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China's hot metal production falls as iron ore declines
Iron ore futures fell on Thursday, as hot metal production in the top buyer of iron ore,?China, dropped amid a slow return to production following the New Year holiday. The May contract for iron ore, the most traded on?China's Dalian Commodity Exchange(DCE), closed morning trade at 813 Yuan ($116.64) per metric ton. The price of iron ore touched its lowest level since January 9, at 812 Yuan, earlier in the day. The benchmark iron ore for February on the Singapore Exchange fell 0.79% to $107.2 per ton, after reaching its lowest level since January 7, at $106.95. Shanghai Metals Market data released on Thursday shows that hot?metal production fell by 0.26% from the previous week as some steel mills took a long time to restart after the New Year holidays. Other steel mills carried out annual planned maintenance?after the new year. SMM data published on January 14 revealed that production had declined by 2,035 million tons over the past week. SMM reported that portside spot cargo trades were also slow as traders and steelmills were cautious about stocking up cargoes past the essential Lunar New Year replenishment. Inventory buildups and supply pressures limited the 'upside room' for ore price. The market was supported by data showing China's record monthly exports of steel in December. In a recent note, ANZ Research stated that "strong global demand is offsetting weak domestic 'demand. Prices are also expected to be pushed up by record iron ore imports and an increase in the shipments of ore to China. Coking coal and coke, which are used to make steel, also lost ground. They fell by 2.17% and 1.4 %, respectively. The Shanghai Futures Exchange steel benchmarks were mixed. Hot-rolled coil and rebar both declined by 0.79%. Wire rod, however, gained 0.09%. Stainless steel also firmed up 2.51%. ($1 = 6.9699 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Ruth Chai; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
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Formosa Petrochemical prolongs Taiwan cracker shut down due to low margins
Formosa Petrochemical Corp. (FPCC), Taiwan’s largest private refiner will extend the shut-down of the oldest cracker indefinitely at its Mailiao Complex, a spokesperson for the company said on 'Wednesday. The company is reducing ethylene production due to low margins. The number. The FPCC spokesperson KY Li told that the No.1 cracker with a capacity 700,000 metric tonnes per year will be?shutdown indefinitely. The plant has been closed since September 2025. Records from the last three years show that this would be the very first time in history that FPCC had shut down a cracker for longer than a full year. The shutdown will reduce FPCC's ethylene production by almost a quarter, and also cut?some of the imports for petrochemicals feedstocks such as naphtha or liquefied petrol gas. Formosa, according to Kpler ship tracking data, is one of the biggest buyers in Asia. It imported 37.5 million barrels per year over the last three years. FPCC has announced its plan to reduce petrochemical production, as many other producers have closed plants due to oversupply, poor margins and a lack of demand. Shutdowns FPCC also plans to shut down?its 1.035 mtpy No. For a few months, FPCC will shut down its No. 2 cracker (1.035 million tpy) while increasing the operating rates of its 1.3-million-tpy No. Lin stated that the 3 cracker would be at 100%. Both units are currently operating at 70-75% of their maximum capacity. The combined capacity of all three crackers is 2.935 millions tpy ethylene. This is a key building block in the production of plastic derivatives. Lin said that the company will shut down the No. 3 cracker in August for maintenance. Lin stated that the company plans to shut down the?No. The cracker is being retrofitted so that it can process cheaper ethane feedstock starting in 2027. Formosa Plastics' parent company, FPCC, said in a recent filing that the loss for 2025 has widened from T$1.23 billion to T$10.05?billion (318 million), compared with a loss of T$1.23 billion a year earlier. FPCC reported a 1.2% drop in its operating revenue 2025 for its naphtha-cracking business due to lower petrochemical costs. Amy Yu, senior analyst at ICIS, an international petrochemical price agency, said: "Given the projected imbalance between supply and demand in the ethylene industry from 2026 to 2029, it is essential that Taiwan immediately initiate capacity consolidation. This will improve efficiency and resolve issues of overcapacity." South Korea will overhaul its industry by reducing ethylene production up to 37,000,000 tons per year. (Reporting and additional reporting by Mohi Nairayan; editing by Florence Tan, Thomas Derpinghaus).
