Latest News
-
Hungary will give subsidies to diesel car owners
The government of Hungary will provide a 'targeted subsidy' to households that use diesel-powered cars as fuel prices have increased. However, the price cap won't be introduced as it could lead to a shortage in supplies. Magyar stated in a post on Facebook that Europe was experiencing a?diesel crisis unprecedented in its history. The global diesel market has tightened dramatically in recent weeks. Industry executives have warned that the supply will remain constrained through 'winter, due to Russia's export embargo, and the approaching peak of 'heating demand. Magyar stated that his government will "provide direct and effective support to the owners of one-million diesel-powered cars and their families." He said that by December, diesel-powered vehicles up to 150 horsepower would receive a total compensation of 20,000 forints (63.96 dollars). Farmers will also get help through refunds of excise taxes. The Middle East has seen its supplies curtailed by the Iran War and the reduced shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Hungarian oil group MOL's main Danube refining facility has been operating at reduced capacity since an October 2025 fire damaged one unit.
-
German union demands Volkswagen commit to 2024 Labour Agreement
A leading union representative in Germany said that IG Metall demands Volkswagen honour a landmark labor deal signed in 2024. He cited fears of mass job losses due to a recent turnaround agreement. Thorsten Groeger, a Hanover-based reporter, told reporters that IG Metall members 'decided on Friday to invoke a clause in the agreement signed?in December of 2024. This move is a significant step in the 'fight for Volkswagen's Future', where management has been pitted against state governments and workers over a plan to double layoffs and dramatically cut production. Volkswagen did not immediately comment on the move. Daniela Cavallo is the head of Volkswagen's works council. After mass walkouts the 2024 agreement resulted in wage concessions and 35,000 layoffs. However, it prevented immediate plant closures by securing job and investment assurances from management. Existing labour agreements prevent IG Metall from striking until the end the year. In recent months, tensions have flared up between the two sides over Oliver Blume's plans for a major overhaul, which includes four threatened plant closures in early 2020. This is as Europe's largest carmaker struggles with Chinese competition, mounting duties and high manufacturing costs. Cavallo called the criticism of German manufacturing costs by management "finger-pointing". Cavallo called for more comprehensive policies to protect the industry from heavily subventioned competitors from China. The labour chief stated that "we in the automotive industry are in fierce competition with players who enter the market under totally different competitive conditions. We simply cannot keep up."
-
Copper to experience first weekly decline since June due to US tariff concerns
The copper price was headed for its first weekly decline?since June. They also stabilized on Friday after a steep drop in the previous session following reports?that White House had not yet made a decision on imposing tariffs on the metal. The London Metal Exchange's three-month copper was unchanged at $14,230 per metric ton during the official open outcry. It fell 3.6% on Friday after reaching a record high price of $14,875; it is expected to finish the week at a loss of?1.6%. This would put an end to its 10-week winning streak. Alastair Mudro, senior base metals analyst at Marex said via email that the market had been "caught long". He said that copper stocks were still tight in certain areas and it would take time to move large amounts of money. "We see the potential of further tightness but for now, it's about risk management." Sucden Financial stated that heavy volumes on the decline of Thursday showed "meaningful reduction in risk" but agreed with the fact that fundamental tightness underpinning any selloff should be limited. Copper stocks available on the LME Shanghai Futures Exchange stocks in China, the top metals consumer, were unchanged at 117.600 tons. The weekly decline in exports was 13%, to 54,780 tonnes, the lowest level since January 2024. Stocks on the U.S. COMEX Exchange The price of copper in the United States has dropped, but it is still rising. Three-month LME Copper Spread On Thursday, the market structure?flipped into a contango, where future prices?are higher than those?for immediate delivery, signaling a easing of concerns about near-term supply. Cash contract last traded at a discount of $5.50 per ton from?the forward three-month contract. As rising borrowing costs and inflationary concerns roiled the markets, the rest of the LME Complex was in the red. Aluminium dropped 1.4% to $3.249 per ton. Zinc fell 0.6% to $3.870, and lead lost 0.3% to $1.895. Nickel fell 1.5% to $16,410 and reached a new two-month low. Tin dropped 0.7% to $53,950 and hit its lowest level since July 28.
