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Shell Secures Drilling Permit off South Africa's West Coast
Shell has been granted environmental authorisation to drill up to five deep-water wells off South Africa's west coast, the company said on Friday.The oil major applied for authorisation last year and plans to drill exploration or appraisal wells in the Northern Cape Ultra Deep Block in the Orange Basin, at water depths ranging between 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) and 3,200 metres (10,500 ft).Oil companies, including TotalEnergies, are aiming to drill off South Africa's west coast, where the prolific Orange Basin extends southwards into the country's waters, with hopes of replicating significant discoveries made in neighbouring Namibia."Should viable resources be found offshore, this could significantly contribute to South Africa’s energy security and the government’s economic development programmes," Shell said in a statement without providing any timelines.Shell's previous exploration programme along South Africa's east coast has been disrupted by court litigation over concerns about lack of public consultation and that seismic surveys may harm the marine environment.The long-running case is expected to be heard in South Africa's highest court later this year and could either help usher in a new exploration boom or dampen expectations.Mounting environmental pressures, including a bevy of court actions to halt drilling, and cumbersome bureaucracy have stifled South Africa's ambitions to develop its oil and gas potential.Africa's most industrialised economy has lost around half of its refinery capacity over the last few years and depends even more now on imports of refined petroleum products to meet rising demand.(Reuters - Reporting by Wendell Roelf. Editing by Sfundo Parakozov and Mark Potter)
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After cannabis raid, one California worker is killed and hundreds are arrested
According to a farmworker advocate group, a California farmworker was killed on Friday after suffering injuries a day before when U.S. Immigration agents raided and arrested hundreds workers at a cannabis plantation. On Thursday, dozens of migrant rights activists clashed with federal agents on the rural Southern California coast. This was the latest in President Donald Trump's mass deportation campaign of illegal immigrants living in the U.S. According to estimates, the Trump administration has given contradictory statements on whether it will target farm workers, of whom about half are not authorized to work in the U.S. In a press release, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security stated that 200 people who were in the country illegally had been arrested during the raid. The raid targeted two locations of Glass House Farms. The statement also stated that agents found ten migrant children at the farm. Customs and Border Protection commissioner Rodney Scott said in a X post that the facility was under investigation for violations of child labor. The company didn't immediately respond to our request for a comment. According to pictures and videos, the scene on the farm was chaotic on Thursday, as federal agents in helmets and masks used tear gas and smoke cannisters against angry protesters. Elizabeth Strater said that several farmworkers suffered injuries and one of them died after falling 30 feet from a building in the raid. Strater stated that U.S. citizens had been detained and some were still missing. UFW President Teresa Romero said that some citizen workers detained in custody were only released after they deleted photos and videos from their phones. Romero stated that "These violent, cruel, and criminal federal actions terrorize American Communities, disrupt the American Food Supply Chain, threaten lives, and separate families." The DHS didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment about the group’s statements. Farm groups have warned against the mass deportation farmworkers, saying that it would cripple Canada's food supply. Brooke Rollins, the Agriculture secretary, said in her latest comments that there will be "no amnesty" Farmworkers are protected from deportation. Trump has, however, said that migrant workers Should be allowed Stay on the farm. Reporting by Leah Douglas, Washington; editing by David Gregorio
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As Trump announces tariffs against imports from Canada, stocks and the Canadian dollar fall
The major stock indexes fell slightly on Friday, as U.S. president Donald Trump's announcement that tariffs would be imposed on Canadian imports sparked concerns about trade tensions. Meanwhile, the Canadian dollar was down against the US dollar. Investors also awaited an announcement by Trump regarding tariffs against the European Union. This move will likely trigger a tit for tat response from Europe and create new market uncertainty. Trump announced late Thursday that the U.S. will impose a tariff of 35% on Canadian imports in one month. He also said he planned to impose tariffs blankets of 15% or 20 % on most other trading partner. The reaction to tariff news has been more muted than it was in April when Trump started his trade war. Jake Dollarhide of Longbow Asset Management, Tulsa in Oklahoma, stated that this may change if there is no progress on tariffs. "I don’t think the market is able to take Trump's tariffs forever and on repeat." He said that the market's resilience in the face the tariffs, all the changes to the rules and rates, the delays, the extensions, the surprises and pauses was remarkable. If we don't see more results, the market could have another tariff meltdown similar to April. He said that the second-quarter results could still benefit stocks. Dollarhide stated that "that could be a salvation for the markets, if they started paying attention to earnings once again." JPMorgan Chase will release its results on Tuesday. This marks the beginning of the reporting period. