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Five metals that China has banned from export
China announced on Tuesday export controls targeting five metals that are used in defence, clean energy, and other industries. This comes just minutes after the U.S. President Donald Trump imposed an additional 10% tariff on Chinese products. What you should know about these metals TUNGSTEN Tungsten, an ultra-hard material, is only outdone by diamonds in terms of strength. It is used to produce artillery shells and armour plating, as well as cutting tools. About 60% of the U.S. production is used to make tungsten carbide. This highly durable material is widely used in construction, metalworking and oil and gas drilling. China is the world's largest producer and exporter of tungsten, and it produced just under 80% of the global supply by 2023. According to Project Blue, a UK-based consultancy, China provides 30% of the ex China market, mainly in the form powders used for tooling. Vietnam, Russia and South Korea are also producers. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, tungsten hasn't been commercially mined in the United States for at least five years. China has restricted the production of eight types and methods of tungsten-based products. INDIUM Indium, via an indium tin dioxide refined product, is used to make phone screens and television displays. In addition, a separate indium-based product is used in the fibre-optics technology. Indium demand has increased due to the expansion of 5G cellular networks. According to the USGS, China, like tungsten is the world's largest producer. It accounts for 70% of global production. In September 2024, about a quarter (25%) of U.S. imports of indium came from China. Project Blue reports that Japan and South Korea are also major Chinese buyers. China's new restrictions on indium products and technology are aimed at three specific products. BISMUTH Bismuth can be found in alloys, medicines, metalurgical additives and atomic research. USGS reports that the United States stopped producing primary refined bismuth back in 1997. It is now heavily dependent on imports. USGS data also revealed that China produced more than 80% of the 13,000 tons bismuth consumed worldwide last year. South Korea and Laos also produce a lot of tee. China banned bismuth, and other compounds containing bismuth. TELLURIUM Tellurium is a common by-product of copper refinement and used in metallurgy. It's also found in solar panels, memory chip, and other products. According to USGS, China will produce about three-quarters of the refined tellurium produced in the world by 2024. According to the USGS, the copper telluride is produced in two refineries within the United States, but it is shipped overseas to be further processed. Tellurium is imported for most products that use it. China has restricted the export of tellurium and other compounds that contain tellurium. MOLYBDENUM Molybdenum mainly is used to harden and strengthen steel alloys to make them more resistant against heat and corrosion. Molybdenum is also used as a catalyst, in petroleum, in lubricants and in pigments. According to USGS, China will account for 40% of the global production in 2024 compared with 12% for America. The new restrictions are only applicable to certain molybdenum compounds used in the manufacture of missile components. Customs data shows that China exported 287 tons (about half) of the powder to Japan last year.
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Marathon Petroleum beats fourth quarter profit estimates on midstream strength
Marathon Petroleum, the top U.S. refining company, beat profit expectations for the fourth quarter on Tuesday. Strength in its midstream segment and in renewable diesel helped offset a decline in refinery margins. The midstream segment of the refiner reported an adjusted core income of $1.71billion in the third quarter. This compares to $1.57billion a year ago, and benefited from accretive contributions made by its newly acquired Utica basin and Permian Basin assets. The MPLX division of the company Buy Tickets Last year, Summit Midstream Partners acquired Utica assets for $625 Million. The company's margin for refining, marketing and sales was lower at $12.93 a barrel, compared to $17.81 a barrel if you compare it with a year ago. The 3-2-1 crack spread is a measure of the quarterly U.S. refinery profit margins. The average price of, has dropped by a third from the previous year, reaching as low as $16.04 in mid-December. According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, on an adjusted basis the company reported a quarterly profit of 77c per share, compared to the average analyst estimate of 2c per share. (Reporting from Tanay in Bengaluru, Editing by Tasim Zaid)
