Latest News
-
Oil prices stable on concerns about geopolitical supply risks
The oil price held steady in the early trading of Tuesday, as participants weighed up risks arising from Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian energy sites and mounting tensions between the United States and Venezuela. They also pondered mixed expectations regarding U.S. gasoline inventories. Brent crude futures increased 7 cents or 0.1% to $63.24 per barrel at 0427 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude gained 10 cents or 0.2% to $59.42 per barrel. Both benchmarks rose more than 1% Monday, with WTI near its two-week high. In a client note, Saxo analysts stated that oil held gains while traders awaited the President Trump's move on Venezuela. They also assessed terminal damage in the Black Sea. On Monday, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium After a major Ukrainian incident, the company said that it had resumed oil deliveries from one of its Black Sea terminal's mooring points. drone attack On November 29, On Monday, Kommersant, citing anonymous sources, reported that oil loading had resumed using the single-point mooring 1, while SPM 2, was damaged. The analysts at Ritterbusch and Associates wrote in a report that "the military action further confirms our opinion that peace is unlikely to be achieved anytime soon and the diesel/gasoil market is on the verge of pulling back the complex." Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, said Monday that he was looking forward to negotiations. Kyiv’s priorities The main issues were the need to ensure security and sovereignty, as well as territorial disputes. The U.S. ambassador Steve Witkoff will brief the Kremlin Tuesday. Suvro Sarkar, DBS Energy Sector Team Lead, said that "the noise surrounding Venezuela" was the "only other emerging factor" in oil. He said that while a full-blown war is unlikely, the ongoing events in the country could destabilise it internally and threaten its oil production and exports. U.S. president Donald Trump discussed the Venezuela pressure campaign with his top advisors. A senior U.S. government official said. Trump stated on Saturday that the airspace surrounding Venezuela and above it should be "closed completely" without giving any further details. Sunday is a day of rest. Reaffirmed a small increase in oil production for December, and a pause on increases in the first three months of next year because of rising fears about a glut of supply. Sarkar, DBS Bank, said that "the OPEC+'s language on supply management in the short term is supportive of oil prices." Prices were slightly impacted by mixed expectations on U.S. crude oil and refined product inventory data. A preliminary poll of four analysts showed that crude inventories fell but product inventories rose in the week ending November 28. Ashitha Shivprasad reported from Bengaluru, and Trixie Yap was in Singapore. Sonali Paul and Thomas Derpinghaus edited the story.
-
US data and firmer yields are the focus of gold prices.
Early trading on Tuesday saw gold ease after reaching a six-week-high in the previous session. Rising U.S. Treasury rates and profit-taking dampened sentiment in advance of U.S. data that will likely guide the Federal Reserve’s policy direction. As of 0228 GMT, spot gold dropped 0.4% to $4215.48 an ounce after reaching its highest level since Monday, October 21. U.S. Gold Futures for December Delivery were down 0.6% to $4,247.10 an ounce. Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury Yields hovered near a two-week-high touched in the prior session, reducing interest in non-yielding gold. Waterer stated that the markets are cautious because Fed Chair Jerome Powell will not sound as dovish than some of his Fed colleagues. The core Personal Consumption Expenditures price index (PCE), which is the Fed's preferred inflation measure, is expected to be relatively benign on Friday. Tim Waterer, Chief Market Analyst at KCM Trade, said that while gold is showing a weak performance today, the fundamental picture remains unchanged. This includes the anticipated U.S. interest rate cuts which are expected to be beneficial for gold in terms of yield. Powell did not mention the economy or monetary policies in his remarks, which were prepared for a Stanford University address on Monday evening. Investors will be watching the key U.S. economic data this week. This includes Wednesday's ADP Employment Report and Friday's Personal Consumption Expenditures Index, which is delayed from September. According to CME's FedWatch, traders are pricing in a 88% chance that the Fed will cut rates in December. Kevin Hassett, White House advisor, said he was willing to serve as Fed chairman. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had hinted at a possible nomination before Christmas. Hassett wants lower rates, just like Donald Trump. Gold that does not yield is usually favored by lower interest rates. SPDR Gold Trust is the largest gold-backed ETF in the world. Its holdings increased 0.44% on Monday to 1,050.01 tons from 1,045.43 tonnes on Friday. Silver dropped 1.9% per ounce to $56.88, platinum increased 0.1% to 1,659.23 and palladium rose 0.2% to $1.427.62. (Reporting by Ishaan Arora in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
