Latest News
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EV maker VinFast to build 2nd production plant in Vietnam
Vietnamese electric lorry ( EV) manufacturer VinFast on Sunday revealed a plan to develop its second domestic production plant that will double its output capability, saying it is needed to meet increased need for its little and midsized designs. VinFast stated the brand-new facility is anticipated to produce 300,000 systems yearly in its preliminary phase, the very same capability as its existing plant in Haiphong. The business provided less than 45,000 automobiles worldwide in the first nine months of 2024. The new factory in the main Ha Tinh province will mostly produce VF 3 and VF 5 designs for both domestic sales and export, with operations set to start in July next year, the business stated in a declaration. Need in global markets is growing rapidly, so the building of an additional electric automobile factory ... will develop a strong foundation for an important and explosive advancement phase ahead for VinFast, said Nguyen Viet Quang, Vice Chairman and CEO of VinFast's parent business Vingroup. VinFast, a subsidiary of significant Vietnamese corporation Vingroup, said last month its third-quarter bottom line had narrowed to $550 million, which it stated reflected lower product expenses and increased production. The automaker provided 44,773 cars throughout the first 9 months of this year, simply over 55% of its target of 80,000 units for the year. Company officials have actually stated they stay confident of reaching the objective. The new plant will be located in the same complex as VinFast's battery plant and will utilize parts from the business's. existing factory in Haiphong. VinFast has likewise announced plans for assembly plants in both. Indonesia and India, and has postponed the launch of a planned. North Carolina center till 2028.
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UniCredit states ready to take a seat with Credit Agricole over Banco BPM
UniCredit is all set to take a seat with Credit Agricole, a representative for the Italian bank stated in a LinkedIn post after the French loan provider increased its possible stake in Unicredit's takeover target Banco BPM. UniCredit's quote for its smaller peer prompted Credit Agricole to state on Friday it had entered derivatives that would raise its stake in BPM to 15% from 9.9% once the European Reserve bank offers its thumbs-up. The other day's news about Credit Agricole's increased stake in BPM changes nothing for UniCredit, the representative for UniCredit stated on social media network LinkedIn. We were always prepared to negotiate with CA, as this would have been needed whatever the scale of their shareholding. Sources with understanding of the French bank's method have told Reuters Credit Agricole's focus is to safeguard the business collaborations that enable it to sell its products in Italy. Credit Agricole has actually ruled out a complete buyout of BPM, in which it is the single most significant shareholder. UniCredit's early move made Credit Agricole's financial investment more expensive and more complicated. BPM shareholders need to not welcome this development, the UniCredit spokesperson stated. UniCredit last month declared a seat at Italy's bank debt consolidation table by introducing a 10 billion euro ($ 11 billion). all-share unsolicited bid for Banco BPM. The relocation ambushed plans by the Rome government to broker a. merger in between BPM and state-backed Monte dei Paschi di Siena . Both banks partner with fund supervisor Anima Holding. , which Banco BPM remains in the process of taking over. On Saturday, sources informed Reuters th at Credit Agricole had got informal support from the Rome. federal government prior to announcing its increased stake in Banco BPM. The UniCredit spokesperson warned BPM shareholders they. need to watch out for a possible combination of BPM with the. Italian company of Credit Agricole, or of any effort to merge. BPM with Monte dei Paschi. A quote for Monte dei Paschi is a possible defence technique. for BPM, which has spurned UniCredit's deal as too low-cost. Credit Agricole's most likely options would be to merge BPM. with Credit Agricole Italia
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Israeli strikes on southern Lebanese towns kill 6, Lebanese health ministry states
Israeli strikes on 2 southern Lebanese towns eliminated 6 people and wounded 5, the Lebanese health ministry said on Saturday, in the most recent potential challenge to a fragile ceasefire that has remained in place for less than 2 weeks. 5 people were eliminated in an attack on Beit Lif town while one person was killed in a drone strike on Deir Seryan, the health ministry said in a statement. The Israeli armed force has yet to discuss the incidents. Tensions have actually continued despite the ceasefire, with Israel and the Lebanese armed faction Hezbollah trading accusations of offenses. Earlier today, Israel threatened to return to war if its truce with Hezbollah collapsed. The U.S. said last Monday that the ceasefire was holding, although it anticipated that there may be violations.
