Latest News
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Energean Invests in Croatian Gas Field in Adriatic Sea
British gas producer Energean has taken the final decision to invest in the Irena gas field in the North Adriatic Sea off Croatia, it said on Wednesday.The gas field is located in the Izabela concession, an offshore gas development area in the North Adriatic Sea, which is operated by Edina, a 50-50 joint venture between Energean and Croatian oil and gas company INA–Industrija Nafte.Energean has a 70% working interest in the concession, it said in a statement.The first gas at the Irena gas field is expected to be produced in the first half of 2027. Peak production is estimated to be around 1,400-1,700 barrels of oil equivalent per day, Energean added.The total estimated capital expenditure for the project is 71 million euros ($81 million), with Energean’s share at 50 million euros.($1 = 0.8723 euros)(Reuters)
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Nippon Steel to Supply Material for Vestas Wind Towers
Nippon Steel signed a cooperation memorandum with Denmark's wind turbine maker Vestas Wind Systems on Wednesday to supply steel for Vestas' wind towers for European, Asian and Japanese markets, Japan's industry ministry said.The agreement was part of a broader push by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) to strengthen the supply chain for wind generation in the country where renewables are key to reducing import costs and dependency on fossil fuels.Offshore wind is a pillar of Japan's renewable energy strategy, but the country remains heavily reliant on imported wind turbines and components.Vestas has a number of contracts in Japan, including for a 375-megawatt offshore wind farm off the coast of Happo-Noshiro in Akita prefecture in northern Japan to be built by Eneos Corp, Iberdrola and Tohoku Electric Power.In June, METI announced a cooperation framework with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy for the offshore wind sector. Siemens Gamesa, the wind turbine division of Siemens Energy, agreed a deal with Japanese electronic parts maker TDK for magnets to supply the wind turbines.METI launched a similar framework with GE Vernova, a major U.S. energy equipment company, to promote public-private cooperation in wind power, hydrogen and ammonia among other areas.Japan aims to achieve 45 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity by 2040 to reduce its reliance on imported coal and gas for power generation. But, its plans have stalled despite three major rounds of auctions, due to soaring costs and delays.(Reuters)
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Asian stocks fall on weak China data and yen firms following BOJ decision
Asian stocks fell on Thursday due to weaker than expected Chinese data and a drop in copper prices. The yen, however, firmed up after the Bank of Japan increased its inflation forecast and kept rates unchanged. The revised forecast indicated cautious optimism that Japan’s trade agreement with the U.S. will help the economy avoid a sharp downturn, and set the BOJ's interest rate hike later in the year. The yen rose 0.6% to 148.62 dollars per yen immediately after the central banks unanimously maintained short-term rates at 0.5%. The Japanese stock market showed no reaction to this decision, with the last 0.9% increase. Investors also digested a trade agreement between the U.S.A. and South Korea as well as a Federal Reserve's decision to keep rates unchanged and strong earnings by megacap tech companies. Nasdaq Futures soared by 1.2% following better-than expected earnings from Microsoft Meta Platforms. S&P futures rose 0.8% while the U.S. Dollar held steady following a two-month peak. Tony Sycamore is a market analyst with IG in Sydney. He said that both tech companies have reported "lightning fast" earnings, reporting increased revenue from cloud computing, and artificial intelligence enabled ad targeting, respectively. The broadest MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan fell by 0.7% but was still on course for its fourth consecutive month gain in July. Hong Kong and China stocks led the declines following official PMI gauges showing weaker than expected economic activity in July. The Federal Reserve’s rate-setting panel voted on Wednesday 9-2 to keep interest rates unchanged for the fifth meeting in a row. Two Fed governors dissented for the first time since more than 30 years. The comments made by Fed chair Jerome Powell after the decision undermined confidence that borrowing rates would start to drop in September. The dollar index stood at 98.812, which was just a little below the two-month peak of 99.987 that it reached on Wednesday. The index will clock its first gain in 2025, a 3.1% increase for the month. "Despite the Federal Reserve's recent decision to hold rates at the same level, there is still a chance that they will cut them at future meetings as they weigh the softening of economic data against the possibility of persistent inflation," Manusha Samanthaweera, Fixed Income Investment Director at Capital Group, said. The U.S. Gross Domestic Product growth was higher than expected during the second quarter. However, the report's details painted a picture that showed an economy in decline and plagued with uncertainty due to President Donald Trump’s protectionist policies. The Korean won increased by 0.3% following Trump's announcement that the U.S. would charge a 15 percent tariff on South Korean imports in exchange for South Korea investing $350 billion into U.S. projects, and purchasing $100 billion of U.S. Energy Products. The announcement is part of a series of deals on trade policy that were rushed to be announced before the August 1 deadline in order to avoid the imposition April 2 "Liberation Day' tariffs. Trump's tariff campaign cast a shadow over global markets. Negotiations on trade with India are still underway after Trump announced earlier that the U.S. would impose a 25 percent tariff on goods imported to the country. Copper futures fell 19% in the meantime after Trump announced that the U.S. would impose a tariff of 50% on copper pipes, wiring and other copper products. However, the details of this levy were not as comprehensive as expected, and did not include copper input materials like ores, concentrates, and cathodes. Brent crude futures, due to expire Thursday, were down by 0.19%, at $73.1 per barrel. U.S. West Texas intermediate crude, for September, was unchanged at $70.01 per barrel. The Brent October contract, the more active one, eased by 0.14% at $72.37 per barrel. (Reporting and editing by Tom Hogue, Jamie Freed and Ankur Banerjee. Additional reporting by Gregor Stuart Hunter.
