Thailand

Three industry sources familiar with the matter have confirmed that India's GAIL, the state-owned gas company in India, is in the initial stages of talks to purchase liquefied gas from the proposed Alaskan LNG project. This comes as South Asia expands its capacity for imports. The discussions with Glenfarne developer come at a time when India is working to increase its energy imports to the United States in order to narrow its surplus trade as part of an broader trade deal with Washington, to avoid the impositions of heavy U.S. Tariffs. The sources stated that GAIL's talks are preliminary, as...

India has allocated record volumes of rice for ethanol production, as it battles with unprecedented inventories. These are expected to grow further when the new crop arrives. This is a turnaround from the earlier shortages which led to export restrictions. The conversion of more rice into ethanol helps reduce the rice stock in the world’s largest producer and exporter. It also keeps India’s ambitious ethanol blend programme on track, despite the drop in sugar cane supplies. India lifted the last of two years' worth of export restrictions in March. The poor rains had curtailed rice production. The abundant monsoon rainfall...

Two sources familiar with the matter have confirmed that Japan's Itochu has withdrawn from a proposed buyout of Seven & i Holdings by the founding family. Seven & i founders Ito family started talks with the Canadian company Alimentation Couche-Tard to privatize the company for a reported $58 billion. Nikkei reported on Wednesday morning that Itochu decided to not participate in the purchase. Nikkei reported that Itochu considered investing 1 trillion yen (6.69 billion dollars) but saw little synergy between its food and beverages business and Seven & i. Seven & i & Itochu declined comment. Itochu's decision not to...

India has raised the fundamental import tax on crude and fine-tuned edible oils by 20 portion points, the government stated on Friday, as the world's greatest edible oil importer attempts to assist secure farmers reeling from lower oilseed prices The move could lift edible oil prices and dampen need and consequently decrease abroad purchases of palm oil, soyoil and sunflower oil. After the duty walking announcement, Chicago Board of Trade soyoil extended losses and fell more than 2%. New Delhi on Friday imposed a 20% fundamental customs task on crude palm oil, crude soyoil and unrefined sunflower oil from Sept....

Severe temperature levels throughout Asia are driving up melted gas (LNG) demand in the region as importers look for freights ahead of summertime, with imports in South Asia hitting records. This could tighten readily available supply and additional lift Asian spot prices that have currently gotten a third considering that April, with heatwaves across South and Southeast Asia boosting air-conditioner use and other cooling demand. Costs are now at a near six-month peak above $12 per million British thermal systems (mmBtu) and are anticipated to stay raised. Spot prices are now driven by Asian demand. Temperature levels in South Asia...

Allegro, a Polish ecommerce company, announced on Wednesday that it has agreed to sell its operations in Slovenia and Croatia?to Mutares of Germany. Allegro is aiming to simplify?its global footprint. Allegro claimed that the sale was the last step to turning around Mall Group. The group bought the company in 2022 as a first move beyond its home market Poland. Allegro expanded its presence in Central Europe with the deal, but so far international operations have weighed on its profitability. Allegro announced in March that it would pause the rollout of its third-party market in other countries until it increased...

Nippon Steel, Japan’s largest steelmaker, said that it expects to increase its global crude steel production to 100 million tons per year by the mid-2030s, from 82 millions metric tonnes now. It plans to invest-driven expansion in key growth markets. Nippon Steel, which is a Japanese company, closed a deal in June to purchase U.S. Steel for $15 billion. It also pledged to make an initial investment of $11 billion, with the possibility of increasing it later. The goal was to increase its presence on the U.S. steel market, given the 'weak demand for steel in Japan. Nippon Steel has...

Residents of Aceh Tamiang in Indonesia climbed over slippery logs on Saturday and walked about an hour to receive aid as the death toll grew to more than 900 from the floods and land slides that struck Sumatra this month. On Saturday, 916 people were confirmed dead as a direct result of the floods and landslides caused by cyclones in three Indonesian provinces, including Aceh. 274 are still missing, according to government data. About 200 people were also killed by the storm systems in southern Thailand and Malaysia. They said that survivors in the Aceh Tamiang area, located on the...

An executive at Nippon Steel said that the company sees U.S. Steel's weak performance as temporary, and is committed to investing an additional $11 billion in order to increase its profit contribution by 2028 to approximately 250 billion yen (1.6 billion dollars). After an 18-month battle to gain approval from the U.S. Government, Japan's largest steelmaker completed its $14.9 billion purchase of U.S. Steel by June. It increased its net loss projection for the year ending March 31, from 40 billion to 60 billion, after cutting its expected profit contribution of the unit from 80 billion to zero. Takahiro Muri,...

