Latest News
-
Nestle and others warn that EU law delays endanger forests worldwide
Nestle, Ferrero, and Olam Agri are among the major agri-food firms that have warned about the dangers of deforestation in forests around world due to delays by European Union. The EU last month proposed delaying the launch of its anti-deforestation law for a second time, citing concerns about the readiness of information-technology systems needed to support the law. The ban on palm oil imports linked to forest destruction could be delayed for an additional year. The EU and its trade partners, such as Brazil and the United States, are strongly opposed to this law. Last week, EU Commissioner Jessika Roswall stated that the delay in implementing the law was not due to U.S. concerns. In a letter sent to Roswall, a copy was also sent, the companies that operate in the cocoa and dairy sectors, as well as the wood, rubber and other agrifood industries, stated that it is essential to have clear rules for EU competition and that they were already investing and preparing "in good faith" to comply. The letter from October 2 stated that "we remain on track to meet the EUDR obligations in full by the 31 December 2025." The proposed delay will put at risk the conservation of forests around the world, accelerate climate change effects, and undermine trust in Europe's regulatory obligations. Companies said that any change at this time would create uncertainty, annoy investors and increase the risk of rules being further watered-down. Francesco Tramontin (Vice President, Institutional Affairs, Ferrero Group) said that greater transparency in the supply chain is crucial for managing risk. The EU deforestation legislation was set to come into effect on December 30 and will require operators who sell goods such as soy, beef, and palm oil to EU markets to prove their products do not cause deforestation. (Reporting and editing by Emelia Sithole Matarise; Virginia Furness)
-
Anglo American initiates arbitration against Peabody for failed deal
Anglo American, a U.S. based company, announced on Friday that it had initiated arbitration proceedings against Peabody Energy as a result of the termination by the British mining giant of an agreement to purchase its steelmaking coal assets. Peabody, August Withdrawal After two companies were unable to agree on a lower price after a mine explosion, Anglo American made a $3.78 billion offer for Anglo American’s Australian coal assets. Peabody has agreed to buy the mines located in Queensland's Bowen Basin. This is the top steelmaking coal producing region of the world. Anglo had been looking to sell off or spin-off non-core assets after BHP failed to takeover the company last year. In April, the operations at Moranbah North were stopped after a fire underground caused by high levels of gas. Peabody invoked a clause that allowed it to walk out or renegotiate the contract if there was a major event between signing and completion. Anglo returned $29 Million of the $75 Million deposit due to Peabody. The U.S. coal miner added that it has demanded the repayment of the remainder "without further delay".
-
Tharisa plans on spending $547 million for underground platinum mine project
Tharisa Plc, a South African company, announced on Friday that it plans to invest $547 million in an underground mining project for platinum group metals over the next decade. The company is betting on these metals as being essential to the global switch to cleaner energy technologies. It said that the company plans to convert its Tharisa open pit PGM and Chrome co-producing mine in South Africa's Bushveld Complex from an open pit mine to underground mining by 2020. Phoevos Poullis, CEO of the company, said in a conference call that the underground project was a natural progression. It has been set up to enhance the mine life and access multi-generational minerals resources. He said that PGMs were "critical metals that the world is now aware are necessary for a transition to a new world". The metals can be used to produce clean hydrogen and fuel cells. Pouroulis stated that Tharisa’s mechanised underground operation, which is expected to begin delivering ore in the second quarter 2026 from the first two shafts, will increase efficiencies, reduce costs, and increase output. The underground operations will deliver at least 200,000 pounds of PGMs annually and 2 million tons of chrome concentrate. Tharisa's 2025 financial year is expected to produce between 140,000-160,000 ounces PGMs, and 1.65-1.8 million tons chrome concentrates. It is developing two new greenfield mining projects, including Ivanhoe Platreef in South Africa and the Karo open pit platinum mine, which produces 226,000 ounces of platinum per year. South African Platinum miner Northam said that the number of PGM mines had fallen from 81 to 53 in 2008 due to the advancement of electric vehicles. Reporting by Nelson Banya, Editing by Mark Potter
-
Andy Home: Tin prices rise as Indonesia cracksdown on illegal miners
This time, the tin supply chain is in trouble again. The government of Indonesia has launched a massive crackdown on illegal mining. The London Metal Exchange's (LME) 3-month tin price has risen to more than $37,500 per ton. This is the highest since April, when supply was threatened by the Bisie Mine in Democratic Republic of Congo. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto announced the latest price hike, saying that the government plans to close 1,000 illegal mining operations in the tin rich islands of Bangka & Belitung. It is impossible to estimate how much tin these operations produce, but there could be a positive offset if the closure of such operations leads to a higher level of production in the official sector. The price of tin is rising again because it is another drop in the cauldron that is the supply crisis. LONG CAMPAIGN Since the deregulation of the tin industry at the turn of the century, the Indonesian authorities are struggling to regain their control. Many of the tin mined in this country is produced by small-scale and artisanal miners. It's difficult to know who has a licence. The boundaries have blurred so much that PT Timah - the top producer in the country - has been accused of facilitating black market trade. Some illegal "mines", however, are nothing more than rafts that