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Gold returns to 1-month high on renewed trade uncertainty
Gold prices rose on Thursday after a session low of one month, as the trade uncertainty resulting from new U.S. Tariff announcements boosted bullion's appeal. However, expectations for a U.S. interest rate cut in September dwindled. As of 0230 GMT, spot gold was up 0.5% to $3,292.24 an ounce. Bullion fell to its lowest level since the 30th of June at $3,267.79. U.S. Gold Futures dropped 0.2% to $3287. Tim Waterer, KCM Trade's Chief Market Analyst, said that gold at levels below $3,300 has drawn traders to it as a "value play", especially with the current economic uncertainty which is accompanied by Trump's secondary trade tariff threats. The U.S. president Donald Trump issued a series of announcements regarding tariffs on Wednesday. These ranged from the removal of an exemption for low-value overseas shipments to changes in levies previously announced on copper imports and Brazilian goods. Trump announced that he had reached a deal with South Korea, which included a U.S. 15% tariff on all imports. He also confirmed ongoing negotiations with India following his declaration of a 25% tariff for Indian goods on Friday. He expressed optimism in trade negotiations with China and said he expected a fair agreement to be reached. The U.S. Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged on Wednesday. Chair Jerome Powell’s comments dampened the expectations of rate reductions in September. In an environment of low interest rates, gold, which is often considered to be a safe haven during times of economic uncertainty, performs well. "Support in the $3,250 area is proving to be a critical level that could protect against a more significant move to the downside." Waterer stated that any breach would open the door to a drop as low as $3,200. A poll predicts that the U.S. Core PCE Index data will be released later today. It is expected to increase by 0.3% from month to month and 2.7% on an annual basis. (Reporting by Anmol Choubey in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Eileen Soreng) Spot silver fell 0.3% to $37 an ounce. Platinum rose 0.6%, to $1320.98. Palladium gained 2.5%, to $1234.77. (Reporting and editing by Subhranshu Sahu in Bengaluru, Eileen Soreng and Anmol Choubey)
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Data on China's factory activity shows that iron ore prices continue to fall.
The price of iron ore futures fell for the second session in a row on Thursday as weaker than expected factory activity data from China, the top consumer, raised concerns about demand. As of 0230 GMT, the most traded September iron ore contract at China's Dalian Commodity Exchange was trading 1.44% lower. It was trading at 786.5 Yuan per metric ton. As of 0220 GMT, the benchmark September iron ore traded on Singapore Exchange was down 0.75% at $100.95 per ton. An official survey released on Thursday showed that China's manufacturing activity declined for the fourth consecutive month in July. This suggests that a surge of exports in anticipation of increased U.S. duties has begun to fade, while domestic demand remains sluggish. The price of the main steelmaking ingredient fell on Wednesday, after the hopes that Beijing will announce more stimuli measures at its July Politburo Meeting that sets the economic course for next year faded. ANZ analysts wrote in a report that the policy statement from a Chinese leaders' meeting left investors underwhelmed. It included a more aggressive fiscal agenda and moderately lax monetary policies. The readout did not provide details on large-scale stimuli measures, they added. Coking coal and coke, which are both steelmaking ingredients, also fell in price, by 6.16% and 2.73 %, respectively. The benchmarks for steel on the Shanghai Futures Exchange have fallen. Rebar fell 2.57%, while hot-rolled coils dropped 2.42%. Wire rod also lost 2.47%. Stainless steel declined 0.93%.