-
Inflation in the US increases in August
U.S. consumer price increases accelerated in August as gasoline prices rebounded after two consecutive monthly drops. This boosted financial market expectations of a rate hike by the Federal Reserve next week. Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Labor Department announced on Friday that Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% in August after increasing by 0.1% in July. Consumer inflation increased by 3.4% in the 12-month period ending August after increasing by the same amount in July. The economists polled predicted that the CPI would increase by 0.4% in the month of August and 3.4% on an annual basis. The CPI increased 0.3% in August after increasing 0.2% the previous month. The core CPI rose 2.4% on an annual basis in August, after increasing 2.5% in July. For its 2% target, the U.S. Central Bank tracks Personal?Consumption Expenditures Price Indexes. The government announced on Thursday that the Producer Price Index rose in August. This was due to strong increases in several key components?that are used in calculating PCE inflation. This, along with the robust August employment report released last week, has boosted expectations for a rate increase next week. After comments made by Fed Governor Christopher Waller last week at a NEXT Newsmaker Event, he said he would be inclined to advocate for a rate hike if the data showed that inflation pressures had cooled. The oil price rose above $100 per barrel again on Thursday. Diesel prices are also at record levels, indicating that inflation is likely to continue and spread. Frustration over inflation is growing Tariffs on imports, including the most recent ones against Canada, one United States' largest trading partners, have caused some economists to see price pressures continuing. The frustration over rising prices, particularly for gasoline and foods, has caused a sharp decline in the approval rating of President Donald Trump and could cost him control of the U.S. Congress during?the midterm elections in November. Following Thursday's PPI, economists estimated that August's core PCE index would rise by as little as 0.15 percent to as much as 0.28%. In July, core PCE inflation increased by 0.2%. The estimates for the increase in core PCE inflation over the past year ranged between 3.2% and 3.3%. Core PCE inflation increased by 3.3% over the past 12 months. Some economists believe that the August?PCE report on inflation will include changes in the methodology. This could reduce the core inflation rate a few basis points. According to the CME's FedWatch, the financial markets had priced in a 70% chance that the Fed would raise rates by 25 basis points at its policy meeting on September 15-16. The Fed's overnight benchmark interest rate currently ranges between 3.50% and 3.75%. Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh said last month that the central bank would "have work to be done" if they don't get the confidence needed to believe inflation will?go down to 2%. Trump has been pressuring the Fed for a rate cut, and posted on social media "LOWER THE RATES OR I'LL STOP TRADER WITH COUNTRIES WHERE WE HAVE A DEFICIT." Economists blamed the rise in yields of long-term U.S. Government bonds on what they called political intimidation. Some people expected the Fed would tighten its policy on Wednesday in order to demonstrate its independence.
-
German environmental group sues to block Rosatom-linked nuclear fuel permit
BUND -Niedersachsen, a German environmental group, has filed a lawsuit against the Lower Saxony government to stop the expansion of the Lingen nuclear power plant. They claim that the involvement of Rosatom, based in Russia, poses a security risk. The case challenges the clearance by the regional state for a French subsidiary, Framatome, to produce nuclear fuel in Lingen, a northern German town. This was done under a license agreement with a state-backed Russian company. Lower Saxony’s environment?ministry with the guidance of the federal environment ministry had approved approval subject to certain terms and conditions despite political concerns about Russia’s war in Ukraine. BUND, in collaboration with the anti-nuclear.ausgestrahlt group, claimed that the permit was "the result of procedural mistakes and would pose a risk to security because of Rosatom’s role." They claim that the environmental screening was based on outdated documents, and that Rosatom wasn't fully disclosed. Olaf Bandt, BUND Germany's Chair, said that production and inspection could have been manipulated because Rosatom machines are used in Lingen for both manufacturing and quality control. Berlin said that it viewed the collaboration critically. However, the decision was in line with the current laws. The instrument to address these concerns would be?stricter EU sanctions. Lower Saxony's environment ministry stated that the?legal challenges would be?thoroughly evaluated. The letter also referred to a statement made by Lower Saxony’s environment minister Christian Meyer in July, stating that he was 'fundamentally opposed to working with Rosatom' but 'that there were no legal grounds to deny administrative clearance. Rosatom has not responded to all requests for comment. Framatome said that the collaboration was an interim measure to help customers who operate Russian-designed reactors to diversify their purchases away from direct Russian purchase until it develops own production technology.
-
Nabiullina, the Russian central bank's Nabiullina, on interest rates and economy
Elvira Nabiullina, Governor of the Russian Central Bank and Alexei Zabotkin, Deputy Governor held a press conference on Friday following the bank's decision to leave its benchmark interest rate at 14%. Nabiullina and Zabotkin both spoke Russian. The following quotes were translated by into English. NABIULLINA POLICY OPTIONS DISSCUSSED, AND NEXT STEPS We discussed the issue of maintaining the current interest rate. This meeting was different from the last one in that we did not discuss a rate reduction. We will update our assessment of the future room for rate cuts in the October forecast update. We do, however, note that pro-inflationary risk has?increased, and continues to be dominant, and will continue to take this into consideration going forward. NABIULLINA ON THE BUDGET PARAMETERS We haven't yet changed our assumptions, estimates or working hypotheses in relation to our budget and the impact on the fuel market. We haven't received any new information about fiscal policy, and we anticipate that the parameters of the "three-year budget" will be finalized this month. If these parameters differ from those in our "baseline scenario", which assumes a 2% budget deficit this year, and a 1% deficit next year. A 0.5% budget deficit is projected for 2028. And a balanced budget by 2029. We will consider that in the revised forecast we release in October.
