South America

Executives from global commodities traders and financial companies, such as Trafigura, StoneX, and Macquarie are expanding their presence in Brazil's energy trading market. They are betting on the rising volatility of prices and the long-term growth of this sector, even though a wave financial distress is hitting local players. As several Brazilian power traders are facing financial problems, international groups with a large amount of capital can now gain a larger share of one the largest electricity markets in the world. StoneX's local segment head, Marcelo Mello, has announced that the company has opened its first global trading desk for...

Magda Chambriard, the CEO of Petrobras, said in a call with analysts on Friday that it is likely that the state-controlled oil company in Algeria will produce more oil by 2026 than what was forecast. She stated that the company's oil production in the second quarter exceeded its target by 200,000 barrels a day. According to a presentation by the company, Petrobras produced an average 2.6 million barrels a day so far this year. This is higher than its target of 2.5 millions barrels a day. Chambriard told journalists that 2.7m barrels a day would be an impressive result. She...

Petrobras, Brazil's state oil company, reported a 96% increase in net profit for the second quarter, to 52.4 billion Reais. This is the third highest result in its history. Petrobras earnings exceeded the 44.7 billion reais predicted in an LSEG survey. In a separate filing, the company said it would pay out 17.4 billion reais or 1.35 reais for each share in dividends and equity interest to its shareholders. In a press release, Fernando Melgarejo, Chief Financial Officer of Petrobras said: "The operational records that we achieved in this second quarter resulted in one of the best quarterly financial results...

SBM Offshore, a Dutch floating production specialist, raised its '2026 forecast for the second year in a row on Thursday. The company said that the first-half revenue had more than doubled due to the sale of FPSO One Guyana and increased activity. The company's consensus estimate of $4.65 billion was beaten by the $4.9 billion generated in revenue. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), which is a measure of earnings, rose 92%, to $1.3 billion. The company increased its 2026 revenue forecast from $6.9 billion to $7.6 billion and raised?its EBITDA directional target from $1.8 billion to $1.9...

India's Oil and Natural Gas 'Corp (ONGC) hopes to sign agreements soon with Venezuela 'to operate two oil 'blocks under the South 'American nation's 'new petroleum 'law', its finance chief'said 'on Wednesday. ONGC Videsh (ONGC Videsh is the overseas investment arm of the state-run ONGC) holds a stake of 40% in the San Cristobal oil field, and along with other Indian firms, an 18% share in the Carabobo-1 Project. "Now, we are able to work freely on Venezuelan projects." We had restricted our operations in Venezuela because of sanctions-related risks," said finance director Anupam agarwal on a?analyst's call following the...

Edwin Palma, the outgoing Energy Minister, said that Colombia would resume electricity exports to Ecuador on Wednesday. He added that the government had also enabled mechanisms for export contracts between companies of both countries. Palma, in a Tuesday post on X, said that the exports will cover more than 8% of Ecuador's demand for electricity and use about 78% total capacity of interconnection?links. Palma stated that the exports are being'restarted' to help secure the?Ecuadorian electricity system. He said that Colombia only authorized the flow after it was sure the measure wouldn't compromise the domestic energy security. This included protecting the...

The World Bank released an early assessment on Thursday that estimated that the costs of rebuilding could be double that amount or more. According to the government, the 7.2 and 7.4 magnitude earthquakes killed approximately 5,000 people and destroyed residential buildings, infrastructure, and non-residential structures in northern areas of Venezuela, including Caracas. According to the government, nearly 17,000 people have been injured and almost 18,000 are homeless. World Bank reported that the disaster was the "country's deadliest quake since 1812" and occurred at a time of precarious socioeconomic conditions, with a poverty level of 76%. Around 7.9 million people fled...

Industry sources say China's fuel demand will take a long time to recover after its imports hit a record low. Refiners reduced production and opted for cheaper crude as a result of the U.S. - Iran war. China's low demand for high-sulphur oil (HSFO), one of Asia’s largest importers, is expected to limit prices. This is despite the fact that the market has strengthened after Washington and Tehran intensified their attacks on the Middle East disrupting Gulf supply through the Strait of Hormuz. LSEG data show that the Asian refiners' margins for 380 centistoke HSFO rose to a discount of...