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Japan's Sumitomo increases annual profit forecast despite Ambatovy losses
Sumitomo Corporation, a Japanese company, raised its net profit estimate for the fiscal period through March by 6% as higher earnings from overseas power generation and aluminium prices compensated for a loss on its nickel project in Madagascar. The trading house has now increased its guidance to 560 billion yen for the current fiscal year. This is up from the previous guidance of only 530 billion, despite the 6 billion yen losses from the Ambatovy Nickel project, due to unrecoverable investor loans. The net profit for April to December rose by 3% compared with the same period last year, reaching 416.5 billion yen. Sumitomo is struggling to improve profitability and stabilise the production at Ambatovy, a project launched in 2005. The project's value was written down to zero during the fiscal year ending March 31, 2024. This resulted in an impairment loss of 89 billion yen. It warned that if the company needed to raise additional funds to continue operations, it could lead to further impairments if they were deemed to be unrecoverable. Sumitomo holds a 54.17% share in Ambatovy Minerals (a mining company) and Dynatec Madagascar (a refining firm). Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources owns the rest. Ambatovy Project companies have completed all their work. Debt restructuring In December, the debt of lenders was eliminated by a London Court. A spokesperson for the company said that Sumitomo continues to consider all options, including selling Ambatovy. Sumitomo reported that Ambatovy produced approximately 20,000 metric tonnes of nickel from April to December. However, it did not reveal production plans. Instead, the company said it would assess plans following a thorough inspection of the damaged pipeline in September.
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MORNING BID AMERICAS - 'Phantom Trump tariffs' become more real in China
Mike Dolan gives us a look at what the U.S. market and global markets will be like today. After a four day guessing game, and financial turmoil, it appears that the United States has resumed its tit-fortat trade battle with China. Meanwhile Mexico and Canada have a minimum of a month breathing space. This leaves the markets a little shaky and unsure about the next step. Mexico's peso and Canada's currency are now higher than when the latest round of threats, counter-threats and deferrals started on Friday. They have risen from their respective lows of two and 22 years. The yuan is firmer, and back to where it was last Friday. This was despite the U.S. deadline for 10% tariffs on China having passed earlier in the day and China's immediate retaliation of plans for up to 15% import taxes on a variety of U.S. products starting next week. This peculiar reaction indicates that there is still some hope that the delays and deferrals negotiated in Canada and Mexico will be replicated also in China. The press secretary for U.S. president Donald Trump said that Trump would be speaking with Chinese President Xi Jinping within the next few days. The dollar index, on a broader scale, has mirrored all of these moves. It completed a 1,5% round trip since Friday that saw it reach three-week highs before reversing course. It was unclear whether Trump intended to impose tariffs on the European Union. The Federal Reserve's broad, trade-weighted index of the dollar includes the yuan and peso as well as the Canadian dollar. Add the euro to that and you get more than 60%. The fact that the mainland Chinese markets are closed until tomorrow for the Lunar New Year holiday complicates the market reading. However, Hong Kong shares rose almost 3% after reopening to reach three-month-highs even though the bilateral tariff salvos had been delivered. Analysts say that the hope of delays and talks encouraged buying. Others claim relief at the 10% proposed U.S. Tariffs - as opposed to the 60% Trump had proclaimed before the election. Beijing has announced that it will impose its own taxes of 15% for coal and LNG from the United States and 10% on crude oil, farm machinery and certain autos starting