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Gold's record high is lowered due to profit-taking and the focus on US job data
Profit-taking led to gold's decline on Thursday, after the bullion reached an all-time high on expectations of a U.S. rate cut. Investors were also looking forward to this week's U.S. employment data. As of 0153 GMT, spot gold was down 0.3%, at $3,546.73 an ounce. On Wednesday, gold reached a new record of $3.578.50 per ounce. U.S. Gold Futures for December Delivery fell 0.8% to $3.605.60. Gold is still on a bullish market, despite some profit-taking. "Rate-cut expectations and concerns over the Federal Reserve’s independence will add to safe haven demand," GoldSilver Central's MD Brian Lan stated. "We will not be surprised if the gold price goes up to $3.800 or higher in near-term." The U.S. Labor Department announced on Wednesday that the number of job openings in July was lower than expected, at 7.181 millions. Fed officials have said that labor market concerns are still driving them to believe in rate cuts. Fed Governor Christopher Waller believes the Fed should cut rates at its next meeting. According to CME Group’s FedWatch tool, traders are now pricing in 97% of a rate cut of 25 basis points at the end the two-day meeting of the U.S. Central Bank on September 17. This is up from 92% prior to the data. Gold that does not yield is usually a good investment in an environment with low interest rates. Now, the focus is on Friday's non-farm payroll data in the United States. According to a poll, the non-farm payrolls in August are expected to grow by 78,000 jobs compared to 73,000 in July. On Wednesday, Donald Trump stated that if the Supreme Court rules against the U.S. in a case regarding tariffs, the U.S. may have to "unwind' trade agreements it has made with the European Union (EU), Japan and South Korea. Silver fell 0.8%, to $40.87 an ounce. It had reached its highest level since September 2011, in the previous session. Platinum fell 0.5% to $1415.03 while palladium dropped 1% to 1136.26.
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Profit-taking and technical correction bring LIVESTOCK-Cattle Futures to a lower end.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange beef futures fell for a second session in a row on Wednesday, as profit-taking and technical selling corrections from recent highs occurred. Since months, beef futures have been supported by elevated prices. Traders are now assessing whether the high prices will begin to affect beef demand as the outdoor grilling season ends. Analysts said that losses were however limited, as the cash cattle price remained higher than futures. It's a bull market driven by cash. Don Roose said that at this time of the year, October, cattle prices should be equal to cash. CME October Live Cattle Futures finished 1.200 cents below at 238,325 cents a pound. This is a larger discount than the $242 per 100weight that packers were willing to pay for cattle on feedlot markets in the previous week. Cash cattle prices may be stable or even higher than last week, according to the bids of packers at midweek. Beef packer profits remained positive despite tight supplies of cattle and high cattle prices, as beef values hovered at multi-year heights. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that the value of the boxed choice beef cutout rose $2.59 per cwt on Wednesday, reversing the previous-day decline. This is the highest price since May 2020. Select cutout increased by $1.56 per cwt to $387.73. According to HedgersEdge, a livestock marketing advisory service, the average beef packer's margin fell to $86.20 a head on Wednesday, from $99.25 per head a day before but was up from $82.55 compared to last week. Live cattle prices also fell, and the October contract ended the day at 361,500 cents per kilogram. CME lean-hog futures fell on Wednesday, after seven consecutive sessions of price gains. Prices had reached their highest level in ten weeks. Analysts said that the market was impacted by the spillover pressure of lower cattle futures, and the expectation for seasonal increases in hog supply into the fourth quarter. CME October lean pork ended at 93.8225 cents per pound, a decrease of 1.725 cents.