are sent out to dredge tin at night in waters licensed by PT Timah or other operators. The tin ore is then smuggled from the country in small boats. One such boat was seized by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency this week, which contained 530 gunny sacks weighing 26 tons. Prabowo stated that the latest cracking of the regulatory whip began at the beginning of last month, and it has already led to multiple closures. SHADOW SHADOW PRODUCTION How much tin is produced in Indonesia's shadow industry? As such material is by definition not detected by the country's Customs Service, it exists as a statistical blackhole. Indonesia's official export statistics capture flows of refined Tin, which is the only metal form that is supposed be shipped overseas. Both Chinese and Malaysian customs departments record monthly imports from Indonesia of "ore and concentrates". According to World Bureau of Metal Statistics, Chinese imports totaled 1,192 tons during the first eight month of the year. Malaysia imported 642 tons of metal in the same period. This is just the tip of the Iceberg. The Indonesian Tin Exporters Association's (ITEA) chairman told local media up to 12,000 tonnes of tin is illegally exported every year. Prabowo said that the shadow sector could represent up to 80% of the production in the Bangka Belitung area. Estimates will always differ but there is general agreement that the problem became much worse over the past year. The illegal production boom is reducing the capacity of the official sector. PT Timah attributed a drop of 32% in ore production year-on-year in the first half 2025 to the competition with the shadow industry. The ITEA expects a modest rebound to 53,000 tonnes this year. Last year, Indonesian exports fell to a record low of 46,000 metric tons. In theory, the closure of illegal activities should help compensate the official sector in terms of production. However, it is unclear how much compensation and for what period. CAULDRON Tin price has not been waiting to find out. It has risen by 10% in the last week, as time spreads have tightened. Only a few weeks ago, the LME cash price of tin was trading at $167 below the three-month price. This week, the price has flipped up to $105 as shorts have been forced to buy their positions. The price response to the Indonesian announcement says a lot about the fragility and dependence of the tin chain on a few large producers. One of the largest tin mining operations in the world is still not operational. Man Maw, in the semiautonomous Wa State of Myanmar, is expected to reopen after a two year absence. The flow of raw tin materials to China is still a trickle. This suggests that the mine has not yet reached its previous production level before the authorities closed it for an audit. The Bisie Tin Mine in the Congo has resumed operations after a brief suspension in March, due to the M23 rebels' advance. The threat is still there. M23 appears not to be aware that the United States is leading the effort to resolve the decades-old conflicts in eastern Congo. Kony Ng’ang’a, one of the M23 leaders, was uncompromising in an interview with CNN last month. Tin traders had already enough flash points to worry about. Now they have a new one. These are the opinions of a columnist who writes for.
-
Net-Zero Banking Alliance collapses following mass exodus of members
Net-Zero Banking Alliance will cease operation after a vote. The group had already lost a number of members due to allegations made by some U.S. legislators that its membership violated antitrust laws. In 2021, the alliance was established as the main organisation of the banking sector to lead the global effort by the industry to reduce carbon emissions. In August, after the departure of many large banks, a new structure was proposed to replace the membership-based organization with a "framework project". A spokesperson for the group stated that "as a consequence of this vote, NZBA will cease its operations immediately." The resources developed over a period of several years will be available to banks who are seeking guidance on setting decarbonisation goals. The spokesperson stated that "the Guidance for climate target setting for banks and supporting implementation resources is the most widely-used global banking framework focused on specifically setting decarbonisation goals and will remain publically available." This decision is similar to one made by a climate group in the insurance industry for 2024. After facing similar political pressure, another climate-focused asset management organisation is also evaluating its next steps. It's a bitter disappointment to see that the largest banks in the World voted to step back from their commitments around preventing the worst effects on global warming," said Jeanne Martin. She is co-Director for Corporate Engagement at the non-profit ShareAction. Martin said that senior bankers must use their influence to increase standards of accountability for climate change if they want to see the transition to clean energy become a reality. (Reporting and editing by Virginia Furness, Jane Merriman, and Simon Jessop)
-
EU allocates $1.1 billion to Spain as aid for the recovery from the Valencia floods
The European Commission announced on Friday that it had allocated an aid package worth 945 million euro ($1.1 billion) for Spain to recover from the worst flash floods recorded in Spain's history. Nearly 240 people lost their lives in Spain after torrential rainfalls in October last year triggered floods which swept across eastern and southern Spain. Valencia's south suburbs were the most severely affected area, where over 220 people perished. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has announced a 2.3 billion euro aid package to rebuild areas in the region that were affected by flooding, which he said was caused by climate changes. The European Commission announced on Friday that the total amount of aid earmarked for recovery after the floods will be around 1.6 billion euro, with 645 million additional euros coming from Spain’s cohesion fund which would be reallocated. In a statement, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission said: "This commitment reflects a determination to assist member states in building greater resilience and coping with future crises."