-
Wall St. futures rebound as oil falls ahead of inflation test
U.S. index futures rebounded on Friday as oil prices dropped and investors hoped that the consumer inflation report would end a 'rough' week on a positive. Oracle's premarket price jumped by nearly 7% after it surpassed estimates for its quarterly results on Thursday. This reassured investors that their AI investments are paying off. Nvidia gained 0.8%. The market is weakened by fluctuating interest rates expectations as the stock markets navigate through a convergence of factors, such as the Middle East conflict intensifying and the elevated Treasury yields. After Thursday's slightly higher-than-expected Producer Price Index, which did not reassure investors, the market is now facing a Consumer Price Index report, another data point, that could change rate expectations. Said Haidar is the founder of Haidar Capital Management. He believes that the Federal Reserve must act quickly to prevent a repeating of the high inflation of 1970s. This would be yet another failure in discretionary monetary policies. At 6:58 am ET, the Dow E-minis were up 286 points or 0.55% and S&P 500 E-minis were up 40.5 points or 0.53%. ET, S&P 500 E Minis rose 40.5 points or 0.53% and Dow E-minis gained 286 points. Nasdaq E-minis rose?175.25 or 0.6%. The blue-chip Dow Jones was heading for its steepest drop since March, and the S&P 500 benchmark was on course for its largest weekly loss since last June. Some investors wonder how far this year's rally will go. Jeff Schulze is the head investment strategist of Franklin Templeton Institute. He wrote that history shows that strong starts are likely to continue. According to Schulze, since 1950, when the S&P 500 index gained more than 10% by the end of August in the year, it continued to gain from September to December in 25 out of 28 cases. Brent crude futures fell more than 3%, but were still over $103 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 3.5%, but were still close to $100 a barrel. Bill Adams, Fifth Third Commercial Bank's chief U.S. economist, said that the surge in energy costs since the beginning of the month created a new risk for inflation. According to GasBuddy, the average national price of diesel in the U.S. on Thursday exceeded $6 per gallon for first time. Separately the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes dropped 0.16 basis points but was still at 4.9424% - its highest level since 2023. Stocks are less appealing when Treasuries have high yields. Adobe's premarket price dropped by more than 4% after its midpoint revenue forecast for the fourth quarter fell short of expectations. ACV Auctions shares soared by 44% following the agreement of online vehicle auctioneer Copart to purchase it for nearly $1.9 billion.
-
Weekend Reads: Oil-Patch AI, data-tampering, and critical-minerals risk
Looking for inspiration? Weekend Reads is a weekly roundup of what the Open Interest Team has been reading, watching, and listening to. This week's top picks include?span?data integrity, China’s decarbonisation drive, AI-powered oils fields and more. This weekend we are reading... MIKE DOLAN is a ROI Finance & Markets columnist. This article by Jed Kolko, at the Peterson Institute for International Economics (Washington) examines the corrosive effects of political'meddling' in official government statistics. GAVIN MAGUIRE is the ROI Global Energy Transformation Columnist. The latest analysis by UK think tank Ember tracks China's progress towards reducing its fossil-fuel dependency across all of its energy-intensive industries. This is a must read for anyone who's interested in global industrial production, carbon emissions and green technology. Andy HOME, ROI Metals columnist: This OECD?report examines the issue?of?traceability of critical minerals which is crucial for creating resilient supply chain. The report examines both the current situation and the challenges ahead. It focuses on lithium in Argentina, Chile and Indonesia as well as nickel in the Philippines. Listening to... RON BOUSSO is the ROI Energy Columnist. In this podcast, Bassam Fattouh, Director of the Oxford Institute for Energy 'Studies, and energy analyst Paul Horsnell discuss?changes? in oil -trading since the collapse on the 17th June ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran. We're always watching. CLYDE RUSSELL is a columnist for ROI Asia Commodities & Energy. This podcast, "Digital Innovations - in Oil and Gas", from consultant Geoffrey Cann examines how AI can revolutionize the management and maintenance of oilfields. Opinions expressed are solely those of the authors. These opinions do not represent News's views, which are committed to independence, integrity and neutrality under the Trust Principles.
