Switzerland

Trafigura’s top executive for Mongolia has been suspended pending an investigation into a fraud scheme worth billions of dollars at the Swiss trading firm. The executive, however, lent more than $500 million from Trafigura to a company owned by his aunt. Lex Oil is Trafigura’s main counterparty in Mongolia. According to three sources and a document, it belonged to Erdenetuul who is the aunt of Trafigura’s suspended local boss Jononbayar Erdenesuren. Trafigura announced last October it had suffered a loss of $1.1 billion after an internal investigation found that employees within its Mongolian petroleum product supply business had engaged in...

The UK's FTSE 100 ended flat on Wednesday as investors remained cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate decision that would be made later in the day. Energy stocks also helped to keep declines at bay. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index was barely changed while the domestically focused FTSE 250 Index edged up 0.1%. The energy sector led the gains in all sectors, boosted by rising oil prices and hopes for a rise in U.S. demand and a limited ceasefire between Ukraine & Russia. . The Fed's decision to change its policy will be the highlight of a...

Mark Russell will replace Hadi Hallouche as the chief executive officer of Trafigura's downstream energy company Puma Energy. Trafigura, a Swiss company, said that Hallouche would work as co CEO with Russell until June's end. Hallouche, who is the CEO of Puma, has held this position since October 20, 2021. Prior to that, he was Trafigura’s Asia Head of Oil and Global Head of Liquefied Natural Gas. He was previously an LNG trader at Shell. Richard Holtum, who replaced Jeremy Weir in January as Trafigura's group CEO, is the latest Trafigura leader to leave. This was followed by a number...

The United Nations Environment Programme announced on Monday that a new round will be held in Geneva from 5-14 August to negotiate a global treaty on plastics. This follows the failure of countries to reach an agreement on parameters for a final deal in December last year in Busan, South Korea. The final meeting of the U.N. Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee, INC-5 in Busan, was supposed to be the last one. However the countries remained divided on the scope of a global treaty. They could only agree to defer key decisions until the next session which will be called INC 5.2....

Here are the key factors that could affect Swiss stocks Thursday: CLARIANT AG TotalEnergie has been accused of violating the 2020 Competition Law. The company says it denies these allegations. MEYER BURGER TECHNOLOGY AGR The bondholders have approved the changes to the convertible bonds that mature in 2027 or 2029, to inject new capital into business. FEINTOOL HOLDINGS AG The company did not provide any guidance for the year 2025. It cited continued low visibility in Europe. KUDELSKI - The company plans to eliminate 160 jobs as part of its restructuring in 2025. BUSINESS STATEMENTS SULZER AG: The company reported...

On Thursday, a top Swiss court found that a former Gunvor employee had corrupted officials in the Republic of Congo for oil contracts. This is the first time that a corruption case in Switzerland's commodities trading industry, worth $80 billion, has been brought to court. This follows the conviction of Trafigura, a rival trading firm, and a former executive in a corruption case involving Angolan Oil Deals last month. The Swiss Federal Criminal Court released a statement on Thursday that the ruling concerned bribes worth over $35 million, intended at least in part for Congolese officials, over an 18-month period...

The European price of liquefied gas (LNG), currently trading at a premium compared to Asia, is reaching levels which will begin to hurt demand, said the CEO of global energy and commodities firm Vitol on Wednesday. "Europe is attracting more LNG, and the European price now exceeds the Asian price." Russell Hardy, speaking at the India Energy Week in New Delhi, said that it is usually the other way around. The higher European prices and lower temperatures have led to a greater demand for LNG in the region. Hardy stated that Europe will have sufficient gas to replenish its gas...

The oil prices were little altered on Wednesday, after volatile trading the previous session. Investors shrugged off China's tariffs against U.S. imports of energy. President Donald Trump's renewed efforts to eliminate Iranian crude exported provided some support. Brent crude futures fell 18 cents or 0.24% to $76.02 per barrel at 0210 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI), a crude oil produced in the United States, lost 9 cents or 0.12% to $72.61 Oil traded across a range on Tuesday, with WTI dropping at one point to its lowest level since December 31, after China announced tariffs against U.S. imports for...

