United States

Energy Secretary Chris Wright of the United States said that after arriving in Venezuela on Tuesday, the oil companies in the U.S. as well as?other countries will sign deals in Caracas tomorrow that will result in a more-than-doubling in crude production over the next few year. Wright is in Venezuela for a day-long visit, his second trip since U.S. troops seized Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro's office in January. Venezuelan oil production peaked at over 3 million barrels a day in the late 90s, but then plummeted due to a lack investment, poor management and U.S. sanction. In recent months, it...

Chris Wright, the U.S. Energy Secretary, said that after arriving in Venezuela on Tuesday that the 'deals' that oil companies from the U.S. The oil companies from the United States and other countries will sign deals in Caracas tomorrow that will result in a more-than-doubling of crude oil production over the next few decades. Wright is on a one day trip to Venezuela, the founding OPEC member. This is his second visit since U.S. troops seized Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro as leader in January. Venezuelan oil production peaked at over 3?million barrels a day in the late 1990s, but then?plummeted due...

Nvidia may be synonymous with AI, but a group of lesser-known power and cooling equipment providers is also cashing in on the global data center construction boom as developers rush to avoid infrastructure bottlenecks. The energy-hungry data centers have created a surge of demand for equipment from transformers to advanced cooling systems. This has created winners throughout Asia's supply chains, though earlier stock price gains have moderated. McKinsey predicts that data centres will be worth $7 trillion by 2030. Nvidia said last week it expected AI spending to continue for many years. It is getting harder to build data centres...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated on Tuesday that the United States will likely announce sanctions against a bank in this week as part of its economic campaign against Iran. "We will probably announce a sanction against a bank this week and another the following week." Bessent stated that he was speaking with our allies in the area, who had all expressed their support. The treasury secretary said that the United States was targeting airline leasing companies and other entities who did business with the Islamic?Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) at an event held on the sidelines of a meeting of 20...

The music publishing divisions of Sony Music 'and 'Warner Music sued Anthropic at the federal court in California for allegedly using their copyrighted compositions as a basis to train Claude AI models. Sony and Warner stated in their complaint filed on Friday that Anthropic had pirated hundreds song lyrics and sheet songs from The Beatles to Taylor Swift to Michael Jackson to train Claude to respond to human prompts. This lawsuit is part of a series of similar cases filed by copyright holders, including publishers, authors, music labels, and news outlets, against tech companies for using their work in AI...

Japan's crude oil imports increased by 17% from the previous year in July, as a result of a surge in U.S. Official data released on Monday showed that?shipments, a resurgence in Saudi Arabian purchases and lower supplies from Middle Eastern producers were offset by a rise in?supplies. The Ministry of Trade, Economy and Industry reported that imports increased to 2,38 million barrels a day (11.72 millions kilolitres) for the second consecutive month despite disruptions caused by the U.S./Israeli war against Iran. Imports to?the Middle East dropped 21.4% from July. The United Arab Emirates, Japan's two largest suppliers, and Saudi Arabia...

Donald Trump has accused U.S. refiners of ripping off Americans. He also called for an investigation by the Justice Department and encouraged companies to use their profits to'reduce gasoline prices, which spiked during the conflict with Iran. He is expected to welcome many of these companies to the White House on Tuesday to celebrate their efforts to maintain a well-supplied market in an effort to manage gasoline prices, which currently average over $4 per gallon. Executives have had to make an unusual calculation because of the timing. According to those familiar with the plans and the timing, companies received the...

SK On, a South Korean battery manufacturer, announced on 'Monday that it had signed a contract to supply U.S. -based NeoVolta Power 9 Gigawatt Hours (GWh), of lithium iron phosphate?battery cells. These will be used in energy storage systems over a five-year period starting 2027. In a press release, SK On said that the pouch-type cells would be manufactured at its factory in Georgia. SK On has not disclosed the value of the deal but industry estimates place it at approximately 1.5 trillion won ($1.09billion). SK On has entered into an agreement to expand its energy storage systems business in...

