Latest News
-
India's Russian oil imports rise 11.7% in Sept from Aug, data programs
India's petroleum imports from Russia rose by 11.7% to about 1.9 million barrels daily ( bpd) in September, accounting for about twofifths of the South Asian nation's total crude imports in the month, tanker data gotten from industry sources revealed. In general, refiners in India imported a total of 4.7 million bpd of crude oil in September, marginally higher than in August and about 8.5% more than the very same month a year earlier, the information revealed. The refiners have actually invested billions of dollars in plant upgrades, permitting them to process more unrefined grades, in an effort to lower costs. India, the world's third largest oil importer and consumer, has actually become the top purchaser of affordable Russian seaborne oil after Western nations stopped purchasing from Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine. Crude from the Commonwealth of Independent States, consisting of Russia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, accounted for about 43% of India's total imports, up from 38.5% in August, the data revealed. During April-September, the very first 6 months of the fiscal year to March 2025, India's imports of Russian oil increased 9.1% to 1.91 million bpd, the information showed. Russia remained India's top oil provider in September, followed by Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Russian oil imports were more than double Iraq's 867,600 bpd, the data showed. India also resumed its imports of Venezuelan oil in September after a gap of 2 months, with personal refiner Dependence Industries Ltd getting a freight, the information revealed. The market share accounted for by manufacturers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), generally from the Middle East and Africa, decreased marginally between April and September from the same period a year back, a Reuters analysis of the data revealed. Imports from the Middle East was up to about a 41.6% share in April-September from 43.8% a year earlier, the data revealed. Indian refiners mostly purchase Middle Eastern oil under annual agreements with producers in the area.
-
Iron ore futures fall as international supply outlook, China need weigh
Iron ore futures costs fell on Wednesday, as potential customers of firmer global supply and softer Chinese need overshadowed stronger trade data from the leading customer. The most-traded January iron ore contract on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade 1.88%. lower at 782.5 yuan ($ 109.92) a metric ton. The benchmark November iron ore on the Singapore. Exchange was 1.09% lower at $104.8 a lot, since 0705 GMT. Brazilian miner Vale reported on Tuesday a 5.5%. boost in its third-quarter iron ore production compared to a. year earlier, reaching the greatest level in nearly 6 years. Expectations are that major exporters will indicate current. supply interruptions are past them and the outlook for even more. gains is strong, ANZ analysts stated in a note. Vale is one of the world's leading iron ore providers and its. readings came ahead of production reports today from other. major exporters, consisting of BHP and Rio Tinto. Meanwhile, China's iron ore imports in September rose 2.7%. from August and 2.9% from the year before, as reservations were. motivated by lower rates and wish for improved demand during. the peak construction season. Steel exports jumped 25.93% to 10.15 million lots, the. greatest for a single month since July 2016. The climb in exports was mainly driven by much better gross. earnings in the export market than the domestic one, the China. Iron and Steel Association said. Beijing on Tuesday revealed it will hold a press conference. on Thursday to go over promoting the constant and healthy. development of the property sector, reviving hopes of additional. policy relieving to underpin a broad financial revival. Other steelmaking active ingredients on the DCE were weaker, with. coking coal and coke down 3.54% and 2.89%,. respectively. Most criteria on the Shanghai Futures Exchange lost. ground. Rebar lost 1.15%, hot-rolled coil. shed 0.97% and wire rod dipped 0.24%, while stainless. steel strengthened 0.36%.
-
Miner Antofagasta's Q3 copper output jumps 15% sequentially on destocking
Chilean miner Antofagasta reported a 15% increase in thirdquarter copper output on Wednesday, compared to the previous threemonth duration, due to destocking of stocks at its Los Pelambres mine and better grades at its Centinela mine. The miner stated it still expects to end up 2024 at the lower end of its previous forecast variety of 670,000-710,000 metric tons of copper production. Copper, utilized in the power and building markets, is anticipated to take advantage of the green energy transition internationally, including need from the electric automobile sector and brand-new applications such as data centres for artificial intelligence. However, the business said its 2025 copper output is anticipated to be in between 660,000 loads and 700,000 loads, with the top and bottom ends of that assistance variety a little lower than this year's forecast period. Antofagasta, majority-owned by Chile's Luksic family, said copper production in the third quarter was 179,000 lots, while gold output surged 54% to 51,800 ounces, compared to the previous quarter.
