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Secretary of State for India says India will offer incentives to steelmakers in order to promote decarbonisation
The federal secretary of steel announced on Friday that India has a number of incentives in place to encourage the production of green-colored steel and to drive the decarbonisation efforts of local steelmakers. India wants to reduce its greenhouse gases emissions. India, after China the largest steel producer in the world, is working on a "green steel" policy to reduce carbon emissions from the production and procurement of this key building material. Sandeep Poundrik, speaking at a recent industry event, said: "We're trying to do many things to encourage green steel... including working on a project... where we'll try to support industry decarbonisation." The government will hopefully approve it soon." Poundrik said that firms would be encouraged to produce greener steel and use renewable energy. The official also said that the government was working to mandate a certain percentage green steel in all state-funded projects. India last year defined green steel to be steel that emits less than 2,2 tonnes of carbon dioxide per tonne of production. (Reporting by Neha Arora in Mumbai and Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)
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Asian and European stock markets steady; US stocks jittery due to conflicting trade tension signals
The dollar is on track to see its first weekly gain in over a month as investors take comfort in signs that the U.S., China and other countries are willing to end their trade war. In a sign that investors are unsure of how long this relief will last, U.S. Stock Futures were slightly down by 1048 GMT after the publication of an interview in Time magazine with U.S. president Donald Trump, where he stated that high tariffs on imports from abroad a year hence would be a "total win". Trump said that his administration had been in contact with China about a possible tariff agreement and that Chinese President Xi Jinping called him. This was contrary to comments made by Chinese officials on Thursday. The STOXX Index, the benchmark for Europe, rose by 0.27% after China removed some U.S. imported goods from its 125% tariffs. This was the clearest indication yet that Beijing responded to concerns over the impact of titt-for-tat duties on its economy. U.S. Futures started positively after Alphabet, the parent company of Google and tech giant Alphabet, beat profit expectations and confirmed AI spending targets. Its shares rose nearly 5% after-hours and pulled along its peers. S&P emini futures were down 0.26% by 1048 GMT, and NASDAQ 100 futures were down 0.36%. . The dollar, after a turbulent few weeks that saw tariff announcements and reversals, as well as a flight from U.S. assets and assets, has found its footing at around $1.1354 for the euro and 143.3 Japaneseyen. Eli Lee, Chief Investment Strategist at Bank of Singapore said that the peak of tariff threats is likely to be behind us. Both sides have stated that they will not increase rates above current levels. The tit-for-tat tariffs, which began on April 2, when U.S. president Donald Trump announced hefty import duties, had threatened to stall the trade between two of the world's largest economies. They also sparked concerns of a global slowdown. UNEASY CALM Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 1%, and mainland China’s Shanghai Composite Index and blue-chip CSI300 also saw small gains. The Nikkei 225 index rose 1.8% in Japan on Friday, regaining all of its losses following Trump's announcement that the United States would be imposing the highest tariffs it has ever seen. Trump suspended most of these tariffs, with the exception of China, which will have a 10% tariff. In a client note, ING currency analyst Francesco Pesole said that there is a sense among market participants that they can now impose a more favourable stance from the U.S. Government. Investors will seek confirmation of a more optimistic view on U.S. Assets to justify further dollar gains. The U.S. Dollar Index was up by 0.2% this week, at 99.623, while U.S. Treasury Yields remained flat. WARNING SIGNAGE The gold price, which has soared in this year due to investors seeking safe haven assets that are not tied to the dollar, fell 1% on the Friday, and was heading towards a weekly decline on signs of a possible de-escalation in trade tensions. There were plenty of warnings that the calm surface on the markets may not last. Procter & Gamble cut or withdrawn forecasts for American Airlines, PepsiCo and Chipotle Mexican Restaurant overnight due to increased consumer uncertainty. The Gold/S&P500 ratio, which is a measure of investor gloom and reflects the mood of the market, has reached its highest level since 2020, when the bear market was triggered by the pandemic.