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Indonesia takes action against those who fail to pay forest fines
Indonesia's military-backed task force for forestry has threatened to take legal action against dozens plantation and mining companies that refuse to pay heavy fines for operating in areas of?forest authorities consider illegal. Since last year, the 'unprecedented' crackdown on oil palm mines and plantations has unnerved industry. It boosted global palm prices out of fear that it would affect production. More recently, metal prices - like tin - have risen. Barita Simanjuntak, spokesperson for the task force, said that if companies continue to object or fail to appear at summons, or continue to engage in unauthorised activities within forest areas, they will be subjected to more aggressive legal actions to protect the sovereignty of the state. In a statement released on Wednesday, the 'task force' claimed to have taken over 8,800 ha (21,800 acres), which is roughly the same size as the Netherlands. The mining areas produce?items like nickel, coal and quartz sand, and palm plantations cover 4.1 miilion acres (10.1 mil acres), or about the same size as the Netherlands. It said that 25 out of 32 mining?companies, and 29 of 83 plantation companies summoned to pay a fine had objected, refused to attend, or "sought to reschedule", without identifying any of the companies. The task force said that seven mining companies and 54 palm oil companies had paid or agreed to fines totaling 9.3 trillion Rupiah (552 million dollars) Sanitiar?Burhanuddin said that authorities have assessed potential fines of 109.6 billion rupiah (for palm oil companies) and 32.63 billion rupiah (for mining companies), for their operations in forests. Attorney General Sanitiar was one of the heads of the taskforce set up by Prabowo Subianto last year. $1 = 16,855,0000 rupiah (Reporting and editing by Clarence Fernandez; Gayatri Suryo)
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Gold demand falls as profit-taking and a softer geopolitical climate hit the safe-haven market
Gold fell?on Friday as investors booked profits following three consecutive sessions of record highs. Meanwhile, an apparent softer tone by U.S. president Donald Trump towards the Federal Reserve Chair and Iran dampened demand for safe-haven bullion. As of 0322 GMT, spot gold was down by 0.8%, at $4,584.03 an ounce. The previous session saw bullion reach a record high of $4,642.72. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery fell 1% to $4,576.70. Ilya Spivak is the head of global macro for Tastylive. He said: "Today we are seeing that gold 'is down' a little bit after Trump said we might not intervene in Iran. This will stave off safe-haven demands (in the short term), but the bigger story (of metal's rising) won't go away." Tehran, in an effort to dissuade Trump from his repeated threats to military intervention, has threatened U.S. bases in the area, as Iran's leaders try to quell what they call the "worst internal unrest" the country has ever experienced since the 1979 Revolution. Trump, at the White House however, suggested that he would adopt a wait and see attitude towards the crisis. Trump said Wednesday that, despite the Justice Department's criminal investigation of Powell as Federal Reserve Chair, he had no plans to fire him. However it was still "too soon" to predict what he would do. Investors will focus on U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims?for the First Week of January later in the day to assess labour markets conditions and gain more insight on monetary policies. Investors continue to?anticipate two interest rate reductions this year. Gold is traditionally favored by a low-interest rate environment, as well as geopolitical or economic uncertainty. Silver spot fell 5.6%, to $87.46 an ounce. It had earlier reached a session high of $93.57. After reaching a record high of $2,478.50 per ounce on December 29, spot platinum fell 4.3%, to $2282.90 an ounce. This is a week-high. Palladium fell 3.3%, to $1.766.25 an ounce. It was near its one-week low.
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Qatar reduces the March term price of al-Shaheen Oil, the first discount for years, according to sources
Trade sources report that QatarEnergy, a state-owned company, has set the price of 'al-Shaheen crude loading in March at the lowest level in years. This is due to the decline in spot benchmarks. The company has set the price for March at minus 33 cents per barrel to Dubai's?quotes. This is down from a premium 53?cents on February-loading cargoes. Dubai's benchmark fell into a discount with swaps for the first time in December 2023 at the start of this year. QatarEnergy has sold four cargoes discounted at 32-35 cents per barrel to Totsa (the trading arm for TotalEnergies) and Unipec (the trading arm for Sinopec), according to sources. Separately Qatar awarded a Qatar Marine Crude Cargo?at a discounted price of $1.08 per barrel to Thailand's PTT. They said that it also?awarded Qatar Land cargo to Indian refiner Reliance. Companies don't usually comment on commercial deals. Each cargo is 500,000 barrels.