The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday that the U.S. Government plans to acquire a 35% passive stake in North American Blue Energy Partners of Venezuelan businessman Alejandro Betancourt, citing "people" involved in the negotiations. The WSJ reported that the U.S. plans to also secure preferential rights for the purchase of 20% of the production costs at the company. The Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital intends to?structure the investment through penny-warrants that would give the U.S. a?equity ownership in the business? without significant capital investments, according to the WSJ. The report was released just a day after U.S. president Donald...

Sources with knowledge of the negotiations said that Trump administration officials were working on a deal to secure long-term?access to a part?of Venezuela’s crude reserves. This could lower the price of crude imports. Sources said that the agreement, which may be signed soon and made public, will allow the U.S. to lock in a grouping of Venezuelan oilfields that are to be developed by American firms. They added that the U.S. would receive a guaranteed supply. One source said, "This is a real issue and it's being discussed at the highest level of the U.S. government and Venezuelan government." Separately,...

People familiar with the situation said that President Donald 'Trump' is expected to meet next week with U.S. fuel retailers and refiners to discuss efforts to reduce?gasoline costs. His administration is attempting to relieve the pressure on consumers from the Iran War ahead of the midterm elections in November. Trump and his Republican colleagues are facing a high political stakes as they try to protect their narrow majority in Congress. Trump's promise to lower the cost of living in 2024 is under threat as a result of higher gasoline prices and an unpopular war with Iran. Trump's approval ratings have...

The Kremlin reported on Wednesday that U.S. CIA Director John Ratcliffe met with Russian intelligence officials but did not meet Vladimir Putin during a trip to Moscow, which U.S. president Donald Trump referred to as "semi routine." Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson, told reporters that Putin was briefed about the outcome of the visit on Tuesday. The visit came at a time when the war in Ukraine is dragging on and efforts to achieve a lasting peace with the United States and Iran are stalled. Peskov refused to reveal what was discussed or provide further details. "All I can say is...

A record low smelter treatment term, a year of underperformance by mines and a scramble to get metal at the London Metal Exchange. If you think this is the description of the copper markets, then think again. Zinc is under pressure now, even though copper may face a structural shortage in the future. LME zinc for three months hit a four-year-high of $3,990 per ton on Monday. LME stocks have remained low throughout the year. The registered inventory is 100,525?tons but nearly a third are in the form?cancelled warrants? awaiting physical loading-out. The time-spreads will be emphasized in a similar...

The Serious Fraud Office of Britain has settled with a Kazakh mining company ENRC that accused the agency and law firm Dechert for causing them huge losses during an important criminal investigation. The settlement announced on Wednesday by ENRC and Dechert appears to bring to an end the more than 10 year legal saga that began when the SFO began investigating allegations of bribery committed by ENRC between 2009-2012 to secure mining contracts for the Democratic Republic of Congo, which the company denies. The London High Court previously ruled that the SFO wouldn't have opened an investigation into the alleged...

Four sources said that the top?global aluminum producers offered Japanese buyers a premium of $310-$325 per metric tonne for primary metal shipments in October and December, down by 18%-22% on the current quarter. Japan is the largest importer of light metals, and the premiums it agrees to each quarter for primary metal shipments over the London Metal Exchange cash price are the benchmarks in the region. Japanese buyers had agreed to pay a premium of $395 per ton for the period July-September The increase was between 12% and 13% compared to the previous quarter. A source from a Japanese trading...

Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, told reporters that the U.S. must be serious and stop trying to be hard before negotiations on a potential trade agreement with Canada can resume. Canada withdrew from an agreement on August 21 to avoid additional U.S. Tariffs, saying that the American side made inacceptable last-minute requests. Since then, U.S. president Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that Canada has been ripping off the U.S., called Canada's leaders "the worst" that he has ever dealt with, and renamed Lake Ontario Lake America. He also posted a meme created by AI showing Canadian geese sporting Trump's...