These are the most popular stories from the Financial Times. These stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch for the accuracy of these reports. Headlines – Starmer urges EU leaders to re-engage the UK at their meeting. – Thames Water faces new opposition to its emergency fundraising plan. – Anglo American Chief warns Trump tariffs to push up mining costs for years. Activist Elliott bought stakes in Smiths Group before announcement of breakup. – UK plans possible retaliation should Trump impose tariffs on British products. ­– Swiss watchdog begins enforcement action against Julius Baer. Overview - British PM...

The Financial Times reported that the global oil demand will remain stable until at least 2040. The report cited the long-term outlook of the company, which was seen by the newspaper. Vitol didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment. In the report, the company stated that despite efforts made to reduce carbon emissions through the transition to cleaner fuels by switching to cleaner fuels and growing populations, oil demand would continue to grow. The report stated that Vitol, which is the largest independent oil trader in the world, expects the global oil demand to drop by 4.5 millions bpd...

Oil markets sank on Friday, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump pushed OPEC and its de facto leader Saudi Arabia to reduce rates in a broad push to increase unrefined production. Brent unrefined futures were down 50 cents at $77.95 a. barrel by 0044 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI). shed 31 cents to $74.31. Trump, throughout his speech on Thursday at the World Economic. Forum in Davos, Switzerland, stated he would demand the. Company of the Petroleum Exporting Countries lower the. cost of crude barrels. Trump also stated he would ask Riyadh to increase a U.S. financial...

Jan 23 - U.S. President Donald Trump will speak remotely at the World Economic Online Forum on Thursday in Davos, Switzerland, and hold a discussion with magnate including Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan and Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman. The remarks, Trump's first significant speech to worldwide company and politicians, are scheduled for 11 a.m. Eastern time ( 1600 GMT), according to the meeting schedule. Other participants in what is billed as a subsequent discussion consist of TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne, WEF CEO Borge Brende and WEF creator Klaus Schwab. Magnate aspire to hear more about Trump's. concrete intend...

The erratic policies of U.S. president Donald Trump have given Europe a sudden spur to action. However, any "Europhoria," about the chances for a lasting revival in this region is probably premature. Germany's plans for hundreds of billions in defence and infrastructure spending is perhaps the best example of how Germany has responded to Trump's tariff threats and questions about America's future role as a security force in Europe. The growth forecasts for the Eurozone economy have also been revised upwards. Investors are abandoning U.S. stock for the long-neglected European stocks as the euro has increased. While some analyst notes...

Investors remained cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate decision scheduled for later that day. The blue-chip FTSE 100 dropped 0.2% at 7.40 GMT. Compass Group was among the biggest losers in the blue-chip index. Its shares dropped 4%, after Exane BNP Paribas lowered the stock's rating from "outperform" to "underperform." Metal miners are weakening, with Fresnillo down 2%. Glencore dropped 1.5%, while Anglo American fell 1.3%. This was after HSBC lowered price targets for both mining companies. The Federal Reserve's decision to change its policy is the highlight of a week that has been packed with meetings...

Ferrexpo, a miner with a focus on Ukraine, announced a loss of $2 million due to an impairment charge. It also said that it had sent a formal warning to Ukraine regarding its efforts to nationalise Poltava Mining and Processing Plant, the company's biggest mine. Shares of the company fell as much as 14.8 percent. Since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine War in February 2022, they have dropped by 67%. The company reported a loss of $50 million for 2024, due to an impairment charge of $72 million caused by a decrease in the carrying value and cash flow. Ferrexpo...

Holcim announced better-than expected earnings for its fourth-quarter on Friday, as the building materials firm gave more details about its plan to spin-off its North American operation. Holcim's recurring operating profit rose 4.4%, to 1.17 billion Swiss Francs ($1.30billion), exceeding analyst consensus estimates of 1.14 billion Swiss Francs. Sales of 6.47 billion Swiss francs by the cement manufacturer in the three-month period ending December were down 1.9% compared to a year ago. This was in line with expectations of 6.45 billion francs. Holcim said on Friday that it has filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission about its...