YPF Electric Energy, an Argentinian energy company, announced a '45.8% increase in quarterly revenues in its IPO filing on Monday. It joined a 'wave' of companies from a similar sector that are seeking a New YORK IPO amid improved market sentiment. Investor confidence has increased in Argentina following President Javier Milei’s market-oriented Reforms and renewed interest for the country’s energy sector. Argentinian energy firm Genneia filed for an IPO in the United States earlier this month. Pure-play power company YPF Electric Energy operates 17 thermal power plants and renewable energy sources with a total installed capacity of 3,764 megawatts (MW)....

Investors will be impacted by the size of Venezuela's debt and the creditors who hold it. This could make for one of the biggest sovereign debt restructurings ever. Venezuela hasn't published a comprehensive debt?statistics for years and sanctions in 2017 isolated it from the Western Financial World. Caracas said it would complete a comprehensive debt?assessment before the end of June. Investors now expect it to be released this month. However, it's unclear whether it will be shared with the public. The Financial Times reported that Venezuela is set to reveal a debt pile larger than expected, of $240 billion. Most...

Dario Durigan, the Finance Minister, said on Tuesday that Brazil will eliminate a portion of its diesel subsidy. The program was introduced this year to help limit the impact if higher oil prices in the global market. Durigan, a journalist in Brasilia, said that Brazil will cut its 0.35 reais per liter subsidy from July. Durigan told journalists in Brasilia that the Brazilian government will cut a subsidy of 0.35 reais ($0.068) per liter from July. Durigan stated that Brent crude oil is now above its pre-war level but has dropped significantly since its peak. This allows for the move...

Venezuela is receiving cash, emergency aid and rescuers after two powerful quakes shook areas around the capital Caracas. Thousands of people are still missing. Here is the list of foreign aid: UNITED NATIONS According to U.N.'s humanitarian affairs agency, 25 international?teams with a total of 1,000 personnel have been mobilized. Tom Fletcher, the chief of aid at the United Nations, said that a collective effort will be needed in order to support government-led efforts and assist communities. UNITED STATES The U.S. State Department announced it would mobilize $150 million of aid. The U.S. State Department said it is mobilizing $150...

Two sources with knowledge of the matter have confirmed that Coal India is considering the acquisition of a unit?of Canada's Wealth Minerals, which has lithium mining assets?in Chile. This move will be one of India's biggest efforts to secure lithium resources overseas, which is a vital mineral used in the production of electric vehicle batteries and storage systems. India has only had limited success in acquiring vital mineral assets overseas. It has only secured one lithium exploration and mining agreement overseas, which covers five blocks in Argentina by 2024. One source said that as a first step Coal India, and...

Hindustan Copper, the state-run copper company, plans to sell copper concentrate from mines that it has acquired from Chilean Codelco?to?Hindalco & Adani in order to satisfy India's increasing appetite for the red metal, according to two sources who are familiar with the matter. Three sources declined to identify themselves because the discussions were confidential. Codelco's secretary of mines in India said that in April, Hindustan Copper, Coal India, and NTPC Mining were in talks to acquire four copper mining block from Codelco. Hindustan Copper had signed a preliminary deal with Codelco last year to look at "mutually advantageous opportunities" in...

The top executive of BYD in Brazil said that the Chinese automaker will launch its first Brazilian-made plug-in hybrid flex fuel car on Tuesday, after a two year?investment. In an interview, Senior Vice-President Alexandre Baldy revealed that the Song Pro Super Hybrido Flex Fuel, which hits dealerships in Brazil on Wednesday features a powertrain capable of running on gasoline, electricity or ethanol. He added that the GL version's range on electric power alone is 60 km (37 mi) and 120 km for a higher-end GS model. Baldy stated that the vehicle was built at BYD’s Camacari factory in northeastern Bahia...

Zijin Gold & Allied 'Gold has scrapped its planned C$5.5 Billion ($3.90 Billion) buyout. Instead, the?Chinese?company took a 9.2% share for around $295 M. In premarket trading, shares of Allied Gold listed in the U.S. fell by nearly 15%. The companies announced on Wednesday that they had mutually agreed to allow the deadline of July 29 to expire as "there was no reasonable likelihood" that the remaining conditions would be met in a reasonable time frame. Allied also cited broader external factors affecting trans-border transactions at this scale but did not provide any further?details. Zijin Gold operates mining operations in...