-
Iron ore prices rise as steel consumption and infrastructure demand offset China's weak data
Iron ore prices rose Tuesday as steel consumption and infrastructure demand offset the weak China economic data. As of 0250 GMT, the most-traded contract for January iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange was trading 0.88% higher. It was 803.5 yuan (113.55 dollars) per metric ton. The benchmark January Iron Ore at the Singapore Exchange rose by 0.37% to $103.95 per ton. According to Chinese broker Galaxy Futures, recent infrastructure demand is up and steel demand is in line with normal seasonal patterns. This allows steel prices to maintain their upward trend on the short-term. According to CreditSights, the global iron ore production is set to increase between 2025-2029. Production in Guinea will be a major growth driver once the Simandou Project comes online. CreditSights said that the sector is expected to be affected by development delays resulting from political and social instabilities, as well resource nationalism. According to Mysteel, the consultancy, shipments from Australia, the top producer, totaled 18.205 million tonnes, down 191,000 tonnes month-on-month. Iron ore prices were impacted by weak economic data in China. A survey conducted on Sunday, the official PMI survey, showed that China's manufacturing activities declined for the eighth consecutive month in November. It is difficult for policymakers to get their activities moving amid a global economic slowdown, an ongoing property crisis and local governments struggling under debt. Coking coal and coke, which are used to make steel, have both gained in the DCE. Everbright Futures, a Chinese broker, reported that coking plants have increased production and are resulting in an increase in the output of coking coke. The first round has also been implemented to reduce coking coal prices, which is causing a slight improvement in steel mill profits. All steel benchmarks at the Shanghai Futures Exchange increased. Rebar increased by 0.64%; hot-rolled coils grew by 0.45%; wire rod improved by 0.44%; and stainless steel firmed up 0.4%.
-
Market keeps a focus on supply risk as copper prices ease from their peak
The copper price fell from its record high as investors focused on the future risks of supply, after China's planned production cuts and Codelco’s premium increase. As of 0240 GMT the most traded copper contract at the Shanghai Futures Exchange had fallen 0.15% to 88,700 Yuan ($12,535.33) a metric ton after reaching a record-high of 89920 yuan per ton earlier in this session. The benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.77%, to $11,165 per ton. Investors are still assessing the impact of Chinese smelters’ plan to reduce production by 10% in 2019. Analysts at Chinese broker Jinrui Futures stated in a report that the plan of smelters to reduce output confirmed the view that supply of refined Copper will become tight. The Codelco premiums are also a focus, as they saw an increase in the number of offers for supply on a term basis next year. These new offers are aimed at buyers who can profit from arbitrage between Comex and LME by delivering their copper to U.S. warehouses, which adds to the concern that supply of copper elsewhere will be limited. The U.S. Dollar continued to decline as the Federal Reserve's December rate cut remained a high priority. The dollar's weakness supports the market, as commodities that are traded in greenbacks become cheaper for investors who use other currencies. Zinc rose by 0.91% among other SHFE metals. Lead gained 0.29%. Nickel grew by 0.12%. Aluminium grew 0.07%. Tin fell 0.85%. On the LME, zinc, nickel, and lead all fell 0.39%. Tin also dropped 0.87%. Tuesday, December 2, DATA/EVENTS - (GMT) 0700 UK National House Price mm,yy Nov 1,000 EU HICP Flash Nov 1000 EU HiCP-X F,E,A,T Flash MM Nov 1000 EU Unemployment rate Oct ($1 = 7.760 Chinese Yuan Renminbi). (Reporting and Editing by Dylan Duan, Lewis Jackson, Rashmi aich.
