war in Ukraine. Mediapool, a Bulgarian outlet, reported the draft legislation on Wednesday. It would allow a special manager to supervise the sale of Burgas Oil Refinery. The owner, Lukoil, would not be able to vote or appeal, according to the reports. Boyko Borissov - former Bulgarian prime minister and leader the GERB coalition government – said: "There's a lot to this. That's why we are submitting a law draft today on the special governor." According to Martin Vladimirov of the Bulgarian Center for the Study of Democracy, appointing a special director to temporarily take operational control of Lukoil Bulgaria would "ensure security of energy, prevent a crisis of supply, and actively mitigate the risk of secondary sanctions in the future." Question of Ownership On October 30, Lukoil revealed that global commodity trading company Gunvor would purchase its foreign assets. Gunvor has yet to reveal how it will handle the massive deals and whether or not it will acquire each of Lukoil’s foreign assets. Gunvor's chief executive Torbjorn Tornqvist told Bloomberg Television Tuesday that "we may feel there are assets which we think would be better preserved by other hands", without going into further detail. Gunvor has not responded to the request for comment sent after European business hours. Lukoil was under pressure from the West to sell its Burgas refinery. In January, RIA reported that the price was $2 billion. Bulgaria has introduced a provision in 2023 for the appointment of a Burgas-based special manager to oversee critical infrastructure.
Spain dangers missing out on 2030 wind energy target, think-tank says
Spain requires to add wind energy capability at a much faster rate or it risks missing its enthusiastic 2030 target, the U.S.based Global Energy Display ( GEM) thinktank stated in a report released on Wednesday.
Renewable energy is exceeding in the country, producing over half of its electricity in 2015. Wind power was the main factor, representing almost a quarter of the electrical power produced.
With roughly 30 gigawatts (GW) of set up wind capacity Spain is a European leader, behind only Germany, according to Spanish wind lobby AEE.
Nevertheless, regional opposition in some regions and licensing bottlenecks have weighed on the release of new wind farms.
Roughly 1.7 GW worth of wind parks are under construction, according to the GEM report, meaning that Spain is already more than midway through its end-of-decade goal of 62 GW.
While a pipeline of some 40 GW should be sufficient to reach that goal, the problem is the rate of release: over the next six years, it will require to increase nearly fivefold from the approximately 1 GW included annually on average in 2019-2023, GEM said.
As things stand, Spain isn't likely to satisfy the 2030 target for wind, stated GEM researcher Gregor Clark, the author of the report.
The Energy Ministry decreased to comment.
Addressing traffic jams and moving swiftly with the deployment of offshore wind parks will be key to achieve the objective, Clark added.
Last year, the nation only included some 600 MW of capability, below nearly 1.7 GW in 2022, according to the AEE lobby, which is likewise calling for a velocity.
Spain is on track to strengthen its European leadership in utility-scale solar projects, according to the GEM report, which screens existing renewable tasks, those under construction and the wider strategies.
Spain's 7.8 GW of utility-scale solar jobs under construction represent more capacity than the next three European countries integrated, according to the report.
(source: Reuters)