United Kingdom

United Steelworkers of the United States adopted a national agreement regarding pay and benefits on Friday, averting an nationwide strike which could have affected up to 30,000 workers at?26 companies that operate crude oil refineries or petrochemical facilities. The union and the leading U.S. refining company Marathon Petroleum negotiated the agreement on behalf of refiners, chemical producers and other interested parties. Jamal Kheiry, a spokesperson for Marathon, said: "We are happy that Marathon and USW have successfully concluded a model agreement for new collective-bargaining contracts in the U.S. refinery industry." "We are looking forward to the local sites moving ahead...

Shell has chosen PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) ?as its next auditor after a ?tender process, with PwC set ?to replace ?EY from 2027, the oil major said on Friday. The Financial Reporting Council of Britain announced in December that it had launched an investigation into EY’s audit of Shell's financial statements for 2024 due to possible breaches regarding audit partner rotation rules. Shell stated in a regulatory filing from July that EY violated the rules that require accounting firms to change their lead audit partners 'every five or seven years. Shell announced that it would amend the 2023 and 2024 reports, but...

By America Hernandez PARIS, February 5, 2019 - French oil giant?TotalEnergies signed two agreements to supply Airbus with 3.3 terawatt hours of electricity. The companies stated that this amount would cover half the sites’ power needs in the next decade. Germany and Britain are key growth markets for Total. Total is focusing on markets that have deregulated electricity markets, where it can own and build renewable assets and sell directly to clients. The company has a'strategy' that includes owning gas-fired plants and signing supply deals to provide continuous power sourced both from renewables and gas assets. These contracts, which are...

Investors became cautious in anticipation of the U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate announcement, and UK blue-chips index fell on Wednesday. It was weighed down by banks and healthcare companies, as it missed a 'tech-led rally' that had boosted Wall Street's indexes. The FTSE closed down by 0.5% while the domestically focused FTSE 250 ended little changed. Axel Rudolph is a senior financial analyst with IG. He said that there was a shift away from European and U.K. stock to U.S. tech stocks before earnings, which weighed down the FTSE 100. The FTSE 100 is a relatively smaller technology share compared...

The oil prices rose on Wednesday, as supply concerns remained after a winter storm that disrupted U.S. crude exports and production. Middle?East tensions also contributed to the increase. Brent crude futures increased 11 cents or 0.2% to $67.68 per barrel at 0725 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 19 cents or 0.3% to $62.58 per barrel. Both benchmarks rose by about 3% Tuesday. Analysts and traders estimated that the storm had caused the U.S. to lose up to 2,000,000 barrels of oil per day, or 15% of the nation's output, over the weekend. Ship tracking service Vortexa reported that...

On Wednesday, oil prices were mixed. Brent was down slightly while the U.S. contract edged higher. Supply concerns increased after a winter storm disrupted production and stopped Gulf Coast exports at the weekend. Brent crude futures dropped 6 cents or 0.1% to $67.51 a 'barrel' by 0122 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude rose 4 cents or 0.1% to $62.43 a 'barrel. Both benchmarks rose by about 3% Tuesday. Analysts and traders estimate that U.S. oil producers lost as much as 2 million barrels of crude oil per day, or 15%, over the weekend due to the storm straining the?energy...

Vodafone Idea, an Indian telecom operator, reported on Tuesday a smaller fiscal third-quarter profit. This was due to increased data consumption and a higher number of users upgrading their plans to 4G or 5G. The debt-ridden telecom operator's loss after tax narrowed from 66.09bn rupees to 52.86bn rupees in the December 31st quarter, down from 66.09bn rupees one year ago. Vodafone Idea has invested in its 4G/5G infrastructure over the past few years in order to improve service quality and reduce subscriber losses. The average revenue per user (a key industry metric) rose 7.3% on an annual basis to 186...

British prosecutors said that former Nigerian oil minister Diezani Alison Madueke received bribes, including cash, luxury items and the use of high-end property, from those who were interested in oil and gas deals. Alison-Madueke served as Minister for Petroleum Resources between 2010 and 2015. She was the first woman in history to hold either role. The 65-year old is one of the highest-profile former energy officials who will be tried for corruption. He was charged in 2023 with five counts of taking bribes, and also a conspiracy charge. Alison-Madueke denies the charges. Her trial started at London's Southwark Crown Court....

