North America

NextEra Energy beat Wall Street expectations for adjusted second-quarter profit on Wednesday. The company attributed this to its robust renewables division, which has seen a surge in power demand due to AI data centers and hyperscalers. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the U.S. power consumption is expected to hit record levels in 2025 or 2026. The surge in electricity demand is due to the growing number of data centers for AI and cryptocurrencies, as well as an increase in electrification at homes and businesses. The S&P utility index also rose by 3.5% during the quarter ending June 30....

Around the globe, green hydrogen developers are cancelling their projects and reducing investments. This could lead to a longer-than-targeted reliance on fossil energy. The sector's initial goals have been exposed as being unrealistic due to the challenges it faces. Green hydrogen is prohibitively expensive for industries that are hard to electrify, like steelmaking and long distance transportation. Jun Sasamura is the hydrogen manager for Westwood Global Energy. He said that the gap between European ambitions and actuality shows the magnitude of the industry's reset. He said that only a fifth (or less) of all planned hydrogen projects in the European...

Multilateral bank executives stated on Tuesday that Latin American countries must address regulatory barriers, improve electric interconnection and enhance project structuring for renewable energy to attract the $200 billion investment needed annually to make the energy transformation a reality. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) organized an event in Colombia’s capital Bogota, where executives spoke. Why it's important Energy infrastructure investments in the region are below global averages. This could make it difficult for it to achieve its climate and energy targets. KEY QUOTES Felix Fernandez is the Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of...

Baker Hughes, an oilfield services provider, surpassed Wall Street's expectations for the second quarter profit on Tuesday as it benefitted from a robust demand for natural gas services. Energy industry benefits from a rise in natural gas demand, primarily due to LNG exports, and an increase in electricity consumption, mainly because of higher temperatures, data centres, and AI operations. Baker Hughes is trying to leverage the Industrial and Energy Technology (IET portfolio) to drive growth in its natural gas and LNG sector. Baker Hughes says it's well-positioned to meet or exceed its $1.5 billion three-year order target earlier than expected....

Aliko Dangote, a Nigerian billionaire, has warned that discounted Russian petroleum products pour into African markets. This could undermine the continent's new refining industry. Dangote has struggled with securing crude oil locally, despite his plans to increase the refinery's capacity to 700,000. Dangote, at an Abuja oil conference, said: "We're increasingly faced with the dumping and blending of cheap, toxic petroleum products. Some of these are blended in substandard levels, which would never be permitted in Europe or North America." He attributed the trend to Western sanctions against Russian oil which have led Moscow to offer steep discounts on alternative...

Alimentation Couche-Tard, a Canadian company, announced on Monday that it would resume its share repurchase programme. This comes just days after Circle K's parent company scrapped its $46 billion attempt to purchase Japan's Seven & I. The company announced that it would buy up to 77.1 millions shares, worth approximately $4.2 billion. This is part of its efforts to boost shareholder value following the failure of the long-term effort to purchase the Japan-based convenience-store chain. Couche-Tard with a market cap of $53 billion announced last week it would not pursue its bid to acquire Seven & I because the Japanese...

According to two sources with knowledge of the matter, and a presentation from the economic ministry, Danantara, Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund, plans to sign a $8 billion contract with U.S. engineering company KBR Inc. to build 17 modular refining plants. The contract was part of the trade agreement between Indonesia and the United States last week, which led to the reduction in threatened tariff rates from 32% to 19%. Airlangga Hartarto of Indonesia, who is the chief negotiator for the deal, revealed the modular refinery design during a briefing held behind closed doors on Monday night with Indonesian business leaders....

Investor sentiment was weighed down by concerns that a brewing trade conflict between the U.S., the European Union and other major oil consumers would reduce fuel demand growth through a reduction in economic activity. Brent crude futures dropped 24 cents or 0.35% to $68.97 per barrel at 0055 GMT, after closing 0.1% lower Monday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was trading at $69.99 a barrel. This is down 21 cents or 0.31% from the previous session, which saw a loss of 0.2%. The WTI August contract expires Tuesday, and the September contract, which is more active, was down 23 cents...

