South-East Asia

Officials from the South Korean government announced on Wednesday that ten petrochemical firms have agreed to restructure operations and reduce their capacity to crack naphtha. The South Korean government is putting pressure on the petrochemical industry, which it claims is "in crisis", to accelerate restructuring in order to increase efficiency and boost margins. At a meeting with the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung Kwan, executives from the companies signed a restructuring agreement that was industry-wide. According to the industry ministry, companies have agreed that they will reduce their annual capacity for naphtha cracking by between 2.7 and...

The Australian government announced on Tuesday that it would provide A$135 (US$87.4M) in financial assistance to two smelters in Australia's southern region owned by Nyrstar. Nyrstar is a subsidiary of commodity trader Trafigura. Trafigura placed its Port Pirie lead-smelting operations, in South Australia, and its zinc processing operation in Hobart in Tasmania under strategic review in early this year after high energy costs and lower processing fees rendered the businesses unprofitable. Nyrstar, as part of its review, assessed the potential of producing antimony, a critical mineral, at its Port Pirie facility, but it would require government assistance to do so....

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....

These are the most popular stories from the New York Times' business pages. These stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch for the accuracy of these reports. After an extended year of negotiations, marked by dramatic turns and twists, Alimentation Couche-Tard announced that it would abandon its multi-billion-dollar bid to purchase the owner of 7-Eleven convenient stores. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto confirmed Wednesday that the general outline of a new trade agreement between the United States and Indonesia was agreed. Under the agreement, U.S. goods exported to Indonesia will not be subjected to tariffs while Indonesian products in...

Trafigura, a global commodity trader, said that its UK-based Greenergy biofuel producer will consult with employees about closing the biodiesel factory in Immingham. A spokesperson said that the consultation process will affect 60 jobs. This would be the latest blow to Britain's fuel sector, just a week after Lindsey's oil refinery owner Prax declared insolvency and put 420 jobs on the line. Greenergy closed down the plant at the end May and placed it in strategic review, citing the "unsupportive market conditions" despite having "implemented significant cost-reduction measures". The plant was negatively affected by the company Trafigura acquired last year....

The Thai Finance Minister announced on Monday that Thailand had submitted a new proposal to the United States. It offered to reduce tariffs to zero for many U.S. imported products in an effort to avoid steep tariff increases on its own goods. Washington has threatened to levy a 36% tax on Thai imports, if no agreement is reached before July 9th when the 90-day period that caps tariffs at 10% for most countries expires. Last year, the United States was Thailand's largest export market, accounting for 18.3%, or $54,96 billion, in total. Washington claims that its trade deficit with Thailand...

Oliver Tan, the Chief Executive Officer of Citicore Renewable Energy Corp in the Philippines, said in an interview with The Philippine Star on Wednesday that he expects to see a nearly ninefold increase in solar installed capacity by 2026. This will amount to approximately 2,56 gigawatts. Tan, one of the Philippines’ largest solar power producers, behind ACEN Corp., said that Citicore would add 1 GW by the end this year and another 1.17 GW by 2026. The company has 0.29 GW installed solar capacity. This is the result of a 20% stake purchased by the renewable energy division of Indonesian...

The Ministry of Industry and Trade announced on Thursday that the Middle East tensions are not affecting the refineries in Vietnam at this time. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Vietnam will import 5.1 millions tons of refined petroleum in the second half this year. This is an increase of 6.2% over the first half. Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical, which operated at 114.4% capacity during the first half of 2014, mainly uses crude oil from Africa and domestic sources. The 130,000-barrel-per-day refinery is expected to operate at 14% to 15% above designed capacity for the rest of the...

The Russian government signed an agreement on Friday with Myanmar that could provide new opportunities to Russian energy companies operating in the country. After signing the agreement with Kan Zaw (Minister of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations of Myanmar), the Myanmar Minister of Foreign Economic Relations and the Economy, Maxim Reshetnikov, said: "We particularly note the Myanmar side's readiness to attract Russian companies for the development of offshore gas and oil fields." The deal will help speed up projects, including those in Myanmar's Dawei Special Economic Zone where a 660MW coal-fired thermoelectric power plant is under construction. Russia is building...