-
Shares of USA Rare Earth surge after a report miner has been in close contact with the White House
USA Rare Earth's shares rose 10% on Friday in premarket trading after it was reported that its CEO Barbara Humpton had said the company was in discussions with the White House. In an interview on CNBC, Humpton answered a question regarding the company's interest in striking a business deal with the Trump Administration. USA Rare Earth has not responded to our request for comment immediately. In March, U.S. president Donald Trump invoked emergency powers to increase domestic production of vital minerals. This was part of an effort to counter China's near total control of this sector. The Trump administration acquired a 5% share in Lithium Americas earlier this week. It also took a separate 5% interest in the joint venture between General Motors and the company, Thacker Pass, which will be the largest source of lithium in the Western Hemisphere. MP Materials announced a multi-billion dollar deal in July with the U.S. Government to increase production of rare earth magnets. The Defense Department became its largest shareholder. Rare earths is a grouping of 17 metals which are used in magnets to turn energy into motion. China had stopped exports as part of the trade spat between Trump and China in March. However, this dispute showed signs of easing by June as tensions grew. USA Rare Earth is developing a mine at Sierra Blanca in Texas, and a manufacturing facility for neo-magnets in Stillwater in Oklahoma. Both are expected to be commercialized in the first half 2026. The company's market capitalization is about $2.59 Billion as of the last close. (Reporting and editing by Shilpa Majumdar in Bengaluru)
-
No payrolls, no problem as stocks hit record highs
The world stock market was on track for a solid gain this week and new record highs as the unstoppable rise in tech stocks and expectations of lower U.S. rates offset uncertainty over the U.S. shutdown. Investors have mostly ignored the 15th shutdown since 1981. But on Friday, it meant that traders were unable to get the most important economic data of the month - the U.S. monthly payroll figures. MSCI's 47-country world share index didn't seem to be bothered by the overnight record highs in Wall Street and Europe on Thursday. Equities have had their best week since early April. The euro also ticked up on Friday thanks to the Eurozone services sector PMIs. They accelerated to a high of eight months due to moderate growth in Germany and Spain. However, France's political uncertainties continued to weigh. Christopher Hodge is the U.S. economist for Natixis. He said that the lack of payrolls later has in some way bolstered forecasters' current views on the possibility of another rate cut this month. Hodge added that the markets had also dealt with shutdowns in the U.S. for a long time. The only difference this time around is that the economic and policy cycle is more ambiguous. Benchmark government bonds yields, the main driver for global borrowing costs, increased in both the U.S. The markets have almost completely priced in a Fed rate cut of 25 basis points this month, and at least four by the end 2026. GOING GOLD The MSCI main Asian share index rose overnight, closing with a weekly gain of 2.3%. It has now increased by about 23% in this year. China and other parts of Asia were closed on holiday. Trading was therefore lighter than usual, although Taiwan reached a new record high. Japan's Nikkei also rose 1.5% before the weekend's crucial vote to determine the next Prime Minister. Wall Street futures also pointed higher. All three major U.S. indices closed at new peaks on Friday, buoyed by the insatiable enthusiasm of investors for AI. Weiheng chen, global investment strategist, J.P. Morgan Private Bank said that investors seem willing to give Washington some time to settle its differences, even though a prolonged shut down may begin to affect the markets. Chen stated that investors are currently more interested in the possible impacts of the Fed rate-cutting cycles, immigration and trade policy, economic data and corporate earnings. Investors have relied on alternative data, both public and private, to gauge the state of the U.S. labor market. The dollar is now under pressure. The dollar index, which compares it to six other major currencies, is down again in Europe. It's on track for its largest weekly drop since august. The Japanese yen is the most significant beneficiary of the drop in the dollar, although it fell 0.3% on Friday to 147.74 dollars after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Umeda failed to provide any clues as when the Bank will raise interest rates next. Oil prices in commodities recovered slightly for the day, but are on track to experience their biggest weekly decline in more than three months. Brent crude futures were at $64.81 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $61.30 a barrel. Gold, on the other hand, is on track to reach a record high of $3.896 per ounce, which was set on Thursday. Low interest rates make it a popular asset in times of uncertainty. The stock has risen 47% in the past year. Gold is the best safe haven as the U.S. Dollar's position as the world reserve currency is being tested. We continue to see gold as the ultimate asset diversifier, said Greg Hirt.