Sibanye-Stillwater announced on Tuesday that its Australian copper project has been?approved'. This comes after the company reported a rise in profit for the first half of this year due to higher prices for gold and platinum group (PGM). Johannesburg-based miner, Johannesburg-based miner, said that the Mt Lyell Copper-Gold Project execution will commence in the first six months of 2027 with the first production expected to begin in early 2029. Mt.?Lyell is Sibanye's first experience in copper mining. It is estimated that the annual output of copper will be?26,000 tons by 2032. Sibanye said that the total cost of this project...

U.S. Construction spending fell unexpectedly in July. It reached the lowest level in almost three years, as mortgage rates increased. Census Bureau of the Commerce Department?said Tuesday that construction spending dropped by 0.5%, to $2.158 trillion. This is the lowest level since October 20, 2023. The June data was revised to reflect that construction spending remained unchanged, not falling 0.1% as reported previously. The economists surveyed by predicted that construction spending in July would remain unchanged. In July, construction spending fell 3.8% year-over-year. Private construction spending fell 0.5% in July after falling?0.1% a month earlier. Residential construction investment fell by...

Two U.S. officials said on Monday that the U.S. company North American Blue Energy Partners would take over oilfields controlled by several Chinese firms and a Russian firm. They said that the 'takeover' will be part of an oil production agreement President Donald Trump has announced with Venezuela. According to officials, the projects were part of 14 new contracts awarded to U.S.-backed North American Blue Energy Partners. NABEP, owned by U.S. oil magnate Harry Sargeant, is now controlled and managed by Venezuelan Alejandro Betancourt. Last week, Trump said that the U.S. has secured access to 64 billion barrels (or a...

Two?sources who are familiar with the situation said that the head of China Iron Ore at Radiant World is leaving the company. The trading 'company' has been under scrutiny and many counterparties have stopped doing business with it. Sources said that Leon Jin was on his last day of work at the trading house, Monday. According to 'his LinkedIn profile', he joined Radiant World after spending more than 10 year with Trafigura. The sources requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak with media. Some banks have frozen accounts of 'Radiant World,' and some trading houses have cut ties...

EGC, the state-backed cobalt buyer in Congo, is looking to increase the market for traceable cobalt. This includes establishing closer ties with electric vehicle battery manufacturers. Congo is the largest producer of cobalt in the world, and small-scale suppliers are responsible for 15% to 25%. The government is stepping up its efforts to formalise this sector by introducing export quotas, and tightening oversight. Cobalt is a critical metal for the energy transition. Since Congo implemented the system in October last year, Entreprise Generale du Cobalt, established to channel artisanal supply chains into formal supply, has shipped 100 percent of its...

A senior executive at Congo's EGC, the state-backed cobalt buyer, said that it was aiming to expand the market of traceable artisanal artisanal. This includes e-car battery manufacturers. Congo is the largest producer of cobalt in the world, and small-scale suppliers are responsible for 15% to 25%. The government is stepping up its efforts to formalise this sector by introducing export quotas, and tightening oversight. Cobalt is a critical metal for the energy transition. Since Congo introduced the system in October last year, Entreprise 'Generale du Cobalt, established to channel artisanal supply chains into formal supply, has shipped 100 percent...

Gold prices fell on Friday as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's remarks later that day at the Jackson Hole symposium to gauge the direction of the central bank's money policy. By 1203 GMT, spot gold had fallen 0.1% to $4,594.61 an ounce. The price of gold reached a three-month-high of $4,696.18 after the U.S. Treasury announced support measures for bonds with long-term maturities. U.S. Gold Futures fell?0.4% to $4,647.20. Kyle Rodda is a senior financial market analyst at Capital.com. He said, "I believe price action has been fairly constructive in recent months, and we are not seeing much...

The gold price rose on Friday, as investors awaited the remarks of Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh at the 'Jackson Hole Symposium' later that day. This will help gauge the direction the central bank is taking with its monetary policy. By 1032 GMT, spot gold had risen 0.1% to $4,606.73 an ounce. The price of gold reached a three-month-high of $4,696.18 after the U.S. Treasury announced support measures for bonds with long-term maturities. U.S. Gold Futures?were barely changed at $4.660.10. Kyle Rodda is a senior financial market analyst with Capital.com. He said, "I believe price action has been fairly constructive...