Chief Executive Albert Hu, of the Hong Kong listed Chinese mining equipment manufacturer CiDi, said that it expects overseas deployments to grow this year, as it expands "beyond China". Hu stated that CiDi had equipped semi-automated autonomous excavators with the company in Australia. The company is now preparing to roll out a more extensive program in Australia this year. It will also be working on securing contracts in South America, Europe and the Middle East. CiDi, along with rivals such as Fujian's EACON, are competing to supply self-driving mining equipment and trucks. This will reduce labour costs and fuel consumption...

U.S. officials and Mexican officials announced on Thursday that they would meet in September for a 'fourth round' of negotiations to revamp North American trade agreements. This follows a week-long discussion which revealed disagreements about changes to the automotive content rules, among other things. This week, U.S. trade representative Jamieson Greer held a meeting with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum as well as Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard during a third round discussion on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. In a statement released after the conclusion of the talks, Greer and Sheinbaum said they discussed autos and economic security, agriculture, electronic payments, and steel...

Antofagasta Minerals, a Chilean copper mining company, said on Thursday that its flagship mine Los 'Pelambres is safe following an investigation by Chile's environmental regulator into a water discharge incident caused by extreme weather. On Wednesday, the regulator said that Antofagasta released water into the Pupio Waterway from a drainage pool after heavy rains caused an?avalanche near the site. Antofagasta has said that the controlled release of water from two pools downstream the tailings?dam?wall was part of its water management system. Water from the tailings dam was channeled to the Pupio stream whose flow had already increased significantly because of...

After weeks of tensions in governance, Vale shareholders elected Manuel 'Lino' Oliveira to the position of?chairman? of its Brazilian mining company?s board?. This was a decision backed by Previ, Vale?s largest shareholder. Oliveira was elected after the resignation of former Chairman Daniel Stieler earlier this month. About a month later,?pension funds Previ and?pension fund Previ had requested a meeting for shareholders to vote on his removal. Previ, a pension fund that holds a 7% stake and manages retirement funds for Banco do Brasil employees, argued that Oliveira could help improve governance at?one?of?the world's largest iron-ore producers. Oliveira (also known as...

Codelco's chairman Bernardo Fontaine stated on Wednesday that the lithium project at?the Maricunga flat salt will become a reality in eight years. The state-owned copper company Codelco, along with its partner Rio Tinto, manages the Maricunga Lithium project. Fontaine stated that the agreement had not been signed because certain conditions were still to be met. Some of these conditions have already been met, while others are pending on an international level. The executive said that the joint venture agreement "awaits regulatory approval" from Chile and China, after receiving?antitrust approvals with no conditions from Brazil and South Korea, and Poland. The...

China's exports of unwrought aluminum and products?reached a new record in June, according to data from the official customs released on Tuesday, as?war?disruption?to supplies and shipments from the Gulf region?continued. The data revealed that export volume rose above 700,000 metric tons for the very first time in June. Shipments increased 12.5% from the 632,000 tons in May, and 45.4% over 489,000 tons from a year earlier. Exports of unwrought aluminum and products rose by 16.3% in the first half of 2026 compared to a year ago, reaching 3.4 millions tons. The June shipments are a continuation of the previous acceleration...

According to an internal document seen by the. The document stated that Codelco's costs are "significantly" higher than those of its?industry?rivals. Its direct cost (C1) is 57% more than those of major international mining companies, and 72% more than the main operations in Australia. The report stated that "the main competitive gap identified through the comparison is concentrated on operational costs which remain significantly higher than international and national benchmarks." The analysis also revealed that the company’s net debt to EBITDA ratio is 3.8x compared to the global mining industry’s 0.7x and the Chilean mining industry’s 0.5x. The report showed...

Brazil will 'unveil its National Mining Plan 2050' on Thursday. The Mines and Energy Ministry said that the plan aims to increase Brazil's share of global production of?critical minerals? to 12.2% in 2050, up from its current 8.3%. The draft plan will be submitted to the National Mining Policy Council, but it does not require its approval. Brazil will also reduce its dependence on imported phosphate and potassium fertilizers to 34.9%, from 87.3%. The government intends to publish an action plan more detailed within 180 days that will outline the measures to be taken over the next 4 years to...