-
Adverse weather condition curbs Thai, Chinese rubber output, raising costs to 13-year high
Excessive monsoon rains following a drought in the world's leading rubber producer Thailand and hurricane damage in No. 5 grower China are lowering output of the tyremaking material, dragging down production potential customers and lifting costs to 13year highs. The output of natural rubber, which is mostly produced in Asia, is anticipated to fall by as much as 4.5% in 2024 to around 14 million metric heaps, estimates from four analysts and traders program. Expectations of lower output have driven up costs of rubber more than 50% this year, making it one of the top-performing commodities in 2024. The benchmark Osaka agreement hit a. a 13-year high of 419.7 yen ($ 2.81) last week. Costs of physical rubber have actually risen in tandem with futures. markets, with Thailand's benchmark export-grade block rubber. climbing more than 31% because the start of the year, according to. information from Helixtap Technologies. Rubber crops usually go through a wintering season of low. production from February to May, before a peak harvesting duration. that lasts up until September. Nevertheless, scorching temperature levels of around 40 degrees Celsius. ( 104 degrees Fahrenheit) in the very first quarter may have resulted in a. prolonged wintering season, as rubber trees can experience. stunted growth in incredibly hot conditions, said Farah Miller,. founder of rubber-focused information firm Helixtap in Singapore. The heatwave was followed by heavy rains and flooding in. rubber producing areas in Thailand in recent months. These changes can dramatically affect the tapping. frequency of rubber trees and general latex production, Miller. said. As a result, output in Thailand, which represents about. one-third of international production, is expected to decrease by. 10% -15%, according to Helixtap. With this year's peak harvest season interfered with by an. uncommonly extreme number of rainy days and floods, rubber. crops may have been harmed by leaf illness, said Jom Jacob,. chief analyst at Indian analysis company WhatNext Rubber. He estimated global rubber production in 2024 would likely. fall short of consumption by 1.2 million metric heaps. CHINA HIT Tropical Storm Yagi, Asia's most powerful storm this year, intensified. the supply stress, tearing through the major Chinese producing. region of Hainan and damaging 16,000 hectares of rubber trees,. or 2.1% of China's total rubber area, according to WhatNext. Rubber quotes. This year's minimized rubber output may be felt well into. 2025, said Vijeth Shetty, senior vice president and global head. of rubber at Olam Agri, as manufacturers generally develop inventories. in the 2nd half of the year before peak need season starts. the next year. However, that comes against the backdrop of controlled demand. in leading customer China amidst slowing economic development, although. monetary stimulus steps have raised hopes of enhanced. demand.
-
Return of Libyan exports weighs on European crude market
A resumption of Libyan crude output after a political crisis over the reserve bank slashed the OPEC member's exports to a fouryear low, has actually caused a. surplus in unrefined materials in Europe, forcing contending sellers. to cut their costs, trading sources and experts say. Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) announced the reboot. of production on Oct. 3 after a brand-new central bank guv was. selected. Since Oct. 13, output had actually reached about 1.3 million. barrels per day, near pre-crisis levels. The timing of Libya's ramp up is accompanying upkeep. at European refiners with numerous plants in the Mediterranean. and northwest Europe in full or partial shutdown. This is. damaging the rate of completing unrefined grades, traders and. experts stated. According to LSEG data, the premium of Azerbaijan's Azeri. Light crude to benchmark dated Brent dropped to $1.55. a barrel, the most affordable considering that April. In the first 11 days of October, the differentials of other. major Mediterranean crude grades-- CPC Blend, Saharan and. Libya's own Es Sider blends likewise deteriorated, FGE Energy analyst. Sofia Pribludnaja stated. Looking ahead, these Mediterranean grades will face more. disadvantage pressure from the second-largest field feeding the CPC. Mix-- Kashagan-- returning from full shutdown due to. maintenance after November 10, she included. Costs for West African crude, also a replacement for Libyan. barrels, might likewise damage, a trader stated. Nigerian Bonny Light. was recently provided near to a premium of $1 a. barrel to outdated Brent and valued slightly below that, the most affordable. because December 2023, according to LSEG data. Libya's central bank crisis started at the end of August,. causing the shutdown of a number of oilfields and ports. Libya's. unrefined exports in September slumped to about 550,000 bpd, a. four-year low, according to Kpler data, and half the average for. July and August. October exports up until now have actually recovered to over 600,000 bpd. and are expected to increase even more. One trader with a firm that usually purchases from Libya and who. declined to be determined said NOC was designating freights to. refiners that were for really impending loading dates. NOC did not immediately react to a Reuters request for. comment. Refiners had actually currently made alternative plans to buy. other grades, presuming that the Libyan failure would last longer,. he added. A 2nd trader stated refiners in Europe will still take in. Libyan cargoes however remain in a position to demand substantial discounts. Reuters might not verify offer levels which are typically. transacted on a personal basis. Italy is the greatest buyer of Libyan crude, accounting for a. third of all exports in 2023, followed by Spain, France, the. United States and Greece, Kpler information show.