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Phillips 66, a US refiner, reports a larger-than-expected quarter loss
Phillips 66 announced a larger-than-expected first-quarter loss on Friday. Lower refining margins due to widespread maintenance and turnaround activities across the U.S. refinery sector weighed down on its performance. In preparation for summer driving, U.S. refineries undergo seasonal maintenance and turn-around activities. This scheduled downtime can temporarily impact refinery performance and revenue capture. Mark Lashier, CEO of the company said: "Our results are not only reflective of a macro-environment that is challenging but also reflect our biggest spring turnaround program ever." The refining division of the company posted a $937 million loss during the first quarter of this year, compared to a $216 million profit a year earlier. Phillips 66 reported that its realized refining profit margins dropped to $6.81 a barrel in the quarter January-March, down from $11.01 a barrel a year ago. Its refinery usage was 80%, compared to 92% a year ago. According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, the Houston-based company reported an adjusted loss per share of 90 cents for the three-month period ended March 31. This compares with the analysts' average loss estimate of 72 cents. Reporting by Vallari Shrivastava, Bengaluru. Editing by Maju Sam and Shilpi Majumdar.
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Former Brazilian President Collor is arrested for corruption
Fernando Collor de Mello, the former Brazilian president, was arrested in Maceio on Friday after a Supreme Court judge rejected his appeals against a prior conviction and ordered that he begin serving time behind bars. Collor's attorney, Marcelo Bessa said that Collor was arrested at 4:00 am local time (0700 GMT), while traveling to Brazil’s capital Brasilia. He planned to surrender himself following Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes’ arrest order. Bessa, in a press release, said that the former president had been detained by federal police officers in Maceio. This is the capital of Alagoas. Moraes issued his order on Thursday after Collor, who was the first president of Brazil to be elected after the end the military dictatorship ended in 1985, had been sentenced to eight years and ten months in jail in 2023 for corruption and money laundering. Collor's attorney had expressed "surprise" and "concern" over Moraes decision in a statement released late Thursday. However, he added that the former President would comply with the Order. The 2023 conviction was handed down after Brazilian prosecutors accused Collor receiving bribes of around 30 million Reais ($5.28million) from a subsidiary of the state-run oil firm Petrobras. Collor was elected president in 1990. However, he did not complete his term because Congress decided to impeach Collor two years later over a separate scandal of corruption for which the Supreme Court acquitted Collor in 1994. Later, he was elected to the Senate as a Senator for Alagoas. He left Congress at the beginning of 2023 after an unsuccessful attempt to become governor of Alagoas.
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SLB, a provider of oilfield services, misses its profit forecasts due to international weakness
SLB missed Friday's analysts' expectations for the first-quarter profit, due to a slowdown of demand for oilfield equipment and service in Latin America. Following the results, shares of the company dropped by nearly 2% during premarket trading. SLB's earnings report completes the first quarter earnings of top U.S. oilfield services providers. Halliburton, Baker Hughes and other rivals had earlier in the week expressed concerns over weakening markets and tariff uncertainty. Halliburton warned that its second-quarter earnings would be hit by tariffs and reduced North American activity in the oilfields, while Baker Hughes predicted further spending cuts from global producers due to waning demand expectations and declining crude prices. SLB CEO Olivier Le Peuch stated in a press release that the industry could experience a possible shift in priorities due to changes in global economic conditions, fluctuating commodities prices, and evolving tariffs. All of these factors may impact upstream investment in oil and gas and, ultimately, affect demand for SLB's products and services. SLB reported that international revenue dropped 5% in the first quarter to $6.73 Billion. According to LSEG data, the company, formerly Schlumberger, reported earnings of 72 cents for the three-month period ended March 31. This was below analysts' average estimates of 74 cents.
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Cornwall Insight reports that Britain's cap on energy prices will fall by 9% this July.