February 10. China has also launched an anti-monopoly investigation into Alphabet’s Google. PVH, the holding company of brands such as Calvin Klein, and biotechnology firm Illumina are both included on a potential sanctions list. Alphabet is the leader of the latest megacap quarterly earnings report on Wall Street. Big Pharma companies, Omnicom and Advanced Micro Devices are also in the top five. U.S. Stock Indexes, however, are not back to the same level as Friday. The S&P500 finished 0.8% lower, and futures are still negative ahead of Tuesday's bell due to the overnight China developments. The VIX, or 'fear indicator' of Wall Street stock volatility, soared again above 20 on Monday. However, it has not yet closed above this level in the year. The fear of inflation that is a result of tariffs has pushed up borrowing costs. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rate remains higher this week, and the expectations for Fed cuts in 2019 have been lowered a bit. Both Fed officials and investors are assessing the extent to the which tariffs exacerbate the politically toxic price outlook. There is some debate as to whether these one-off price increases would necessarily raise the inflation rate. However, it's reasonable to worry that the constant threats and the slow application of them will increase inflation expectations. This is only one of many apparent contradictions that Washington's approach to policy has created. The dollar will rise if tariffs are applied. This is in direct contradiction to Trump's claims that the dollar has been overvalued. It will also help overseas firms absorb the tariffs, and keep the prices of their products in U.S. shops down. In the meantime, retaliatory tariffs against U.S. products overseas only hit U.S. importers. Even if the assumption is only marginal, it will keep interest rates high and the stock market under a cloud, which goes against the stated intentions of the new administration. The administration's much-vaunted support for the crypto industry is now being questioned as the dollar increases on the trade dispute. As we return to the domestic economy today, it is important that you pay attention to the multiple updates on this week's labor market. December's job openings will be released before Friday's payrolls report. In Europe, earnings from corporates grew rapidly. UBS's fourth-quarter profit exceeded expectations, but its shares dropped 5%, as investors failed to be impressed by the buyback plan, which was contingent on Swiss capital rules not changing. Infineon's shares, on the other hand, rose 11% following the German chipmaker’s revenue forecast for full-year and its beat. The French 10-year government bond premiums over Germany have fallen to 70 basis points for the first four months, after French Premier Francois Bayrou pushed the 2025 budget through parliament. He was betting that he had enough votes to overcome a possible no-confidence vote. The following developments should help to guide U.S. stock markets on Tuesday:
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OMV CFO sees minimal impact of US tariffs
OMV is affected by U.S. Tariffs in some areas, but its exposure to North America in relatively low. CFO Reinhard Fleery said this on Tuesday in a conference call after the Austrian Oil and Gas firm's results. He added, "However this exposure includes activities in the USA themselves and...this means tariffs don't go there because they operate on the domestic market directly." Donald Trump, the U.S. president, suspended his threat to impose steep tariffs against Mexico and Canada, on Monday. He agreed to a 30 day pause in exchange for concessions made by both countries on border enforcement and criminal law enforcement. He imposed a 10% tariff against trade with China and threatened to take similar actions against the European Union. Florey said that if tariffs were imposed on the EU they could affect chemical products exported to the U.S. by OMV subsidiary Borealis, even though these shipments are very limited. He added that tariffs could increase prices by way of surcharges, and that they can hinder global trade. Florey stated, "We want to ensure that energy remains affordable. We must find macroeconomically sound solutions." (Reporting and editing by Tristan Veyet in Gdansk, Isabel Demetz at the University of Gdansk)
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China retaliates quickly against US tariffs and stocks, causing the dollar to plummet.