Thailand's central banks is preparing measures to reduce the upward pressure of the baht. This includes tightening controls by banks on gold-related transactions in foreign exchange and requiring gold traders to provide their transaction data. The baht is Asia's second best performing currency, having gained 7% in value against the dollar this year. The appreciation of the baht is a threat to Thailand's export and tourism industries. In a recent statement, the Bank of Thailand said that it closely monitors the baht's volatility and will take action to minimize the impact of any fluctuations on businesses. The BOT will propose...

Nippon Steel is Japan's largest steelmaker. It expects to report an annual profit drop of 14% before one-offs in the current fiscal year. However, it did not include its outlook for U.S. Steel due to the significant challenges on the U.S. Market. The Japanese steelmaker is expecting a underlying business gain, or profit adjusted to remove one-offs of 680 billion dollars for the fiscal year ending March. This is down from last year's 793.7 billion dollars. Nippon Steel acquired U.S. Steel for $15 billion in June. The company said that it had excluded the U.S. Steel business from its fiscal...

Lithium Argentina’s Cauchari-Olaroz Project in northern Argentina aims to produce 85,000 tons of battery metal per year by 2029. This is more than triple the output last year, according to Executive Vice President Ignacio Celorrio. This is one of six projects in Argentina that produce lithium, which is used to make batteries for electric cars. Lithium Argentina (listed in Canada and the U.S.) and Ganfeng Lithium, a Chinese company, are developing Cauchari-Olaroz in the Lithium Triangle, which spans Argentina and Chile, as well as Bolivia. Celorrio, speaking on the sidelines a lithium-related conference in Buenos Aires on Tuesday, said that...

U.S. Copper Futures soared by nearly 6% Monday, increasing their premium over London Prices amid growing speculation about new import tariffs after President Donald Trump’s latest aluminum trade measures. Trump announced on Friday that he would increase the tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to 50%, up from 25%. U.S. Comex Copper Futures rose 5.7% to $4.9175 a pound. This is the highest price since April 3. The benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange rose by 1.1% at $9,597.50 a metric ton as of 0944 GMT. The COMEX premium over the LME, a global benchmark price, has...

The copper price in London rose on Monday due to a weaker currency, but renewed U.S. China trade tensions heightened supply chain concerns, which limited the metal's further rise. As of 0706 GMT, the benchmark three-month price for copper on London Metal Exchange (LME), was up by 0.7% to $9,572 a metric tonne. China's commodities markets were closed Monday due to the Dragon Boat Holiday. As markets assessed potential inflation and growth risks from U.S. president Donald Trump's latest tax policy, the dollar edged down, paring its gains of last week. Trump's announcement on Friday that he would increase import...

Danish jeweller Pandora estimated on Thursday that the total impact of U.S. Tariffs on its company would be around 1.2 billion Danish Crowns ($178.34 millions) per year. This is before any mitigation actions taken by the company. Pandora's shares fell 12% to a low of 15 months on Thursday after U.S. president Donald Trump raised duties on imports of goods from many countries. This included a 37% duty on Thailand where the company has two factories that produce most of its charms bracelets and other jewelry. Pandora's biggest market, the U.S.A., which accounted for 31% in revenue last year, estimated...

The Indonesian Mining Association urged the Government to reconsider its plan to increase royalty rates on mining products, as the miners already struggle with increasing operational costs and tightening cash flow. Indonesia may consider raising the royalties that mining companies pay for commodities such as coal, nickel and copper. Authorities say this is to improve the industry's governance. Hendra Sinadia, Executive Director of the group, said: "An increase in royalty rates will increase the burden on the business community. It can also affect production and investment planning." He said: "We ask that the government reconsider its plan to raise tariffs,...

Thai EV sales may jump by 40% in 2025 President of the association: Production and subsidy conditions are driving EV sales Analysts say that new supply and limited demand may intensify the price war. By Chayut Setboonsarng BANGKOK - Thailand's auto industry is already suffering from a slump in sales and experts say that a price war on EVs could be extended due to a rise in production by Chinese car manufacturers. Suroj Sangsnit is the president of Electric Vehicle Association of Thailand. He said that electric vehicle sales are expected to increase by 40% in Thailand this year. This...