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 279.13 points or 0.63% to 44,371.51, while the S&P 500 fell 20.71 points or 0.33% to 6,259.75, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 45.14 points or 0.22% to 20,585.53. The three major U.S. indexes of stocks were all down this week. Nvidia shares rose by 0.5%, reaching a new high. The stock market value of Nvidia now stands at $4.02 trillion. AeroVironment, a drone manufacturer, rose by 11% following an order from U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to increase drone production and deployment. The MSCI index of global stocks fell by 3.85 points or 0.42% to 922.37. The pan-European STOXX 600 ended the day down by 1.01%. "Today you are seeing a slight pullback due to the tariffs announced overnight." Three consecutive days have passed since the announcement of tariffs. They seem to come at random, so it's hard to predict what's going to happen," said Wasif latif, chief executive officer of Sarmaya Partners. The Canadian dollar fell 0.25% against the greenback, to C$1.37. The dollar index (which measures the greenback in relation to a basket currency) rose by 0.33%, reaching 97.91. The euro fell 0.15% to $1.1682. Bitcoin reached another record high and was last up by 3.84%, to $117,946.74. Crypto investors believe that the expected policy changes for the industry next week could attract new investment into the asset class. Trump had earlier in the week pushed back to August 1, his deadline for tariffs for many trading partners, to give more time for negotiation. But he also expanded his trade war by setting new tariffs for several countries, including Japan and South Korea. He also imposed a 50% copper tariff. The London Metal Exchange reported a 0.4% decline in the price of three-month copper, which is $9,664 per ton. Gold spot rose 1%, to $3,355.89 per ounce as investors sought safe-haven assets in the face of trade tensions. Investors focused on the consumer price index report due next week, which may show that prices increased in June. As it awaits the impact of tariffs, the Federal Reserve will likely keep interest rates at current levels. The yield of the benchmark 10-year U.S. notes rose 7.7 basis points to 4.423%. The yield on interest rate-sensitive 2-year notes climbed 4.4 basis to 3.912%. The International Energy Agency said that the market is tighter than it appears. Brent crude futures gained $1.72 or 2.5% to settle at $70.36 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude gained $1.88 or 2.8% to settle at $68,45.
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After cannabis raid, one California worker is killed and hundreds are arrested
According to a farmworker advocate group, a California farmworker was killed on Friday after suffering injuries sustained the day before when U.S. Immigration agents raided and arrested hundreds workers at a cannabis plantation. On Thursday, dozens of migrant rights activists fought with federal agents on the rural Southern California coast. This was the latest in President Donald Trump's campaign of deporting all illegal immigrants living in the U.S. In a press release, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security stated that 200 people who were in the country illegally had been arrested during the raid. The raid targeted two locations of Glass House Farms. The statement also stated that agents found ten migrant children at the farm. Customs and Border Protection commissioner Rodney Scott said in a post to X that the facility was under investigation for violations of child labor. The company didn't immediately respond to our request for comment. Elizabeth Strater said that several farmworkers suffered injuries and one of them died after falling 30 feet from a building in the raid. Strater stated that U.S. citizens had been detained and some were still missing. UFW President Teresa Romero said that some citizen workers detained in custody were only released after they deleted photos and videos from their phones. The DHS didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment about the group’s statements. (Reporting and editing by David Gregorio in Washington, Leah Douglas reported from Washington)
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The European Commission has proposed a cap on Russian oil prices at 15% less than global prices
EU diplomats reported that the European Commission on Friday proposed a price cap for Russian crude oil at 15% less than the average price on the market in the three previous months. Since the beginning of the year, the European Union and Britain has been pressing the Group of Seven to lower its cap. This is because the oil futures market fell so much that the $60 per barrel price became largely insignificant. Brent crude prices have since recovered and Friday settled at $70.36 a barrel. The G7 price ceiling, which was intended to curb Russia's capacity to finance the Ukraine war, was initially agreed in December 2022. One diplomat added that the new floating cap will be adjusted according to the average monthly price. Although the EU diplomats who spoke to the media were not authorized, they said that technical details about the proposal needed to be clarified, the idea appeared to calm the fears of Malta, Greece, and Cyprus, the EU's maritime state. The U.S. government has refused to lower the cap despite repeated requests from European leaders. This led the Europeans, who have been pushing for this reduction, to act on their own. On Friday, the price of Urals oil in Russia remained 2 dollars per barrel under the limit of $60 per barrel. The cap prohibits the trade of Russian crude oil transported on tankers at a price above $60 per barrel. It also prevents shipping, reinsurance and insurance companies from handling cargoes containing Russian crude throughout the world, unless they are sold below the cap. In June, the Commission proposed to lower this cap from $60 per barrel to $45 per barrel as part its 18th package sanctions against Russia. The Kremlin stated on Friday that it has a lot of experience in dealing with challenges, such as the introduction by the European Union of a Russian oil price cap which is based on float. EU sanctions can only be adopted if all member states agree.