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Oil prices drop as Trump eases Iran concerns; Asian tech stocks fall
On Thursday, oil prices fell from their multi-month highs and gold, a safe-haven asset, eased from its record high after U.S. president Donald Trump 'calmed the market's anxiety over a possible U.S. war against Iran. Investors have been looking for bargains elsewhere in the market as they move away from high-flying names in chip and artificial intelligence. Currency markets paused to catch their breath after the yen fell overnight against the U.S. Dollar to its lowest level since July 2024. The yen then rebounded sharply amid warnings about possible Japanese intervention. Japanese bond yields have eased from record highs following a spike fueled by speculation, which was confirmed later, that the government would call for snap elections. This scenario is expected to lead to a larger fiscal stimulus. Brent crude futures fell?2.4%, to $64.94. Nymex futures dropped 2.4%, to $60.51. They had been as high as $62.82 and $62.36 respectively in the previous session. Trump stated on Wednesday that he had been informed that the killings of Iranians during their crackdown on protests across the country were waning. He also believed that there is no current plan for mass executions. Gold dropped 0.5%, to $4,598 an ounce. On Wednesday, it reached a record $4,642.72. The stock market in Asia was mixed, with tech shares selling more than other stocks. The tech-heavy Japanese Nikkei index? eased 0.9% on Thursday after reaching an all-time high in the previous session. However, the Topix, which is a broader index, extended its record high with a 0.4% gain. Tech shares weighed on Taiwan's TAIEX and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, which both fell 0.5%. South Korea's KOSPI, on the other hand, grew by 0.3% and reached a new record high. As economists predicted, the Bank of Korea kept interest rates at their current levels on Thursday. This signals an end to the current easing cycle. S&P E-mini futures fell 0.1% after the cash index dropped 0.5% overnight. The Nasdaq Composite, which is a tech-focused index, fell 1%. Kyle Rodda is an analyst for Capital.com. He said that there's a rotation on Wall Street which ultimately weighs on the indices, but that the internals are still holding up fairly well. The positive outlook for U.S. economy is a major factor in the strength of cyclicals. This helps to support stocks and gives market participants a sense of broader market strength. The dollar index was flat at 99.107 on Thursday. After surging to as high as 159.5 yen Wednesday, it eased to 158.32 before pulling back. Satsuki Katayama, the Japanese Finance Minister, issued a verbal warning Wednesday saying that officials will take "appropriate actions against excessive FX movements without excluding any other options." Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi intends to dissolve the lower house of parliament next week, and call for a snap election in Parliament as early as 8 February. Investors have been selling the yen as well as government bonds in recent days, mainly due to expectations of a bigger fiscal stimulus. The yield on Japan's 20 year bond fell 2 basis points to 3.14% after a record-breaking 3.165% the previous session. (Reporting and Editing by Shri Navaratnam.)
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Trump backs Venezuela staying in OPEC
Donald Trump, President of the United States, said that he believed it would be best for Venezuela to stay in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) but he added he wasn't sure if he thought the United States would benefit from this. In an interview, Trump replied that it would be better for Venezuela to remain in the cartel. Trump continued, "I'm not sure that it's better... but they're a member of OPEC and we've never discussed this with them at all." Venezuela, the founding member of this oil cartel, is home to some of the largest reserves of crude oil in the world. However, its production has been falling for the past few years due to economic turmoil and sanctions. Trump is trying to take control of Venezuela's oil supply after the U.S. removed President Nicolas Maduro earlier this month. Trump's administration said that it would have to control Venezuela's petroleum resources indefinitely as it sought to rebuild Venezuela's industry and exert pressure against the Caracas Government. When asked if Venezuela would be expected, under a U.S. oil policy, to abide by OPEC's production limits, Trump replied that the question was premature, and beyond his remit. He said, "I'm not worried about it at the moment, because I don't know anything about OPEC." Caracas could be at odds with other OPEC countries if the U.S. controls Venezuela's oil industry. Future investments to increase capacity may also put Caracas in conflict. OPEC is a coalition of oil-producing nations that collaborate on a supply policy in order to stabilize the oil market. They reduce output when prices drop and increase output when demand warrants. Saudi Arabia is the de facto leader of the group, even though members take decisions together. This is due to Saudi Arabia's dominant production capability and its ability to increase or decrease supply. White House aides, as well as outside advisors, have said that in recent interviews the topic of Venezuela staying in OPEC 'hasn't been a subject of conversation. It could become a hot topic if Trump tries to increase oil production, while OPEC tries to cut prices to maintain the price. OPEC's quota system limits the production of some members to maintain global oil prices. Iraq, Nigeria, and Angola are among the countries that have expressed their frustration in the past because the quotas limit them from fully utilizing their reserves or meeting domestic fiscal requirements.