Scott Bessent, U.S. Treasury secretary, said that the Trump administration was more concerned about the quality of trade deals than their timing. The deadline to secure a deal by August 1 or face steep tariffs is approaching. Bessent said in an interview with CNBC that "we're not going rush to do deals just for the sake doing them." Bessent responded that the decision would be made by Donald Trump, U.S. president. "We'll wait and see what the President wants to do." "But again, if somehow we boomerang to the August 1, tariff, I'd think that a high tariff level would...

The oil price barely moved on Monday, as traders watched the impact of European sanctions on Russian supply and rising production from Middle East producers. They also worried about fuel prices as tariffs weigh on global economic growth. Brent crude futures were up 5 cents at $69.33 per barrel by 0040 GMT, after closing 0.35% higher Friday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was up 2 cents to $67.36 per barrel after a 0.30% increase in the previous session. The European Union approved Friday the 18th set of sanctions against Russia for the conflict in Ukraine. These included India's Nayara Energy...

Chevron is about to enter Guyana's offshore oilfields, which will solve one of its biggest problems: how it will grow beyond the next couple of years. The U.S. oil company closed a $55 billion deal to acquire Hess, one of the biggest oil and gas transactions ever. It also acquired the stake that Hess held in Guyana's Stabroek Block following a legal battle with Exxon Mobil. Chevron had seen its oil and gas reserves drop to their lowest level in more than a decade. The Stabroek block contains at least 11 billion equivalent barrels of oil and is one the...

Reliance Industries, owned by Indian billionaire Mukesh Amani, beat expectations for its quarterly profit on Thursday, thanks to strong growth in the company's energy, retail, and digital services businesses. According to LSEG, the combined profit for the quarter ending June 30 was 269.94 billion rupees (3.14 billion dollars), a 78.3% increase over analysts' estimates of 198.59 trillion rupees. Reliance’s oil-to-chemicals division, which accounts for 57% of the company’s revenue, has been under pressure over recent quarters due to a decline in transportation cracks, and a sluggish petrochemical demand. The oil-tochemicals segment, however, has benefited from an improvement in domestic fuel...

The trade war between the United States and Japan, which has impacted businesses from chip makers to steel producers, caused a downturn in results. However, Japan's agreement lifted stocks as well as hopes that Europe could reach a similar deal. Investors cheered the news of a new trade agreement between Japan and the United States, which will lower tariffs on auto imports while sparing Tokyo from new taxes on other goods. This news sparked hopes of a deal being reached with the European Union before the Trump administration's August 1 deadline. Results from Texas Instruments, SSAB, and other steelmakers showed...

On Wednesday, U.S. president Donald Trump and Japanese prime minister Shigeru Ishiba announced that they had reached a deal on trade which will include a 15 percent tariff on U.S. imported goods from Japan. Here's the latest information. THE DEAL In a Truth Social post, Trump stated that the deal included $550 billion in Japanese investments into the United States, and an improved market access to Japan for American products including automobiles and rice. Prime Minister Ishiba announced that Japanese autos, which make up more than a quarter (25%) of the country's total exports to the U.S. will be subject...

The prices of the most traded metals at the Shanghai Futures Exchange dipped on Wednesday as traders watched closely developments in China-U.S. Trade Talks. As of 0725 GMT on Thursday, SHFE aluminium fell 0.34% to 20,790 Yuan ($2,902.37) a ton. Lead declined 0.5% to 16,810 Yuan. Nickel slipped 0.1% to 123,220 Yuan. Copper dropped 0.08%, to 79,590 Yuan. Zinc rose 0.5% to 22,975 Yuan, its highest level since April 1. Tin advanced 0.42% at 268,540 Yuan. "Beijing’s comments on stabilizing industrial growth last week have been encouraging. However, the support is based more on sentiment. This has been fully reflected...

Market optimism following Beijing's recent pledge of stabilizing industrial growth and traders monitoring developments in China-U.S. Trade talks led to a rise in the most traded metals at the Shanghai Futures Exchange on Wednesday. SHFE aluminium rose 0.24% to 20,910 Yuan ($2,916.36) a ton at 0102 GMT. This is its highest level since November 12, 2024. SHFE zinc rose 0.37% to 22 945 yuan. This is its highest level since April 1. Tin was the biggest gainer among the SHFE metals. It rose 0.8% to 269,570 Yuan, the highest since July 4. Copper also climbed 0.53%, reaching 80,070 Yuan, the...

