Latest News
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Poland reduces household gas prices and increases the chances of lower interest rate
The Polish energy regulator has reduced the gas prices charged by wholesaler PGNiG to households, hospitals and schools as well as vulnerable users such as schools and hospitals by 14.8%. This increases the chances of further interest rate reductions. The regulator, URE said that gas distribution fees will remain the same, resulting in average bills dropping between 8.1% to 11%, depending on consumption volume. The regulator sets the gas prices for household use, and this has a significant impact on inflation. The main reason for the central bank's hesitation to reduce interest rates was uncertainty over energy prices. ING economists stated on X that the reduction in gas prices could lead to an inflation rate of 2.5% in July. The central bank might also cut interest rates further. The minimum scenario is "Our current scenario, which assumes 75 basis points by the end the year and 3.75% by 2026." Currently, the rate is 5.25%. (Reporting by Marek Strzelecki and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk. Mark Potter edited the article.
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Investors assess tariff roadblock as they halt the dollar and stock rally
The initial rally in the markets following the court ruling blocking President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day Tariffs" lost momentum on Thursday as the markets assessed the uncertain future. The Manhattan-based Court of International Trade has ruled that Trump exceeded his authority when he imposed his April 2, 2018 tariffs on all imports from U.S. Trading Partners. The White House appealed this decision and could even take it to the Supreme Court, if necessary. In the meantime, the White House's appeal offered some hope that Trump would back down from the highest tariff levels which he had previously threatened. The ruling may also encourage U.S. trade partners to suspend any negotiations with the White House in order to wait for the outcome of the case. Goldman Sachs analysts noted that while the court order did not prohibit sectoral tariffs, there were still other legal avenues that Trump could use to impose tariffs across-the board and by country. Stock markets initially rose on Thursday but then fell as investors digested news and data that showed U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims rising more than expected. The STOXX 600 Index in Europe was up by 0.1% after a 0.5% rise earlier. S&P futures were up 0.8% after earlier gains of as much as 1.8% on Thursday. Nasdaq Futures rose 1.3% after earlier benefiting from Nvidia's earnings, which exceeded sales expectations. Michael Brown, Senior Research Strategist at Pepperstone said: "I believe the pared-down gains are mainly because the ruling does not change fundamentally." While the tariff journey may have changed, for many the endgame and destination hasn't. The FTSE 100 Index in Britain, meanwhile has largely ignored the news, and last closed flat. Is this a signal that the stock markets of countries that have managed to strike trade deals with America in recent weeks could suffer if tariffs were reversed? This is a trend to keep an eye on in the short term," said Kathleen Brooks at XTB. The Financial Times reported that Britain was the first nation to sign a trade agreement with the U.S. It will be holding talks with Washington to accelerate the implementation of this deal next week. In Asia, the Nikkei soared 1.9% in Japan, while South Korean stocks climbed 1.9% at a record high for nine months. Chinese blue chips firmed 0.6%. DOLLAR RALLY FADES The court's decision first hit the traditional safe-haven currencies that have benefitted from the tariff fears punishing U.S. dollars. The dollar had earlier gained nearly 1% against Japanese yen, but has since fallen by 0.2%. After an earlier rally, it was down by 0.2% against Swiss Franc. The euro was also a beneficiary of the dollar's woes. It dropped by as much as 0,7% but ended up with a 0.4% gain against the U.S. Investors were unnerved after Trump's tax and spending bill. Treasury yields initially rose, but then fell to trade at a flat rate. The yields on 10-year Treasuries were at 4.48%, as the markets continued to doubt that a Federal Reserve rate reduction would be imminent. The 30-year-old yields have fallen from the closely monitored 5% level to 4.98%. The minutes of the Fed's last meeting show that "almost everyone commented on the possibility that inflation may prove to be persistent longer than expected" because of Trump's tariffs. Rate cuts in July are now around 20%, and September is around 70%. This is after the month prior, when rates were more than fully priced. Gold was down 0.7% on the commodity markets to $3,313 per ounce. The oil price initially rose, then fell, as investors waited for a decision by OPEC+ to increase production in July. Meanwhile, the U.S. banned Chevron from exporting Venezuelan Crude. Brent fell 0.1% to $64.85.