-
London copper increases in the middle of short-covering, soft dollar
London copper increased on Wednesday, supported by a softer dollar and as prices rebounded from a. psychological support level and on some shortcovering. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME). was up 0.5% at $9,578.50 per metric ton by 0401 GMT,. rebounding from a three-week low hit in the previous session. The most-traded November copper contract on the Shanghai. Futures Exchange (SHFE) eased 0.4% to 76,610 yuan. ($ 10,770.12) a ton, tracking over night losses in London. The dollar index reduced somewhat on Wednesday, albeit. it was still trading near a two-month peak on expectations that. U.S. rate of interest cuts would be steady. A softer dollar makes greenback-priced metals more affordable for. holders of other currencies. Everyone is just waiting for various statements (from. China), stated a trader, including that $9,500 is a technical and. mental support level. Cost is just varying and chopping about, the trader. added. Another trader included that there was some short-covering. ahead of a press conference on China's property sector,. set up for Thursday. More details on China's stimulus measures may be exposed at. the nation's National People's Congress later on in October. In late September, metal prices rose after a U.S. rate. cut, which weighed on the dollar, together with China's promises of. strong stimulus procedures to improve the economy. However, as. follow-up announcements from China lacked information and were below. expectation, costs pulled away. LME aluminium rose 0.7% to $2,588.50 a lot, zinc. edged up 0.2% at $3,058.50, lead increased 0.4%. to $2,088, tin advanced 0.6% to $32,595 while nickel. edged down 0.1% at $17,405. SHFE aluminium relieved 0.2% to 20,685 yuan a ton,. nickel fell 0.6% to 132,940 yuan, while zinc. was practically flat at 25,025 yuan, lead climbed 1.3% to. 16,725 yuan and tin advanced 0.9% to 266,000 yuan. For the top stories in metals and other news, click. or.
-
British Service - Oct 16
The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their precision. The Times - Walgreens Boots Alliance, which runs more than 8,700 shops in the United States and 2,000 Boots pharmacies in the UK, stated on Tuesday it would shut 1,200 shops in the U.S. over the next 3 years. - British financing minister Rachel Reeves is drawing up plans for as much as 40 billion pounds ($ 52.28 billion) worth of tax rises and costs cuts to prevent a return to austerity. The Guardian - British Broadcaster BBC has announced its newest round of task cuts, including a net decrease of 130 functions throughout news and current affairs departments, as part of a wider cost-cutting drive. - Britain on Tuesday sanctioned Israeli inhabitant organisations that it stated had actually sponsored violence against Palestinian neighborhoods in the West Bank, and contacted Israel to stop settler expansion on Palestinian land. The Telegraph - Yellowwoods, the private investment automobile of South Africa's Enthoven family, has actually lined up to money the takeover of The Observer paper by previous BBC News director James Harding. - The Russian General District attorney's office was seeking to collect more than 1 billion euro ($ 1.09 billion) in damages from international energy major Shell. Sky News - Cinven, EQT and New Mountain Capital have been shortlisted to purchase a stake in the UK operations of Grant Thornton in a process that could value the UK firm at more than 1.5 billion pounds. - British water regulator Ofwat selected L.E.K. Consulting to serve as an independent display to Thames Water on Tuesday, as the heavily indebted utility looks for to raise equity and avert the risk of re-nationalisation.
-
Iron ore futures blended as traders weigh worldwide supply outlook and China need
Dalian iron ore futures dipped on Wednesday while costs increased in Singapore, as traders weighed prospects of firmer international supply against China trade data showing stronger steel imports and ore exports. The most-traded January iron ore contract on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended morning trade 0.44%. lower at 794.0 yuan ($ 111.59) a metric lot. The benchmark November iron ore on the Singapore. Exchange was 0.38% higher at $106.35 a ton, since 0330 GMT. Brazilian miner Vale reported on Tuesday a 5.5%. increase in its third-quarter iron ore production compared to a. year earlier, reaching the greatest level in practically six years. Expectations are that significant exporters will show current. supply disturbances are previous them and the outlook for further. gains are strong, ANZ experts said in a note. Vale is one of the world's top iron ore suppliers and its. readings came ahead of production reports today from other. major exporters, consisting of BHP and Rio Tinto. On the other hand, China's iron ore imports in September rose 2.7%. from August and 2.9% from the year before, custom-mades data showed. earlier this week, as bookings were encouraged by lower prices. and hopes for improved demand throughout the peak building and construction. season. Steel exports jumped 25.93% to 10.15 million tons, the. greatest for a single month because July 2016. Regardless of the strong data, doubts remained about prospects of. need for the steelmaking component amidst issues about. China's home sector, a key user of steel. Other steelmaking active ingredients on the DCE were weaker, with. coking coal and coke down 1.92% and 1.96%,. respectively. A lot of criteria on the Shanghai Futures Exchange lost. ground. Rebar lost 0.46%, hot-rolled coil. shed 0.36% and wire rod dipped 0.24%, while stainless. steel reinforced 0.54%.