The cap on domestic energy prices in Britain is expected to drop by around 9% this July, after wholesale energy costs fell amid the warmer weather conditions and U.S. tariffs announcements fuelled fears about economic growth. The government would welcome a reduction in the cap, as it is under pressure to keep its promise to reduce household energy costs. The benchmark British gas price has fallen by around 40% in the last few months as warmer weather has curtailed demand. In addition, the EU Parliament endorsed weaker storage regulations for gas and there are growing fears about a global trade conflict that could hinder economic growth and industrial production. "We've all seen markets rise and fall quickly, and that the market fell so rapidly shows the vulnerability of the market to market and geopolitical shifts," said Craig Lowrey. Principal Consultant at Cornwall Insight. The British energy regulator Ofgem caps household energy bills every quarter, using a formula which reflects wholesale prices of energy and also includes network costs from suppliers and environmental and other social levies. Cornwall Insight predicts that Ofgem will lower its price cap in July, to 1,683 pounds (2,238.89 dollars) per year based upon average usage. In April it was 1,849 pounds. Lowrey stated that the high volatility of the market could mean the cap forecast will change before it is set by Ofgem at the end May. ($1 = 0.7517 pound) (Reporting by Susanna Twidale, editing by Mark Heinrich).
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Nordex sales are hit by less wind turbine installations but it sees no financial risks from US
The German wind turbine manufacturer Nordex announced on Friday that its quarterly sales were below market expectations. It installed 20% fewer turbines onshore than it did a year ago, but it said there was no financial risk from the United States. A company spokesperson said that the maker of onshore turbines will continue to plan to resume U.S. manufacturing at its Iowa facility, following Germany's RWE, which announced it would stop U.S. offshore activities in light of regulatory uncertainties under Trump. Nordex, despite the uncertainties caused by President Donald Trump’s energy and trade policies, spoke positively in February about U.S. prospects for growth, saying that it wanted to get back to a U.S. share of 15 to 18%. The spokesperson stated on Friday that "in the short-term, customer decisions could be delayed." Over the next five to ten years, we anticipate that the demand on the market will continue. This market is therefore important to us. The spokesperson stated that Nordex faces "no risk of financial loss" due to its operations in the U.S. Nordex's first-quarter earnings were above analysts' expectations, but its sales of 1,44 billion euros ($1.63billion) fell short, since the Hamburg-based company installed 180 wind turbines, compared to 227 a few years ago. North America includes Canada. The same results from last year did not include the region. Germany, Nordex’s home market, is aiming for record-breaking levels of approvals and installations in the wind industry. $1 = 0.8814 Euros (Reporting and editing by Milla Nissi in Gdansk)
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Dollar firmer, copper sags due to tariff tension
The copper prices fell on Friday, as the stronger dollar and uncertainty over demand overshadowed the optimism that China and the United States were trying to curb their trade war. By 0940 GMT, the benchmark copper price on London Metal Exchange was down by 0.4% to $9360 per metric tonne. The metal reached a high of $9,481.50 in the first half of this week, its highest level since April 3. It was on track for a gain over the entire week. News broke on Friday indicating that China had granted exemptions to its 125% tariffs for certain U.S. imported goods and asked businesses to identify the products that might be eligible. Scott Bessent, the U.S. Treasury secretary, said earlier in the week that the high tariffs between both countries were not sustainable. It's difficult to predict where this trade war will go. Nitesh Sharma, commodity strategist at WisdomTree, said that there's a negotiation going on, but it isn't an easy one. In the short-term, we don't really know how much the trade war will affect demand. "I'm not surprised that we are having a little bit of a bad day." The Shanghai Futures Exchange's (SHFE) most-traded contract for copper fell by 0.3%, to 77440 yuan (10,682.66) per ton. SHFE reported on Friday that copper inventories in warehouses under its surveillance fell by 32% during the past week. Two traders say that the steep fall in copper prices was caused by consumers selling stocks they had bought several weeks ago when the price of copper fell sharply after President Donald Trump's new tariffs. Reports on Thursday indicated that the sharp declines of SHFE stocks had triggered fears of a possible short squeeze. The dollar's rise, fueled by signs of eased tariff tensions, has weighed on the metals markets, making dollar-priced goods more expensive for buyers who use other currencies. Other metals saw a 0.1% drop in LME aluminium to $2447 per ton. Zinc fell 1% to 2,662, Lead dropped 0.4% to 1,951.50 and Nickel slipped 0.8% to $15,690. Tin gained 1.5% at $32,250. (Reporting and editing by William Maclean, Additional reporting by Mohi Nrayan from New Delhi and Lewis Jackson from Beijing)
Some European companies question US expansion amid tariff chaos
The erratic tariff policy of U.S. president Donald Trump is making some European smaller companies question whether they should expand into the U.S.