Fuel costs are increasing, so airlines are reducing their prices and cutting back on their outlook.
The U.S. and Israeli war against Iran, which has pushed up jet fuel prices, has shook the aviation industry around the world. Airlines have been forced to increase fares and revise financial forecasts.
In recent weeks, jet fuel prices have increased from $85-$90 per barrel up to $150-$200 per barrel. This is a major financial blow to an industry that relies on fuel for up to one quarter of its operating costs.
Here is an alphabetical list of the ways airlines are responding to this issue:
AEGEAN AIRLINES
The Greek airline anticipates that the suspension of Middle East flights, as well as a spike in fuel costs, will have "significant impact" on their first-quarter earnings.
AIRASIA X
Malaysian Airlines'?executives stated that the company has cut 10% of its flights in the group and imposed a fuel surcharge of around 20%.
AIR CANADA
The Canadian largest airline plans to reduce four of its daily flights to New York to 38 due to rising fuel prices. The four flights from JFK International Airport to be cut between June 1, 2026 and October 25, 2026.
AIR FRANCE-KLM
The airline group announced that it would increase the price of?long-haul tickets to offset rising fuel costs. Cabin fares will rise by 59 euros (50 euros) per round trip.
KLM, the Dutch arm of the group, announced on April 16 that it would cancel 160 flights across Europe due to rising fuel prices.
AIR INDIA
The Indian airline said that it will change its fuel surcharge system from a flat surcharge for domestic flights to one based on distance. The Indian carrier said that surcharges for international routes do not compensate the steep rise in fuel costs.
AIR NEW ZEALAND
On April 7, the airline announced that it would cut flights in May and June, and raise fares. It was one of the first airlines to announce a large increase in ticket prices after the conflict began. The airline also suspended its earnings forecast for the full year due to volatility in the fuel markets.
AIR TRANSAT
The Canadian airline announced that it would reduce its planned capacity by 6 percent from May to October of this year. Cuts are expected to be made on routes to Europe, the Caribbean, and Cuba.
AKASA AIR
Akasa Airlines, based in India, announced that it would be introducing fuel surcharges ranging from 199 to 1,300 Indian Rupees ($2 - $14) for domestic and international flights.
ALASKA AIR
The airline retracted its profit forecast for the full year and warned that margins would be severely impacted by the sharp increase in fuel prices. It has also reduced capacity in certain markets.
AMERICAN AIRLINES
U.S. airline announced that it will increase the fees for checked baggage by $10 for each of the first two bags and $150 for the third bag for domestic and short-haul flights. The airline also reduced certain benefits for passengers in economy class.
ASIANA AIRLINES
Newsis reported that the South Korean airline would cut 22 flights from April to July because of fuel price increases.
CATHAY PACIFIC
According to a termsheet seen on Wednesday, the airline raised HK$2,08 billion ($265,58 million) by issuing three-year fixed rate notes with a yield of 3.78%.
CEBU AIR
The Philippines-based carrier said that the sharp rise in fuel prices is a major concern. It will continue to review pricing and network strategies and try to minimize the impact.
CHINA EASTERN EXPRESS AIRLINES
The airline announced that it would increase fuel surcharges on domestic flights starting April 5. Flights of less than 800 km will be charged a 60-yuan fee ($9), while flights above 800 km will be charged a 120-yuan charge.
DELTA AIR LINES
Delta announced that it would reduce capacity by 3.5 percentage points compared to its original plan, and raise fees for checked baggage in order to offset the rising costs of jet fuel. The increase will be $10 for first and second bags, and $50 on third bags.
The U.S. carrier pulled all planned growth in capacity for the current quarter, and forecast profits below Wall Street expectations.
EASYJET
EasyJet has warned that it will suffer a larger half-year loss before tax of between 540 and 560 millions pounds (729 and 756 million dollars), which includes 25 million pounds of extra fuel costs for March.
FRONTIER AÉRIENS
Fuel prices have risen significantly since the airline's last forecast, prompting it to review its full-year outlook.
GREATER BAY Airlines
The Hong Kong-based firm said that it will increase fuel surcharges for most routes starting April 1, but keep them the same on routes to mainland China and Japan.
HONG KONG Airlines
Fuel surcharges will be increased by up to 35 percent on flights from Hong Kong to the Maldives, Bangladesh, and Nepal.
British Airways' owner IAG stated in March that it did not intend to increase ticket price immediately as it had hedged a large amount of fuel for the short to medium term.