Hong Kong's chief executive has said that the stock exchange will be attracting listed companies from Southeast Asia and Middle East for second listings, as it looks to improve its global reputation. Bonnie Chan, a spokesperson for Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd. (HKEX), said that the number of mainland China listed companies seeking to list in Hong Kong in order to raise capital in order to fund their global expansions is also increasing. Chan, the first woman CEO of HKEX, said that they are now focusing on companies who have already been listed on other markets, but may have...

According to BlackRock's Thursday investor day presentation, Temasek is part of a consortium backed Microsoft, BlackRock, and the tech investment company MGX, which aims to expand and invest in artificial intelligence infrastructure. Slides showed that the Singapore state investment firm has joined AI Infrastructure Partnership. This group also includes BlackRock Global Infrastructure Partners. AIP was formed in September, with the goal of investing more than $30 billion initially in AI-related project. It is one of world's biggest efforts to invest data centres and energy infrastructure needed to power AI apps such as ChatGPT. The aim is to mobilize up to...

China, the largest coal importer in the world, reduced its imports by 18% on an annual basis, according to customs data released Friday. Low-cost domestic coal eroded overseas purchases, while renewables slowed down coal-fired electricity generation. According to the General Administration of Customs, imports were 36.04 millions metric tons for the month, down from 43.82million tons in May 2024. This was the third consecutive month that China's imports of coal fell year-over-year. They had increased previously every month from November 2022. January and February were excluded because they are affected by Lunar New Year holidays. The data shows that coal...

James Hardie, a fiber cement manufacturer, forecast underlying earnings for the full year below expectations on Wednesday as rising borrowing costs and tariffs in the U.S. dampened housing market activity and demand. James Hardie predicted adjusted operating earnings of between $1.05 and $1.15 for fiscal year 2026. This is below Visible Alpha's consensus estimate of $1.23. It earned $1.1billion in fiscal 2025. In a press release, CEO Aaron Erter stated that "over the course of the summer the single-family construction activity was weaker than expected and we have adjusted expectations to account for the softer demand." Homeowners defer large-ticket remodeling...

Japanese steel lobby groups have demanded early measures to stop the evasion and avoidance of anti-dumping duties aimed at protecting the domestic industry from unfair imports. This move coincides with record steel exports by China, the largest producer in the world, which have sparked protectionist reactions around the globe. Since January of last year, almost 40 countries have launched anti-dumping investigations. The Japan Iron and Steel Federation and other four industry groups have said that swift action is required as countries like China try to avoid antidumping tariffs by routing their exports through a third country or performing minimal processing...

Bangladesh closes clay brick kilns for environmental protection Concrete blocks, for example, are in high demand. Cost of upgrading to advanced kilns or blocks Tahmid Zami Tahmid Zami Industry insiders claim that the government is closing polluting kilns to clean up the air and achieve environmental goals. However, adoption of cleaner alternatives has been lagging behind. Other Asian countries, such as China and Vietnam, are increasingly adopting cleaner alternatives, including automated, energy-efficient brickmaking technology or production of concrete blocks. According to official statistics, the government's environment agency has closed more than 600 kilns. Approximately 3,500 of Bangladesh's 8,080 kilns will...

Data from the General Administration of Customs showed that China's coal imports in July fell by 23% compared to a year ago, due to a limited demand for imports. The imports of coal in July were 35.61 millions metric tons. Although down on the previous year, this was a rebound from June's two-year-low as the hotter weather prompted higher air conditioning demands, which supported electricity consumption. The market will be watching to see if China takes concrete steps in the future to reduce production and curb oversupply at home. The National Energy Administration issued a document on July 20 calling...