Keep calm and carry on with MORNING BID AMERICAS
What is important in U.S. markets and global markets today
By Anna Szymanski, Editor-in-Charge, Open Interest
Hello Morning Bid readers! The U.S. shutdown has not affected global equity markets much this week. All three major U.S. indexes reached record highs on the Thursday, and Asian and European markets are on track to post gains for the week early on Friday. This shutdown may delay vital government data and make the Federal Reserve's task even more difficult. Artificial intelligence may be to blame for the Fed's current economic situation, which is characterized by a slow job growth rate and an annualized growth of almost 4%. Mike Dolan, Editor-at-Large at ROI Financial Markets, argues, that the U.S. economic system could be affected if the AI equity bubble bursts.
The private payrolls for September have been released. Investors, while not putting too much weight on this data (which economists don't tend to do), took note of the largest monthly decline in employment since over two years. Gold's seventh consecutive weekly increase was boosted by hopes of continued Fed easing. Oil prices dropped on energy markets for most of the week due to expectations of increased supply. This could include accelerated production from OPEC+. However, Brent crude fell 1% on Friday morning following the news of a Chevron refinery fire in El Segundo, which is one of the biggest on the U.S. West Coast. Ron Bousso, ROI Energy's Columnist, argues that Big Oil has become more bullish on the future outlook while becoming more bearish in the short term. Clyde Russell of ROI Asia Commodities writes that predicting what will happen on the oil market this year is difficult. Three of the main drivers of crude price are the unwinding OPEC+ cuts in production, China storage flows, and geopolitical conflicts. All of these are hard to predict accurately. Gavin Maguire, ROI Energy Transition columnist, explains how Italy's economic troubles may actually have climate benefits. Clyde Russell explains why the low prices for some minerals do not reflect the importance of these minerals to the global energy transformation. Andy Home, ROI Metals columnist, looks at the fragility in the copper supply chain and highlights the disastrous events that occurred at Freeport McMoRan’s Grasberg Mine last month.
Check out what the ROI team recommends you read, watch, and listen to as we enter the weekend. Stay informed and prepared for the coming week. Please contact me at
This weekend we are reading...
GAVIN MAGUIRE
ROI Global Energy Transition: According to this analysis by Carbon Brief, the electricity demand of Great Britain will be fully met by clean energy for an unprecedented period in 2025. This is pretty impressive considering that the country was powered by fossils fuels to a high percentage up until 2010.
ANDY HOME: ROI Metals columnist Anjana Ahuja's article in the Financial Times is my read of the week. She discusses groundbreaking work on the concept black hole stars. This raises the cosmological questions of whether black holes or galaxies with matter came first.
RON BOUSSO is the ROI Energy Columnist. The book More and more and more by Jean-Baptiste Fressoz provides a fascinating history of energy throughout the centuries. The book argues against the notion of an energy shift, arguing that new energy sources have always been added to the world.
JAMIE MCGEEVER, Columnist at ROI Markets:
United States, Inc. is a compilation of four Project Syndicate Articles that highlight several fundamental flaws when trying to run the U.S. Government like a business.
Listening to...
The UN General Assembly is examined in depth. Correspondents examine the challenges of global multilateralism in a time when history is changing.
"Facing Coming Storms", a podcast produced by the British Army Centre for Historical and Conflict Research and the Project for Study of the 21st Century, is available on iTunes. This episode features a conversation between PS21 Executive Director Peter Apps and Admiral Nils vang, the former head of Denmark's Navy.
Sign up for the newsletter to receive Morning Bid every morning in your email. Subscribe to the Morning Bid newsletter
Website
You can find us on LinkedIn.
The opinions expressed are solely those of their authors. These opinions do not represent the views of News. News is bound by the Trust Principles to maintain integrity, independence and freedom from bias. (By Anna Szymanski)
(source: Reuters)