-
Stocks unsteady after bond and bitcoin sales
The stock market made modest gains on Tuesday and traders were cautious after a decline in cryptocurrency and a global selloff of bonds triggered by an upcoming interest rate increase in Japan. S&P futures were stable in early trading, following overnight falls on Wall Street. Japanese government bonds, however, remained under pressure before a 10-year bond auction, following a week-long fall on concerns about the nation’s fiscal outlook. In morning trading, the yields on 10-year JGBs increased by 1.5 basis points. They now stand at 1.88%, a record high for 17 years. Bitcoin, which was a talisman of sentiment, suffered a 5.2% decline on Monday. At $87,000, it is down 30 percent from its October peak. The mood in cryptocurrencies is somewhere between fearful, and resigned, said Jehan Cho, founder of Kenetic Capital. This blockchain venture capital company, with its latest drop, caught investors off guard. Even the most optimistic may decide to hibernate over the winter. MSCI's broadest Asia-Pacific share index outside Japan grew 0.6%, while Tokyo's Nikkei climbed 0.5% after Monday's sharp decline. JAPAN TO RISE, FED TO CUT On Monday, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo ueda outlined the steps to tightening monetary policy. This heightened expectations that Japan would hike interest rates in this month. The yield on ten-year Japanese government bonds shot up six basis points. Traders sold global bonds, and the yields of ten-year Treasury notes rose 7.7 basis points to 4.08%. The yen has gained strength and held steady on the foreign exchange market over the last 24 hours. It was trading at 155.75 to the dollar on Tuesday. The dollar was pushed back by the move. The euro traded at $1.16 as markets awaited the eurozone inflation figures due later that session. Some investors are beginning to anticipate a more lasting turn down for the greenback, as the U.S. is preparing to reduce interest rates faster and further than other countries. The Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates in December, according to data released on Monday. Manufacturing contracted for the ninth consecutive month in November. However, consumers surpassed analyst expectations by spending $23.6 billion during their online shopping spree. The dollar could fall by the end of the year, according to Tim Baker, a strategist at Deutsche Bank. The dollar has had a bad decade. December was the worst. It has fallen 80% of time and by more than 1% on average. Gold held on to its recent gains, just above $4200 per ounce. The oil prices also rose following drone attacks against Russian supplies. Brent crude futures was eight cents higher on Tuesday at $63.26 per barrel. (Reporting and Editing by Shri Navaratnam).
-
Oil prices rise on geopolitical concerns about supply
The oil prices rose in the early trading on Tuesday, for the second session running. Market participants assessed risks arising from Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian energy sites as well as mounting tensions between Venezuela and the United States. Brent crude futures rose by 14 cents or 0.2% to $63.31 per barrel at 0102 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude gained 18 cents or 0.3% to $59.50 per barrel. Both benchmarks rose more than 1% Monday. Caspian Pipeline Consortium announced on Monday it had resumed oil deliveries from one mooring at its Black Sea Terminal following an important Ukrainian drone attack that occurred on November 29. The Russian Kommersant newspaper, citing anonymous sources, reported on Monday that oil loadings have resumed at the single point docking 1 (SPM1), whereas SPM2 was damaged. In a recent note, Ritterbusch and Associates analysts said that "the military action confirms our opinion that peace is unlikely to be reached anytime soon and the diesel/gasoil market is on the verge of pulling up the complex." The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated on Monday that Kyiv prioritized maintaining sovereignty and ensuring strong security, while territorial disputes were the most complex. The U.S. ambassador Steve Witkoff will brief the Kremlin Tuesday. ANZ stated that the U.S.'s increasing campaign against Venezuela raises concerns about oil exports being further impacted. A senior U.S. government official confirmed that Donald Trump met with his top advisers in order to discuss the pressure campaign against Venezuela. Trump stated on Saturday that the airspace surrounding Venezuela and above it should be "closed completely," but did not provide any further details. On Sunday, OPEC+ reaffirmed a modest increase in oil production for December, and a pause on increases in the first three months of 2019. This was due to fears that there would be a glut of supply. Ritterbusch said that fundamentals are likely to prevail over the long term. "We still see this deterioration of global balances as a factor in forcing oil prices lower, with the probability in WTI and Brent to $55 and $59 still high," he added.