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TenneT Begins Drilling Under Dunes for Laying Electricity Cables on Maasvlakte
In the coming years, grid operator TenneT will bring wind energy from the sea to land on the Maasvlakte. To enable the landing of these electricity cables, contractor NRG started six drillings under the dunes May 26. Three more will follow after the summer. In recent days, NRG has made the necessary preparations both inside the dike and on the beach. The electric drill is making a horizontally directional drilling over a distance of approximately 200 meters towards the beach. An empty plastic casing will be placed in that borehole, into which the electricity cable will later be pulled.In order to connect such an unmanned platform at sea to the high-voltage grid on land, a 525,000 volt cable system is buried in the seabed.NRG carries out the horizontal (via GPS) directional drilling in three steps. “First, they use the electric drill to make a so-called pilot drilling from the work area behind the dunes to the beach," said Robert Wijnholds, on behalf of TenneT. "The drilling team then pulls a reamer through the drilling to make the hole bigger. During the third and final step, the reamer is connected to a casing pipe with a diameter of almost half a meter and then pulled back.”The sea cables will be installed next year and will be laid meters deep in the beach. Behind the dunes, they will be connected underground to the electricity cables that are currently being laid in the ground on land. TenneT has placed an information point on the Noordzeeboulevard—within walking distance of car park P3—near the drill. From the roof, visitors have a perfect view of the work.
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US authorities arrest Mexican immigrant accused of threatening to shoot Trump
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced on Wednesday that U.S. Immigration authorities arrested an immigrant from Mexico who had allegedly threatened President Donald Trump with a gun. According to DHS which published a picture of the letter, Ramon Morales Reyes (54), allegedly wrote a letter to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent stating that he was going to "shoot [your precious] president in the head" at a rally. Morales stated in his letter that ICE was deporting members of his family, although he didn't mention anyone by name. The letter states: "We are tired that this president is messing with us Mexicans. We have done more to help this country than white people." Trump was the target of two assassination efforts during his presidential campaign in 2024, including a shooting at a rally held in Butler, Pennsylvania. Both of the suspects were U.S. Citizens. In a recent statement, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Nöem stated that "all politicians and media members should take note of these repeated attacks on President Trump's lives and tone down their language." DHS reports that Morales illegally entered the U.S. at least nine different times between 1998 and 2005. DHS reported that he had been arrested for a hit-and run felony and other crimes. DHS reported that he is being held in Wisconsin by ICE and awaiting his deportation. (Reporting and editing by Mary Milliken, Deepa Babington and Ted Hesson)
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Why the Peruvian farmer’s loss in court may have been a victory for climate justice
The ten-year court battle between an Peruvian farmer, and German energy giant RWE regarding the global emissions of RWE and their impact on his home town finally ended on Wednesday. The court dismissed the case without allowing for an appeal. The farmer, his attorneys and environmentalists hail the ruling as a historic victory in climate cases, which could lead to similar lawsuits. What was the case about? Huaraz, located in the highlands of Peru, is threatened by a flood caused by a glacial outburst lake. Since 1970 the volume of Lake Palcacocha has increased at least 34-fold. This requires investment in drainage and dam structures. Saul Luciano Lliuya, a Peruvian farmer, sued the