The Botswana government signed on Tuesday a long delayed diamonds sales contract with Anglo American's De Beers unit, expressing the hope that it will create jobs in an economy which is struggling. The negotiations began in 2018. The two sides agreed on terms in 2023, under the previous Botswana president. However, they never signed a formal agreement. The new president Duma Boko, who came to power in October last year, made the signing of the De Beers deal a top priority. The deal is crucial to Botswana, as its economy is heavily dependent on diamond exports. "We are confident that...

Former Glencore executives and Lundin executives set up a mining shell company in order to buy gold, silver, and copper assets across the Americas. The aim is to tap into estimated $15 billion of capital available held by private equity firms. Matthew Rowlinson was the head of copper business at Glencore and Kololian is a former chief financial officer for Toronto-listed Lundin Gold. Together, they have set up Moranda Metals. The potential for shortages of minerals, which are seen as essential for the energy transformation, has been exacerbated by years of underinvestment. Kololian said, "We are sat with high commodity...

The European share market reached a new high on Tuesday, as defence stocks rose on the prospect of higher military spending in the area. However, a Capgemini led drop in IT shares capped the gains. The STOXX 600 pan-European index rose by 0.2%, to a new record of 555.42. The aerospace and defense index jumped 1%. After European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the Commission would propose an exemption for defense spending from EU budget limits, the sector grew by 4.6% Monday. This is its largest one-day increase since Russia invaded Ukraine, in February 2022. Defense stocks...

Industry officials reported that gold leasing rates in India had doubled to a new record within a single month, after the rates on the overseas market jumped because of a shortage as banks from around the world diverted the precious metals to the United States. The second largest gold consumer in the world, Kalyan, is experiencing higher jewellery production costs. This could affect jewellers like Titan, Kalyan, and Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri. Shekhar Bhahandari, President and Business Head of Kotak Mahindra Bank, said that gold leasing rates have doubled over the past month. They could continue to rise, he added. He...

The UK's FTSE 100 rose on Wednesday, after two consecutive days of declines, boosted by gains made in the shares of gold and heavyweight GSK. Investors are now focused on this week's Bank of England rate decision. The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed 0.6% higher while the mid-cap FTSE 250, which is focused on domestic companies, rose 0.5%. GSK's share price jumped 7.6% following the launch of a 2-billion-pound ($2.5-billion) share buyback program and a boost in its long term sales target to almost $50 billion. Gold prices reached another record high, and precious metals miners surged by 3.6%. Fresnillo climbed...

Gold is being flown into the United States by global bullion banks from Asian trading hubs, such as Dubai and Hong Kong. They are doing this to take advantage of the high premium on U.S. futures gold prices over the spot price. Gold is traditionally transported eastward by bullion banks from the West in order to satisfy the demand of China and India. These two countries are the largest consumers worldwide, representing almost half the global consumption. In recent months, the fear of U.S. tariffs on imports by President Donald Trump drove Comex futures prices above spot prices. This created...

The deadline for President Donald Trump to impose tariffs is fast approaching, while the U.S. releases data on jobs and the markets gauge the new AI landscape before major tech companies report. Bank of England is deciding on interest rates, and lenders across Europe are also publishing their results. Kevin Buckland, Saqib Ahmad, Lewis Krauskopf, and Amanda Cooper, in London, provide a guide to global markets for the coming week. 1/T DAY Everyone wants to know the severity of Trump's tariffs. From currency traders and bond investors to Fed officials and other foreign powers. Trump's promise to impose 25% tariffs...

Japanese companies stay bullish about investing in the United States however require to prepare for supply chain shocks that might occur during Donald Trump's presidency, the president of drinks huge Suntory Holdings said on Wednesday. Takeshi Niinami, who also heads among Japan's biggest company lobbies, said on the sidelines of the World Economic Online forum's (WEF) Davos conference that it is important for companies to show that their investments will produce tasks in the U.S. A study recently revealed that most Japanese companies running in the United States are bracing for brand-new tariffs. Tariff imposing by the Trump administration would...