China imports record quantity of lead after Shanghai squeeze: Andy Home
China's imports of improved lead rose in August with the nation set to be a net importer of the battery metal for the very first time considering that 2020.
The abrupt shift in trade patterns arises from a squeeze on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE) lead agreement in July.
A lack of deliverable metal in the mainland market led to a scramble for Western lead and simultaneously opened up an import arbitrage window with the London Metal Exchange (LME).
China's resurgent import appetite has actually halted a long-running integrate in LME inventory.
A redistribution of international lead stocks is clearly underway. The concern is whether this is a flash occasion or the start of a. more structural modification in east-west trade circulations.
SHANGHAI SHORTS
China imported simply 540 metric tons of lead in the very first. half of 2024 however volumes leapt to 14,000 lots in July and an. unmatched 53,000 lots in August.
It's possible that the record inflows in August consisted of. some Chinese metal that had actually been sitting in bonded warehouses. and re-directed to the domestic market. That in itself would be. a highly unusual phenomenon.
The trigger for the change in Chinese trade flows was a July. squeeze on the ShFE lead contract which was the climax of a. long-running fight in between Shanghai bulls and bears.
Tightness in the front part of the forward curve was. exacerbated by exceptionally low exchange stocks as on-warrant ShFE. stock fell listed below 10,000 loads in August. Additionally, short-sellers seeking to provide physical metal. against their positions struggled to discover the ideal lead after. the ShFE tightened its bismuth impurity limit in April. Numerous shipments were declined by exchange authorities, requiring. shorts to look overseas.
Fortunately for them, there is no lack of lead outside. of China.
LME stocks of registered and off-warrant lead rose every. month in between February 2023 and July 2024, when they peaked at a. integrated 350,000 heaps.
The uptrend reversed in August, when integrated stock fell. by 57,000 loads as metal was diverted to China.
SQUEEZE OVER?
The time-spread tightness on the ShFE lead market has. dissipated, the significant front-month premium changing to a. discount in the middle of September.
That has actually made imports less appealing, which must cause. a tail-off in inbound volumes after pre-booked shipments appear. in the next couple of months' customs figures.
Nevertheless, there has been no continual reconstruct in Shanghai. exchange inventory. On-warrant stocks rose to 54,500 loads. mid-September however have considering that relapsed to 34,760 loads.
Overall ShFE deliverable stocks closed recently at 44,566. loads, still much lower than LME registered stocks of 194,300. loads.
The continued east-west stocks imbalance leaves the Shanghai. market susceptible to restored tightness, particularly if there is. a resumption of bull-bear hostilities.
BATTERY SCRAP SHORTAGE
Although China's shift from net exporter to net importer has. been activated by a squeeze on the futures market, it is rooted. in physical market characteristics.
The world's biggest manufacturer of refined lead has seen output. decline this year with both primary and secondary operators. experiencing tight accessibility of feed.
Imports of lead concentrates were down by 9.2% over the. first 8 months of 2024 and primary smelter output fell by. 4.5% over the January-September period, according to local data. service provider Shanghai Metal Market (SMM).
The secondary sector, which processes refined lead from. battery scrap, has fared even worse with output down by 34.4%. year-on-year in September, according to SMM.
The problem is an absence of battery scrap due both to a moderate. 2023-2024 winter, meaning less battery failure, and changes to. local government reward schemes, according to experts at. Macquarie.
Prices for battery scrap are higher than for main metal. in parts of the Chinese market, compressing margins for numerous. smelters, SMM reports.
China doesn't allow imports of scrap lead, suggesting the. supply tension has transferred to the primary metal segment of the. supply chain.
WORLDWIDE SURPLUS
Falling Chinese production is the main reason the. International Lead and Zinc Study hall anticipated international output. of refined result in fall by 0.2% this year at the organisation's. biennial meeting in September.
The group still anticipates an international supply surplus of 63,000. heaps this year following on a 106,000-ton surplus in 2023.
However, that's a limited number in a 13-million ton market. and a forecast that is highly depending on whether Chinese lead. production can recover over the balance of the year.
Additionally, the international picture is presently masking a strong. divergence between China and the rest of the world. The burst of. imports over July and August hasn't totally resolved that space.
The viewpoints revealed here are those of the author, a. columnist
(source: Reuters)