The tariffs imposed by Donald Trump since his inauguration on January 20, 2017 have sent shockwaves through financial markets, and uncertainty has spread throughout the global economy. This timeline shows the major events: Trump imposes tariffs of 25% on Mexican imports, 10% on Chinese goods and most Canadian imports. He demands that they reduce the flow of illegal immigrants and fentanyl into the U.S. Trump accepts a 30-day suspension of his threat to raise tariffs on Mexico and Canada, in exchange for concessions made on border security and criminal enforcement. The U.S. doesn't reach a similar deal with China. Trump...

The French mining group Eramet announced a sharp drop in its first-half earnings on Wednesday. It warned that macroeconomic conditions would remain difficult throughout the rest of this year. This led to a revision downwards of Eramet's production targets for 2025. Eramet reported adjusted earnings prior to interest, taxes and depreciation (EBITDA), of 191 millions euros ($219.12million) for the first half of this year, a drop of 45% compared to a year ago. Earnings exclude Eramet’s New Caledonian Nickel subsidiary SLN which is supported by French government loans. Eramet's Chief Executive Paulo Castellari said to reporters that "our first-half results...

The top U.S. economic officials and Chinese representatives will resume their talks on Monday in Stockholm to address long-standing economic disputes that are at the heart of a trade conflict between the two largest economies. They hope to extend the truce for three months while preventing tariff increases. China faces an August 12 deadline for a lasting tariff agreement with the Trump administration. Beijing and Washington had reached preliminary agreements in May and early June to end weeks' worth of escalating tariffs, and to stop the cutoff of rare-earth minerals. If there is no agreement, the global supply chain could...

The top U.S. economic officials and Chinese economic officials are scheduled to resume their talks on Monday in Stockholm to address long-standing economic disputes that have been at the heart of the trade war between two of the world's largest economies. They hope to extend the truce for three months while preventing tariffs from rising sharply. China faces a deadline of August 12 to reach a lasting tariff agreement with the administration of President Donald Trump. Beijing and Washington had reached preliminary agreements in May and early June to put an end to weeks of escalating tariffs, including a ban...

Senior U.S.-Chinese negotiators met in Stockholm, Sweden on Monday to address long-standing economic disputes that are at the heart of the trade war between the two countries. They hope to extend a ceasefire to keep tariffs from rising sharply. China faces a deadline of August 12 to reach a durable agreement on tariffs with the administration of President Donald Trump, after Beijing reached a preliminary agreement in June. This was to put an end to weeks' worth of escalating tariffs. If there is no agreement, the global supply chain could be thrown into turmoil by duties of more than 100%....

An Indonesian Minister said that the United States and Indonesia were discussing measures to manage and monitor trade in critical minerals with strategic value from Indonesia. He was giving details about ongoing talks between both countries. Indonesia is among a small group of countries that have reached a deal to reduce U.S. Tariffs before the August 1 deadline. The White House refers to the deal as an agreement regarding the framework for negotiations. It saw the tariff rate on Indonesian goods drop from 32% to just 19%. Airlangga Hartarto, the chief economist of Indonesia's government, told journalists that both sides...

The Indonesian mining ministry has compiled a list with 18 projects totaling $38,6 billion for the development of natural resources in Indonesia. It handed it to Danantara Indonesia, a sovereign wealth fund on Tuesday to be considered for investment. Danantara, launched earlier this year by Indonesian President Prabowo Subito, is his main vehicle for achieving his 8% target of economic growth by 2029. It does so by managing the shares of all state-owned companies and reinvesting dividends into commercial projects. Prabowo's economic agenda includes the development and acceleration Indonesia's processing industries. Energy and Mineral Resources minister Bahlil lahadalia stated that...

BHP Group chose to sell to Lifezone Metals its stake in the $2.5 billion Kabanga Nickel Project in Tanzania for up to $83 million. Lifezone, a company listed on the NYSE, said that it would acquire BHP’s 17% equity stake in Kabanga Nickel Limited. KNL is the majority owner in the Kabanga Nickel Project located in the northwestern part of Tanzania. In a report released by the company on Friday, development costs were estimated at $2.49billion. The project is expected to produce around 50 000 metric tons per year once it has been fully ramped-up, which will take about six...