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Asian stocks fall on weak China data and plunging copper price
Asian stocks fell on Thursday, after weaker than expected Chinese data and a drop in copper prices. Investors also weighed the impact of a new trade agreement between South Korea & the U.S. Investors weighed the Federal Reserve's decision to keep rates unchanged and megacap tech companies' strong earnings when determining whether or not to buy the dollar. Nasdaq Futures soared 1.2% after Microsoft and Meta Platforms reported earnings that were better than expected. S&P futures rose 0.8% while the U.S. Dollar held steady following a two-month peak. Tony Sycamore is a market analyst with IG Sydney. He said that both companies' earnings reports have "shot the lights out", reporting increased revenue from cloud computing, and AI-enabled ad targetting, respectively. The broadest MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan fell 0.7% but is still on course for a fourth consecutive monthly increase in July. Hong Kong and China stocks led the declines following official PMI gauges showing weaker than expected economic activity in July. The markets are now waiting for the Bank of Japan to announce its monthly policy decision in the afternoon. Traders will be looking for any clues that Governor Kazuo ueda might give about the probability of another rate increase this year. The Federal Reserve’s rate-setting panel voted on Wednesday 9-2 to keep interest rates unchanged for the fifth meeting in a row. Two Fed governors dissented for the first time since more than 30 years. The comments made by Fed chair Jerome Powell after the decision undermined confidence that borrowing rates would start to drop in September. Citi analysts said that it would take two months for Fed officials to be convinced that tariff effects are only going to lead to modest one-time increases in prices and that the policy rate should move toward neutral. The dollar index stood at 98.812, just below the high of 99.987 that was reached on Wednesday. The index will clock its first gain in 2025, a 3.1% increase for the month. "Although Federal Reserve kept rates at their recent rate setting decision the possibility of rate reductions at upcoming meetings remains alive as they balance the softening economy data with the possible for persistent inflation," Manusha Samanthaweera, Fixed Income Investment Director at Capital Group. The U.S. Gross Domestic Product growth was higher than expected during the second quarter. However, the report's details painted a picture that showed an economy in decline due to the uncertainty caused by Trump's protectionist policy. The Korean won increased by 0.3% following Trump's announcement that the U.S. would charge a 15 percent tariff on South Korean imports in exchange for South Korea investing $350 billion into U.S. projects, and purchasing $100 billion of U.S. Energy Products. This announcement is just the latest in a long line of deals on trade policy that were rushed to be announced before the August 1 deadline, so as to avoid the impositions of "Liberation Day", April 2, tariffs. These deals continue cast a shadow over global markets. The price of copper futures fell 19.4% when Trump announced that the U.S. would impose a tariff of 50% on copper pipes, wiring and other copper products. However, the details of this levy were not as comprehensive as expected, and did not include copper input materials like ores, concentrates, and cathodes. Trump announced on Wednesday that trade negotiations with India were still in progress after previously announcing the U.S. would impose a 25 percent tariff on products imported from India. The U.S. is also going to suspend its "de minimis exemption" that allowed low value commercial shipments to ship to the United States with no tariffs. Tax breaks are a major part of China's low cost e-commerce platforms, such as Shein or PDD's Temu. Oil prices rose on Thursday for the fourth consecutive day, as investors were worried about supply shortages, amid Trump's call for a quick resolution of the Ukraine war and his threats to impose tariffs on countries that buy Russian oil. Brent crude futures, due to expire Thursday, climbed 0.33% to $73.48 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude for September rose 0.21% to $70.15 a barrel.