INDIGO
India's largest airline announced that it will introduce fuel charges for domestic and international flights starting March 14. The charge for flights into the Middle East is 900 rupees and for flights into Europe, 2,300 rupees.
JETBLUE AERWAYS
Joanna Geraghty is the CEO of the low-cost airline based in the United States. She told her employees, via a memo, that she would not be considering bankruptcy this year despite the fact that rising jet fuel prices threaten the financial recovery. According to a SEC filing, the company has entered into a debt financing agreement worth $500 million.
KOREAN AIR
Sources with knowledge on the subject say that South Korean carriers will be forced to enter emergency mode in April due to rising fuel prices.
LUFTHANSA
The airline group announced that 20,000 short-haul flight would be removed from the schedule until October. This is equivalent to 40,000 metric tonnes of jet fuel. The German company had previously announced that it would be grounding 27 aircraft servicing its CityLine short-haul subsidiary earlier than expected.
PAKISTAN INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS
Fuel surcharges are cited as the reason for raising domestic fares up to $20 and international flights by up $100.
QANTAS AIRWAYS
Qantas, an Australian airline, said that it has delayed a planned A$150-million ($107-million) buyback. It also increased its fuel estimate for the second half 2026 from A$2.5-billion to A$3.1-3.33 billion.
After cancelling "couple hundred flights" in March, the Scandinavian airline announced that it would cancel 1000 flights in April due to high fuel and oil prices.
SPIRIT AIRLINES
Air Current cited people familiar with the situation to report that the U.S. low cost carrier requested hundreds of millions in emergency funding from the Trump administration to offset the rising fuel prices and prevent a potential liquidation.
SPRING AIRLINES
Budget Chinese airline announced that it will increase fuel surcharges for domestic flights starting April 5. Details to be announced in due course.
SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWEST SOUTHWAST AIRLINES
Fuel prices have impacted the margins of this American airline, which has forecast a second-quarter loss below expectations. The airline had previously announced that it would increase the cost of checked bags by $10 each for the first and the second bag. This will bring the total to $55 and $45 respectively.
The Portuguese airline claimed that its price increases would partially offset the impact of fuel prices changes on its revenues.
THAI AIRWAYS
The Thailand-based airline said that it would increase fares between 10% and 15% in order to combat rising fuel prices.
The European airline, tour operator and travel agency cut their full-year underlying profit outlook and suspended revenue forecasts, claiming that they had incurred extra costs of about 40 million euros due to the March war, including repatriation and operational disruptions.
TURKISH AIRLINES LUFTHANSA
SunExpress is a joint venture of Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa. It announced that it would be imposing a temporary fuel charge of 10 euros per person on routes between Turkey, Europe and the Middle East, starting May 1. The fuel surcharge will be applied to all bookings made after April 1, for departures after May 1.
Turkish Airlines announced on April 10, that it would not be distributing any dividends from its net profit for 2025, instead opting to "retain earnings in order to preserve cash".
T'WAY AIR
As part of the measures taken to combat the effects of war, the South Korean low-cost airline said that it would furlough cabin crew in May and/or June without pay.
UNITED AIRLINES
Scott Kirby, CEO of the U.S. airline, said that ticket prices could rise as much as 15% to 20% in order to offset an increase in jet fuel costs. The company has already implemented five fare hikes late in the first-quarter, along with increased baggage fees that it says have begun to offset rising fuel prices.
The carrier forecast that it would also make profits in the second and third quarters below Wall Street expectations. It said they expected to recover just 40-50% of fuel price increases through fares in the second, but 70-80% by the third.
VIETJET
Vietnamese budget airline has announced that it has adjusted flight frequencies on certain routes due to possible fuel shortages.
VIETNAM Airline
Vietnam's aviation authority announced that the carrier will cancel 23 flights a week on domestic routes starting in April after it requested assistance from the government to remove an environmental tax on jet fuel.
VIRGIN ATLANTIC
Corneel Kster, the CEO of the airline, told The Financial Times that despite adding fuel surcharges on fares this year it will struggle to achieve profitability.
VIRGIN AUSTRALIA
Virgin Australia has said that it expects an increase of jet fuel costs of between A$30 and A$40 million in the second half of the fiscal year. It also anticipates a 1% decrease in capacity for the fourth quarter.
VOLOTEA
The Spanish low cost airline has introduced a new pricing strategy that links ticket prices with fuel costs. This could add an additional surcharge after purchase of up to fourteen euros per passenger per flight.
The Globe and Mail reported that WESTJET, a Canadian airline, has reduced seat capacity in June. The Canadian Press reported previously that the airline would add C$60 ($44.50) to certain bookings, and combine flights due to rising costs.
(source: Reuters)