Trump wants to encourage foreign companies to invest in the United States by imposing levies on steel, cognac, cars, and sandals. This will lead to new factories being built and thousands of American jobs.
The announcements of rollbacks, exemptions, and other changes have made some smaller companies hesitant to commit.
EuroGroup Laminations, an Italian company, pays no import duties on the rotors, stators, and other components it provides to U.S. automakers, such as Ford and GM. These products are produced in Mexico and comply with current import regulations.
Marco Arduini, CEO of the company, said that even if the company had to move production to the U.S., it would be subject to tariffs on the type of steel it uses for its automotive parts.
He said that avoiding potential U.S. Tariffs would not compensate for the extra costs or low availability of steel. U.S. Labour costs are also a concern, as they can be up to six-times higher in Mexico.
Due to the current situation, including the possibility that tariffs could trigger a U.S. economic recession, ebm papst - a German motor and fan manufacturer - has put plans on hold to build a new U.S. facility or to expand an existing U.S. site.
Klaus Geissdoerfer, CEO of the company, said that if there were an economic downturn on American soil, it could affect demand in a different way.
Many economies are built on the strength of small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), including Italy and Germany. Both countries are members of the European Union and major exporters into the United States.
They may be able to react more quickly to new trade risks than larger companies because they have smaller financial cushions than their blue-chip counterparts.
Marc Tenbieg is the head of DMB, the association representing Germany's SMEs.
DMB said in separate comments that a few SMEs are currently re-evaluating their U.S. business as a result Trump's policies.
Andrew Adair said that some member companies of the German engineering association VDMA have delayed purchases. He made the statement following a visit to the United States in early this month.
He said that the industry appeared to be on pause at the moment.
Trump, after weeks of threats announced a series on broad tariffs for goods imported into the United States by most other countries on April 2. The tariffs included a 20% on EU imports, which was then lowered to 10% as part of what Trump called a "90-day pause" following the selloff in U.S. stocks.
Trump's statements that other countries "screwed" the U.S. over the years, reflecting his anger at U.S. Trade Deficits including one of 235.6 billion dollars with the 27-nation EU, have also raised the temperature in the diplomatic and political arena.
LAPP in Germany, which produces everything from wires and cables to robotics for factory, has maintained its plans to double the production capacity at their New Jersey site by 2025.
Matthias Lapp, CEO of Lapp & Co., said: "As a business family, we plan on the long-term, not just for elections."
Tariffs have the potential to affect demand and inflation in the United States.
RBC Capital estimates that imports account for 10% of U.S. consumer spending and that "it will be relatively difficult for consumers" to switch away from imported products.
The consultancy AlixPartners believes that the average U.S. household's discretionary spending in a post tariff world will drop by more than 10 percent to $27,000. They recommend companies adopt a pause and monitor approach.
Eurostat data show that in each of the past three years the EU exported an average of more than 500 billion euro of goods to the U.S. These were mostly pharmaceuticals and vehicles, but also machinery.
Trump's primary targets are the steel, auto and car makers in the EU.
The U.S. is still the EU's largest trading partner. However, the new tariffs have prompted some political resistance against taking on more exposure. French President Emmanuel Macron has asked European firms to temporarily suspend their planned investments.
Industry groups urge European companies to instead focus on other foreign markets, such as India and Latin America.
Sebastian Zank is the head of Scope's corporates rating production. He said, "We have seen how quickly things can change."
Everyone will remain seated until the picture that emerges can be described as "sustainable."
(source: Reuters)