U.S. stocks futures and dollar dropped on Tuesday while Hong Kong shares fell from two-month-highs as U.S. & China went tit for tat on tariffs. This raised the threat of a larger, damaging trade war. As prices slid around in the headlines, Shane Oliver, Chief Economist at AMP, Sydney, said: "(The trade war) story is alive and well. This has a long way to go." S&P futures, which were buoyed by the news that Mexico and Canada had struck last-minute agreements to defer a U.S. tax, have now fallen 0.2%, while dollar index has lost 0.1% of its earlier gains, trading at 108.86. European stocks fell 0.1% this morning after dropping 0.87% Monday. The DAX in Germany was flat, while the FTSE 100 in Britain fell 0.3%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng reached 2025 highs in hopes that China will also negotiate a way out of tariffs, with U.S. president Donald Trump. However, it later pared some gains to trade at about 2.8% higher. This was buoyed by the hope that Beijing would ramp up stimulus expenditure to counter U.S. actions. At 0501 GMT an additional 10% U.S. duty on Chinese exports went into effect. Minutes later, Beijing announced that it was investigating Google, and imposing tariffs from February 10 on the imports of U.S. cars, farm equipment, oil, coal and gas. Ben Bennett, Asia-Pacific Investment Strategist at Legal & General Investment Management Hong Kong said: "I would say that there is disappointment in the fact that U.S. Tariffs will be implemented after the last-minute reprieves of Mexico and Canada." Investors will remain hopeful of a quick agreement between the two sides to remove barriers. On Monday, the dollar surged against offshore yuan but fell 0.16% at its last session on Tuesday. The Australian dollar, which is often used as a proxy to represent the yuan due to its liquidity, fell last by 0.3%, closing at $0.6209. Investors are watching the Chinese currency band that China will fix on Wednesday to see if it is going to try to weaken its yuan in order to reduce the impact of the tariffs. Trump's Press Secretary said he would speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping within the next few weeks, but it is not clear what they will have in common. Naka Matsuzawa is the chief macro-strategist at Nomura Tokyo. "Unless China makes huge economic concessions, I don't really think Trump will stop the tariff." UNCERTAINTY UNLEASHED Trump's changing trade policies have led to a wild week, which is also punctuated by major earnings from companies. The Canadian dollar swung the most in a single day since the outbreak of the pandemic, and the S&P500 fell by 1.9% to end the session 0.76% down. Gold, a safe haven for investors, was trading at just $2.817 per ounce, just below the record highs of Monday. Bonds fell after a slight increase on Monday. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yields rose 3 basis points to 4.579%. The dollar increased 0.3%, to 155.28 Japanese yen. Michael Feroli, J.P. Morgan’s chief U.S. economic, said that the Federal Reserve will be more inclined to stay on the sidelines, and remain as far below the radar screen as possible. UBS Group blew away forecasts in the fourth quarter and announced a stock buyback. BNP Paribas beat forecasts as well, but reduced its profit target for this year. Google will report after U.S. market closes on Tuesday, and the focus of scrutiny will be its massive AI expenditure after DeepSeek, a Chinese model that was cheaper than DeepSeek but still able to shock markets last week. Brent crude oil, which initially rose Monday, was down about 1%, after reaching their lowest level in a year at $74.81 per barrel.
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China retaliates quickly against US tariffs and stocks, causing the dollar to plummet.
U.S. stocks futures and dollar dropped on Tuesday while Hong Kong shares fell from two-month-highs as U.S. & China went tit for tat on tariffs. This raised the threat of a larger, damaging trade war. As prices slid around in the headlines, Shane Oliver, Chief Economist at AMP, Sydney, said: "(The trade war) story is alive and well. This has a long way to go." S&P futures, which were buoyed by the news that Mexico and Canada had struck last-minute agreements to defer a U.S. tax, have now fallen 0.2%, while dollar index has lost 0.1% of its earlier gains, trading at 108.86. European stocks fell 0.1% this morning after dropping 0.87% Monday. The DAX in Germany was flat, while the FTSE 100 in Britain fell 0.3%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng reached 2025 highs in hopes that China will also negotiate a way out of tariffs, with U.S. president Donald Trump. However, it later pared some gains to trade at about 2.8% higher. This was buoyed by the hope that Beijing would ramp up stimulus expenditure to counter U.S. actions. At 0501 GMT an additional 10% U.S. duty on Chinese exports went into effect. Minutes