German energy giant RWE claiming that it should pay 0.5% of flood defenses because the company has emitted 0.5% global emissions since industrial revolution even though they do not have a physical presence on the Peruvian soil. It would have been about $17500. Why did the court rule against the farmer? The court's decision was based upon calculating the flood risk that Lliuya faced. A 30-year damage estimate for the plaintiff's home was found to be 1% by an expert. The court decided that this was not sufficient to continue the case. How does the court's ruling make companies liable for similar lawsuits? The court found that while the risk to Lliuya’s home did not meet the threshold, companies can be held responsible for their emissions. In a press conference held after the verdict, Noah Walker-Crawford said, "They established a duty of care, a principle of legal liability for corporate climate, which no other court in the world has done." This is a truly, really historic verdict. The ruling states that German civil code overseeing property rights is applicable across borders, and that it can be used by litigants from around the globe to file transnational lawsuits against German companies. The court stated that RWE’s permits did not exempt them from responsibility when they violated the rights of other people and their global emissions made it responsible for the consequences of climate change. The fact that a company is one of several emitters doesn't shield it from liability. WHAT DIDN'T THE COURT SAY IN REGARD TO CLIMATE SCIENCES? The court stated that the link between carbon dioxide emissions and risk dates back to 1958 when U.S. scientist Charles Keeling first published a graph showing the annual variation of carbon dioxide and its accumulation in Earth's atmospheric. The report of the Presidential SAC from 1965, which found that burning fossil fuels increased atmospheric CO2, also provided companies with enough information to anticipate harmful effects and be legally responsible for them. The complexity of the science behind climate change does not excuse liability. What does RWE say about the case? A spokesperson for RWE told a reporter that the ruling was not a precedent in the UK legal system. Three other regional courts had also taken a different view. The statement stated that since the case had been thrown out the court has not ruled on whether or to what extent RWE can be held accountable. It also added that the company operated in compliance with the applicable laws, and the climate policy issue should be decided at the political level. (Reporting and editing by Aurora Ellis; Alexander Villegas)
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Brazilian police arrest members from a gang that was created to spy and kill lawmakers, judges
The Federal Police of Brazil announced on Wednesday that it had arrested five suspects suspected of involvement in a group formed to assassinate and spy on high-ranking politicians and judges. One source familiar with the investigation stated that the gang was formed by both a civilian and a military officer. The document, which was seized by police and seen by, reveals that the group went by the acronym C4, which is a reference to the full name Command for Hunting Communists, Corrupt People, and Criminals. Documents also show that the gang targeted high-ranking judges and senators with 250,000 reais. Documents stated that the organization used explosives, rifles, and prostitutes to lure in their victims. The investigation was launched after the police began investigating the murder of a lawyer from the city of Cuiaba in Mato Grosso. According to the news website UOL a retired colonel who has been imprisoned for over a year now, suspected of being involved in the murder of a lawyer, was one of those targeted during Wednesday's raid. As part of this investigation, Federal Police officers executed six search warrants in three states across Brazil. (Reporting and writing by Ricardo Brito, editing by Bill Berkrot).
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Exxon shareholders face no stockholder proposals when Chevron rejects them.