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Asia markets stabilize as Fed comments and jobs data point towards cuts
Asian stocks rose in the early hours of trading on Thursday, as Federal Reserve officials' dovish remarks soothed investor nerves during a period when global growth concerns and bond market selloffs were at an all-time high. After a mildly positive session for U.S. stock markets, MSCI's broadest Asia-Pacific share index outside Japan rose 0.5%. The Nikkei opened 1.2% higher, after recovering from its biggest one-day drop since April. Australian shares rose 0.7%. Chinese stocks opened lower, bucking the regional trend. Shanghai Composite dropped 0.4%, and was on course for a third consecutive day of declines following a Bloomberg News report that financial regulators were preparing cooling measures to the market. The financial markets started September with a gloomy mood. A sell-off of longer-dated debts has dampened investor confidence in advance of Friday's crucial non-farm payrolls in the United States. A 30-year auction of Japanese government bonds will be held later today to test the appetite for super-long fixed interest rates on global debt markets. The bond market sold-off overnight, but the concern about the fiscal health in major economies, from Japan to Britain and United States, kept borrowing costs for long-term loans near their multi-year-highs. Investors received a boost in confidence after Federal Reserve officials including Governor Christopher Waller expressed their support for rate reductions in the months to come. Stephen Miran said that he would also work to maintain the independence of the Federal Reserve Board. He was selected by President Donald Trump to fill a vacant seat. U.S. Stock Futures rose 0.1%, as investors reacted positively to the Fed's dovish remarks and bought beaten-down stocks. Tony Sycamore is a market analyst with IG, Sydney. He said: "We had one or two weak days but dip-buyers stepped in." Many people see this September weakness as a good opportunity to buy, with the economy still growing strongly. "This is an excellent backdrop for equity markets." The latest "JOLTS", or Job Openings Report, released on Wednesday showed that job openings were lower than expected. This boosted market bets for a rate reduction at the Fed meeting scheduled later in the month. The Federal Reserve "Beige Book", which was released in September, painted a mixed image of the U.S. economy. This appeared to confirm the concerns of monetary policymakers. Analysts from ING described the report's tone as "bleak," and said that it "was littered with tariff warnings about prices." According to CME Group’s FedWatch tool, traders are pricing in a 96% probability that the Fed will cut interest rates during its September meeting. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 4,2129% from its U.S. closing of 4.211% Wednesday. The two-year rate, which increases with traders' expectation of higher Fed Funds rates, reached 3.6166%, compared to a U.S. closing of 3.612%. The dollar fell 0.1% to 147.98 yen, staying within the range of trading it has been in since August began. The euro was unchanged at $1.1657 while the dollar index - which measures the greenback's value against the currencies of major trading partners - was unchanged at 98.153. Brent crude fell 0.5% on the commodities market to $67.29 per barrel. Gold spot prices fell 0.2% to $3552.49 an ounce, after reaching a record high on Wednesday.
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Oil prices continue to fall as OPEC+ considers a new output increase
Oil prices fell on Thursday, extending a drop of more than 2% from the previous trading session. Investors and traders are looking ahead to a meeting at the weekend of OPEC+, where producers will likely consider another increase of output targets. Brent crude dropped 27 cents or 0.40% to $67.33 a bar by 0114 GMT. U.S. West Texas intermediate crude fell 28 cents or 0.44% to $63.69 a bar. Two sources with knowledge of the discussions said that eight members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) will discuss further increases in production at a Sunday meeting. The group is seeking to regain its market share. Phil Flynn is a senior analyst at Price Futures Group. He said that the prospect of OPEC+ increasing output had increased before the meeting. The traders had not expected any change from the group. OPEC+ agreed to increase output targets from April to September by approximately 2.2 million barrels a day, plus a 300,000. bpd quota for the United Arab Emirates. Middle Eastern oil has remained the most expensive region in the world despite production increases. According to a Haitong Securities report, this has boosted the confidence of Saudi Arabian and other OPEC member countries to increase output. The market is now awaiting government data about U.S. crude stocks, which are due on Thursday. This will be a day later than usual due to the U.S. federal holiday on Monday. U.S. crude stockpiles increased by 622,000 barges in the week ending August 29, according to market sources citing API figures released on Wednesday. The API estimate of a U.S. increase in crude stock went against the estimates of analysts polled who, on average estimated that U.S. crude inventory fell by 2,000,000 barrels. (Reporting from Sam Li in Beijing, Trixie Yap and Nicole Jao in New York. Editing by Tom Hogue.)
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Flatiron Energy and South Korea's SK On sign a deal for energy storage batteries
SK On, a South Korean company, announced on Thursday that it had signed a contract with Flatiron Energy Development in the United States to supply lithium iron phosphate batteries (LFP) for energy storage systems. SK On will be supplying up to 7.2 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in ESS batteries from 2026 to 2030. This is its first order of LFP batteries for energy storage systems. The company didn't disclose the value. SK On announced in a press release that it would begin mass production of LFP batteries dedicated to ESS in the second half next year. It also plans to convert a few of its EV battery production lines into ESS production lines in Georgia. The company stated that "the LFP battery production of energy storage systems is expected to further strengthen our product line and business portfolio, to effectively respond and accelerate stable growth and to temporarily slow down in electric vehicle demand." The company also plans to set up LFP production in South Korea. SK On's agreement echoes a growing trend among EV batteries makers to expand into energy storage in order to hedge against a slowing EV market. In July, LG Energy Solution The company warned that U.S. Tariffs and the end of federal EV Purchase Subsidies by September 30 could weigh on EV Demand into early 2026. This may prompt it to increase ESS production while cutting or delaying its investment plans. Heekyong Yong reports.