-
Trump rechazo solicitudes de Maduro en llamada, opciones se reducen para el lider venezolano: fuentes
El presidente de Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, se esta quedando sin opciones para dimitir y abandonar su pais bajo la proteccion de Estados Unidos, tras una breve llamada el mes pasado con Donald Trump, en la que el presidente estadounidense rechazo una serie de solicitudes del lider venezolano, segun cuatro fuentes informadas sobre la conversacion. La llamada, realizada el 21 de noviembre, se produjo tras meses de creciente presion estadounidense sobre Venezuela, incluyendo ataques contra lanchas presuntamente usadas para narcotrafico en el Caribe, reiteradas amenazas de Trump de extender operaciones militares a tierra y la designacion del Cartel de los Soles, un grupo que segun la administracion en Washington incluye a Maduro, como organizacion terrorista. Maduro y su gobierno han negado todas las acusaciones y afirman que Estados Unidos busca un cambio de regimen para tomar el control de los vastos recursos naturales de Venezuela, incluido el petroleo. El presidente venezolano le dijo a Trump durante la llamada que estaba dispuesto a salir de Venezuela siempre que a el y a sus familiares se les garantizara total amnistia, incluyendo el levantamiento de todas las sanciones estadounidenses y el fin de un caso emblematico que enfrenta ante la Corte Penal Internacional, segun tres de las fuentes. Tambien solicito el levantamiento de las sanciones para mas de 100 funcionarios del gobierno venezolano, muchos de ellos acusados ? ?por Estados Unidos de abusos contra los derechos humanos, narcotrafico o corrupcion, segun las tres personas. Maduro propuso que la vicepresidenta Delcy Rodriguez encabezara un gobierno interino antes de convocar nuevas elecciones, segun dos de las fuentes. Trump rechazo la mayoria de sus solicitudes en la llamada, que duro menos de 15 minutos, pero le dijo a Maduro que tenia una semana para salir de Venezuela hacia el destino que eligiera junto con sus familiares. Ese salvoconducto expiro el viernes pasado, lo que llevo a Trump a declarar el sabado que el espacio aereo venezolano debia considerarse completamente cerrado, dijeron dos de las fuentes. Varios detalles de la llamada fueron reportados previamente por el Miami Herald. La fecha limite del viernes no se habia revelado previamente. Trump confirmo el domingo que habia hablado con Maduro, sin dar mas precisiones. La Casa Blanca se nego a dar mas detalles, y el Ministerio de Informacion de Venezuela, que gestiona todas las consultas de prensa del gobierno, no respondio de inmediato a las solicitudes de comentarios. El gobierno de Trump ha dicho que no reconoce a Maduro, en el cargo desde 2013, como presidente legitimo de Venezuela. El Consejo Nacional Electoral declaro a Maduro reelecto el ano pasado tras unos comicios que Estados Unidos y otros gobiernos occidentales calificaron de fraudulentos y en los que, segun observadores independientes, la oposicion gano abrumadoramente. El lunes, al dirigirse a simpatizantes, Maduro juro "absoluta lealtad" al pueblo venezolano. No esta claro si Maduro aun puede presentar una nueva propuesta que incluya un salvoconducto. Trump mantuvo conversaciones el lunes con sus principales asesores para discutir la campana de presion sobre Venezuela, entre otros temas, dijo un alto funcionario estadounidense. Una fuente en Washington informada sobre las conversaciones internas del gobierno de Trump, no descarto la posibilidad de una salida negociada de Maduro, pero enfatizo que persisten desacuerdos significativos y que aun quedan detalles importantes por resolver. La Casa Blanca y el Ministerio de Informacion de Venezuela, que gestiona todas las consultas de prensa del gobierno, no respondieron de inmediato a solicitudes de comentarios. Trump confirmo el domingo que habia hablado con Maduro, sin dar mas detalles. Estados Unidos ha aumentado a 50 millones de dolares la recompensa por informacion que conduzca al arresto de Maduro y ofrece 25 millones de dolares por otros altos funcionarios del gobierno, incluido el ministro del Interior, Diosdado Cabello, quien ha sido acusado en Estados Unidos de presunto narcotrafico, entre otros delitos. Todos han negado las acusaciones. El gobierno de Maduro ha solicitado otra llamada con Trump, segun las tres fuentes. (Reporte de Marianna Parraga en Houston, Matt Spetalnick en Boston y Sarah Kinosian en Philadelphia; reporte adiconal de Steve Holland. Editado por Christian Plumb y Julia Symmes-Cobb)
-
China's stock rally begins to gain investor confidence