Judge Samba Sarr announced that a court in Mali rejected Barrick Mining's appeal to release four employees who were arrested in November. This is the latest development in an ongoing dispute between the Canadian company and the Mali Government over taxes and ownership rights of mining operations. Alifa Habib Kone is an attorney for Barrick. She said that the judge ruled the appeal of the company which dismissed the allegations made against the local employees as "unfounded". Kone stated that the employees are facing charges of money laundering and other violations. Barrick says it denies the allegations against its employees....

With an unpopular president in place, the left of Chile has chosen to challenge a resurgent Right at the November election. Jeanette Jara is a member from the Communist Party. Jara, the Unity for Chile candidate chosen by voters in the last month, said she would win over sceptical voters by highlighting her record of advancing popular legislation, such as a reduced working week and pensions, under President Gabriel Boric. Jara faces a steep battle in spite of Boric's lack of popularity and her own affiliation to a party. This is a country still haunted by Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship, which...

According to EU diplomats, the European Union is looking at a wider range of countermeasures that could be taken against the United States. This comes as the prospects for a trade agreement between Washington and Brussels are fading. Diplomats report that a growing number of EU member states, including Germany are considering the use of wide-ranging anti-coercion measures, which would allow the bloc to target U.S. service providers or restrict access to public procurements in the event of no deal. The European Commission (which negotiates trade deals on behalf of 27 member countries) had seemed to be on track for...

Gold prices increased on Friday, as a weaker dollar and the ongoing geopolitical uncertainty and economic instability boosted demand for this safe-haven. Platinum prices fell after reaching their highest levels since 2014. Gold spot rose 0.5%, to $3,353.80 an ounce at 0947 am EDT (1347 GMT) after dropping 1.1% the previous session. U.S. Gold Futures also rose 0.5%, to $3360.50. Edward Meir, Marex analyst, said that the weaker dollar has led to gains in the precious metals sector. We do not think that gold is a good investment over the medium term, given the current situation, which includes out-of control...

Sources with knowledge of the issue said that China quietly announced its first 2025 quotas for rare earth mining and melting without the usual public announcement. This is another sign that Beijing tightens its control over this crucial sector. As a barometer of global supply, the quotas serve as a constant reminder of how much rare earths is available. Rare earths are a grouping of 17 elements that are used in electric cars, robots, and missiles. China is the largest producer in the world of these minerals. The government usually issues them twice a years to state-owned firms, but this...

Mikael Stafas, Chief Executive Officer of Boliden's Swedish subsidiary, said in an exclusive interview with the newspaper on Friday that Boliden will resume dividends. He said that the copper and zinc producer has committed to its dividend distribution policy, and will continue to do so until 1/3 of its profit is distributed to shareholders. This was after Lundin Mining acquired the Somincor mines and Zinkgruvan from Lundin Mining. Staffas stated that "even though we had good cash flow this quarter, I believe most people expected the balance sheet to be much stronger after the acquisition." Boliden has not yet been...

The U.S. Commerce Department announced on Thursday that it would impose preliminary antidumping duties of 93.5 percent on anode grade graphite imported to the U.S. after concluding the materials were being sold at a lower price than their fair market value. The Commerce Department's fact sheet, seen by, shows that all Chinese producers have a single antidumping margin of 93.5% and a cash deposit rate at 93.5%. Commerce reported that the order will affect imports worth $347.9 million by 2023. The duties are applicable to anode grade graphite materials with a minimum graphite purity of 90% by weight. They can...

The president of the Argentine Chamber of Mining Companies, CAEM, predicted that Argentina's mining exports would exceed $5 billion by 2025. This is up from $4.6 in 2024. Roberto Cacciola, in an interview with he said that the main mining exports of Argentina, gold and silver, would remain the same or even decline slightly by 2025, due to the maturation process for mining projects. However, the rising prices would make up the volume decrease. Cacciola stated that the mining exports could reach $5 or $5.2 billion this year. He said that he expected the opposite for lithium. He expects a...