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Petrobras taps the global debt market for 2 billion dollars after Brazil's issuance
Petrobras, the state-run Brazilian oil company, has priced a $2 billion global notes offering through its wholly-owned subsidiary Petrobras Global Finance B.V. in two tranches. This was disclosed in a filing of securities on Wednesday. The first tranche is $1 billion of global notes with a 5.125% interest rate due 2030. They are priced at 99.024% and yield 5.350%. The interest payments will begin in March 2026 and continue every 10th of March until September 2020. The second tranche includes a $1 billion of 6.250% global bonds due in 2036 priced at 97.784%, yielding 6.550%. Interest payments will begin in January 2026 on the 10th January and 10th July. Brazil's Treasury made its third sale of foreign debt this year on Tuesday. The Treasury said the transaction would open the market and serve as a benchmark for corporate issues. Petrobras said that the offering was "subject to conditions of the market and others," in a filing with securities. The company added that net proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes. Petrobras Global Finance announced that BBVA and Citigroup as well as Itau BBA Santander, Deutsche Bank, Santander, UBS, and Citigroup will act jointly as bookrunners. IFR, a fixed-income news service, reported earlier that day that Petrobras would issue two separate unsecured notes. One note will be for five years and the other will be for a 10-year term. (Reporting and editing by Nick Zieminski, Isabel Teles, and Nia William)
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Nippon Steel resolves disputes with USW and Cliffs over U.S. Steel Deal
Nippon Steel announced on Wednesday that it had resolved all legal disputes relating to the $14.9 billion purchase of U.S. Steel by Nippon Steel from U.S. Steel in June. The settlement included the dismissal of the lawsuit filed by Nippon Steel and its North America unit against USW president David McCall as well as withdrawal of the unfair labor practice complaint the union filed against U.S. Steel at the National Labor Relations Board. Both companies dropped all claims against Cleveland-Cliffs, its CEO Lourenco Goncalves and anyone else who opposed the deal. Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel accused Cleveland-Cliffs and its CEO Lourenco Goncalves, as well as United Steelworkers president David McCall, of trying to stop the deal. The union also filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board alleging that U.S. Steel intimidated its workers and tried to suppress any opposition to the sale. The announcement of the buyout in late 2023, and its completion on June 18, 2025 faced months of political scrutiny, and union opposition, over foreign ownership. Nippon stated that no compensation has been exchanged in these settlements. Both parties said they are still focused on collective bargaining and steelmaking operations.
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Venezuelan oil exports reach a 9-month high with cargoes returning to US
Shipping data revealed that Venezuelan oil exports surpassed 900,000. barrels per day during August, their highest level since November. This was after energy producer Chevron obtained a license allowing the OPEC nation's crude to be returned to the U.S. after a 4-month pause. Last month, the U.S. Treasury Department issued a limited authorization to Chevron, a major partner of Venezuelan PDVSA state company, to export oil and operate in Venezuela, despite the sanctions. According to data from tanker movements, the resumption in Chevron flow to the U.S. and larger cargoes going to Venezuela's main destination, China, resulted in a 27% rise in exports for last month, resulting an average of 966 485 bpd. According to a PDVSA internal document, stable output and no outages in crude upgraders or blending facilities along the Orinoco Belt (Venezuela's main producing area) also contributed to increased oil exports and inventories. Last month, exports to China, direct and indirect, after ship-to -ship transfers, made up 85% of total outflows, down from 95% in July. About 60,000 barrels per day of Venezuelan crude oil were shipped to the U.S. while Cuba received around 29,000 barrels per day of crude and fuel. Venezuelan methanol was shipped to Europe in several cargoes. Venezuela exported 275,000 tons of oil products and petrochemicals to the world in August, a significant increase over the 227,000 tons it shipped the previous month. This is the highest export since May. Data showed that the country increased imports of light oil and naphtha, which were needed to dilute extra heavy oil production and produce exportable grades. The data indicated that 99,000 bpd was imported in August, compared with 58,000 bpd for July.
Grain-Corn falls from six-week-high, soybeans fall on China demand concerns
After three sessions of gains, U.S. Corn futures dropped from their six-week high on Wednesday due to profit-taking. The market was also weighed down by an anticipated record-large U.S. crop.
Soybeans fell for the second day in a row on concerns about a lack export sales to China, the top buyer amid increased trade tensions. Wheat also dropped due to ample global supplies.
Corn and soybeans both registered losses, despite concerns that the U.S. government's latest production forecasts are too high. In a Tuesday weekly report, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reduced its corn and soy bean crop ratings. The optimism about a breakthrough of U.S. China trade talks boosted soybean futures prices to multi-month-highs at the end of last month. However, market sentiment has deteriorated. Beijing's hostility towards the United States is highlighted by its hosting of non-Western world leaders this week, such as Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Don Roose said, "China will probably be the most dominant factor. We're also getting closer and closer to harvest, so the guessing games on yields are soon going to end."
"China has not increased its purchases of our soybeans." Each week they do not buy, we lose business.
Chicago Board of Trade December soybeans dropped to their lowest level since August 19, and settled at $10.31-12 a bushel, 9-1/2 cents less. December corn fell 5 cents, to $4.18 per bushel, after reaching its highest level in overnight trading since July 22.
CBOT December Wheat ended at $5.22 per bushel, down 6-1/4 Cents.
Wheat markets have been impacted by falling prices in Russia amid improved harvest prospects in the largest wheat exporting country in the world, as well as expectations of a crop above average in Australia.
(source: Reuters)