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As Trump announces tariffs against Canadian imports, stocks and the Canadian dollar fall.
The major stock indexes fell slightly on Friday, as U.S. president Donald Trump's announcement that tariffs would be imposed on Canadian imports sparked concerns about trade tensions. Meanwhile, the Canadian dollar was down against the US dollar. Investors also prepare for a Trump announcement of tariffs against the European Union. This move will likely trigger a titt-for-tat reaction from the EU and create new market uncertainty. Trump announced late Thursday that the U.S. will impose a tariff of 35% on Canadian imports in a month's time and plans to impose tariffs blankets of 15% or 20 % on most other trading partner. The reactions to tariff news, aside from the currency markets have been more muted than they were in April when Trump started his trade war. Jake Dollarhide of Longbow Asset Management, Tulsa in Oklahoma, says that this may change if there isn't more progress on the tariff front. "I don’t think the markets can handle the Trump tariffs forever and ever again." He said that the market's resilience in the face the tariffs and the changes to rules and rates as well as the delays, delays and surprise surprises has been amazing. If we don't see more results, the market could have another tariff meltdown similar to April. He said that stocks may benefit from the second-quarter results reports which start next week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 281.88 points or 0.63% to 44,368.76. The S&P 500 declined 15.03 points or 0.24% to 6,265.43 while the Nasdaq Composite increased 7.47 points or 0.04% to 20,638.13. Nvidia shares climbed more than 1%, reaching a new record high. The stock market value of the AI chipmaker now stands at $4.05 trillion. AeroVironment, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions and other drone makers jumped by about 11% following an order from U.S. Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth to increase drone production and deployment. MSCI's global stock index fell by 3.03 points or 0.33% to 923.19. The pan-European STOXX 600 ended the day down by 1.01%. "Today you are seeing a slight pullback due to the tariffs announced overnight. Three consecutive days have passed with after-market announcements of tariffs. They seem to come at random, so it's hard to predict what's going to happen. Wasif Latif is the chief investment officer of Sarmaya Partners, a New Jersey-based firm. The Canadian dollar fell 0.14% against the greenback, to C$1.37. The dollar index (which measures the greenback in relation to a basket of currencies, including the yen, the euro and others) rose by 0.26%, reaching 97.84. The euro fell 0.09% to $1.1689. Bitcoin reached a new record high of $117,652.50 with a gain of 3.58%. Crypto investors bet that the expected policy changes for the sector, which are due next week, will encourage new investment. Trump had earlier in the week pushed back to August 1, his deadline for tariffs for many trading partners, to give more time for negotiation. But he also expanded his trade war by setting new tariffs for several countries, including Japan and South Korea. He also imposed a 50% copper tariff. The London Metal Exchange reported a 0.4% decline in the price of three-month copper, which is $9,664 per ton. Gold spot rose 1%, to $3,355.89 per ounce as investors sought safe haven assets amid trade tensions. Investors focused on the consumer price report due next week, which may show that prices grew faster in June. The Federal Reserve is expected to hold interest rates as it awaits the impact of tariffs. The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10 year notes increased 7.3 basis points from late Thursday to 4,419%.
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Bloomberg News reports that JPMorgan will charge fintechs to access customer data.