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Uganda votes in tense elections clouded by succession issues
After a violent election campaign, the Ugandan president Yoweri Mueveni wants to extend his reign into a 5th decade. Museveni will likely be able to defeat the challenge of the popular singer Bobi Wine. But the vote is a test?of?his political strength?and?ability to avoid the unrest which has ravaged neighbouring countries Tanzania and Kenya. The longtime leader campaigned under the slogan "protecting gains", promising to maintain peace and elevate the country to middle-income status. Wine, 43-year-old Pop star, nicknamed "Ghetto president" because of his humble origins has promised to end Museveni's dictatorship and appealed to angry young people about the lack of economic opportunities. Over 70% of Ugandans are under 30 years old. HUNDREDS Arrested, at LEAST one killed Security forces have opened fire on Wine's events several times, killing at least 1 person. They also arrested hundreds of Wine supporters. Museveni’s government has justified the actions of security forces as a response to what they called lawless behavior by opposition supporters. The authorities have cut off internet and mobile access in the entire country to combat what they call "misinformation" regarding the election. Last week, the U.N. Office for Human Rights said that elections took place amid "widespread intimidation and repression". Wine is not the only opposition candidate who will be challenging Museveni,?Africa's?third-longest ruling head of state. The voters will also be able to 'choose over 500 members of Parliament. The polls will close at 4:00 pm (1300 GMT), and the results are expected within 48 hours. By Saturday afternoon. MUSEVENI IS AN STRATEGIC FRIEND OF THE WEST Museveni was the leader of a revolt in 1986 that brought him to power. Political analysts claim that he has changed the Constitution twice, removing age and term limitations, and because he dominates Ugandan institutions, there are few chances of a surprise election. As president, he has established Uganda as a strategic?partner?of Western countries, sending troops into regional hotspots such as Somalia and accepting millions of refugees. The economic growth traditionally dependent on agriculture and tourism is expected to reach double digits once crude oil production begins this year from the fields operated by France's TotalEnergies, and China's CNOOC. Museveni's government has been criticized for alleged abuses of human rights and unfair elections. The United States denounced Wine's last victory in 2021, in which he won with 58% of votes. They said it was neither fair nor free. In the run-up to this vote, security forces killed over 50 opposition supporters. It is unlikely that the Trump administration will make similar criticisms this time, after U.S. diplomatic staff were instructed in July to refrain from commenting on foreign elections. PRESIDENTIAL SUCCESSFULNESS IN FOCUS Museveni's son, Muhoozi Kaineruaba, is believed by many to be his preferred successor. However, the president has denied grooming Kainerugaba for the position. Kainerugaba is a social media star who regularly threatens violence against opposition leaders. He has declared openly his presidential ambitions. However, his status as the heir apparent within the ruling party is not widely accepted, according to analysts. Jervin Niaidoo is a political analyst with Oxford Economics. He said that while another term would bring stability, it would also increase the risk of succession, effectively pushing the leadership transition down the road. (Editing by Aaron Ross & Philippa Fletcher).
Copper falls from record highs due to easing US tariffs and a stronger dollar
The copper price fell on Thursday, from its record highs. This was due to a weaker dollar and the easing of concerns about a possible imposition?of U.S. duties on vital minerals.
By 0244 GMT, the?most traded copper contract at the Shanghai Futures Exchange had fallen?1.08%?to 103 050 yuan per metric ton ($14,788.82). The contract reached a record of 105,650 Yuan the previous day.
The benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.45%, to $13,129.5 a ton. This is after reaching a record high of $13,407 per ton on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, U.S. president Donald Trump announced that he would not be imposing tariffs for the time being on 'rare earths', 'lithium and other critical mineral products. Copper has been added the U.S. list of critical minerals.
The price of copper has been pushed up by the persistent flow of copper into the United States, despite higher premiums in other countries.
A stronger dollar also affected the demand for the metal. It is used for power grids, manufacturing and construction.
Shanghai tin rose for a 5th straight session, hitting a record at 443,380 Yuan despite signs that supply was increasing.
According to the Indonesia Tin Exporters Association, the country's production quota for tin will be around 60,000 tonnes in 2026 compared with 53,000 tons last year.
Concerns about the supply from Indonesia led to a spike in Shanghai nickel prices at 151.750 yuan, their highest level in over seven months.
Local media reported that Indonesia, a major producer, may approve a nickel-ore production quota this year of 260 tons. This is lower than the demand for 340 to 350 million tonnes.
Other SHFE metals saw a 1.26% increase in lead, a 3.52% rise in zinc, and 1.37% decline in aluminium.
Aluminium, nickel, lead, tin, and zinc all rose in price.
(source: Reuters)