Chevron shareholders rejected three shareholder proposals at the annual meeting of the U.S. Oil Producer on Wednesday. One proposal called for a human rights report, and the other one demanded a company report. Exxon Mobil, the larger competitor, faced no resolutions from investors for the first times in decades. Due to a lack of interest from investors, there have been fewer ESG resolutions this year than in 2024 or 2023. Investors have shifted their focus to oil and natural gas due to lower-than-expected returns on renewable energy projects. Investors in Chevron rejected a proposal that would have permitted holders of at least 10 percent of the common stock of the company to call special meetings. According to preliminary voting results, they also rejected a proposal for a report on whether investments in renewable energies could lead to so-called "stranded assets" or projects that lose their value prematurely. Exxon held its annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday with no resolutions qualifying as shareholder resolutions. This was the first time in 1958 that this had happened. Exxon CEO Darren Woods attributed this to Exxon’s outperforming competitors and its willingness to fight against proposals he deemed detrimental to the business. Investors approved the compensation plans and director nominations for both companies. Reporting by Sheila Dang and Tanay dhumal from Houston, Bengaluru respectively; editing by David Gregorio
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West Africa ECOWAS at 50: Jihadist violence, coups and more
The Economic Community of West African States faces growing threats from terrorism, climate changes, military coups and poverty, said its most senior official on Wednesday, as leaders celebrated 50 years since the formation of the bloc in Nigeria. This year, jihadist violence in Nigeria, the Sahel, Burkina Faso and Mali has increased. These nations recently left ECOWAS to protest sanctions after military coups. Omar Alieu Touray, President of the ECOWAS Commission, said: "We face the biggest challenges today, terrorism and climate change, unconstitutional changes in government, poverty, and economic disparities." He expressed confidence that the challenges would be overcome. ECOWAS was founded on May 28th 1975 with the aim of promoting regional economic integration, cooperation in security, human rights and democratic governance. Five decades after the founding of the group, Burkina Faso and Mali have both disassociated themselves from it, claiming that their interests are no longer served. These countries have created their own Alliance of Sahel States, a confederation and cut diplomatic and military ties with Western powers. They also sought to work more closely with Russia. Touray stated that ECOWAS will continue to try and cooperate with the three nations. Analysts in the security and political fields said that curbing insecurity is crucial to ECOWAS' ability to achieve its prosperity promises and lift millions out of poverty. Beverly Ochieng is a senior analyst with Control Risk, based in Dakar, Senegal. She said: "If there's no security, you can't guarantee a robust economic environment in the region." Analysts also criticized ECOWAS's silence when leaders amend constitutions in controversial ways to extend their ruling, leading citizens to applaud military coups. The opposition parties pointed to the example of Togo’s leader Faure gnassingbe who, after being granted the powerful new role of president of the Council of Ministers without a fixed term limit, was able to extend his rule indefinitely. MacDonald Dzirutwe reported from Lagos, Ope Adetayo from Abuja and Bate Felix edited the article.
Steel industry is unsure if China will implement output cuts plans
China has said it will cut its crude steel production this year, but traders and steelmakers believe Beijing will not follow through because the industry is profitable and trade tensions are weighing on the economy.
In March, the world's biggest steel producer announced plans to reduce output and restructure their giant steel sector in order to combat overcapacity that has plagued this industry for years and spilled over onto export markets and angered trade partners.
At the Singapore International Ferrous Week, fifteen traders, analysts, and hedge funds shared the same message. The cuts will not be implemented.
They said that the unexpectedly high demand has led to an improvement in profitability across the entire industry, which undermines some of the rationale behind the initial decision to reduce output. In the period from April to June, the industry's profits reached 16.9 billion Yuan ($2.35billion), compared with a loss last year of 22.2billion Yuan.
Participants bet that Beijing will not crack down on the crime rate, especially since the trade war between the United States and China makes policymakers more sensitive to maintaining economic growth.
Even less incentive exists for local governments, where many of the steel mills contribute significantly to the growth targets that officials are evaluated against.
No one wants to cut production when mills can make money again after struggling for survival the last two years.
Between January and April of this year, the Chinese crude steel production increased by 0.4%.
Many at the conference believed that in China, Beijing's lack of public orders since March's announcement indicated that output reductions would be limited or enforced only partially.
The Chinese consultancy Fubao stated in late April, that although provincial targets had been set for production cuts, there was doubt about whether the steel mills will actually adhere to them.
Mengtian Jiang is the chief ferrous metals analysts at Harizon Insights.
"Steel Mills are Making Money, especially since the domestic coking prices have almost halved. I don't see China's Steel Output will be Down Much."
She added that although steel exports could fall by 3% to 4% in the coming year, this will not have a significant impact on China's output of steel. ($1 = 7.1976 Chinese Yuan Renminbi). (Reporting and editing by Lewis Jackson, Shri Navaratnam and Amy Lv in Singapore)
(source: Reuters)