Donald Trump's Greenland trade threat and U-turn may have marked a turning point for "middle power" countries around the world. They now see a much more realistic chance of rebooting globalization, with or without Washington. In this?year the U.S. President has moved from using tariffs as a tool of territorial and militaristic leverage to using them to air longstanding trade grievances. For the first time ever, this strategy was met with retaliation and a credible resistance, which forced a retreat. Europe, Canada, and other economies continue to pursue their own trade liberalisation, even as the U.S. retreats towards protectionism and...

The U.S. economic system is experiencing a productivity boom, and it may even be spreading globally. Artificial intelligence will accelerate the trend of technological leaps that have been a hallmark of U.S. efficiency, flexibility and dynamism. However, there are some early signs that AI's benefits may be spreading. The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), released on Friday, showed that British businesses have started the year off on a good footing. Demand at home and abroad has been robust since April 2024. The pace of job loss has also increased since December. Since late 2024, the sub-indices of employment in Britain's PMI...

India and the European Union have completed negotiations on a long-coveted deal which will be announced Tuesday, said?the South Asian nation’s trade secretary on Monday. Both sides hail this agreement as?historic in light of strained U.S. relations. The agreement paves way for the free exchange of goods between India and the 27 European nations, who together account for a quarter the world's Gross Domestic Product and have a combined market of over 2 billion consumers. "It's a deal that is balanced and forward-looking for better integration of the EU into the economy." "The deal will boost trade and investment between...

The U.S. economic system is experiencing a productivity boom, and it may even be spreading globally. Artificial intelligence (AI) is expected to accelerate these trends. However, there are some early signs that AI's benefits may be spreading. The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), released on Friday, showed that British businesses have started the year off on a high note. Demand at home and abroad has been robust. This is the fastest growth in output since April 2024. The pace of job loss has also increased since December. Since late 2024, the sub-indices of employment in Britain's PMI have been below that...

TechMet, a U.S. investment vehicle backed by the United States, is seeking to raise an additional $200 million to finance vital minerals projects. CEO Brian Menell said on Monday. TechMet, a privately-held company that owns stakes of ten companies, including Brazilian Nickel, South Africa's Rainbow Rare Earths and Qatar Investment Authority, raised $300 million last year, including $180 from the Qatar Investment Authority. TechMet has reopened its fundraising. The company, valued at over $1 billion, focuses on developing businesses along the entire critical minerals value chain. Menell said on the sidelines an African mining conference in Cape Town: "We kept...

The dollar fell on Monday, and copper prices rose. However, weak demand prospects in China, the top industrial metal consumer, along with rising inventories, are expected to challenge the bullish sentiment. The benchmark copper price on the London Metal Exchange was 0.4% higher, at $13,043 per metric ton. Prices have fallen 10% since January 29, when they reached a record high of $14527.50. Funds use numerical models that generate buy and sale signals to determine the effect of a softer U.S. dollar on metals priced in dollars. The market is still dominated, according to traders, by funds and other speculators...

Phoenix Copper Limited, a UK-based company, announced on Monday that it has suspended its executive chairman and finance director with immediate effect as a result of an investigation into allegations regarding their conduct and payments made to a former Corporate Finance Advisor. This sent shares down by as much as 50 percent to a new record low price of 1 pence. The U.S.-based copper miner said on Monday that it was reviewing its funding options, and warned that current cash would only cover obligations until the early'second quarter' of 2026 if additional financing is not provided. Executive Chairman Marcus Edwards-Jones,...

The price of copper rose above $13,000 per ton, ending two days of declines. Investor sentiment also improved as prices became more affordable. Benchmark three-month Copper on the London Metal Exchange was trading 0.8% higher at $13,001 a ton by 1700 GMT. It had earlier fallen as much as 2.9%, to $12,528. Red metal reached a session high of $13,037.50, and was on track to end the week with a loss of 1.2%. It had fallen 10.5% since a record-high price of $14,527.50 set on January 29, 2010. Broker Marex stated in a report that a merchant bid on copper...