Fund managers are holding volatile tech stocks in China and picking industrial stocks, betting that a two-year old equities rally will withstand an economic downturn, as valuations, and steady returns, lure foreign investors. China's blue chip index CSI300 is up 16% on the year to date, matching S&P 500. Hong Kong's Hang Seng has risen about 30% and is set for its biggest annual gain since 2017. The mood has changed from the euphoria triggered by stimulus a year earlier, but the ride is getting bumpier. This is especially true as the pressure on China Vanke reminds the market participants that the prolonged property downturn will not be over. Investors and analysts seem to have little concern about the current bull market, claiming that it is only taking a break. Laura Wang, Morgan Stanley's China equity strategist, said: "We think we are only at the beginning stages of a gradual process where foreign investors come back to China." She said that investors had begun to change their minds after seeing the results of this year. China stocks have also defied Sino-American trade friction and climbed thanks to state support, improved corporate governance and big gains for artificial-intelligence-linked stocks after the impressive release of DeepSeek's chatbot. A record HK$1.38 billion ($177 billion) has also been poured into Hong Kong's capital markets, which have seen a revival. Fund manager Xia Fuguang at Shenzhen Rongzhi Investment said that the next leg of bull run would likely be driven primarily by fundamental improvements and growth in earnings. He is also in favor of Beijing's anti-involution campaign, which is a campaign to combat industrial overcapacity, price wars and other issues. Fund managers claim that the valuations of industrial stocks, which are based on anti-involution policies, are also attractive and are attracting investment. Fund manager Wang An explained that "cyclical stocks are relatively inexpensive, so you can build positions at a time when prices are low as anti-involution policy gradually takes root." According to Datayes, over the past three-month period, ETFs that track the CSI Battery Thematic Index have seen net inflows of 13.5 billion yuan, or $1.91 billion. Another 11.2 billion yuan has been invested in funds tracking the CSI Chemicals Sub-industry Index. Net outflows of 31.1 billion yuan were recorded by funds tracking the tech-heavy STAR 50 Index during the same time period. Xu Jie is a fund manager from Shanghai at Yuanzi Investment Management. He has purchased solar energy, steelmaking, and coal stocks. Xu, citing possible inflows of foreigners and depositors, said that there is "no doubt" the slow bull run in China will continue into next year. The Shanghai Composite Index, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng, are currently trading at about 12 times earnings. According to LSEG, this compares to a multiple 28 for the S&P 500 and a ratio 21 for Japan's Nikkei 225. The FTSE 100 Index in Europe has a ratio of 21. Whether you consider valuation or liquidity we are only halfway through the bull market, said Wang Wendi. Distribution manager at Shanghai Intewise Capital. The company has increased its stakes in steelmakers and chemical producers. Zenith & Xenium Capital is another Chinese fund house that has also made bets on cyclical sectors like photovoltaic companies, refiners, chemical processors, and new energy. NEW CHINA For the past few decades, foreigners have been concerned about policy risks in China. They have kept their allocations low while U.S. investments and global investments performed well. Investors have said that they are not 100% in China. Factory activity has slowed down for the eighth consecutive month in October. Vincenzo Vedda is the global chief investment officer of DWS. He said, "We're not sure about China." China no longer provides real-time information on foreign investment. The latest figures from the central bank show that foreign holdings reached 3.5 trillion Yuan by the end of September. This is still well below the peak of 3.9 trillion Yuan in 2021, but it does reflect some strength. Florian Neto is the head of Asia investment at Amundi - Europe's largest asset manager. He is neutral, but makes a distinction between "old China", where exporters and developers were facing economic headwinds, and "new China", where AI and Biotech firms could expect earnings growth. He said that the market is driven by innovation, technology and innovative drugs. We are looking forward to adding more. Investors who look at their returns for the full year may decide to buy in 2026. Kristina Hooper, chief market analyst at Man Group New York, said that other stock markets performed better this year than the U.S. "I think most investors will recognize this paradigm shift by January... I believe that encourages looking for opportunities outside of the U.S., especially when valuations are so stretched."