later, Beijing announced that it was investigating Google, and imposing tariffs from February 10 on the imports of U.S. cars, farm equipment, oil, coal and gas. Ben Bennett, Asia-Pacific Investment Strategist at Legal & General Investment Management Hong Kong said: "I would say that there is disappointment in the fact that U.S. Tariffs will be implemented after the last-minute reprieves of Mexico and Canada." Investors will remain hopeful of a quick agreement between the two sides to remove barriers. On Monday, the dollar surged against offshore yuan but fell 0.16% at its last session on Tuesday. The Australian dollar, which is often used as a proxy to represent the yuan due to its liquidity, fell last by 0.3%, closing at $0.6209. Investors are watching the Chinese currency band that China will fix on Wednesday to see if it is going to try to weaken its yuan in order to reduce the impact of the tariffs. Trump's Press Secretary said he would speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping within the next few weeks, but it is not clear what they will have in common. Naka Matsuzawa is the chief macro-strategist at Nomura Tokyo. I don't believe Trump will end the tariffs unless China makes major concessions economically. UNCERTAINTY UNLEASHED Trump's changing trade policies have led to a wild week, which is also punctuated by major earnings from companies. The Canadian dollar swung the most in a single day since the outbreak of the pandemic, and the S&P500 fell by 1.9% to end the session 0.76% down. Gold, a safe haven for investors, was trading at just $2.817 per ounce, a little below the record highs of Monday. Bonds dropped slightly on Tuesday after a slight increase on Monday. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yields rose 3 basis points to 4.579%. The dollar increased 0.3%, to 155.28 Japanese yen. Michael Feroli, J.P. Morgan’s chief U.S. economic, said that the Federal Reserve will be more inclined to stay on the sidelines, and remain as far below the radar screen as possible. UBS Group blew away forecasts in the fourth quarter and announced a stock buyback. BNP Paribas beat forecasts as well, but reduced its profit target for this year. Google will report after U.S. market closes on Tuesday, and the focus of scrutiny will be its massive AI expenditure after DeepSeek, a Chinese model that was cheaper than DeepSeek but still able to shock markets last week. Brent crude oil, which initially rose Monday, was down about 1%, after reaching their lowest level in a year at $74.81 per barrel.
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Sverdrup oilfield, a massive Equinor field, is shut down by a power outage
A company spokesperson confirmed that Norway's Equinor stopped all production from its Johan Sverdrup field in the North Sea on Tuesday due to a failure in the offshore electricity system. This is the largest oilfield producing in western Europe. The spokesperson did not elaborate. "Repair works have been started, and we're working on a plan to restart the system," he said. The oil price could be supported by the outage, as it was under pressure Tuesday due to concerns over global demand after U.S. Tariffs on China went into effect. Sverdrup produced up to 755,000 barrels per day of oil in 2024. Last year, the company stated that it expected the field to reach its peak production in early 2025. Sverdrup has experienced power outages in the past that have resulted also in a shutdown of oil production. Equinor, the operator, owns 42.63 % of the Sverdrup license, followed by Aker BP with 31.57% and Norwegian state-owned oil company Petoro with 17.36%. TotalEnergies has the remaining 8.44%. Reporting by Terje Adomaitis and Nerijus Solsvik. (Editing by Louise Rasmussen, Mark Potter and Mark Potter.)
Shell restarts production of Penguins oil in UK North Sea
Shell announced on Tuesday that it had restarted the production of the Penguins oilfield in the UK North Sea with a floating, production storage and offloading facility (FPSO).
Shell announced that the field will switch to a new FPSO, which reduces emissions by 30 percent and can extend the life of the field by 20 years.
Shell's integrated Gas and Upstream Director, Zoe Yujnovich said, "The UK is dependent on imports for much of its oil and gas demand."
The Penguins field provides the domestic energy that people require today. And the FPSO shows our commitment to competitive projects which create more value while emitting less pollution.
The oil major said that the peak production of Penguins is estimated to be around 45,000 barrels per day of oil equivalent (boepd). It also estimated that there are currently 100 million boe of recoverable resources.
Shell has said that penguins can also produce enough natural gas to heat 700,000 UK households per year. Reporting by Anushree mukherjee in Bengaluru and Arunima kumar; editing by Susan Fenton, Eileen Soreng.
(source: Reuters)