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The fourth day of gains in oil prices is due to supply concerns from Trump tariffs
The oil price rose for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday as investors were worried about supply shortages in light of President Donald Trump’s call for a quick resolution to the conflict in Ukraine, and his threats against countries that buy Russian oil. Brent crude futures expiring on Thursday rose 27 cents or 0.4% to $73.51 per barrel at 0028 GMT. U.S. West Texas intermediate crude for September rose 37 cents or 0.5% to $70.37 per barrel. Both benchmarks closed 1% higher Wednesday. Brent's October contract, which is the most active, was up 29 cents or 0.4% at $72.76. Toshitaka Takawa, an analyst with Fujitomi Securities, said that the concern about secondary tariffs on countries who import Russian crude oil will restrict supplies continues to drive interest in buying. Trump announced on Tuesday that he would begin imposing measures against Russia, including 100% secondary duties on its trading partners if the country did not end the war in 10-12 days. This was a move up from an earlier deadline of 50 days. Trump announced on Wednesday that the United States was still in negotiations with India over trade, after earlier announcing the U.S. would impose a 25 percent tariff on goods imported into the country beginning on Friday. The U.S. warned China, which is the biggest buyer of Russian crude oil, it would face high tariffs if they continued to buy. The U.S. Treasury Department issued new sanctions Wednesday against over 115 Iran linked individuals, entities, and vessels. This is an indication that the Trump Administration has intensified its "maximum-pressure" campaign following the June bombing of Tehran's nuclear sites. China is the largest buyer of Iranian oil. The Energy Information Administration reported on Wednesday that U.S. crude inventories increased by 7.7 millions barrels to 426.7million barrels during the week ended July 25, mainly due to lower exports. Analysts expected a draw of 1.3 million barrels. The gasoline stocks dropped by 2.7m barrels to 228,4m barrels. This was far more than expected, which predicted a 600k barrel draw. ? Tazawa, from Fujitomi Securities, said that "U.S. inventories showed a larger than expected build in crude stock, but an even bigger gasoline draw confirmed the strong driving season demand. This resulted in a neutral effect on the oil market." (Reporting and editing by Yuka Feast; reporting by Yuka Obayashi)
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AGL Energy, Australia's grid-scale batteries project is approved for $515 million
AGL Energy announced on Thursday that it had made a final decision to invest in a grid-scale project worth A$800,000,000 ($515,28,000,000) as part of its broader transition to cleaner energy. The Tomago Battery, which has a four-hour capacity and 500 megawatts of power, will be located in New South Wales' Hunter region. Construction is expected to start later this year and operations to begin by the end of 2027. AGL will fund the battery through its balance sheet, using a combination of operating cash flows and existing debt facilities including green capex loan. AGL has a growing portfolio of grid-scale batteries, including the operational batteries in Torrens Island, Broken Hill and the 500MW Liddell Battery, scheduled to be online early 2026. The company has announced that it has another 900 MW in its pipeline, which is nearing FID. AGL, Australia's largest power generator, has set its sights on a pivot towards flexible and renewable energy. The company's recent acquisition of South Australia’s Virtual Power Plant from Tesla shows its ambition to reach net-zero emission by 2035. In its half-yearly report, the company stated that it aimed to complete 1.4 gigawatts grid-scale storage projects in the next year.
Japan's nuclear regulator has cleared Hokkaido Elec Tomari reactor's safety review
The Nuclear Regulation Authority of Japan approved on Wednesday the safety review for Hokkaido Electric Power’s No.3 nuclear reactor at the Tomari Nuclear Power Station after more than 12 years. This was a requirement to restart its operations.
The reactor was closed in 2012, as part of an overall push to improve safety following a massive earthquake that occurred the year before. This earthquake disabled cooling systems in Tokyo Electric Power Co’s Fukushima Daiichi Plant and caused the worst leakage of radioactive materials in 25 years.
A spokesperson for the NRA said that at its regular meeting it concluded that the safety measures in the Tomari reactor met new regulatory standards, and that the plant passed the test.
Now, the focus will be on obtaining local community approval for restart. Hokkaido Electric aims to finish construction of the seawall by March 20, 2027, and restart the 912 megawatt reactor as quickly as possible after that.
Japan is heavily dependent on imports of fossil fuels. The government wants to see nuclear power play a larger role in the energy mix for the country and its energy security.
Currently, the country operates over a dozen nuclear reactors with a combined power of 12 gigawatts. Many other reactors are being relicensed to meet the stricter safety standards that were implemented following the Fukushima catastrophe. Japan had 54 reactors in operation before 2011.
Japan wants nuclear power to account for 20-22% (of its total electricity) by 2030, despite the difficulties the industry has faced since then. Nuclear power will account for 8.5% in 2023. (Reporting and editing by Jan Harvey; Yuka Obayashi)
(source: Reuters)