How huge fossil-fuel-producing countries export emissions abroad
Black dust coats streets and gathers on rooftops in the area adjoining a vast cement factory in the Egyptian city of Alexandria.
Activists and regional citizens accuse the plant run by the Alexandria Portland Cement Business (APCC), a subsidiary of Greece's Titan Cement, of fouling the air by burning coal.
Every night, we see particles falling from their chimneys. Under street lights, you can plainly see the dust drizzling down, stated Mostafa Mahmoud, a supermarket owner in the Wadi al-Qamar area.
Reuters could not individually confirm the assertion. Titan Cement says the plant's emissions are within legal limits, and it prepares to minimize its use of coal in coming years.
Like many cement makers in Egypt and across North Africa, the factory uses imported coal to fire its kilns. Lately, a growing number of the region's coal is coming from the United States, according to U.S. export data.
Fossil fuel exports have been a hot subject at the United Countries climate conference in Baku this year, with activists and delegates from some climate-vulnerable countries arguing countries must be held liable for the contamination they send out overseas - typically to poor establishing nations - in the type of oil, gas and coal. Some are looking for to get the question of how to do this onto the program at future environment tops.
A landmark arrangement reached in Paris in 2015 to combat environment modification needs countries to set targets and report on development reducing nationwide levels of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. But it does not impose such requirements for emissions generated from fossil fuels they drill, mine and ship somewhere else.
That has actually permitted nations like the United States, Norway, Australia and others to state they are making development toward international climate goals while likewise producing and exporting fossil fuels at breakneck rate, said Bill Hare, co-founder of Environment Action Tracker, an independent clinical project that tracks government environment action.
Most of these fossil-fuel-exporting countries can get to look good with their domestic environment action, he stated on the sidelines of the COP29 conference in Baku today. Their. exported emissions are someone else's problem.
U.S. nonrenewable fuel source exports-- including coal, oil, gas and. refined fuels-- caused over 2 billion lots of carbon dioxide. equivalent emissions in other countries in 2022, according to a. computation carried out by Climate Action Tracker and confirmed. using data from the International Energy Company. That. is equivalent to about a 3rd of U.S. domestic emissions, the. information showed.
A years-long drilling boom has made the U.S. the world's top. oil and gas producer, while robust demand has actually lifted its coal. exports for 4 years running, according to data from the U.S. Energy Details Administration (EIA).
Asked how Washington squares its climate ambitions with its. nonrenewable fuel source production and exports, President Joe Biden's. environment advisor, Ali Zaidi, said strong energy output was needed. to keep customer prices low during a transition to cleaner. fuels.
I do not believe there is social license for a decarbonisation. playbook that puts upward price pressure for retail customers in. the market, Zaidi informed Reuters.
Inbound president Donald Trump, a climate modification sceptic,. has said he wishes to even more enhance the country's fossil fuel. production.
For other manufacturers, greenhouse gas emissions from fossil. fuel exports in some cases exceed domestic emissions, Environment. Action Tracker said.
That held true for Norway, Australia and Canada in 2022, the. newest year for which data is available for all countries. evaluated. Reuters got special access to the computations.
Norway's Ministry of Climate and Environment said it is. approximately other nations to manage their own carbon footprints.
Each nation is responsible for lowering its own. emissions, the ministry stated in a statement to Reuters.
Authorities at the environment and climate ministries of. Canada and Australia did not comment.
Addressing the top in Azerbaijan, host President Ilham. Aliyev implicated some Western politicians of double requirements for. lecturing his federal government about its oil and gas usage, saying,. They better look at themselves.
CEMENT AND BRICKMAKERS
A lot of U.S. gas exports now go to European countries looking for. to minimize reliance on Russia, while China has actually become one of. the leading purchasers of U.S. crude and coal, according to the EIA. figures. America's greatest development market for coal, however, is. North Africa.
U.S. coal mines exported around 52.5 million short lots. globally in the very first half of 2024, up almost 7% from the exact same. period a year earlier, the information revealed.
Much of the boost was driven by cement and brickmakers in. Egypt and Morocco, which together took in more than 5 million. short loads over the period, the EIA stated in a current report.
These clients value the high heat content of U.S. thermal. coal, which makes their production operations more. efficient, the report stated.