Australian Rio Tinto shareholders have welcomed the decision of the mining giant to end merger discussions with Glencore. They said that now it is up to the company's new strategy, which they had placed so much emphasis on. The proposed merger, first announced in January, was intended to create the largest mining company with a value of more than $200 billion. Rio announced on Thursday that the two companies were unable to reach a deal which would have provided shareholders with enough value. Rio's investors feared that the miner could overpay Glencore to make a deal. Sources said that Glencore...

The price of copper fell again on Thursday as rising stocks and a stronger dollar weighed down the prices. As of 1731 GMT, the benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange was down 1% to $12,917.50 a metric ton. Copper fell by as much as 2 percent to $12,783 earlier this week. Industrial metals also joined the broader sell-off across all asset classes. Silver, for example, lost around 13% due to a stronger dollar and an easing of U.S. China trade tensions. Dollar-denominated commodities become more expensive to holders of currencies other than the dollar. LME copper stocks...

The prices of commodities such as crude oil, silver, and gold, all fell on Thursday after the leaders of China, the United States, and Iran spoke by phone. Investors reduced their positions due to a stronger dollar in which commodities are priced. Silver fell almost 15%, while gold, crude and copper dropped about 2%. Tony Sycamore is an analyst at broker IG. He said, "We have seen extreme volatility this week in precious metals, other commodities, and we are now experiencing some aftershocks." He added that "talks between Iran and United States seem to be on track again, which has...

The copper price fell on Wednesday as traders downplayed Chinese plans to increase strategic reserves. This was due to a stronger dollar, and a rise in metal availability at the?exchange. Benchmark three-month Copper on the London Metal Exchange fell 3% to $13,065.50 per metric tonne by 1700 GMT. It was just above the 21 day moving average which provides technical support at $13,048. Since speculators began buying gold and silver in greater quantities, copper has dropped 10%. This is despite analysts warnings about weak demand, increasing stockpiles, and the possibility of higher supplies. Anant Jatia, an investment manager who specialises...

Tianqi Lithium Corp announced on Wednesday that it would raise approximately HK$5,86 billion ($750m)?via a convertible bond and share placement, and hoped to sell a?small stake?in Chilean'miner SQM?to bolster liquidity. The Chinese lithium producer listed on the Shenzhen-Hong Kong stock exchange announced that it had struck a deal with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to issue 65,000,000 new H shares for HK$45.05 per share, or a discount equivalent to 9% of Tuesday's closing HK$49.50. This is worth approximately HK$2.9billion. Tianqi has also entered into a'subscription agreement' for 2.6 billion yuan ($375m) in zero-coupon convertible bonds due February 9, 2027. These...

The copper price fell on Friday due to a stronger dollar, and investors locking in profits after the previous session’s record high. Benchmark three-month Copper on the London Metal Exchange fell?3.3%?to $13,161 per metric ton at 1706 GMT, but held above its moving average of 21 days which provides support for $13,011. The copper price is up by 6% in this month. It has reached a new record high of $14,527.50 as speculators continued their buying spree on Thursday. This drove the LME index of six base-metals contracts to a new'record high. In a recent note, Stonex analyst Natalie Scott...

The firms announced on Thursday that the Aluminium Corporation of China (Chinalco), and Rio Tinto had agreed to purchase a controlling interest in Companhia Brasileira de Aluminio, for a total amount of 4.69 billion Reis ($903.61 millions). The companies said that together they will purchase 68.6% or 446.6 millions shares of Brazilian aluminium manufacturer CBA at a price of 10.50 reais per share. They added that the Brazilian conglomerate Grupo Votrorantim will purchase the controlling stake. Both will launch a tender for the remaining CBA shares, a move that is required by Brazilian regulations and could lead to the removal...

The nickel price has been on a rapid rise as investors bet that Indonesia, which is the world's biggest producer of battery metals, will slow down its explosive output growth. The London Metal Exchange (LME) 3-month metal has risen from a low of $14.235 per metric tonne in mid-December to a peak of $18,905 on January 14, a level last traded in 2022. Indonesia's Energy and Mineral Resources minister Bahlil lahadalia, in mid-December, triggered a nickel resurgence with his?promise? to cut production. An official from the Energy Ministry confirmed that this year, the annual mining permits for ore will be...