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Reaction to Syrian rebels' expanding advance against Assad
Syrian rebels went into residential areas of the city of Homs on Saturday, sources stated, pushing a lightning week-long advance as front lines collapse across the nation and government forces battle to save President Bashar al-Assad's 24-year guideline. Following are responses. U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT DONALD TRUMP Syria is a mess, however is not our pal, & & THE UNITED STATES NEED TO HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH IT THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT. PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!, Trump stated in a post on his social networks platform Truth Social. RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER SERGEI LAVROV It's inadmissible to allow the terrorist group to take control of the lands in violation of arrangements. TURKISH PRESIDENT TAYYIP ERDOGAN There is now a new reality in Syria, politically and diplomatically. And Syria comes from Syrians with all its ethnic, sectarian and religious elements. Individuals of Syria are the ones who will choose the future of their own country. As Turkey, our wish is for our neighbour Syria to rapidly gain back the peace, stability and serenity it has been yearning for 13 years. SYRIAN PRIME MINISTER MOHAMMAD GHAZI AL-JALALI The real battle our nation is fighting is the battle for ... national identity. The geographical fight is a secondary one, which our brave army and armed forces have actually been combating because 2011 and continues to this day. TOBIAS LINDNER, A MINISTER OF STATE AT THE GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTRY We prompt all celebrations to de-escalate and to remind them of their commitment to safeguard civilians. There need to be no foreign escalation. Russian airstrikes on civilian targets are especially fretting. What we require now is a political procedure, a solution in the U.N. structure of resolution 2254. HAMISH FALCONER, BRITAIN'S MINISTER FOR THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA I stay very concerned by the capacity for big full-blown attacks by the regime or by Russia. Any suggestion of making use of chemical weapons would be intolerable. NORWEGIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ESPEN BARTH EIDE I think there is time for really to call for discussion, for a political settlement and to try to stop this before it really goes absolutely down the drain.
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Trump says United States needs to 'NOT GET INVOLVED' in conflict in Syria
Presidentelect Donald Trump said on Saturday the U.S. need to not be involved in the conflict in Syria, where rebel forces are threatening the federal government of President Bashar alAssad. Syria is a mess, however is not our buddy, & & THE UNITED STATES NEED TO HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH IT THIS IS NOT OUR BATTLE. LET IT. PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!, Trump stated in a post on his social media platform Reality Social. Trump stated because Russia, an Assad ally, is bound battling a war with Ukraine it seems incapable of stopping this literal march through Syria, a country they have secured for years. If Russia were forced out of Syria, it might in fact be the best thing that can take place to them due to the fact that there was never much of an advantage in Syria for Russia, Trump stated. Trump's comments appeared to show his opposition to the presence of some 900 U.S. troops in Syria, mostly of them in the northeast, where they have actually backed a Syrian Kurd-led alliance in preventing a revival of Islamic State militants. Trump revealed in 2018 during his very first term that he wished to withdraw the U.S. troops due to the fact that he said Islamic State was near defeat. But he held off as advisers warned that a pullout would leave a space that would be filled by Iran and Russia.
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Iran's nuclear leap \extremely serious\, injures diplomacy, Western source states
Iran's velocity in its enrichment of uranium to near to bomb grade is extremely. serious, has no civilian validation and contradicts Tehran's. assertions on desiring serious nuclear settlements, a Western. diplomatic source stated on Saturday. Iran has long denied looking for nuclear weapons. U.N. nuclear guard dog chief Rafael Grossi told Reuters on. Friday that Iran was drastically accelerating its enrichment of. uranium to as much as 60% purity, near to the about 90% level that. is weapons grade. The International Atomic Energy Company later verified in a. personal report to member states that Iran was accelerating. uranium enrichment, a process that fine-tunes the raw product so. that it can be utilized as fuel in civil nuclear power generation. or, possibly, nuclear weapons. The information reported by the Director General of the. Agency, showing a substantial increase in Iran's capacity to. produce highly enriched uranium at 60%, is very major,. the Western diplomatic source told Reuters. These measures have no reliable civilian validation and. could, on the contrary, directly sustain a military nuclear. programme if Iran were to take the decision ... They remain in. contradiction with Iran's statements on its willingness to. return to trustworthy negotiations..
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Denmark to Engage with Industry to Seek Clarity Over Failed Offshore Wind Tender
Denmark's latest offshore wind farm tender in the North Sea has failed to attract any bids, authorities said on Thursday, in a further setback for the industry.After a year of challenges, the global offshore wind industry no longer has much prospect of hitting the lofty targets set by governments in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere, hindering efforts to fight climate change."This is a very disappointing result," energy and climate minister Lars Aagard said in a written statement."The circumstances for offshore wind in Europe have changed significantly in a relatively short time, including large price and interest rate increases," Aagard added.The Danish Energy Agency said it would start a dialogue with market participants to identify reasons for the lack of bids, adding that a number of companies had expressed interest during the initial market dialogue.Danish offshore wind farm developer Orsted said it had opted not to bid due to an unfavourable risk-reward balance and acknowledged the changing industry factors such as higher inflation, rising interest rates and supply chain bottlenecks."To mitigate the impact of this and support the ongoing expansion of offshore wind energy, industry and policymakers should work together to create the necessary conditions for a sustainable future for offshore wind," Orsted's Chief Commercial Officer Rasmus Errboe said in a written comment.Denmark had in April launched its biggest offshore wind tender to date, offering no subsidies to companies competing for the right to erect turbines on six sites with a combined capacity of up to 10 gigawatts.The deadline for bids for three sites in the North Sea was on Thursday, while the deadline for an additional three sites in the Baltic Sea and Kattegat is on April 1, 2025.No subsidies were offered in the tender.Shell, one of the major energy companies which have touted offshore wind as a key market they can invest in as part of the world's energy transition, on Wednesday said it was stepping back from new offshore wind investments in a move mirrored by others.Denmark, also home to turbine maker Vestas, has been a pioneer in both onshore and offshore wind, thanks also to its favourable wind speeds.(Reuters - Reporting by Stine Jacobsen; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Keith Weir)
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China's central bank resumes gold purchases after six-month hiatus in Nov.