On the other hand, U.S. domestic coal usage has actually been sliding as cheap. gas and aids for renewables like solar and wind. drive coal-fired power plant closures, extending a more than. 15-year decrease in greenhouse gas emissions.
Egypt's cement market has depended on imported coal for. nearly a years, because consistent natural gas scarcities forced. many factories to search for alternatives, stated Ahmed Shireen. Korayem, vice chairman and board member at the Arab Union for. Cement and Building Products, a regional industry body.
The U.S. is Egypt's largest provider, accounting for 3.1. million of the 6.6 million metric lots of coal imported this. year, according to data from the London Stock Exchange Group.
Russia supplied most of the rest, 2.1 million metric lots. Its environment ministry referred questions to the foreign. ministry, which did not immediately comment.
Activists argue that the Egyptian federal government's choice to. lift a longstanding ban on coal imports in 2015 to support an. market central to its financial development strategies is harmful to. the environment and health of communities like Wadi al-Qamar.
Using information from the Alexandria plant's emissions-monitoring. system, researchers from Egypt's Al-Azhar University, Cairo. University and environment ministry simulated the dispersion of. polluting dust and poisonous gases in between 2014 and 2020.
The study
, published in the Journal of Environmental Health Science. and Engineering in 2022, concluded that the shift from using. gas to coal as the dominant fuel cause increased. emissions and concentrations of overall suspended particulates. ( TSP), nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide. The concentrations. were mainly within legal limits, nevertheless.
Egypt's greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels. increased by more than a fifth in the years ended in 2022, hitting. 263 million metric lots of carbon dioxide, according to information. from the International Carbon Budget, a task led by Britain's Exeter. University.
The majority of these emissions originated from gas and oil, which stay. Egypt's main energy sources. Coal accounted for 3.4% of the 2022. overall, 9 million metric heaps.
The federal government devoted in 2021 to phase out making use of. coal and has actually asked companies that utilize it to introduce more. eco-friendly sources into their energy mix. But Heba Maatouk, a. representative for Egypt's environment ministry, stated there was. insufficient supply of alternatives, such as refuse-derived fuel. ( RDF) made from combustible garbage.
If business can not get the RDF, they will not stop running. and will use coal to avoid losses, Maatouk told Reuters.
LEGAL BATTLES
Decarbonising the cement industry is a difficulty,. especially in poorer developing nations like Egypt, due to the fact that it. requires huge amounts of energy, and technologies to keep. emissions from the environment are pricey.
In his COP29 address recently, Egyptian Prime Minister. Mostafa Madbouly said his nation's strategies to enhance eco-friendly. energy to 42% of its power mix by 2030 depend on foreign. assistance.
Homeowners in the Wadi al-Qamar neighborhood have been. participated in a prolonged legal fight with the Alexandria cement. factory, APCC, submitting several claims, stated Hoda Nasrallah, a. legal representative for the Egyptian Effort for Personal Rights (EIPR).
In 2016, community members backed by EIPR asked an. administrative court in Alexandria to overturn amendments to the. country's ecological policies that allow heavy markets. to use coal on health and ecological premises, according to. the rights group.
APCC officials did not react to an ask for remark made. through a legal representative.
Titan Cement verified that the factory sources coal from. the U.S. however did not elaborate.
In a statement issued by its group business interactions. director, Lydia Yannakopoulou, the company said the plant had. not violated any laws, had actually made 40 million euros in investments. in pollution controls because 2010, and prepared to reduce its use. of coal in coming years as it increases use of alternatives.
She stated a court-appointed committee of experts from. Alexandria University concluded there were no environmental. violations arising from the company's emissions or functional. procedures, and the emissions were within legal limitations.
Nasrallah stated legal representatives representing the community. believe the committee was headed by a company employee and have. taken their case to Egypt's greatest administrative court in. Cairo.
Neither side supplied a copy of the committee's report, and. Reuters could not separately confirm their assertions.
A ruling in the case is expected in December.
Meanwhile, frustration is building amongst nearby. locals like Hisham al-Akary, who says his family has lived in. Wadi al-Qamar for generations and can not afford to move.
This factory shouldn't be here, he told Reuters. We. need to remain, and they must leave..
(source: Reuters)