Bloomberg News, citing sources familiar with the issue, reported Friday that JPMorgan Chase plans to charge fintech companies a fee for access to customer account data. According to a report, the largest U.S. bank has sent pricing sheets outlining new charges to data aggregators, intermediaries who link banks to fintech platforms, outlining new costs that could vary depending on use cases, with payment focused firms facing higher fees. JPMorgan Chase's spokesperson stated that "We have invested significant resources in creating a valuable, secure system to protect customer data." "We have had productive discussions and are working with everyone in the ecosystem to ensure that we all make the necessary investments in infrastructure that keeps our customer safe." This could have a negative impact on the business models of payment apps that rely on having free access to financial data from customers to complete transactions. PayPal shares fell 6.3%. Block shares dropped 5.6%. Visa and Mastercard both lost 2.9% and 2.82%, respectively. Bloomberg News reported that the new fees will be implemented later this year, but they are still subject to negotiation. U.S. banks are pushing for a lighter regulatory regime under the Trump administration, versus regulations from the Biden era that were more strict on capital requirements. (Reporting and editing by Pooja Deai in Bengaluru, Prakhar Srivastava)
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Peru Central Bank sees an economy growth of nearly 3% in the second quarter
According to the central bank's chief economist Adrian Armas, the economy of Peru is expected to grow by just over 3% during the second quarter 2025. This was in line with their forecasts for a 3.1% increase at the end of this year. In a telephone call, Armas stated that the Peruvian gross domestic product (GDP), likely increased by 2.4% to 2.6% between May and June. However, July's GDP is estimated to be down 0.2% due to protests from informal miners who blocked a copper corridor. The central bank anticipates that GDP growth will ease to 2.9% by 2026. The informal miners protested to extend the duration of the formalization program. However, the recent government decision to remove more than half the registered miners (over 50,000) from the scheme prompted organizers to increase the number of road blockades. This measure is designed to clamp down on illegal mining operations. Sources have told us On Friday, it was announced that the two week protest could begin to affect production at major mining companies. Peru is the third largest copper exporter in the world and also a major metals and agricultural commodity exporter to the United States. When asked about the impact of U.S. president Donald Trump's announcement that a Imports of copper are subject to a 50% tariff Armas stated that the tax would be imposed on August 1 if the U.S. didn't have the capacity to replace its copper imports. This could lead to higher prices for Americans. Chile and Mexico, two other major copper exporters have stated that they are looking to ship their production to new markets
Environment modification putting Philippines at double threat of hurricanes, scientists state
Environment modification is making the Philippines more vulnerable to hurricanes, with rising temperature levels currently putting the nation at almost double the danger of lethal tropical storms, scientists said in a report released on Thursday.
The extraordinary development of 4 tropical storms around the Philippines last month was made 70% most likely as a result of international temperature increases of 1.3 degrees Celsius (2.3 degrees Fahrenheit), researchers with the World Weather Attribution group said in a report published on Thursday.
Though researchers are cautious when it pertains to attributing individual weather condition occasions to environment change, the consensus is that warmer oceans are heightening rains and wind speeds around the world.
Climate change made the conditions that formed and fueled the tropical cyclones almost twice as likely, the group stated.
Hundreds of countless individuals were evacuated and more than 170 individuals eliminated throughout an unmatched series of six hurricanes that landed in the nation in October and November, raising concerns that storm activity was being turbocharged by greater sea surface temperatures.
The storms were most likely to develop more strongly and reach the Philippines at a greater intensity than they otherwise would have, said Ben Clarke, a weather researcher at Imperial College London, among the report's authors.
If temperatures rise to 2.6 Celsius above pre-industrial levels, those exact same storm conditions would be 40% most likely compared to now, he included.
An analysis released last month by U.S. weather scientists Environment Central stated that typhoons had actually magnified considerably as a result of record-breaking ocean warming, with wind speeds up by 18 miles per hour (29 kph).
Scientists think warmer ocean temperature levels are intensifying hurricanes by increasing the rate of evaporation. The Intergovernmental Panel on Environment Change said in its most current assessment that there was high confidence that international warming would make storms more intense.
It is still uncertain whether or not rising temperature levels would extend the typical hurricane season or make hurricanes more regular, but climate activists are worried.
We utilized to have what we called a risk calendar - now it is simply basically the entire year around, stated Afrhill Rances, the Philippines' representative with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
(source: Reuters)