China's central bank resumed purchasing gold for its reserves in November after a sixmonth pause, official information by the People's Bank of China (PBOC) revealed on Saturday. The PBOC was the world's largest authorities sector purchaser of gold in 2023. Resumption of its purchases may support Chinese investor demand which was silenced since the PBOC paused its 18-month purchasing streak in May. China's gold holdings rose to 72.96 million fine troy ounces at the end of November, up from 72.80 million troy ounces a. month previously. The value of China's gold reserves fell to $193.43 billion. at the end of last month from $199.06 billion at the end of. October. November was gold's very first month-to-month price drop given that June due. to a post-U.S. election sell-off driven by Donald Trump's win. Spot rates for the precious metal are down 5% since. striking a record high of $2,790.15 an ounce on Oct. 31, but are. still up 28% so far this year. The resumption will send out a signal that the PBOC has actually grown. accustomed to these record high price levels and is prepared to. construct reserves regardless, said Ole Hansen, head of commodity. method at Saxo Bank.
Instantaneous VIEW-India economy grows 5.4% in July-Sept quarter
India's economy slowed a lot more than expected in JulySeptember, broadening by only 5.4% yearonyear, data showed on Friday, weighed down by weak city consumption following a rise in food costs.
A Reuters survey had forecasted a 6.5% growth in gross domestic product for the quarter ending Sept. 30.
COMMENTARY
ADITI NAYAR, ECONOMIST AT ICRA, GURUGRAM
Due to the current spike in CPI inflation, we expect a status quo from the RBI's monetary policy meeting next week.
Nevertheless, with the GDP growth sharply undershooting the Committee's expectations, a February 2025 rate cut might be on the table if the next two inflation prints decline.
GAURA SEN GUPTA, INDIA FINANCIAL EXPERT AT IDFC FIRST BANK, MUMBAI
This (GDP print) reflects a sharp slowdown in noted company earnings in the second quarter. From the expense side, capex development slowed, showing a downturn in government capex especially state government.
Private capex has actually stayed soft due to lack of visibility on intake demand. Personal intake development slowdown is led by city demand weak point as earnings development slowed.
Post today's print, there is a high probability of an RBI rate cut in December.
VIVEK KUMAR, ECONOMIC EXPERT, QUANTECO RESEARCH, MUMBAI
A few of the downdraft will vanish in H2 FY25 as the beneficial effect of healthy kharif sowing comes on board, while the federal government steps up its expense in an attempt to get close to the allocated target. This, in addition to the festive season revival in activity levels, need to help in GDP growth turning higher.
Having said that, global uncertainty is likely to worsen in the Trump 2.0 routine, the cascading impact of which needs to be kept track of carefully. In general, we now see a trustworthy disadvantage risk to our FY25 GDP development estimate of 7.0%.
UPASNA BHARDWAJ, PRIMARY ECONOMIC EXPERT KOTAK MAHINDRA BANK, MUMBAI
The sharply lower-than-expected GDP figures show the extremely disappointing corporate earnings data. The manufacturing sector appears to have taken the optimum whipping.
The high-frequency information recommends festive-linked revival in activity may offer a partially better second-half growth but in general GDP development for the full year is going to be around 100bps lower than RBI's quote of 7.2%.
In spite of the sharp slowdown in GDP development, we maintain our view of a time out by the RBI next week, offered elevated inflation and unsure international environment.
SAKSHI GUPTA, PRINCIPAL ECONOMIST, HDFC BANK, GURUGRAM
The softer financial growth originated from lower manufacturing, electricity and mining growth in the second quarter.
On the demand side, consumption growth slowed probably due to a small amounts in city demand.
While we expect the RBI to keep the policy rate the same at its meeting next week, the possibility of a move in February for a rate cut has increased.
GARIMA KAPOOR, FINANCIAL EXPERT, INSTITUTIONAL EQUITIES, ELARA SECURITIES, MUMBAI
Amid slow consumption development owing to moderating real earnings development and result of concentrated and heavy rains, demand drivers remained weak in Q2 FY25. The increase in product rates amid sluggish top-line growth resulted in drop in gross value included development in producing sector.
Both these elements impacted the growth in Q2FY25.
(source: Reuters)